David Jaffe's | A Plea To The Game Journalist

Dave Jaffe, one of the minds behind the PS2 game "God of War" recently spoke out against lackluster game journalism, and more specifically, journalists who think they are part of the game industry.

As someone who has been employed by the holy triumvirate of the industry, development, press, and retail (I've managed to avoid publishing thus far), I've always felt that I had a unique perspective. And as such, I'll just say that I've always disliked calling myself a "journalist" (even if I did over the weekend). I'm a writer, and I accept that. I've only done a few truly journalistic pieces in my life, and they were only skirting the fringes of what I'd consider to be true journalism.

Journalism where the game industry is concerned (and I'm going to take some flack for this) is nothing more than an extension of PR and Marketing for the publishers and developers. It's rare that we can dig up an original story that hasn't been hand-delivered to us, mainly because the game industry is so secretive. Why are Nintendo fans so rabid about any news they hear? Because it's rare that Nintendo opens up enough to the press to give them any solid facts.

I have close friends in the game press that have heard me say this on more than one occasion, and really take issue with it, but I'm not entirely convinced that it isn't because the truth stings a bit. We wouldn't have a business unless the publishers were specifically trying to gain exposure for their products. True journalism is near impossible to find, because there is a level of access required that is nearly impossible to get.

Let me give you an example. Whenever a truly groundbreaking news story happens, it's usually because somewhere, someone decided to open up a bit. When I was the first person to venture into Nintendo's North Bend facility and was allowed to take pictures documenting the building, it was due to a rare decision to allow me to do so (I was at the facility doing a completely separate piece of PR work for Nintendo). When the lawsuit against EA for unfair work practices was news, the only hard information on the story was gained by employees who spoke to the press (and probably should have been keeping quiet).

It's not like traditional journalism where when you think there's a story, you can find a way to infiltrate the ranks and create your own level of access. Why? Even if you could get a job in the industry (the barrier to entry is very high), non-disclosure agreements would preclude you from discussing what you saw while you were there. Hell, most game journalists are under an NDA most of the time, until the PR machine decides they want the information out there. Any "breaking news" is usually from a tip from an employee, who are themselves breaking the law, or from a PR person told to leak the story to get buzz rolling.

Jaffe says that he wants game journalism "to be more like music or film journalism of old." When was the last time you heard of a game journalist getting to go "backstage" with a major developer to document the process of making a game, going "on the road" with them, so to speak? In an industry where projects are kept under tight wraps so that the competition doesn't beat them to market, it just doesn't happen. There's also a level of knowledge that's required to make sense of it all even if they could get this level of access, and most game journalists simply don't have it.

I'm with you Dave ... I wish there was more "true" journalism in the game industry. But as someone who has actually worked in the game industry, and has worked in the press, I can honestly say that the game industry is mostly at fault. You want more features and less previews? Let us into the office and don't make us sign an NDA. Let us write the story WE want to write, and trust us not to reveal anything that we know we shouldn't.

Here's my challenge to David Jaffe. Hire me for for the length of time it takes to create a game from start to finish. Let me sit in on meetings, let me talk to your developers, and let me have an unprecedented level of access. Trust me not to reveal things that will hurt the company financially, and trust me to reveal things that will shine some light on issues that most people aren't aware of. Consider it a documentary on making a game. If the game is great, it'll be a great series of articles. If the game is a failure ... it'll be a great series of articles. If this is the kind of journalism you want to see, let me know, and we'll make it happen. And I'll get it into any mainstream publication you want, even though I'm relatively unknown. Why? Because it's never been done before, and they'll eat it up.

Update: David responded through his blog ...

Rob...shoot me an ISM on this site with your contact info and I will send you an email...I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to try and do what you are talking about....let's discuss.

Great idea! It would be like almost famous but since it's video games it would be more like: almost-almost-almost -almost famous!

David