Former Xbox Executive Pushes Sony Exclusives
The tides have turned as a former Xbox Executive has been pushing to get more exclusives on the Sony Playstation 3. Did he give up on Microsoft or did Microsoft give up on him?
The first move was made when Peter Moore left Microsoft for greener pastures at EA in California. Not too soon after he left the company, he brought John Schappert, VP of Xbox Live, back home to EA with him. Now you would think that ex-MS execs would still have an interest vested in maintaining the Microsoft dynasty. This would mean more exclusive DLC for the Xbox 360 and less for the Sony Playstation 3. After several exclusive bombs were dropped at the Sony E3 conference, that’s not the case. Not only did Sony secure exclusive Dead Space content, they also scored some goodies for Medal Of Honor. This is the game that Microsoft used to excel at and now Sony is getting a piece of the action, courtesy of Electronic Arts.
The funny thing about all of this is everyone already knows this. Anyone who follows the industry and watched the E3 press conferences already knows this story. Because of the decline of gaming journalism, the title and the first paragraph will probably garnish a lot of heat. I’m only doing this to prove a point. Trash sells and hard work goes unread. I have no idea how those exclusive deals were cut with EA and Sony, but I made an assumption for the purpose of this experiment.
Seriously, what the fuck has happened to gaming journalism? Why is it that so many sites are popping up and posting non-sense? Why is it that no matter where I go I see the same news posted everywhere? Why is box art news worthy? Why do we keep regurgitating press releases? Do any of these sites have goals or are they just in it for free games and fame? It’s truly sickening to see what game journalism has become and it’s no wonder why no one takes us seriously. Good work gets shoved under the rug and tabloid write ups and graphic comparisons get all the shine. It’s almost like video game journalism has gone down the same road as the music and film industry. I blame the media, I blame the mindless gamers and I blame the game industry for not taking enough time and care to really find out who they are working with.
There’s no escape from it all. You either quit or press on. The Bitbag will keep pressing on. We are constantly trying to find a way to separate ourselves from the ‘me too’ blogs and sites. It’s working, but at a very slow rate. You won’t see press releases from this site anymore. From now on we will rewrite everything in our own words as it should be. We won’t post box art or or take shit and try to turn it into shine. It’s time for a MAJOR change and a house cleaning. Stop reading the same bullshit from 20 different places. Demand more from your favorite sites and hopefully they will step up their game. Everyone has a right to an opinion but you have to earn respect in this business. I will finally be posting links from some of my favorite sites and I hope you visit them and leave them feedback as you have with us for the past few years.
If you were looking for a flame bait article, you came to the wrong place and I guess…you just got punked!
28 Comments
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So no more HHG articles and videos?
Hot debate. What do you think?
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Cheap Shot. Was that really necessary?
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Nothing cheap about it. Torrence has had to change the titles constantly now on HipHopGamers vidicles as well as question HHG on some of his content.
I don’t think it’s a cheap shot. I think it’s a valid question. HHG has a habit of creating flaimbait vidicles and Torrence is now talking about the decline of Gaming journalism…I think it’s a pretty valid question.
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Torrence, shame on you for creating this headline to make a point, but point well made.
If I start seeing HHG headlines that accurately portray the content of the article / vidicle and the content interested me, I might see more of HHG’s work.
Now I need to say something that the people here won’t like.
Keep the reviews and articles going – they can be good, but there’s a lot of things written on this site that are – well – a bit boring for me sometimes. No doubt others will agree as not everything will appeal to all..!
I made a point a long time ago that the Bitbag should have a community player / challenge element like “Games World” and “Gamesmaster” back in the 90′s and Torrence, consider what it is that makes TheBitbag site popular. It really is the Warzone and you’ve not done enough to integrate ideas between The Warzone & the Bitbag.
Community gamer night’s don’t really cut it quite well enough. I enjoyed the WipEout HD MikeMadden Vs Torrence Davis challenge about a month ago, but it was a one-off with no structure. You need tournaments and / or a month-long challenge format (with prizes). Tournaments & challenges should be recorded where possible. People should be able to watch live tournaments and listen to HHG running commentary to add to the craziness. Challenges could be anything – such as beating a pre-set score on Galaga by a “Bitbagator”, or submitting a replay of a best lap time for a certain nominated track on GT5P (& record to video). If the top 3 (or better – top 10) videos / scores are always on display, people can watch and trash talk in the comments. Winners get to kiss Andrea Rene (because I don’t think she’d agree to a fuck – at least not with any of the uglies out there).
Only kidding (but c’mon, you’d have to be married not to want to – before – she gets married, has kids, stretch marks, then inevitably gets old and fat).
On topic / back to the main point about bad journalism… I would be obliged if anyone can suggest to me how to permaban “The Examiner” from my N4G RSS feed such that I don’t even see the article headlines anymore.
Torrence, I would consider it significant value add if you and / or your crew could take the N4G RSS feed and cut all the shit out of it so that only the worthwhile articles are re-processed into another RSS feed. I’d then be v.happy to subscribe to a Bitbag-approved-N4G RSS over all the shit that N4G pushes out… 100′s of articles per hour.
P.S. Last few Warzones, you’ve slipped back into forgetting to add the cover art.
… or am I asking too much?
Thanking you…
Well put, and interesting. Looking forward to read new stories. I’ve been following your site since WZ 15 or so, and The Bitbag has been growing and changing for the better all the way. The Bitbag is one of my favorite sites, and your statement will defenitly not change that. Keep up the good work, all of you.
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ok……………i have nothing to say goodnight.
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Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
You are part of the furniture now Mike Madden. You don’t need to say anything.
I’d certainly vote for you as being a “Bitbagator” for any willing community challengers to test their mettle against…!
Good shit TD.
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alan wake was the shit.
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U always got my support. I got the Bitbag in my bookmarks bar and try to make an effort to visit the site atleast once a day.
Same here yo checked once a day. This is the only site I go to read up on the great content that is put on this site. By the way I gave up on HHG site.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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Well, like mboojigga said “no more HipHop”. Then there would be no more debates.
If you want to do something, ban HipHop from talking about anything Halo, as he has ZERO Halo knowledge.
However, HipHop is my favorite in the industry, and I still disagree with more than 90% of his views. But he isn’t boring & he is the most enthusiastic personality in the industry.
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What’s amusing is that Peter Moore has nothing to do with that side of EA… he’s in charge of EA Sports yet if you goto N4G… *sigh* Great article
Hot debate. What do you think?
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now arent we exaggerating a bit?
There’s no news, like box art news! Sorry for the pun lol.
@ Torrence Davis
Well written. Good Job. Too bad that articles like this are like you said, “shoved under the rug”.
Keep up the great articles. It’s Journalism like THIS!!! that keeps me coming back to the Bitbag.
Great post Torrence, I agree completely man. Keep up the good work!
no matter what ima still support the site
Its so funny and sad at the same time to see how many people on N4G went into the article looking for an argument.
“the ‘me too’ blogs and sites.”
This why the internet has wrecked gaming journalism for me,it’s the constant stream of shite these sites put out,makes it difficult to find anything worth reading.
I used to love getting a new magazine,were you could see some time was spent researching,getting the facts right.
With online meda,it’s seem the get it out for hits,or write a paragraph with a link to another site has completely taken over.it’s become a joke,Yet it seems acceptable buy those who write it,and those who consume it.
to be fair with the link articles… if some site breaks a story before you or anyone else you should give a short description and then point your readers in that direction… hard work should be paid off
Agreed, Daniel, but entire sites shouldn’t be links to other sites that actually did the leg work. After a while the readers will just visit the sites that are linked and forgo yours.
I had the same problem when I first started my site. Mainly because I felt the “bloggers’ pressure” of updating everyday. I was also short staffed. But when I got a dependable team, and made a vow to generate a certain number original pieces per week PLUS only cover news that we carried about (the passion shows), we started to take off.
You also have to know where to post your good original stuff. N4G is balls, but Stumbleupon and other sites can make your content explode.
I understand that Dan,but when a site just gives a line and links it does my head in,i’d rather read that person’s opinion,then check the link,and not “here’s another sites headline,and this is link to that sites article”
Torrence, by no means am i trying to start a flame war, but I have to be real with you. When you decided start up “theBitbag” wouldn’t that classify this site as a “Me Too” Site? That is the problem with using that label, because just like all facets of business there are always an imitation or a different brand within . Thats just how the world works.
I just started my own site 6 months ago with more so of a purpose than anything. I’m 27, a college grad in advertising and journalism, yet i’m working in the insurance industry doing absolutely nothing related to my major. Do I find that enjoyable? Hell to the no. I love gaming, and i love journalism. So why not do something I love? I guarantee that is the case for a lot of other e-journalist and bloggers.
Do you know why you see the same news on a million sites? Because people are fighting for Search Engine rankings, or Technorati Authority points, and etc. The way the internet is set up is that if you do not follow the mold, your site will be unsuccessful. Its sad but true.
The bottom line is this, if you come across a site that sucks, then you don’t go to that site anymore. If its good, then you have a faithful fan following , like yours. But I honestly do believe it was bad form to release this article , especially if you want to be taken as a “serious” video game site, because you know this would not happen on other larger sites. Maintain a sense of professionalism, and prove that you are unlike the others, because in the end of all this your succumbing to “that level” you speak of.
In the real world, you have people who read the New York Times, and then you have people who read the Inquirer. Different strokes for different folks. The same goes with gaming sites/publications.
I had to comment on this.
I started The Bitbag with the intention of having original content every day. The Hiphopgamer show, Davis Daily etc. I wanted to have original shows every day plus news and reviews and all the other bullshit. I’m not saying every startup is a me too site. I’m just saying, why start up if you don’t have a goal in mind? Why make a site just to copy and paste from other sites? We’ve been able to grow without posting flamebait stories. We post real news and great editorials. I was hoping that other start ups would follow suit and use sites like this as an example. More and more however, I’m just seeing crap.
This post was just a test to prove my point. I am a professional and I carry myself that way in this industry. I’m hoping we are setting an example out there to fans and fellow journalists. People are acting like the internet is going away tomorrow or something. It’s sickening. And if you’ve been in gaming and the industry as long as I have, to see it go in this direction is horrible. Look at Dualshockers.com. That’s a fucking quality site with a bunch of great, hardworking editors. Thekoalition.com is another example. ORIGINAL content! You simply cannot separate yourself from the pack if you are sucking off the same tit. You have to yearn to be original or you are wasting your time.
I’m just flooded with crap every day and I’m tired of seeing these blogs and sites pop up that just don’t care. I have not succumbed to that level and you know this if you visit this site.
Thanks for your comment.
I completely agree. You should have a goal in mind. Basically try to stand out and break the mold, but if you are regurgitating what sites have already been doing then what is the point. You’re contributing nothing of value to the gaming community.
“Look at Dualshockers.com. That’s a fucking quality site with a bunch of great, hardworking editors. Thekoalition.com is another example. ORIGINAL content! You simply cannot separate yourself from the pack if you are sucking off the same tit” — Agreed, 100%.
Believe me, i’ve have your site, as well as others, on my RSS feed reader on my Android so i’m always informed. Using that as an example, the point I was trying to make is this yes, there is a shit ton amount of crap and zombie sites that are just the same as everything else, but we also have the matter of choice. The quality sites always come out on top.
And to much surprise, people on N4G just read the title and not read the rest of the article.(sarcasm, i saw that!) We all know this is a flaw with the community man, I just feel theres no need to exploit it, because not one article can change that.
I loathe the fact when I see sites that look like one Giant Adsense AD, or just shoot out uneducated Rumors that do not make any sense. I feel what you feel, because these sites do take away any credibility what so ever from many other independent sources. But, just because they do doesn’t mean that you can’t still rise above the rest. I firmly believe that your site is and always have been in a good position. Theres no need to stress yourself over this is what I am saying.
HAHAHA Gotcha, good shit Torrence well done.