Tell It Like It Is
March 9, 1999 in Articles
As part of the process of getting the reviews ready to go on the Outpost, we have been contacting companies. Several have asked about our review policy and the issues that have come up have been quite interesting if a little disturbing. See, the Outpost has what has been called a Negative Review Policy, a term I’m not all that fond of. The problem seems to stem from a misunderstanding about the term “review.” Let me give my definition: A review is the opinion of the reviewer about the item he is reviewing. It isn’t advertising, it isn’t a manufacturer press release. It is an opinion. And that, my friend, is the root of the problem.
The reason you read a review (other than for the entertainment value) is to find out what someone else thought of the product, to help you decide if it is something you should spend you money on. You may be reading it to learn more about the product but the opinion is the important thing. Now, it would seem there are some people out there who think opinions presented in reviews should never be negative. That’s where I have to disagree. Below is a piece of the email I sent to one company when they questioned our review policy:
As to your main question, yes, we will publish negative reviews. I feel it is the magazine’s responsibility to give our readers the most honest reviews possible. After all, they are reading the review to (at least, in part) determine if they want to purchase the game. If every review is glowing, it lessens the ability of the article to have impact. I have found that most people want honesty and are reading the review to learn what someone else thinks of the product and not necessarily to gain a description of the product. However, if the reviewer sends me a review that has absolutely nothing good to say, then I’ll send a copy of it to the company and ask them if they want it posted. After all, this is a hobby-based industry and simply slamming someone’s hard work doesn’t seem fair. I also feel that I have a responsibility to post a review when a manufacturer sends me product. They have gone to the trouble of packing something up and mailing it to me so the least I can do is give them a write-up. This, coupled with the idea that I want honest opinions from my reviewers, means that there will be negative reviews posted.
That pretty much sums it up. If you disagree with me, please let me know. While a large number of protestors won’t get me to publish fluff reviews, it would still be interesting to see where everyone stands.