Assume the position. That’s the one where the palm of your hand connects firmly with your face. Ready?
An otherwise unidentified BioWare dev known for the moment only as Metacritic community member “Avanost” has submitted a perfect review for Dragon Age II, casually dismissing all criticism as irrelevant. “Anything negative you’ll see about this game is an overreaction of personal preference,” he wrote in the review (now deleted, obviously), before declaring that “it is flawlessly executed and endlessly entertaining”.
Of course, this bit of ostentatiously obsequious flattery didn’t manage to fool everybody. Over on reddit, user GatoFiasco denounced the review, claiming that “This is a matter of ethics and integrity. A consumer requires objective information in order to make an informed decision about purchasing a product. If the line between editorial article and product review is skewed, then the consumer is being deceived at the cost of their eventual trust and loyalty to the company responsible. This is why disclosure of industry ties is necessary to avoid even the appearance of impropriety.”
Rantrantrant.
Later, EA played it all down, saying that “That’s how it works in the Oscars, that’s how it works in the Grammys and why I’m betting that Barack Obama voted for himself in the last election.”
But really, is anybody actually, honestly surprised? Seriously?
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