The Gametrash Theory

Right now, you're on a gaming website. Yes, Gametrash is one of the many websites that is actually trying to do what no-one seems to be able to- create a gaming website with relevant news, reviews, and articles, without taking a dime from Gaming companies. We run completely off donations. Our server, our graphics, our content, EVERYTHING is basically donated ?to the cause?.

But, why? Why does Gametrash avoid getting buddy-buddy with specific companies? Why do we try to remain on a press level instead of getting the intimacy that many other gaming websites have achieved? Well, I've decide to write an article about it- the theory of Gametrash, the reason this site essentially exists, and the theory behind it. Call it a mission statement, call it a glorified ?About Us? page, what have you- but it's important to explain what makes Gametrash dot com different.

You have probably at one point or another seen one of the ?The Big Four?- that is, the biggest conglomerate gaming information/reviews portals on the Internet. These constitute IGN/Gamespy (Recently joined together to mix FilePlanet and the power of IGN's big database), CNET (Gamefaqs, Gamespot), G4 (A 24/7 gaming channel), and UGO (To some extent). These four groups have always and continue to own pretty much 90% of all gaming information on the Internet, so much to the point that these groups directly influence the gaming industry. In fact, most of the determination whether a game succeeds or fails to attract attention directly relies on these four companies, especially the first (IGN/Gamespy). By getting a seal of approval from the aforementioned website(s), you basically license yourself to print money.

Normal news companies are often criticized by different organizations for being biased. Usually, this amounts to bias against a particular person(An actress, the president, et al), or a specific group (Democrats, Republicans, etc). Frankly, no-one is happy unless everyone is happy, and that's very unlikely to happen. So, usually newspapers or even TV channels are pretty divided as to where they lie in their opinions.

What does that have to do with ?The Big Four?? A lot. ?The Big Four? are the exact opposite of normal news organizations. Because they are so attached to the industry, they have the possibility of over rating games (Gamespy is usually accused of this, giving most games over 3 stars). Some are accused of blatant lying (All at one point or another have been accused of this). And some even have gone as far to shoot for the lowest common denominator to get attention (IGN's ?Babes? section). Simply put, the ?Big Four? are not so much gamers as they are advertisers.

Now for the crux of my argument, which is the big argument I used when Gametrash was created. Look at any of the ?Big Four? sites (Excepting G4, just watch the channel). Notice something odd? Yep, advertisements. Tons of them. Hundreds of them. IGN and Gamespy especially are filled with once you have to click through to access content. So, what's the big deal?

Who's sponsoring them. Isn't it ironic that the same website that gives Brothers in Arms: Earned in Blood for the XBOX also rates it a perfect 5 stars? And isn't it odd that even it's sister site doesn't go as far as to give it a perfect? Sure, the game is good, and unlike my recent review of Half Life: Blue Shift, Gearbox did a good job. But I call technical foul when a game website reviews the same game it advertises, no matter what the situation. What if the reviewer wanted to give it a poor review? The question is, would he be allowed to? Inner workings exist in any group in which money trades hands, and sometimes, when money doesn't trade hands. Do you honestly think the same group that gets thousands of dollars from a company would allow one peon reviewer to jeopardize the flow of cash? I submit to you, no.

Is this to say all advertising on web pages is wrong? Of course not. However, when you blatantly seek out advertisement from gaming companies, you tie yourself to them in special ways. This is primarily the reason why Consumer Reports, the biggest and undoubtedly the best consumer product reviews magazine in the United States, refuses advertisement. Let me put this in big bold italic letters to dig this into your brain:

YOU CANNOT TAKE MONEY FROM A COMPANY AND STILL SPEAK YOUR MIND ABOUT IT

What does Gametrash do to fix this? A lot. First off, we have the only reviews system on the Internet that allows any author to append to another author's review. That means, if he/she think one guy's review is complete BS, he/she can go and fix it with minimal effort. By presenting clash in this argument, not only do we provide quality reviews, but we allow the reader to decide for his or her self if the game is worth purchasing.

So, is Gametrash primarily a reviews site? Yes and no. As the owner of the site, I'm always hesitant to call us a ?Video Game Reviews? site, because that associates us with bitchiness and the obsession to have millions of games reviewed on our website. We are a website that presents opinions and information. In no way is this website intended to tell you what to buy, or tell you what you should get that's new, or any of that. We don't pretend to be clever or ?in the know?, we certainly don't pretend like we knew Nobuo Uematsu when he played the kazoo. We're here to show the perspective of gaming from the gamer's side.

So, does that mean we're seceding from the the challenge of trying to take down big websites? Again, yes and no. I did not intend for Gametrash to be some big weapon trying to beat down some Orwellian overlord. ?The Big Four? provide good information, even if it is biased. However, I will not be content with this website being the project in the back alley of the city of games. We're working so that in the future, we will be there at trade shows, and all those fun things. We're working toward having major presences at popular conventions- QuakeCon, Otakon, and possibly even E3. In the future, we may even host panels at some of these places to show the gaming public what a few guys can do when we have skills and fingers that can type 300 words a minute.

And finally, in closing, I'm going to tell you what you can do to help us. First off, we desperately need to get the word out to other people. You posting the Gametrash link somewhere, or just simply spreading the information by word-of-mouth, will help us much more than anything else. You could sign up to be a GT representative at a convention. Or you could just be awesome and come back to our website. In any case, hold on, because you're seeing the process of a website that will redefine the way you look at gaming websites.