Let's Talk - "Proper PR Etiquette"

I've mentioned my opinions of certain gaming PRs several times throughout my (unpaid) career as a gaming journalist. Some of my opinions were harsh, and some filled with praise. None of my remarks were without merit though. Through personal experience I've come to know that some PRs in the business are very pleasant people to work with while there are others that are total assholes (for lack of a better term). The fact is that public relations representatives (PRs) can either be helpful (as they are meant to be), or be a pain in the ass if they are not fit to fill the position that they are currently in. Any which way you put it being a PR is a job, and should be managed as if it were one.

Too many times have I heard back from a PR who was literally complaining about having to do their job. This is inexcusable. As a PR you get paid for what you do, no matter what the extent of your job is. I understand it may be frustrating having to weed through fake journalists seeking hand outs, or even having to reply to multiple follow-up questions, but there are those of us like myself who are out there simply trying to get reviews out to our readers. If I send a request to a PR I do not expect them to bow down, kiss my ass, and say "Here have this free game!". All I require is an initial reply, a "Yes or No" answer, and a follow-up reply should I be chosen to review a game. It's simple. This ignoring sh*t has to stop. I'm not going to go away just, because you're ignoring me. It frustrates me to no end not knowing if my email went through to the right PR, or if it's drifting somewhere out in cyberspace.

I've got a job to do just as the PRs do. The only difference, and it's a f*cking significant one, is that I'm not getting paid one damn cent for my 10+ paragraph reviews! My job as well as the PRs' job is to promote the company's creations through words even if said words are against the product that's being reviewed. In that sense my work is no different than any PRs' work. To tell you the truth though I probably put more effort into my reviews than any PRs put into their email replies. All they f*cking do is copy, and paste a reply most of the time (I'm pointing my finger at you Crapcom). Of course as I mentioned before there are some exceptions. Mel Kirk of Zen Studios for example is an Awesome guy. While his emails are short, and to the point he is kind in his words, and does not copy and paste a reply. He has even sent me emails after a review praising my hard work. More PRs should follow his example.

Gaming journalism can be passed off as being a fun, and easy thing to do, but I can tell you from personal experience that it is just as hard as any other job out there. My reviews which take up most of my day, if not more begin with a full playthrough of the game. Along the way I take note of any features that the game offers as well as any issues that I may happen upon during my playthrough. Afterwards I try to organize my thoughts by jotting down a few notes on a piece of paper, and the apply those notes to a properly typed review. I spend two, or more hours making sure there are no spelling, or grammatical errors, and post the review after adding some final screenshots and tags. Sometimes I even have to go back, and make corrections later on as my eyes aren't always keen on spotting mistakes. In total the process of reviewing the game, from the playthrough to the final posting can take up to a week at a time given the extent of content found within the game. You have to keep in mind that while indies are easier to deal with due to limited content games like "Time and Eternity", and "Dragon's Crown" take at least a week to complete as they contain more features than your average game type. To say that gaming journalism is an easy task is a foolish assumption.

This brings me to my final point on the topic. Recently I was accepted to do a review on an upcoming FPS title known as "Painkiller: Hell & Damnation". Philipp of Nordic Games was a decent guy in the beginning. Before the public had caught onto Nordic Games' move to buy up other gaming companies, and franchises the guys at 'Nordic Games' were a humble bunch. I had reached out to them way before the hype, and they more than gladly accepted my request assuring me that I'd get the game for review. As time passed I began to hear less, and less from Philipp, and his team. I ended up having to reach back out to them to find out what the hell was going on. Through a recent email Philipp told me that he was going to send word by the US branch of Nordic Games to send review copies out to myself, and all the other journalists on the list. I was like "Hell Yeah!!!". Another week, or so passed, and still no sign of the game, or any word from Philipp. I sent multiple emails trying to find out what was going on since the release date was fast approaching. Finally I said "To hell with it". As much as I hated to do it Philipp's ignoring of my emails pushed me to give an ultimatum. I told him that remembered him stating that I would be getting a copy of the game for review. I also mentioned the fact that I would at least like a reply if he did not intend on honoring his word, so that I could remove the game from my list of future reviews.

So, what does Philipp do? He doesn't reply back with a response to my inquiry, but instead emails me a DHL shipping/tracking link with no explanation at all. No "F*ck You!",  no "Stick it up your ass sideways!", or anything. At that point all I knew was that the game was on it's way from Austria. My thoughts, as you might could imagine began racing through my mind. Was this some sort of sarcastic response to my email request? Was Philipp going to send me a foreign copy of the game not playable in US consoles? I was more confused than ever. So, today I finally get my hands on the package expecting something other than the requested US version of the game. I open it up. There's no letter, no note explaining an embargo date, or any damn thing. All that is included is a clear case with a promo copy of "Painkiller: Hell & Damnation".

Once again I say to myself, "F*ck it". I pop the disc into my PS3 hoping that by some miracle this European looking version of the game will play on my PS3, and to my surprise it does. Here comes the sh*t kicker though. The game only seems to be a partial/unfinished version. I made it to a certain part of the campaign, and damned if I wasn't stuck in Hades with no way out. I kept returning to this certain room where demonic growls were going on (Would make for an Awesome episode of "Creepy Gaming" Btw) trying to figure out what the hell it was that I needed to do. I ended up going back to the main menu, abandoning my quest to continue with the campaign thinking that maybe I can at least play the multiplayer. Of course there were no servers up tough. It's obvious by the game's leaderboards that journalists had already gotten their hands on the review copy earlier than I had, so I guess I'm SOL (sh*t out of luck) seeing as all the journalists seem to have abandoned the game already.

I'm currently between a rock, and a hard place folks. I don't want to review an unfinished game, but at the same time I do want to review the game. You understand, right? It's this dilemma that has me frustrated, and hating PR interactions even more. It's PRs such as Philipp, and their poor excuses for follow-ups that give PRs in general a bad name. I don't know when the hell I can, or cannot post the review. I don't know if he sent me a half-assed copy. I don't know what the f*ck to do. To say that I'm pissed would be an understatement.

Here's what it all boils down to folks. Being a PR is a job. As a PR you get paid to do that job. A PRs' job is to act as a mediator, or middle person for major companies, and the journalists who wish to support them. A journalists job is to review products, and reach out to PRs for review material. If the PR doesn't do their job in a professional manner the journalists who support the companies that back the PR firm which the PRs work for will be unable to maintain a steady flow of reviews for the companies that they are both backing. In turn The PR firm will have failed in their duties, and the PRs themselves will be fired, or replaced as a result. It's a cycle of sorts. All of the PRs, PR firms, and journalists collectively complete a cycle of mutually beneficial work. That's the way it's supposed to work. It's the way it does work. Should one of those links in the cycle become inefficient then the remaining links will follow along the same path of failure. It's as simple as that. Do your damn jobs PRs. Don't complain. Don't whine about the work in front of you, just do it. This economy is not great, and to have such a job should be viewed as a privilege.