I have been floating around different forums and websites doing my normal reading, and I have been noticing some patterns... I have stayed away from this line of tinfoil hat thinking, but I think it might be time we look at a certain posibility:

Is it possible that certain gaming companies are hiring, or otherwise inciting people to drop hype/dehype posts on game review and gaming websites?

Quick example:  I saw a post that said something along the lines of "my game was inadequate because I still pay a monthly fee for it.". I went to other gaming sites, and I saw almost the same post, per verbatum. I came here, and again I saw the same idea and post.

Granted, this could all just be a coincidence that this gamer was really interested in those other games, and decided to make a post stating how much better it would be without a monthly fee... but my tinfoil hat is really squeezing my brains out on this one.

What does the community think? Are gaming companies trying to subvert our thoughts by planting hired "gamers" on different websites to increase their own hype while at the same time decrease anothers? Or are some players just so vested in their game doing well that they feel that they need to do it this "service"?

Originally posted by RefMinor
I sometimes post my more amusing one liners or pithy comments on more than one site if I come across a similar topic, it's more my pathological need to be loved, hated or just noticed though, rather than for any payment.

Fear not RefMinor, I both Love AND Hate you.   Also.. you should be ashamed.

I only get paid $6/hour to do it so it's not all that lucrative.

Originally posted by maskedweasel

Originally posted by RefMinor
I sometimes post my more amusing one liners or pithy comments on more than one site if I come across a similar topic, it's more my pathological need to be loved, hated or just noticed though, rather than for any payment.

Fear not RefMinor, I both Love AND Hate you.   Also.. you should be ashamed.

Originally posted by RefMinor
I sometimes post my more amusing one liners or pithy comments on more than one site if I come across a similar topic, it's more my pathological need to be loved, hated or just noticed though, rather than for any payment.

It's true.  He's the resident "grump".

P.S.  Where's my cheese toasty?

I don't think that folks are hired by these companies,   a lot of what you see is a person who is dedicated to that game and will post all kinds of good stuff about that game, and then go post a lot of bad stuff about a game they dislike.  This is not the only mmo forum on the planet and folks tend to go to many sites to post, and get info.

However I got to say there have been times with gw2/swtor I almost thought with the rampant fanboy bashing/loving that went on between these 2 games that some of those folks might be actual bioware/ncsoft employees going back and forth on each other.

I will end this in saying, who knows.  However if you have proof these guys are getting paid to do that, I for one would love to see it, so they will get outed.

Oh well I will go grab my tin foil hat and head back to my cave under the bridge.

Originally posted by Sephastus

I have been floating around different forums and websites doing my normal reading, and I have been noticing some patterns... I have stayed away from this line of tinfoil hat thinking, but I think it might be time we look at a certain posibility:

Is it possible that certain gaming companies are hiring, or otherwise inciting people to drop hype/dehype posts on game review and gaming websites?

Quick example:  I saw a post that said something along the lines of "my game was inadequate because I still pay a monthly fee for it.". I went to other gaming sites, and I saw almost the same post, per verbatum. I came here, and again I saw the same idea and post.

Granted, this could all just be a coincidence that this gamer was really interested in those other games, and decided to make a post stating how much better it would be without a monthly fee... but my tinfoil hat is really squeezing my brains out on this one.

What does the community think? Are gaming companies trying to subvert our thoughts by planting hired "gamers" on different websites to increase their own hype while at the same time decrease anothers? Or are some players just so vested in their game doing well that they feel that they need to do it this "service"?

Yes, companies pay "viral marketers" to infiltrate forums and post praise for their game / diss other games.

http://www.cinemablend.com/games/EA-Viral-Marketing-Exposed-Big-Buyout-Horizon-40885.html

There have been several whistleblowers, the one above is quite recent about an ex-EA employee.

Originally posted by erictlewis

I don't think that folks are hired by these companies,   a lot of what you see is a person who is dedicated to that game and will post all kinds of good stuff about that game, and then go post a lot of bad stuff about a game they dislike.  This is not the only mmo forum on the planet and folks tend to go to many sites to post, and get info.

However I got to say there have been times with gw2/swtor I almost thought with the rampant fanboy bashing/loving that went on between these 2 games that some of those folks might be actual bioware/ncsoft employees going back and forth on each other.

I will end this in saying, who knows.  However if you have proof these guys are getting paid to do that, I for one would love to see it, so they will get outed.

Oh well I will go grab my tin foil hat and head back to my cave under the bridge.

 

I second that amendment.  If you catch someone and have the proof to back it up, then please report them immediately.

it may well be that companies do that. Beyond that I have noticed that small, independant games are often lauded by people with  3-6 previous posts... they, in my opinion, are connected with the company producing said small, independant game.  As far as the hype generation being done by paid employees - why wouldn't they have small teams to start that?  Get that hype started, leave it to the fanbois to carry it on?  It's a marketing tool, nothing more.

this has been going for many years. its nothing new. i think the only new aspect of it is that the bigger, dumber, slower companies have caught onto it. i point out people like this everyonce in a while on these forums, mods couldnt care any less.

Yes this EXIST and its called stealth marketing. This kind of stuff happens on /v/ a game channel from 4chan and also happen on /mu/ a music channel from 4chan.

PS: I never seen dehype, I dont think it exist. But hype exist.

PS2: Well dehype exist if you count when they do dehype to market their game, like if in a wow thread with a stealth marketeer on it someone said  "game X is better, WOW sucks", and they said this game sucks. Or if in a ANTI-EA thread someone started to say how other companies are not like ea and then the stealth marketeer started to say how those companies sucks or how they are not different from EA.

This does happen, but I can assure you we take it quite seriously here. If we find out someone is doing this they are immediately banned.

My wife is a working in a good marketing agency as BTL Manager.

Last month they were doing promotion of big autlet center, and one of the major things that was spamed in comercials, news and all over the internet was that thay are giving from 50-80% off prices.

Last week they had grand opening with thousend people all over the country to see it and to buy cheep things but they saw that things are only 10% off.

Normaly, people started to flame forums and news about the idiotic marketing stun they made and that autlet is starting to get serious hits after no more the 7 days.

Now !!!

Their brand manager that is asking their department to hire blogers and ppl who are constantly on forums to turn the story to possitive......

This is probably not new but in years it became transparent and ppl are not that syuppid anymore so companies can treat us as cattle.

Originally posted by Salio69

this has been going for many years. its nothing new. i think the only new aspect of it is that the bigger, dumber, slower companies have caught onto it. i point out people like this everyonce in a while on these forums, mods couldnt care any less.

It's not that Mods don't care it's that Mods can't act unless there is proof. Suspecting someone is shilling profesionally isn't proof enough to take moderator action against them. If it was half of the population of this site would have been banned by now because almost everyone here has rabbidly hyped a game before that they loved to the point that they would become suspect. This is something that is very hard to prove most of the time.

Bren

I'm pretty sure there were a few from StarVault that did this here.

I'm sure it happens since we see those spam posts otfen, so it's not hard to imagine people acting as shills for certain games.

I just don't know how widespread it is, no big company wants to get caught doing that so it has been mostly smaller Asian F2P companies doing it it seems, but now that Promotion and Developing are becoming two seperate things...I'm sure more big companies are involved than we know.

Lucky for us, most things can be found quickly cause people in general have access to more informations and cant be foold that easy.

When it comes to games I think that we never had so close combat then it is happening now.

Most companies think that WOW is wounded Lion and it is bleeding fast with an expansion all are flaming from all weapons they have.

We have, EQ II, SW:TOR, TERA Online, GW2, Secret World and WOW Expansion. All this came or will come in 6 months period.

All of them want their share of the cake and they do not care what weapons they will use to get more people for themselves.

As a customers we should be wise and pick what we feel it is best for us not what other think it is best for us. 

It happens in games, business, government. We call them spin doctors here. If you must resort to this to convince the public your product/business/whatever is good then your product is probably not that great. Quality tends to speak for itself eventually.

Originally posted by Sephastus

I have been floating around different forums and websites doing my normal reading, and I have been noticing some patterns... I have stayed away from this line of tinfoil hat thinking, but I think it might be time we look at a certain posibility:

Is it possible that certain gaming companies are hiring, or otherwise inciting people to drop hype/dehype posts on game review and gaming websites?

Quick example:  I saw a post that said something along the lines of "my game was inadequate because I still pay a monthly fee for it.". I went to other gaming sites, and I saw almost the same post, per verbatum. I came here, and again I saw the same idea and post.

Granted, this could all just be a coincidence that this gamer was really interested in those other games, and decided to make a post stating how much better it would be without a monthly fee... but my tinfoil hat is really squeezing my brains out on this one.

What does the community think? Are gaming companies trying to subvert our thoughts by planting hired "gamers" on different websites to increase their own hype while at the same time decrease anothers? Or are some players just so vested in their game doing well that they feel that they need to do it this "service"?

While I am sure it does happen some I honestly think it has alot more to do with the fact that alot of posters are active on more sites than one (luckily I stick to mmorpg not sure I could deal with so many strong opinions across other boards).