Forums > Contributor Zone > Review of the Week 1/26/2009 to 1/31/2009

Aw, man, who's going to write awesome beat 'em up reviews now?

I head spaceshit noises.

You're going to have to.

Hop to it.

For us. For them. For you.

But I just wrote one...
















Two months ago.

I head spaceshit noises.

Drella quit after this?! Dammit, we have to stop chasing our good reviewers away! Then again, criticism comes with the territory. Even though it was a bit overblown in this case, if you can't handle criticism, why are you putting your opinions out on the web, the NUMBER ONE place to receive criticism no matter your beliefs or strength of argument?

Note to gamers: when someone shoots you in the face, they aren't "gay." They are "psychopathic."

I don't pretend to know the full reasons why drella quit, and he's not around to clarify. However, the Internet is a bit of a cesspool at times. Make that most of the time.

One thing I like to see around here--and hopefully do my part to foster--is a sense of community. It sounds absurdly idealistic, but I like to think that people can get along on the Internet, that they can take each other seriously and treat one another as human beings instead of insult sponges.

It's one reason that the whole "Internet is serious business" meme is one of the most destructive things going around. Maybe instead of refusing to take anything seriously, more people should do the opposite and show some respect. Then maybe we wouldn't all be so grumpy and cynical and the occasional argument here or there wouldn't turn into hurt feelings and the abrupt departure of one person or another that most of us would have preferred to see around the site indefinitely.

Anyway, that's my little rant on the Internet and its actual connection to the drella business is tenuous.

"Too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought." - John F. Kennedy on reality

"What if everything you see is more than what you see--the person next to you is a warrior and the space that appears empty is a secret door to another world? What if something appears that shouldn't? You either dismiss it, or you accept that there is much more to the world than you think. Perhaps it really is a doorway, and if you choose to go inside, you'll find many unexpected things." - Shigeru Miyamoto on secret doors to another world2

A good rant, yes... also tenuous connection, yes. But I always like to hear your words of wisdom, Jace.

Note to gamers: when someone shoots you in the face, they aren't "gay." They are "psychopathic."

Drella quit a month ago and you guys are only just now noticing? Yeah, you must really miss him.

Edit: As if his resignation wasn't made clear enough when he said, "I resign as staff."

You exist because we allow it. And you will end because we demand it.

Guess my post was overkill. I haven't been to this site in months so I started looking at some recent reviews. I couldn't believe that this one was featured. How can HG be taken seriously as a review site when material like this is awarded?

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We didn't bother saying anything until the necro-bumps came in.

Sometimes, Mike, people quit things like this site and then come back later once they've reflected a little. We try not to make a big deal out of it when it happens or jump all over it that very second for that person's sake but driving them into the ground after they've gone and directing posts at them they'll never see seems a futile exercise.

For us. For them. For you.

the smart ones only leave their staff positions in a huff, not the site. then nobody can call them out when they come back.

Oh no, it's a Goomba!

Well, I didn't really KNOW Drella, so his absence affects me on more of a general, rather than personal, level. I'm just now beginning to get clear ideas of who everyone is, after all. When I first joined, only the more extroverted personalities were clear to me (EMP, Suskie, Wolf Queen, Lewis).

Note to gamers: when someone shoots you in the face, they aren't "gay." They are "psychopathic."

Assuming you're addressing me, EmP (since for some reason everyone is now calling me Mike), I don't believe that Drella is gone for good, which is why I'm not getting too worked up about this. I just recently went through something similar, and even in my "absence" I kept a close eye on the site, so who knows?

You exist because we allow it. And you will end because we demand it.

I'm increasingly astonished by the mounting tension on here. Everyone, all together, let's do a bit primal scream...

Anyway, I thought the CoD thing was a weak article, but not because it isn't a straightforward review. I think it's weak because it presents a criticism then fails to form a reasonable argument around it, which is a shame, because it's more ambitious than a lot of the work posted around here.

What's important to consider is that it's a user review. Where this may have been rejected by Jason or Gary if added by a staff member, in the Users section there's an "anything goes as long as it isn't in breach of guidelines" attitude, which is fantastic. It allows for experimentation and initial failure. How else do people learn, and hone their craft?

Also remember that editorial take time out of their busy schedules to run the weekly RotW competition, which is a lighthearted way of encouraging contributions from the readership. Ultimately, it's of very little consequence to the staff who wins (aside from that, occasionally, a rising star might emerge from the competition and be offered a more official position), and so it's always going to be a subjective offering of how much that particular staff member enjoyed the reviews in question.

As such, getting at Drella for his choice was inherently silly, and any discussion should have been aimed, maturely, at the writer of the piece - but hey, it could have been a lot worse elsewhere on the 'net.

HG thrives on its strong, friendly, intelligent community. Let's not mess that up.

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Oddly, I don't recall when I started calling you Mike or know why I seem to randomly switch your name around so. It's a mystery. In Drella's case, he's told someone that he's not checking the site when asked about his thoughts on this topic. It's not the first time he's left the site -- nor is he the first to do so -- and maybe he will come back like he and others like myself and you have done in the past. The point seems to be lost in the scuffle and that point is that continuing to call him out is moot. It's falling on deaf ears.

Personally, I'm just happy RotWs are starting to get some comments behind them. Even if they are just to call for the judge's head half the time.

For us. For them. For you.

This can be salvaged! Let's go back to talking about racism and/or cookies!

Note to gamers: when someone shoots you in the face, they aren't "gay." They are "psychopathic."