Just showing you once again how terrible the video game review industry is video game press people being given a Nexus 7 at the watch dogs event. I wonder what message that tells all of us? Bribe them and you'll get any review you want it seems. Now I will say some people may accept them and then donate them, but that will be a very tiny minority. These are the people "trusted" for reviews. Absolute garbage.

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/133734-Watch-Dogs-Preview-Event-Attendees-Given-a-Free-Nexus-7-Update.

That's always been the case and it doesn't really require a bribe. News outlets openly accept contracts to write reviews or articles on brand products.

People with the biggest wallets tend to have the largest voices.

It is publicly bribing the individuals through their action, but maintaining plausible deniability. It's underhanded. The fact that there is no standards or work ethics in the industry goes a long way to letting people be so blatant in their manipulations. It's one thing to know it happens, it's another to turn a blind eye to it. Stuff like this needs to keep being exposed and turning it against them. I'm just so sick of this [censored].

This is an unfortunate reality of marketing in many - if not most - industries...even those that are technically not businesses. I'm not saying it's right...just that it's nothing new.

I'll happily give the game a 10/10 review without even playing it if somebody gave me a Nexus 7 (2013 model). I actually have one already, but I wouldn't mind having two.

Totally agree.

After taking a second look over the article provided, I looked at the image posted with it which reads, "WeareData."

After quickly Googling it, it appears that it's the recurring campaign for Watchdogs. From what I've seen in gameplay videos, theres a lot of hacking through devices like cell phones. Maybe I'm trying to put pieces that don't fit together, but by giving the press tablets (possibly loaded with watch dogs information,) after watching a bunch of Watch dogs footage, feels like they're trying to bridge virtual and reality by giving them a themed takeaway.

From a consumer's perspective, someone not part of the press, nor part of the demo presentation, this looks like free swag. For a part of the press, this could feel like a memento of the experience they just had while watching Watch Dogs.

Maybe i'm just grasping at straws.

"<9000/10 It was okay." -IGN

Part of the reason why I don't bother with game reviews. The other being that most game companies advertise on review sites, talk about conflict of interest...

Swag thread?

Even Angry Joe is getting softer. Really a shame.

TV news is just as bad and it was always bad.

Anything that has advertisemant has lost its credibility if they get money from companies.