Video game publishers have been actively trying to fuck their customers for years. The lies and deceptions are non-stop, the bullshit pre-order stuff, trying to control review scores, etc…
This new policy of Bethesda not giving out early copies and other companies strictly controlling who gets review copies…it’s not illegal, but it is a dick move. They’re are trying to get those big week 1 and week 2 sales by removing and/or coloring useful information from the people who need it to make an informed decision.
JimTo’s Five Rules For Being A Gamer:
1. Never Pre-order anything.
2. Never Pre-order anything.
3. Never Pre-order anything.
4. Never Pre-order anything.
5. Wait for reviews from trusted sources.
Once you have pre-ordered and given your money, the developer/publishers are no longer obligated to fulfill any promises they may have made.
These publishers want to use the video game media to hype the fuck out of their games, but want to pick and choose who gets to do the reviews and when they happen. If they don’t know what kind of a review certain reviewers will give, they just won’t give them a review copy. This benefits the publisher and no one else.
This is 12 minutes long, but it’s worth your time: