The Game Gadget

[adippm82]

I wonder if the GameGadget website will now be updated to reflect GamesTM new view!! Afterall, they are credited on the GG website with the quote 'The iTunes of RetroGaming' which is a bit embarrassing to the magazine considering how things have unfolded

I bet they will not use the main title of the piece 'Why the Game Gadget disappoints' or the subheading, 'It sounded to good to be true...And it was'

[look at it sideways]

I wonder if the GameGadget website will now be updated to reflect GamesTM new view!! Afterall, they are credited on the GG website with the quote 'The iTunes of RetroGaming' which is a bit embarrassing to the magazine considering how things have unfolded

I bet they will not use the main title of the piece 'Why the Game Gadget disappoints' or the subheading, 'It sounded to good to be true...And it was'

I'm curious about the way they're quoting people - they're taking quotes out of context and it's misleading advertising, which in this country I'm pretty sure is illegal. If they were reported to the ASA I reckon they'd be in trouble.

[DreamcastRIP]

I wonder if the GameGadget website will now be updated to reflect GamesTM new view!! Afterall, they are credited on the GG website with the quote 'The iTunes of RetroGaming' which is a bit embarrassing to the magazine considering how things have unfolded

I bet they will not use the main title of the piece 'Why the Game Gadget disappoints' or the subheading, 'It sounded to good to be true...And it was'

I'm curious about the way they're quoting people - they're taking quotes out of context and it's misleading advertising, which in this country I'm pretty sure is illegal. If they were reported to the ASA I reckon they'd be in trouble.

Some perhaps relevant information,

"In 2005, the EU introduced the Unfair Consumer Practices Directive, which was incorporated in British law last year (2008). The new regulations make it an offence to sell someone goods that they would not otherwise have bought by using advertising or sales patter that contains "misleading omissions". That would seem to describe the selective quotation from my review in a nutshell. And the penalties can be harsh – a maximum of two years in jail or an unlimited fine."

Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/cult ... farce.html

I don't know if they used the "The iTunes of retro gaming" quote out of context and/or in a potentially misleading fashion but if they did then it would appear there are laws in place governing such shady practices. For instance, if the full original quote was something like, "The GameGadget is hoped to represent the iTunes of retro gaming according to what its developers have stated", then it would clearly, imho, contravene the above stated EU Directive (since incorporated into British law) and those responsible would potentially face large fines or imprisonment if successfully prosecuted.

Are they still using said quote though? I thought someone said they'd removed it from the website...

[adippm82]

Are they still using said quote though? I thought someone said they'd removed it from the website...

They are still using it on the site, along with all the other magazine quotes, you can click on the magazine boxes, but they do not take you to a page with the quote on, they all just take you to the page that tells you about the device, with a now hopefull buy it now link at the bottom.

On the press page: http://www.gamegadget.net/gamegadget-in ... nfo_8.html you can access three previews of the machine from Games TM, Retrogamer and Gamesmaster, the Games Tm article does start with the Title 'Itunes of retro gaming', so I doubt that they could be had up for misleading advertising, as they have quoted from a genuine article heading, it is mainly an interview they did with Blaze's Mark Garrett.

Quite why they have the retrogamer one there is anyone's guess, as it is largely very scepticle that the idea would work as intended, especially the forum opinions in the boxout.

[DreamcastRIP]

Many thanks for the assistance and information, adippm82.

I just skimmed through the first half of that gamesTM interview with Mike Garrett of Blaze and noticed this pearler,

""We’re looking at around £1.99," says Garrett. "We’re looking at the iTunes model, and seeing things like Sonic for about £2.59; obviously it’ll be cheaper than that.""

The price of any Mega Drive ROM for the gg? £2.99!
(Source: http://www.gamegadget.net/gamegadgetgames/cat_53.html )

In the world of gg £2.99 is "obviously... cheaper" than £2.59!

[kiwimike]

Lol, yeah they have only used the 'Headline grabs' of previews for their homepage.

It's the trading standard angle that facinated me with this thing. I couldn't understand how they got away with it. The only thing thats saved them from legal action from what I can see is that they give refunds immediately when people opt out. There was a week or so a bit back when they started ignoring refund requests, but I noticed someone on their forum used the term trading standard- think I did early on before getting 'banned' as well- and the refund option were immediately fourthcoming again...
If it wasn't for those refunds from what we've seen they'd be toast on a few levels

[fujiHunter]

Another updated review.

http://www.pockett.net/n13838_Divers_La ... x_gratuits

... and for those of you who don't speak French (who doesn't ) here is the translated version.

http://translate.google.com/translate?u ... uage_tools

[kiwimike]

Another updated review.

http://www.pockett.net/n13838_Divers_La ... x_gratuits

... and for those of you who don't speak French (who doesn't ) here is the translated version.

http://translate.google.com/translate?u ... uage_tools

Bonjour, wee!
Translated into 'kiwi' talk...I have NFI

[The Laird]

Well that's an absolutely nothing review, very pointless indeed.

Mind you I have to know the guy who writes that so I am not really surprised . . . .

[kiwimike]

There is so little happening on the site it does look like this thing is on it's last legs...
IMO those two founders, Mark and Jason (I think) should front and maybe go and talk to a few magazines. Until they do, they look like scammers gone into hiding. They need to explain what they are doing, where they are going, and why certain claims were made earlier that clearly aren't true. It's obvious now they have no other games aside from those Blaze ones they had all along, and those 'E3 talks' look a crock too.

[DreamcastRIP]

... and those 'E3 talks' look a crock too.

So they've STILL not confirmed the identity of the one single games publisher at E3 who they claim signed up to sell ROMs on gg?

I suppose there exists the possibility that said publisher (should they indeed exist and it wasn't a tissue of lies) could have since E3 got wind of nightmare that is gg and so decided to bail.

[fujiHunter]

Just read the rather scathing review in Gamestm, for anyone who has not seen it, I particularly liked the amusing timeline they put at the bottom of the piece, with the title 'To be this bad takes...about six months' before listing the various broken promises and missed deadlines, in chronological order, my personal favourite being the Lord Sugar tweet, to which they state 'Lord Sugar does not reply'

As for the machine itself it apparently has a small, poor quality screen, and awful sound and feels cheap and nasty, with old fashioned, spongy buttons.

Good mention of Lemonjellydude's treatment by Xploderadmin, and their own experience of trying to get the machine working properly, including having to reset the machine numerous times, because most games do not support the escape to menu function, their machine also would not boot properly until they unplugged the headphones, which had to be in the machine in the first place to turn it on!

On the contents page they state 'Games tm review what could be one of the worst console launches in history...you have been warned.

Excellent review, very well written.

I finally read this review today and it would be fair to say GamesTM didn't pull their punches. I especially thought the first paragraph was funny. It started something like 'This isn't the iTunes of RetroGaming...' That they chose to start their GG update by echoing the title of their previous article maybe suggests that they weren't very happy with how their previous quote was being used as a product endorsement!!

[Darran@Retro Gamer]

I've spoken to one of the guys at PQube today who will be taking over PR for the Game Gadget. He's aware of the problems and they are doing what they can to sort things out. I've told him my concerns about the device, and that we'll most likely do a feature that examines what went wrong, and how they're planning to fix it. Anyway I'm setting up a new thread where you guys can actually help them.

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=35581

[kiwimike]

I've spoken to one of the guys at PQube today who will be taking over PR for the Game Gadget. He's aware of the problems and they are doing what they can to sort things out. I've told him my concerns about the device, and that we'll most likely do a feature that examines what went wrong, and how they're planning to fix it. Anyway I'm setting up a new thread where you guys can actually help them.

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=35581

Thats positive, as xploder frankly had NFI about customer relations and PR. But IMO, the past needs to be put to rest as well as moving forward- Which will require an open and honest fronting by those two founders, Mark and Jason. Maybe they were naiive, maybe they were a little cocky how easy they thought it would be- But it's their 'exaggeration for effect' that put this thing behind the eight ball from the get go. Other than that...I'll pop onto the other topic

***Edited to add: So the latest is the 'new' PR firm is yet another section of the Blaze/Xploder thing with more skeletons in the closet its seems than Southfork Ranch on Dallas, and despite a topic started here in RG forum they have not felt the need to inform customers on their own official site forum-The one they closed facebook down for as it was, in their words, a better way to keep their customers up to date and informed.
Still no games and still no updates, they want to know what RG readers think it needs...?!
Honestly- and I'm being serious here. It's time to call it. Time of death. They need to recall what few are out there, shut up shop and do some SERIOUS work on this thing, remove the bugs and get some games. They need to make a unreserved public apology for the misleading and customer treatment. The try another release end of this year/start of next with bug free hardware and software, a working store, and a nice mix of good games that actually work properly.
If they continue to push this thing in the states, I will expect to see it hit the courtrooms.

[kiwimike]

Update: New review (six days ago) on eurogamer.

www.eurogamer.net/articles/df-hardware- ... get-review

Hope that works, I'm crap at doing links that work Not complimentary, and they do intend to investigate things further as mentioned in the review. I do have a degree of empathy for them while they try and steady the ship...hard to have sympathy though considering some of the tactics. This feature though does explain why it's difficult to get 'major publishers' on board with their set up. It is interesting, and is constructive.