The Inventory...

[DomStLeger]

Ok I read the lastest issue of The Inventory and have to say I'm unimpressed. This publication has had 8 issues, yet the fundamental problems with it have still not been ironed out (infact I'd say they're not even aware of their existance).

The main problems imo are,
It's extremely colourful; with many large photographs. It's very nice to look at, but this is a major problem because not only does it make the PDF file large (3mb) but for a publication that you're supposed to be able to print it would use up excessive amounts of Ink, especially colour ink. And if you were to use greyscale you will still waste a great deal of ink and probably get something unreadable as there is no reference to contrast in the page design.

The use of english is not very good. As the editor's grasp of the english language is perhaps not up to proof reading; he should consider finding someone else to do that part of his job. Funnily enough one of the letters to the "editor" is actually a query regarding a typo: "Amerzone's story will leave a sweat taste in your mouth..." hehe :D

The whole thing seems to remain a mouth piece for Dimi's (the editor) personal views on adventure games. Remember when he graced these very forums with his presence a year or so ago? As I recall he was vocally (and irrationally imo) very against Broken Sword 3 because of its decision to use Direct Control. Well unfortunately hes let is own bias cloud this endevour of his; I haven't seen a single mention of BS3 in any of the issues of the inventory. It suprises me that Randy Sluganski gives the publication hosting while it continues to do this as it reflects badly on Justadventure.


It's a real shame imo, because the idea itself is a rather nice one; an easy to download publication for people to read at their own pace and in their own time offline. And while I disagree with Dimi's opinions on adventure, I'm in no doubt he loves the genre and wants it to prosper. It's be nice if this idea could succeed but I honestly don't think it's much use in its present form. Pity.

What does everyone else think? Agree/disagree? Or am I just being silly and picky? :)

EDIT: I just had a thought a few mins after I posted this. Why doesn't adventuregamers.com do a similar thing; except instead of new content just republish everything major from the last month in an easy print and view form? Or is that too much work? Random idea anyway.

[ragnar]

It's be nice if this idea ...

And that comes from someone complaining about other peoples use of the English language. ;)

What does everyone else think? Agree/disagree? Or am I just being silly and picky? :)

I have only read the first issue. I thought it rather immature and not fully up to a good standard. And from what I've read from other people, this has not changed. So I don't read it. Also I dislike reading pdf:s, if there were a html-version I might have read it more. They are simply too large and are hard to read on a computer. And I wouldn't waste paper on this publication by printing it out.

[pleto4_ryan]

Have read only 2 issues, but i agree...

(is his english as "bad" as mine :P )

[jannar85]

I kind of disagree, and find this negative - since you DO NOT tell this to him personally. How can he know your feelings about it, if he'll never get to know...?

Big pictures.. hmmm.. you mean the cartoon? well, there IS an option for leaving some sites from being printed, if you don't want to throw away ink. You don't need to print it though. :shifty:

The use of english... Well, maybe you want to help him with that? :devil:

Personally, I don't see why an adventure game mag should tell everyone about every game being produced, even though BS3 looks good, it had some kind of negative effect on Cecil's words. (...It was not because of DC...it was cecils statement about point and click) Even on me, but I get the info I need from various other BS3 sources - so why don't you find them as well, if you really want to find out more about it?

I think Dim's commitment to the genre is quite positive, and the same goes to JA for hosting it. An editor decides which games should be in it, and I don't blaim Dim for leaving BS3 about because of that statement..

It still bugs me as well, since there still are several point and click games being released (Syberia, Tony Tough, Runaway...)

So tell him, instead of us. End of story.
(I don't think he'll be reading this, since I think he's left this forum...)

[SamandMax]

I completely agree with you. It's a great idea, and Dimi means well, but the magazine just isn't what it should be.

"If however it turns out that the sequel to The Longest Journey is an action/adventure, we will stop covering it."

It's quotes like that which make me wonder if he just wants to sound important because he's making a stand. I wish Dimi well in continuing with the magazine, but I really really hope he hires more writers, and starts to be more lenient with his views. Just because it's an 'action/adventure' like BS3, doesn't mean you have to stop covering it.

[Erwin_Br]

I agree on the printing issue. One thing that could make the Inventory stand out is the ability to print it and read it in your comfy sofa. Appearantly Dimi never bought ink cartridges because that they're expensive is an understatement. I could buy 5 new HP printers from all the ink I've bought in the past 2 years. :frusty:

I also agree that his writing can be improved. I'm not only talking about grammar and spelling, but also about the way he constructs his articles. They need to have a more distinct beginning and ending, IMHO.

Anyway, I remember some nice features and great interviews he did so I can't really complain about the content. I really enjoyed his interview with tierra, for example.

The Broken Sword 3 thing is his personal choice and frankly I suspect that your opinions about dimi and the Inventory are slighly influenced by this, thus not really objective. I could be wrong though ;)

--Erwin

[DomStLeger]

Big pictures.. hmmm.. you mean the cartoon? well, there IS an option for leaving some sites from being printed, if you don't want to throw away ink. You don't need to print it though.

Actually I meant the front cover, contents page, review pages (with their half page screen shots); advert at the end etc. :D


The Broken Sword 3 thing is his personal choice and frankly I suspect that your opinions about dimi and the Inventory are slighly influenced by this, thus not really objective. I could be wrong though

Oo below the belt :D I'll admit that perhaps I don't see eye to eye with Dimi on BS3:) (I wonder if I'll get Understatement of the Year 2003?). But I have tried to be objective, honestly the problems I listed are not influcenced in any way by that and I think I've been fair. I apologise if I haven't or come across as being heavy handed to him. I suppose the tone of my post was rather negative, but I do actually want his venture to succeed, but those problems have to be solved first.

To be fair though, he's decided to publish his work (which is apparently endorsed by justadventure) yet he hasn't made his own opinions clear or tried to be impartial. And it isn't just that he's anti BS3. For example he also seems to show favouritism for games he personally likes (i.e. Syberia). There is truely nothing wrong with bias imo, as long as you make it clear you're biased; which I don't think he has done. Basically he hasn't made the publications editorial position clear and that, imo, is unhelpful to the reader.

I wonder if he'll post my letter next month? :D

[DomStLeger]

I kind of disagree, and find this negative - since you DO NOT tell this to him personally. How can he know your feelings about it, if he'll never get to know...?

Personally, I don't see why an adventure game mag should tell everyone about every game being produced, even though BS3 looks good, it had some kind of negative effect on Cecil's words. (...It was not because of DC...it was cecils statement about point and click) Even on me, but I get the info I need from various other BS3 sources - so why don't you find them as well, if you really want to find out more about it?

I think Dim's commitment to the genre is quite positive, and the same goes to JA for hosting it. An editor decides which games should be in it, and I don't blaim Dim for leaving BS3 about because of that statement..

It still bugs me as well, since there still are several point and click games being released (Syberia, Tony Tough, Runaway...)

So tell him, instead of us. End of story.
(I don't think he'll be reading this, since I think he's left this forum...)

Yes I agree with you, he doesn't have to cover every game ever produced. What I mean is that he should make his own position clear to readers. I'm well aware of his opinions from past discussion on this forum, but I imagine most readers at JA+ aren't (Dimi's over at JA+ Forums, but I doubt most people who visit the site enter the forums; like most sites with forums)

And I have emailed him; but I thought I'd just share my thoughts on the issue with others too. I think mainly because I felt a little exasperated after reading it and seeing it hasn't changed; which honestly I think is a pity because it could work well.

[Moosferatu]

Let's try to keep this civil this time. :rolleyes:

Dimi and I don't see eye to eye on everything, but that doesn't make everything that he says bad. I have downloaded every issue, but never read a whole issue. There are often interesting tid-bits in it, like the interview about the KQ fan game in the last issue (at least I think it was the last issue, I can't remember). I also like looking at all of the pictures in. I would never dream of printing it so I perfer it the way it is. I can't imagine how much work he must put into it, so you should give him some credit just for that.

Dom, AGers does do something like that. It's called a newsletter.

[Erwin_Br]

I'll admit that perhaps I don't see eye to eye with Dimi on BS3:) (I wonder if I'll get Understatement of the Year 2003?). But I have tried to be objective, honestly the problems I listed are not influcenced in any way by that and I think I've been fair. I suppose the tone of my post was rather negative, but I do actually want his venture to succeed, but those problems have to be solved first.

I agree on a lot of points you made in your post, but when I read point number 3 you became rather personal towards him. Specifically, mentioning his history on our forums :P Other than that, I think you remained quite objective.

There is truely nothing wrong with bias imo, as long as you make it clear you're biased; which I don't think he has done. Basically he hasn't made the publications editorial position clear and that, imo, is unhelpful to the reader.

I agree.

He needs to be more clear about what he's trying to tell his readers. He needs to ask himself if he's trying to convince the reader of something, to provide the reader with information about something or to entertain the reader. (Hey, I've studied this for my writing classes you know!)

I wonder if he'll post my letter next month? :D

Don't hold your breath ;)

--Erwin

[m0ds]

I'm in favour of anyone showing their support for the genre.

[Erwin_Br]

Just to be clear; I think certain things can be improved, but that doesn't mean I don't support Dimi's work. I hope my comments are experienced as constructive and objective.

--Erwin

[Stinger]

I just had a thought a few mins after I posted this. Why doesn't adventuregamers.com do a similar thing; except instead of new content just republish everything major from the last month in an easy print and view form? Or is that too much work? Random idea anyway.

We must continue to provide reasons for the site to be visited on a regular basis (other than the forums). Potential advertising revenue as well as goodwill from publishers often depends on site traffic. We were denied preview materials from a certain publisher earlier this year because our Alexa number was too low (and yes, by too low I mean too high). I think there's too much danger of people who would rather just wait for something they can print out rather than visiting the site regularly.

However, I do like the idea of The Inventory in theory. I think in the future, we may pursue doing something like this with original content unavailable on the site. That's a thought for 2004, though.

By the way Moos, the newsletter we publish is nothing like what Dom was talking about. None of our articles are fully reprinted there; it's only a series of links.

[Tyler Durden]

I admit that Inventory isn't perfection, yet. However, I should remind you something 'small'. I don't care if you want to believe it or not but adventure games are slowly dying believe it or not. So my point is why you are so mean against such efforts? I have a strange feeling that you aren't against the magazine but against the guy who writes it! I don't like that. You just judge and do nothing yourselves...

[Marek]

Dom: you can print out any article on Adventure Gamers by following the 'printer version' link at the bottom.

Although adventure games are not dying commercially, they may be dying creatively. I think The Inventory is very much in 'adventure gaming activism' mode, trying to promote the genre as much as it possibly can (without profiling itself so much as a fanzine). I'm not sure if that's a good thing. We ought to be more critical.

Of course those are just my (completely unofficial) 2 cents. In general, the more adventure sites there are, the better.

[Tyler Durden]

Of course those are just my (completely unofficial) 2 cents. In general, the more adventure sites there are, the better.That's much better :D

[Starflux]

I don't think any genre can "die". Unless we're speaking in egyptian ways, dying is somewhat a permanent state of not-being-around. Whereas any genre can be brought back easily with only one game appearing. See it more as a temporary shift into stasis.

[Ariel Type]

I think it is a good thing, these journals. It has quite a lot of enjoyable material, and now it even has Al Lowe! Though I don't agree with everything they write (Runaway difficult level - medium/high - ha! and story - 96% - ha!ha!), I think people make a good work. Interveiws are also usually interesting to read. But I hope in feauture they'll write more reveiws on some old, classical games.

[Wajus]

Just one wish: to meet this dimidimi snob on a basketball court.

The Inventory is only passable as a source for informations but never as an another, alternative point of view. It's simply too paranoid at times.

[DomStLeger]

I admit that Inventory isn't perfection, yet. However, I should remind you something 'small'. I don't care if you want to believe it or not but adventure games are slowly dying believe it or not. So my point is why you are so mean against such efforts? I have a strange feeling that you aren't against the magazine but against the guy who writes it! I don't like that.

I'm sorry you feel that way. Even if you think my judgement is clouded in some way all of my points were valid imo, though perhaps number 3 could have been expressed better. I never said I was against the magazine; I said I was unimpressed that after 8 issues it still had the same major problems. I also said I think it's a nice idea and want it to succeed.

And Are you saying we should all praise everything just because it's about adventure games? I'm sorry but I think criticism is actually helpful; and the day we start pretending everything is wonderful just to spare everyones feelings is the day the high standards seen in the adventure community disappear imo.

You just judge and do nothing yourselves...

It's a pity you feel that way too. I don't see why I can't express my opinions about his magazine; I'm a reader like anyone else. Also I don't see why, to support the genre, you must have written or published something as you seem to imply, There are a large number of people on this forum and others, including myself, who support the genre by simply taking part and reading things within the community. Maybe it's not a major thing, but we all try to keep the genre and community going in our own small ways. Not everyone has the time or perhaps the inclination to do more.

I think it is a good thing, these journals. It has quite a lot of enjoyable material, and now it even has Al Lowe! Though I don't agree with everything they write (Runaway difficult level - medium/high - ha! and story - 96% - ha!ha!), I think people make a good work. Interveiws are also usually interesting to read. But I hope in feauture they'll write more reveiws on some old, classical games.

Yeah I agree the interviews are one of it's strengths, and it also has a nice news round up page which is useful. Also his passion for the genre comes through, which is good to see.

[eriq]

I really like 'The Inventory' and even though the writing isn't the best, it's definetely an enjoyable look at adventure games. I really enjoyed last issue's coverage on the new King's Quest fan game. I hadn't seen any photos or conceptual artwork from that fan project before.

Everyone should be allowed to express their opinion. I think it's a refreshing look at some current adventures written by a genuine fan of the genre and appreciate the time and energy that went into it even if it's 'amateurish' and biased.

[Wajus]

Shouldn't we invite Dimitri here? It's not like we have anything particularly revealing to say, but since we're discussing his work and himself (or his attitude) also... :rolleyes:

[m0ds]

On the whole I think you're being too harsh. Dimi puts time and effort into creating each issue and this gives him the right to have his say on adventure games.

He doesn't have to like BS3. Nobody does. Man, I hate Sierra adventure games but it's not like I'm going to be struck down by God for it.

The point of the use of English is also a little unfair. If it was written in his mother-tongue chances are you wouldn't have read it at all.

This is a good website, yes, but The Inventory is not trying to be Adventure Gamers.com . JustAdventure has a tacky design and pop-up ads yet it claims to be "the number 1". It has good content though, we know this. Dimi's magazine may be a word document converted into PDF, and may feature grammatical errors but at the end of the day, it's something to read about the genre we enjoy. If we disagree with things it's saying, then as a magazine it is doing its job. When was the last time you agreed with 'The Sun'?

m0ds

[peb]

On the whole I think you're being too harsh. Dimi puts time and effort into creating each issue and this gives him the right to have his say on adventure games.

He doesn't have to like BS3. Nobody does. Man, I hate Sierra adventure games but it's not like I'm going to be struck down by God for it.

The point of the use of English is also a little unfair. If it was written in his mother-tongue chances are you wouldn't have read it at all.

This is a good website, yes, but The Inventory is not trying to be Adventure Gamers.com . JustAdventure has a tacky design and pop-up ads yet it claims to be "the number 1". It has good content though, we know this. Dimi's magazine may be a word document converted into PDF, and may feature grammatical errors but at the end of the day, it's something to read about the genre we enjoy. If we disagree with things it's saying, then as a magazine it is doing its job. When was the last time you agreed with 'The Sun'?

m0ds

I think these are good points, especially the one about English not being his native tongue. I think he deserves a little slack on that. The Inventory is basically a DIY fanzine. The guy has the right to make it the way he wants and doesn't have to change it to suit our tastes.

That being said, he certainly doesn't speak for me in terms of preferences in the adventure genre. So I usually don't find anything of interest in it. And considering how psychotic he has acted at times on this and other boards, it's hard for me to take his magazine seriously.

[ragnar]

I think these are good points, especially the one about English not being his native tongue. I think he deserves a little slack on that. The Inventory is basically a DIY fanzine. The guy has the right to make it the way he wants and doesn't have to change it to suit our tastes.

Of course he doesn't need to change it. If he wants to reach a broader audience, or indeed take on a wider perspective about things, he need to change it quite a bit. But it is his choice if it should be a magazine for those who only like point and click and resent everything else or if it should be a little more broadminded.

[DomStLeger]

On the whole I think you're being too harsh. Dimi puts time and effort into creating each issue and this gives him the right to have his say on adventure games.

He doesn't have to like BS3. Nobody does. Man, I hate Sierra adventure games but it's not like I'm going to be struck down by God for it.

The point of the use of English is also a little unfair. If it was written in his mother-tongue chances are you wouldn't have read it at all.

This is a good website, yes, but The Inventory is not trying to be Adventure Gamers.com . JustAdventure has a tacky design and pop-up ads yet it claims to be "the number 1". It has good content though, we know this. Dimi's magazine may be a word document converted into PDF, and may feature grammatical errors but at the end of the day, it's something to read about the genre we enjoy. If we disagree with things it's saying, then as a magazine it is doing its job. When was the last time you agreed with 'The Sun'?

m0ds

No he doesn't have to like BS3, I agree completely. But he should make his views clear instead of just ignoring it completely. He made his views very clear here and on the JA+ forum, but not in his magazine. I think thats a fair thing to ask for.

Also, I wasn't having a go at him over his use of english; I'm honestly very impressed how well many people can communicate coherently in second/third languages. It's not something I can do in my second tounge, so hats off to him (I can barely do it in my first most of the time :)). But if he wants to be taken seriously he should recognise his short comings and get someone to proof read. Thats not a major thing to do or suggest. I'm sure writers on AGs have someone proof read their stuff, even if english is their first language.

And you're right The Inventory is not trying to be ags or ja+. But that doesn't excuse it having major design flaws. If I wanted him to fail I wouldn't have mentioned it at all; but I want him to succeed. Everything I said I felt was valid, and believe it or not, helpful. Perhaps it's just the way I said it. Oh well, at the end of the day it's his publication and what I have to say has very little to do with anything.

[dimidimidimi]

In the beginning I had decided not to reply on this post but some individuals invited me to reply and post my opinion on the subject since the subject is about me and my publication. And first of all I would also like to mention that this is the only forum that The Inventory is being bashed. All the other forums are very impressed by The Inventory and by the work behind it. I wonder which is the rule and which is the exception.

Not that I mind constructive criticism. But there is a difference between constructive criticism and bashing. For example t suprises me that Randy Sluganski gives the publication hosting while it continues to do this as it reflects badly on Justadventure.' ... now that is downright bashing. Anyhow, I might as well answer some points made here:

- Dimitris kant spik inglish

I never claimed that I was perfect in English. And I admit that each issue has a couple of typos or grammatical errors. Why don't I have someone proof read the issue? I might as well let you know that none of the issues published so far have been completed, as I'd like them to be. I set deadlines for many reasons, i.e. I can't just upload the issue whenever I want, I have to agree with JA on a certain date, some publishers will give me exclusive screenshots only until a certain date, etc, etc, etc.

And the rest of the writers usually send me their stuff literally in the last minute. For example, I wanted to do an intro page for the comic strip this month, but since I got the comic strip almost exactly on the deadline when the issue was due, I had no time to do that. Having someone to proof read the whole issue and get back to me, would take a certain amount of time, and at the moment the free time I have at my disposal is ... the big potato... 0. (Oh and if someone wants to see how much time it takes to write one of these issues I suggest you try to write one yourselves).

So I'm sorry for having a couple of typos on each issue. I hope your eyes can bear that atrocity. For your own satisfaction, I have hired an American reviewer who studies English and writing this last week, so you might as well enjoy his writing more than mine ;) And DomStLeger, next time you lecture someone on his writing at least try to avoid typos yourself ;) And damn the university of Cambridge for granting me the degree of proficiency in English.

- The editor writes the whole magazine on himself and doesn't let anyone else write in it!

While I was planning the last issue, Mark said he would write a review tribute, Carla had said she would write one preview as well (the SQ7 one) and Yngvil said she would also write an article. I also asked Al Lowe to write an article on adventure games. All of them in the end told me that they didn't have time for these articles. I do not blame them for that, I understand that it takes time to write an article and since it is volunteer work I have no demands from them. But on the other hand, blaming me for doing the job that other people do not have the time for...well I don't know what is the logic behind that. Did I mention we just hired one more writer?

-The Inventory doesn't cover direct control adventures and it doesn't cover BS3 because of that

Emm... look at the cover of The Inventory 5. And btw, do you know what kind of control will the adventure that the comic strip is based on have? That's right DC. Now, in the review of Shadow of Memories, I did say that the controls were awful. But if I am not mistaken so did every other review of the PC version of this game. Even the one here in AG.

As for BS3, that's right we don't cover it. But not because it has DC, but because of the famous statement. And I don't know how each one of you interpretes or wants to interprete this statement, but please go and ask developers like Pendulo and Razbor Studios how easy it is to find a publisher these days for their games that they have worked hard for and if statements like that help them or not in their work. As for the 'point and click is dead creatively' interpretation and 'direct control gives birth to a new kind of gameplay' statement, give me any puzzle you want to include in a game and I will tell how it can be done either in a point and click interface or in a direct control interface.

And anyway, since when is it obligatory for any magazine or publication to cover a certain product?

-Inventory will do just anything to promote adventure games and is not critical enough on adventures

This was claimed by Marek. While I agree on the first part (and I don't actually see anything wrong with that), allow me to strongly disagree on the second. And I will also go the further step and compare who was more critical to a recent example, Runaway, AG or the Inventory. (And remember, I'm supposed to be the 'I love P&C games no matter what').

The AG review said that the puzzles were excellent and there was no mention whatsoever of the extreme pixel hunting of the game. On the other hand, The Inventory's review states that although some of the puzzles of Runaway are smart, many of them felt tucked in just to prolong the gameplay (like Saturn telling you to stand in front of the window so he can throw you the no 10 key and so that it flies out of the windoe and goes in the trench -probably the wrong word- and oops one more puzzle...which has nothing to do with the story other than bother you a bit longer) and mentions quite extensively that the staging of hotspots was rather poor and the game had extreme pixel hunting. Check also reviews from other non-adventure sites and please tell me who was more critical.

I'm not saying that I didn't like Runaway. I loved it, but this didn't stop me from mentioning its shortcomings. And I don't say that the review was bad nor am I saying that everyone should agree with my opinion on the gameplay, I'm just comparing it with my review in terms of who was more critical.

-The Inventory says stupid things like we won't cover game X if it turns into an action/adventure

I don't see anything wrong with that either. The Inventory's theme is pure adventure games (and that go as far as having some action elements in them...but not as far as them being action/adventures). Is there some kind of rule with what games should there be in each zine? Saying that the Inventory sucks because it doesn't cover action/adventures is like saying the site www.nba.com sucks as a basketball site cause they don't cover football matches, or that the www.ministryofsound.com site sucks as a dance music site cause it doesn't cover rock music. The TLJ developers said themselves that no 2 is going to be an action/adventure... I didn't make that up myself. Ragnar on the other hand said later that he was misquoted. That's why we said the word 'if' over there.

But honestly if you look for other kind of games, look elsewhere, and let those who enjoy a magazine only for adventures enjoy it.

-The Inventory should make it clear to their readers that they hate X certain kind of games'

What should I do, include a text next month and say 'Hi, my name is Dimitris Manos and I hate this and this and this game, because of that and that and that?' What would be the point? Everybody can read the reviews and understand by themselves which kind of games a reviewer likes or not. I know that many reviewers in AG dislike FMV adventures, but I didn't see any special article making mention of it and I didn't see anybody complain about it either.

Not even to mention that GK2, considered by many the best adventure ever, was not even included in the top 20 adventures list. Isn't there a bias in AG then? Of course there is a bias as there is a bias in all sites about certain things. All sites/publications promote a certain ideology, either very clearly or 'quitely' and all reviewers judge products through their own perspective.

I had more notes, but I've already spent more time than I should on this one. All I have to say is that we are trying something new with The Inventory that has never been done before (by any gaming site AFAIK) and the results we've had, the feedback we get and the number of people our magazine reaches has exceeded by far all our expectations. I am also very happy with the team we have. Everybody (not talking about myself) is first of all a wonderful and down-to-earth person who loves the genre and is willing to spend some of their time in order to promote it.

Whoever hates or is being disturbed by our work, feel free to avoid it, we do not pressure anybody to read our magazine. But there are thousands of people out there who think that The Inventory covers and promotes an area of games that had been seriously neglected, and they are thankful for that.

And as I said before, we definitely welcome constructive criticism but we do not accept bashing.

Dimitris Manos

[DomStLeger]

- Dimitris kant spik inglish

I never claimed that I was perfect in English. And I admit that each issue has a couple of typos or grammatical errors. Why don't I have someone proof read the issue? I might as well let you know that none of the issues published so far have been completed, as I'd like them to be. I set deadlines for many reasons, i.e. I can't just upload the issue whenever I want, I have to agree with JA on a certain date, some publishers will give me exclusive screenshots only until a certain date, etc, etc, etc.

And the rest of the writers usually send me their stuff literally in the last minute. For example, I wanted to do an intro page for the comic strip this month, but since I got the comic strip almost exactly on the deadline when the issue was due, I had no time to do that. Having someone to proof read the whole issue and get back to me, would take a certain amount of time, and at the moment the free time I have at my disposal is ... the big potato... 0. (Oh and if someone wants to see how much time it takes to write one of these issues I suggest you try to write one yourselves).

No one is criticising your general english, you communicate perfectly well. And typos happen everywhere; and as far as I'm concerned there are nothing wrong with spelling mistakes as long as they don't get in the way of meaning - it's only human and normal. Having said that your english it is not quite up to the proof reading side of editing a magazine; and that is all I said. It doesn't have to be perfect but it has to be done because otherwise sentences will make less sense or mean something completely different. Let me make something else clear, it has no affect on me; it's your publication and it's your readers who will have problems - it is constructive criticism, believe it or not; just not sugar coated.

I suggest you set yourself a deadline of a few days before JA+'s so you can proof read or have someone else proof read. It's not a big job at all, especially if you find someone who enjoys reading the publication; then it's not like a job at all.


And DomStLeger, next time you lecture someone on his writing at least try to avoid typos yourself ;) And damn the university of Cambridge for granting me the degree of proficiency in English.

The difference between me and you is that I'm writing in a casual forum, where as you're writing a magazine which you say aims to "fill the void of an adventure magazine that exists in the press". That means you're writing something that is inevitabily going to be judged against the rest of the press and at a high standard. It's ok for people who know you; they can say to themselves "Well Dimi writes this himself, and it must take alot of time, so it doesn't matter". But most of your readers are probably going to be casual visiters to your site, who think they're downloading a professional magazine from a professional site like JA+. When they read it they'll be much more judgemental; and even small errors may make them never read it again. And frankly, to say that in it's present state it reflects badly on JA+ isn't bashing either you or JA+ but is actually being honest. The truth may hurt but it's still the truth. You can say I don't know what I'm talking about; or I'm just bashing for personal reasons etc; anything you like, but it won't change the basic truth.


-The Inventory doesn't cover direct control adventures and it doesn't cover BS3 because of that

...

And anyway, since when is it obligatory for any magazine or publication to cover a certain product?

You seemed to have missed the point on that one. You don't have to cover every game. But you should make your own views clear so your readers are aware of what your biases are. Even I got confused over whether it was a bias against Direct Control or any action in a game, and I was here when you made your famous statement. So try and empathise with your readers; ask yourself what they are thinking.

To say that bias comes through in reviews is actually fair; but I have to be brutally honest - I don't think you're able to work outside your own biases like other reviewers. They tend to be able to work around them and try not to let them affect their judgement, whereas I don't think you can. Thats not entirely a bad thing; you're passionate about what you believe in. But unfortunately you can be blinded by that passion and so you let your baises prevail. In those cases I believe it is your duty to make it explicitly clear what your biases are so people can be free to make their own judgements. Otherwise you subtly tell people what to think.

For example, the Broken Sword 3 problem. You are dead against it because you believe it's going to be an action game. Without explaining your reasons people are going to assume that the lack of coverage means it is an action game; as you have made it clear you don't cover action games. Now that is unfair on the readers. Without knowing that you personally believe it's an action game and that it is officialy denied etc, you are leading peoples thoughts and telling them what to think/believe. So they aren't being given the oppertunity to make their own minds up.


I had more notes, but I've already spent more time than I should on this one. All I have to say is that we are trying something new with The Inventory that has never been done before (by any gaming site AFAIK) and the results we've had, the feedback we get and the number of people our magazine reaches has exceeded by far all our expectations. I am also very happy with the team we have. Everybody (not talking about myself) is first of all a wonderful and down-to-earth person who loves the genre and is willing to spend some of their time in order to promote it.

Whoever hates or is being disturbed by our work, feel free to avoid it, we do not pressure anybody to read our magazine. But there are thousands of people out there who think that The Inventory covers and promotes an area of games that had been seriously neglected, and they are thankful for that.

And as I said before, we definitely welcome constructive criticism but we do not accept bashing.

Dimitris Manos

I don't doubt the dedication of you or your team. But I do doubt that The Inventory is successfully promoting the genre with the problems I've identified. The bias problem, in fact, may even by harming the genre. You set out to "fill the void of an adventure magazine that exists in the press" and to "introduce more people to the adventure genre". I'm sorry, but I don't think you can do that with the current problems and that at the moment you are preaching to the converted.

As hard as it may be for you to believe, this has been constructive criticism. I've never said it's crap, the idea will never work, give up. I have just said what I think is wrong with it and how to fix it. What more do you expect? Do you think constructive criticism requires someone first of all praising the magazine and saying how wonderful it is, before saying "but..."? That is just sugar coating; and it's not something I do.

I'm sorry you see someone who doesn't believe all is well with the inventory must be bashing it. I have said I may not have expressed everything as clearly and objectively as I could; but I don't believe I've ever bashed your magazine. I honestly hope you will take my criticisms on board and try to fix them because I believe the potential is there. If you don't then someone else will probably come along and do what you're doing but better.

[twifkak]

Thank you, Dimi, for your (for the most part) well thought out and well written response. I appreciate getting to hear the other side.

And as I said before, we definitely welcome constructive criticism but we do not accept bashing.
I respect that, and I think you might be misplacing the intent of the comments. Whatever the case with others' intent, some of the points you respond to are reasons I don't read the inventory. (The biggest is probably actually layout, which wasn't mentioned.) That's not bashing -- that's just fact. Keep doing what you're doing, but know that if you ever wanted to expand your audience, you have a few suggestions.

[Erwin_Br]

Indeed, twif. Ink cartridges are very expensive and with all the graphical, colourful violence I doubt many people will actually print it. Grayscale might be an option, but it doesn't make the magazine easy to read.

--Erwin

[ragnar]

-Inventory will do just anything to promote adventure games and is not critical enough on adventures

This was claimed by Marek. While I agree on the first part (and I don't actually see anything wrong with that), allow me to strongly disagree on the second. And I will also go the further step and compare who was more critical to a recent example, Runaway, AG or the Inventory. (And remember, I'm supposed to be the 'I love P&C games no matter what').

The AG review said that the puzzles were excellent and there was no mention whatsoever of the extreme pixel hunting of the game. On the other hand, The Inventory's review states that although some of the puzzles of Runaway are smart, many of them felt tucked in just to prolong the gameplay (like Saturn telling you to stand in front of the window so he can throw you the no 10 key and so that it flies out of the windoe and goes in the trench -probably the wrong word- and oops one more puzzle...which has nothing to do with the story other than bother you a bit longer) and mentions quite extensively that the staging of hotspots was rather poor and the game had extreme pixel hunting. Check also reviews from other non-adventure sites and please tell me who was more critical.

I'm not saying that I didn't like Runaway. I loved it, but this didn't stop me from mentioning its shortcomings. And I don't say that the review was bad nor am I saying that everyone should agree with my opinion on the gameplay, I'm just comparing it with my review in terms of who was more critical.


I don't think Marek meant critisism on individual game basis. That is much too subjective. You like GK2, Stinger like Runaway. It's perfectly fine. What (I think) Marek meant is that there is too little of critisism on the adventure genre as a whole. Why does new AG:s appear to be so similar to those that already are out there. Why are there so many clichées in them etc.?

[Tamara]

I agree with those who complain about the layout .. in fact honestly the reason I don't read the inventory is because the first issue crashed my computer. :D But even so, Pdf is an annoying format, IMO. Anyway, as such, I can't really comment about your magazine, but I must say your English has improved a huge deal since you used to post here dimi (and that's just a compliment with no hidden edges, OK? :P)

[Stinger]

I will say this, as the sole proofreader of all Adventure Gamers articles: I would never dare to criticize the publisher of a newsletter for the occasional typo that sneaks in, especially being in a deadline situation like Dimitris is in. There is a built-in deadline with our Flashback Friday reviews obviously, and I'd say more than 50% of them get published before I catch every typo. Thankfully, most of what I miss are minor punctuation and grammar errors and not atroshus spelingg erorhs.

Dimitris, I don't read The Inventory; I choose to protest the stand you've taken against Broken Sword 3 in the same manner you've chosen to protest Charles Cecil's statement. And, I expect you to care about my protest just as much as I'm sure you expect Charles Cecil to care about yours, and that's okay with me. But I think you answered your critics well here, and for the most part professionally, and when all is said and done your newsletter does more good than harm. So, carry on, and best of luck.

- Evan

[Wajus]

And as I said before, we definitely welcome constructive criticism but we do not accept bashing.

Dimitris Manos

Some of us think that bashing the bias is more than acceptable. It is somewhat analogical problem as with the "tolerating the intolerance".

VAST - Free