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Official Kane & Lynch Web site flat out lies about its perfect review scores
Hamza CTZ Aziz12.03.08 - 10:07 PM 58 comments

This Kane & Lynch circus continues to entertain. Over on GameBump, they discovered that the official Kane & Lynch Web site states that Game Informer and Game Spy have both given the game a perfect score. The problem? Game Informer and Game Spy never gave this a perfect score at all. Game Spy gave the game a three out of five star rating and Game Informer gave the game a seven out of ten rating.

Not only that, but the quotes the Kane & Lynch Web site is using from both sites are actually from early previews of the game the sites did and weren't taken from the actual reviews.

Kotaku even gave this game a five star! Which is really weird because for as long as I've been reading Kotaku, they have rarely ever given a numerical score to a game, let alone some stars. 

Game Spy has contacted Eidos telling them to change the score. No word on if Game Informer or any of the other sites listed on the K&L site is requesting the changes. 

Check out the gallery below for some screen caps from the site or just go visit the site to see for yourself what they're trying to pull off. One thing is for sure; this game is getting more press than it ever would have otherwise.  

[Editor's note: There is a very slim chance that the stars could potentially just be for graphical purposes and not the actual ratings. In the off chance that this is the case, then it is extremely irresponsible and grossly misleading for any company to use a common rating system as a graphic and then have a statement praising the game that could easily be misinterpreted for an actual review score. -- CTZ]

[Thanks, Riven!]



MORE IN OUR Kane & Lynch: Dead Men SECTION

Latest comment by arinthel |view all 58 comments
This PR debacle is atrocious....I'd expect something like this from Rockstar or EA, but its been awhile since Eidos has acted this way. They have fallen a long way since the days of Thief, Tomb ......

 Kane & Lynch: Dead Men Gallery | (3) Images
Photo Photo Photo



Prism Schism's Avatar
Prism Schism at 12/03/2007 22:06

wow... first the jeff thing now this, sheesh.
Ignus's Avatar
Ignus at 12/03/2007 22:08

Do people actually go to those sites in the 1st place?
Also, do they use the same quotes in the TV-ads?
Ignus's Avatar
Ignus at 12/03/2007 22:08

Do people actually go to those sites in the 1st place?Also, do they use the same quotes in the TV-ads?
DanielMachine's Avatar
DanielMachine at 12/03/2007 22:09

Hahahahah
Techno Mage's Avatar
Techno Mage at 12/03/2007 22:09

You know, Eidos' capacity for bullshit is nothing short of amazing, if I have gotten anything out of this whole controversy, it's that I am a little in awe of an entire company that can, on command, transport itself into a fairytale realm of sunshine and candycanes, where money rains down from the heavens and people who say naughty things about you "get their what-for."
Brass's Avatar
Brass at 12/03/2007 22:09

Okay, I think it's pretty clear what's going on here.

I think the stars are merely a sinister design choice. They use previews, which are generally favorable (and 'Kane and Lynch' isn't the first game to abuse this novelty) and then use the stars as an aesthetic. I can guarantee that the marketers are aware of the misconception and are choosing to abuse it, but they will undoubtedly plead ignorance.

My two cents anyways.
c e n o k's Avatar
c e n o k at 12/03/2007 22:09

Haha Pathetic much?
Fleet3000's Avatar
Fleet3000 at 12/03/2007 22:10

are you F***ING kidding me???? what the hell man? do you realize that your game is TERRIBLE and there is NOTHING that can change that??? ever???? geeeeeezzzz
Teta's Avatar
Teta at 12/03/2007 22:10

The last sentence of this post must be mearked:
"One thing is for sure; this game is getting more press than it ever would have otherwise."
Ignus's Avatar
Ignus at 12/03/2007 22:11

Also, why is it that my posts are always double posts...
J03yyz's Avatar
J03yyz at 12/03/2007 22:12

click once and move onnn
UNDERSTAR's Avatar
UNDERSTAR at 12/03/2007 22:16

Man this game is getting shit on and I still like this game...........WTF????
JaysonNapolitano's Avatar
JaysonNapolitano at 12/03/2007 22:16

No, people! You've got it all wrong. Those stars are simply for graphical purposes and do not represent any score given by any media outlet! It's all a misunderstanding!
BFeld13's Avatar
BFeld13 at 12/03/2007 22:17

Oh noes
liam2015's Avatar
liam2015 at 12/03/2007 22:17

OH THE DRAMA
Cheeburga's Avatar
Cheeburga at 12/03/2007 22:17

Owned.
Clockwork's Avatar
Clockwork at 12/03/2007 22:18

This is getting pretty out of hand. How do you have the balls to completely make up a review to put on their site?
wardrox's Avatar
wardrox at 12/03/2007 22:19

Who needs actual reviews anyway. They're all overrated imho.
Cloudman's Avatar
Cloudman at 12/03/2007 22:20

It's obvious there company's PR is based on the secret.
MaxVest's Avatar
MaxVest at 12/03/2007 22:23

The stars represent the wanted level of Kane and Lynch! Oh, crap, Rockstar has lawyers too?

Ummm... the stars represent the rank... of the general... who wants to catch them so the army can... ummm... go home.
Barcode's Avatar
Barcode at 12/03/2007 22:25

It's a publicity stunt. They now have everyone's attention.

I don't really know, but seeing this bullshit only humors me.

I wonder what else Dtoid will do that's humorous.
WeAreToast's Avatar
WeAreToast at 12/03/2007 22:28

GI and GS (Game Spy, as in) employees, you'd better watch your back. CNET may come over to give.. adivce. Don't listen! Don't become Cashwhore!
The-Excel's Avatar
The-Excel at 12/03/2007 22:29

Is this game so high profile that it absolutely must have this sort of attention? Or is this just a conspiracy to lower everyone's standards to reduce development costs in the long run?
Namelessted's Avatar
Namelessted at 12/03/2007 22:30

how can they so blatantly lie about the review scores that they got on the game?
Harkonnen's Avatar
Harkonnen at 12/03/2007 22:37

OMFG THE LAME-O-METER IS SKYROCKETING
Kotua's Avatar
Kotua at 12/03/2007 22:38

Wow. This is really getting ridiculous. Shame on you Eidos...shame on you.
AgentMOO's Avatar
AgentMOO at 12/03/2007 22:38

&LOL
brosef's Avatar
brosef at 12/03/2007 22:38

So... you're telling me Karl Rove resigned as Presidential Adviser to do advertising for Eidos?





Up is Down, Down is Up. Your Reality is false. Welcome to the New Math, bitches.
AgentMOO's Avatar
AgentMOO at 12/03/2007 22:38

&LOL
Jim Sterling's Avatar
Jim Sterling at 12/03/2007 22:39

That "review" quote in the header image should actually read, "A mercenary, a psychopath and a bundle of cash ... that's how EIDOS secures a good review."
tkyy's Avatar
tkyy at 12/03/2007 22:39

(five stars)
"I was sooo wrong about my review!"
-- Jeff Gerstmann, FORMER Gamespot Editor
Boolean's Avatar
Boolean at 12/03/2007 22:42

God these guys are doing anything to make this game sell. I wonder if this game is a make or break release for Eidos, that if this game bombs Eidos might be saying bye-bye?
The-Excel's Avatar
The-Excel at 12/03/2007 22:43

@brosef:
God don't get me started on the new math.
timtheterrible's Avatar
timtheterrible at 12/03/2007 22:44

@Jayson

I think you might actually be right, but it's also obvious that stars are often used to render review scores. This is underhanded.
cainball's Avatar
cainball at 12/03/2007 22:46

Actually, three (out of five) plus seven (out of ten) DOES equal 10 (out of ten). Therefore, it is a perfect score.

I teach maths, and I know.

Eidos has in no way paid me for this comment.
SDogg554's Avatar
SDogg554 at 12/03/2007 23:02

i love when companies try to advertise their flops with good quotes taken out of context. "game of the year"...."if no other games were made this year".
Trowble's Avatar
Trowble at 12/03/2007 23:06

Eidos, open mouth and insert foot.
B-Radicate's Avatar
B-Radicate at 12/03/2007 23:09

This is laughably sad. I sure as hell hope no one bought this game. I was interested until I heard the cover mechanic was broken and the graphics were nothing special. Little shit like that kills immersion for me and while I may not be a total graphics whore, from what I heard it looked like the last Hitman game and I hated that game.
TheToiletDuck's Avatar
TheToiletDuck at 12/03/2007 23:10

Silly Eidos, tricks are for kids.
Mxyzptlk's Avatar
Mxyzptlk at 12/03/2007 23:17

Eidos's Kane & Lynch site say the game is awesome? Shit, I'll buy two copies.
JohnThEReaper617's Avatar
JohnThEReaper617 at 12/03/2007 23:26

Eidos states that Game Informer and Gamespy give Kane and Lynch a perfect score.

In related business news they also announce the aquisition of the rights to Duke Nukem Forever and will most definatly release in 2008...
brosef's Avatar
brosef at 12/03/2007 23:32

@The-Excel
lol. I doubted anyone would get that joke, and I was sure that those who did wouldn't smile, but would only shake their head at the memories. The bitter memories...

Well done sir, you have been counted.
Sharpless's Avatar
Sharpless at 12/03/2007 23:39

It makes me so slightly annoyed that this game has gone from something interesting with a lot of promise, to a dirty, filthy, shameful piece of shit. It saddens me.
hoydensnare's Avatar
hoydensnare at 12/04/2007 00:07

Eidos, how dastardly ye hast becomest. Thou shalt burn in everlasting fires of brimstone.
k u s h's Avatar
k u s h at 12/04/2007 00:26

Instead of spending all this time being dicks, Eidos should make a good game...
BlueJester's Avatar
BlueJester at 12/04/2007 00:31

This is just funny. WTF is going on!? Kane and lynch is some kind of curse... crazy things happen to everything around this game.
Necros's Avatar
Necros at 12/04/2007 00:43

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, I'll cut your balls off.
Necros's Avatar
Necros at 12/04/2007 00:43

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, I'll cut your balls off.
luvmysegadc's Avatar
luvmysegadc at 12/04/2007 00:51

Do we need to just boycott all Eidos games for a year!?
AgentMOO's Avatar
AgentMOO at 12/04/2007 01:48

The sad thing is that only the hardcore gaming community knows what a fucking disaster this is. Not having concrete proof keeps this story off the mainstream news sites like CNN. The whole crooked game review racket needs to be exposed on a public level. I wouldn't have said this five years ago, but there's just so much fucking money involved in the sales of these games that those bad business practices cant continue to be excused.
SourGr8pes's Avatar
SourGr8pes at 12/04/2007 02:58

Wow, talk about insecure. They must have known this game sucked before they released it, else why bother going through all this trouble?
Samit Sarkar's Avatar
Samit Sarkar at 12/04/2007 06:52

Wow, they’re not even trying anymore. That’s not even underhanded; it’s flat-out lying.
Paustinj's Avatar
Paustinj at 12/04/2007 08:39

Epic Face Palm Eidos
foxhound009's Avatar
foxhound009 at 12/04/2007 11:58

http://www.gametrailers.com/player/usermovies/138949.html?playlist=featured
hahah check the vid they have made :D:D:D:D
Corak's Avatar
Corak at 12/04/2007 12:49

Epic facepalm here. You are so insecure about a game you made that you resort to this kind of PR. You know most reviews I've seen didn't say it was bad or good, just average. A lot of games don't get the OMG holy shit this game is the best thing since the vagina. The game isn't bad, and it isn't great, and I'll let you in on a little secret.....most games are just that. We know you set out to make the best game ever conceived, and in your eyes it is no matter what anyone says about it. You feel so strongly about it that you will fabricate reviews and spread false PR just to make yourselves feel better. Eidos you are a oficially a joke, and worst of all you made yourselves a whiney, needy, bitch first.

Allow me to share what kind of world you live in, it starts at 45 seconds into the clip...your fantasy world.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zzijXOdprm0&feature=related
Eschatos's Avatar
Eschatos at 12/04/2007 14:19

I'm sure the stars are really there to be a score, but if called out, they'll just claim they're graphical thingies.
Fading_Star's Avatar
Fading_Star at 12/04/2007 15:52

This is sad.
arinthel's Avatar
arinthel at 12/04/2007 18:15

This PR debacle is atrocious....I'd expect something like this from Rockstar or EA, but its been awhile since Eidos has acted this way.

They have fallen a long way since the days of Thief, Tomb Raider and Deus Ex.

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