FiringSquad has an in-depth article in which they quiz mainstream media outlet writers about games writing for the average joe:

Lev Grossman, who has written a number of video game themed articles for Time magazine, has a slightly difference stance on the subject of "dumbing down" such an article for the mainstream media. "Sure. We do it all the time. "Dumb down" makes it sound like a bad thing, but the fact is, I'm not writing for a hardcore audience, and you always want to pitch your writing to the people who are reading."

They interview a variety of writers who offer a gamut of opinions on Dumbing Down, but the general consensus is that it should be done. It goes on to point out that the big outlets don't publish as often as, say, every twenty minutes (ahem) and that game companies know they have to "feed the beast".

So even if CNN snipes our story about Duke Nukem Forever being signed exclusively to the Phantom, and furthermore being developed into an animated series for the WB by Uwe Boll, we'll still have lots of fiddly minutiae to gibber about after the big blab. Let's hear it for job security. Eliza Gauger

Gaming in Mainstream Media [FiringSquad]

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