Hello - Fast and with contempt over here…
… and with severe dyslexia (Multumesc
I just want to set the record straight
Setting the Record Straight
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The translation culture existed before my arrival and was part of the “general way of doing things.” Most of the news editors were already following this practice—it was simply part of the scenery. When I joined in 2008, almost all materials were translations from CNET and GTtrailers, with some interviews and discussions on outdated topics like, “Are Floppys coming back?”
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The first review I did was for MGS4. I initially wanted to grade games to give the public a clear sense of their quality. Remember that the Romanian Revolution had occurred not too long before, and this was the national television—grading was both important and necessary. The audience wasn’t yet ready to see games as an art form back in 2008, so I made that choice. Although the “simplification” of certain terms was controversial in the community, I had fun with it. This is where terms like “Artificial Intelligent” and “Carrot Grade” originated. Certain words were taboo, and TV is not YouTube—you have to burn the show onto a media, take it to a special place for error-checking, have it analyzed by a producer, and if anything is wrong, re-edit, burn it again, and start the whole process over. A dream. If you want structure and chaos in your life, I recommend the military and television. (EDIT/Clarification - The first thing I learned in TVR was the fact that a National Television needs to " Sa vorbeasca atat de destept incat o pricepe si prostu" - Loose Translation - Speak so smart that even dumb people get it. That was the culture then. I can’t speak for the editorial habits now. In this lens most of the decisions were made regarding the direction of the show - spread as much information as fast as we could and educate the public. That was the intent of the show in my understanding - and my part was gaming, and whatever I could get my paws on - Like the 9-page review of the Vita or DS)
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Most of the puns you heard on TV were mine. The rest of the team didn’t want to rattle the cage too much, except for that scrap with Zoso, which I was partly responsible for. (I’d love to see Cadar and Zoso in a ring, fighting for the Romanian Golden IT Blog Glove.)
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Anyway, back to my “nothing burger” of a post—everything I did, from the sites, cross-promotions, top 7s, long-form reviews, and posting of materials (now uncredited and private), was driven by my passion for the medium. Except for the short-form reviews, TVR couldn’t contractually ask me to do more. All of the content on the channel was created by me, and me alone. The uploading of the shows, the playlist management, cutting the show into smaller segments, and uploading it every weekend at 9 PM—everything was my responsibility (and I was never paid to do that). Dan even held a staff meeting to ask if it was a good idea to have a website. The launch of the ZonaIT website was the reason Alex Stanescu left the team. Up until then, it was just Mihai Andrei and me managing another domain named Arealit.tv. (A lot of behind-the-scenes stuff has been lost to history.)
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I was just a guy, like any other, who was offered an opportunity to do something for the word “gamer” in my country, and I did the best I could with the tools I had at the time. I was also dealing with severe undiagnosed dyslexia and attention deficit disorder. (EDIT/Clarification The show never had an editor - No one to check the info or the grammar - We also had to churn out content every week, film it, and edit the footage - Week in, and Week out - After some time it takes a toll) The reason I stayed on as long as I did was because of the fans—kids from remote places who would write just to say thank you. In the end, back then, I was just a kid with a PS2, a mid-range PC, and a deep-seated hatred towards any gaming industry BS. (Name a company—I had a beef with them.)
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P.S. :
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After 2014 - 15, I dropped the grading system and implemented a new one: “Buy Now, Instant Classic, Buy It at a Discount, Maybe if It’s 5 Bucks, Burn It with Fire.” Or something along those lines.
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P.P.S.
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You can judge me all you want, but to this day I can say I never pirated a game that was presented on TV (Half of what I would make on Zon@ would go towards the games), I did the job of a reviewer the best I could, and all I got was this lousy post.
Jokes and hardships aside, this was a blast from the past. Reading this and seeing that some of you have made this country proud brings a smile to my face any day of the week. From the bottom of my heart, I thank you for all the kind words and even the misconceptions. As one of the greats once said, “I will fight to my last drop of blood for you to have the right to disagree with me!”
Be fierce, and always question everything. (even my grammar)