I like that you added the article that compares Poser, Fuse, and Character Generator. I donât use or plan to use any of them but I think itâs a great idea to review the pros and cons of competing assets - that way customers are more informed by someone whoâs used them all.
Are you planning more articles like that in the future? If you donât have all the assets for some of the categories you would like to cover, you could ask publishers for a voucher.
I know I would be more than willing to give away a voucher if I knew someone was going to be reviewing my pack and my competitors⌠especially if that someone had a good number of readers.
I think the problem with reviews in magazines, especially ones that come with free assets is as a reader, we really donât know how good the review might be. I trust user reviews a lot more than a blog that receives a free product if they post a review. Yes, most bloggers are probably sincere and honest, and tell us if the product is bad. But I suspect that there are some that realize that they might not get free products if they are too honest. This doesnât mean I think the developers here would expect great reviews in return for a free product, but reallyâŚhuman natureâŚwe tend to think more highly when someone gives us something, even if it is a good reason.
Besides, a user is actually spending time with the product, trying it in different ways, in a real world environment. They are mixing it with other assets, with different computer systems and games. The reviews you get there are generally have more field experience involved then someone who spends a few hours trying out an asset in a pristine environment, a new project.
I rather hope the magazine stays the way it is. Feature developers, compare features, but no opinionated reviews based on developer requests. It is more valuable to me that way. And while I am not in a spot where I can subscribe to a magazine, I would buy it when I have the cash.
Of course, I might be in the minority and as a writer, I know it can be difficult to make money so I guess getting some free assets might be at least payment for what you do.
Teila and Randonperson42,
I hope to keep the comparisons in future editions, but do not intend to distribute assets with the magazine.
In the case of Poser x Fuse x CG: Richard Aguiar, the author, acquired all the assets and (in my opinion) did a very technical article without personal tastes. I recognize this is very hard to do. : D
Teila, youâre right about the possibility of promiscuity between the owners of the reviewed products and magazines, newspapers and TVs. It really exists in all sectors, in most cases.
All I can say is that I promise to be as fair as possible and my team have to share my point of view on it! And I will be vigilant.
I really dislike the whole âsubscribe to get itâ model⌠wouldnât it increase readership if you just show the articles on your website directly?
Hi Oana,
Talking about the subscribers, they will get a lot of free information, very high discounts and information that I will not give to anyone outside my list.
People from my list will aways be in first place when I think in anything about Unity3Dmag.
I invite you to be part of it, too.
Completely freely accessible without the need to sign up would be good if the mag was at the point where it already had many paid advertisements in it. But a person needs to start somewhere and nobody could be expected to do this kind of thing without getting something in return. It seems very reasonable to only need to subscribe and get on the list. This offers a path to monetization in the future. I will check it out tonight.