Gulp. Let’s hope this is just a ‘concept’…
GamesIndustryBiz report that several major gaming press sites have been hoaxed by a disgruntled gamer.
The disgruntled gamer apparently pretended to be a Microsoft employee and distributed an email seeding rumours about next-gen Xbox hardware, a topic that is obviously a buzz lately. The mail also contained information about Microsoft’s Surface Tablet.
Gaming sites mostly posted the leaked specifications as rumours, but the news spread like wildfire, as it does with the internet.
The hoaxer came clean on a Tumblr page:
“It’s all about being first,” the hoaxer wrote.
“To get such news out (whether you believe it or not) before any other publication does, will guarantee you page impressions, and that all-important advertising revenue. Gaming ‘journalism’ is completely broken.
“By tagging a post with ‘rumour’, most writers/editors believe they can get away with spreading false information for their own benefits. They are the only ones to gain from such practices, whilst the gaming fans end up with speculation and, sometimes, outright lies.”
GIBiz say Microsoft has declined to comment on the situation.
