(In case you were wondering about the title of this post, I'm trying to emulate the sensationalist headline writing style of the always-good-for-a-laugh Spong.com staff. Please note I would never intentionally write a headline this bad for any other reason)
Today's karmic lesson: When you play with rumors, sometimes you get burned.
At the forefront of this particular example, as they always seem to be with unsubstantiated rumor-mongering, is Spong.com who as recently as Monday posted this article citing "various Japanese news sources" (none of them named) as saying that Shenmue III is officially in production. They go as far to say that this new "special edition" Shenmue III will include copies of the first two games along with the new installment, for the price of a regular game. If this all sounds like the wishful thinking of some pining fan, well that's because... it is.
A Computer and Video Games story quotes an SOE spokesperson as saying, "there was a bit of Japanese text on the AM2 site which is actually a letter from a fan, saying what they want to see in the game." The article goes on: "Apparently this letter has been taken as official confirmation from AM2 itself in some quarters. Dashed hopes again then - hopefully we'll have some genuine Shenmue news for you one day..."
Now to be fair, Spong showed some unusual trepidation when posting this latest rumor on Monday. "We’re not sure exactly how concrete this all is at present," the article said in what can possibly be described as coincidental foresight. But they couldn't leave well enough alone: "The considerable spike in Shenmue III gossip of late, combined with the fact that Sega recently overhauled its official Shenmue site, leads us to believe that something is brewing in the depths of AM-2." This is what passes for video game news, Spong? "Ooh, there's a lot of gossip and they're redoing the web site. Somthing must be going on! Post post post!" (note: obviosuly not an actual quote from anywhere except my fevered imaginings)
When Spong got wind that their story was based on a simple fan letter, they handled it less than well. In a Tuesday follow up headlined "Shenmue III shows Sega's newfound cunning," Spong tries to play itself off as the victim, blaming Sega's "new level of contrite business acumen" and "a new-found software-centric spin machine," for the misinformation. The article goes on to accuse Sega of "fueling the fire somewhat," generating "a feverish level of anticipation" and putting up "a wall of silence that, in fairness, isn't really necessary." They then backtrack hard and report on the only concrete piece of Shenmue III news they actually have, a quote from Yu Suzuki: "Preliminary work for Shenmue III is underway, though nothing technical has been completed. Art and design has been going on for some time."
If you had just stuck to that story in the first place, you wouldn't be in this mess. What probably happened is that Spong.com was so intent on getting some news, any news, on Shenmue III out there, that they went with a risky story based on a questionable source with no attribution or confirmation. When this gamble didn't pay off, it was a load of sour grapes from Spong, who should be used to this sort of thing by now. Yes, every company has a hype machine in place for its latest releases, but this does not absolve the news organization from posting what is a sloppy, ill-researched and rumor-heavy story. Saying that Sega intentionally tried to mislead you when your article show no evidence of even trying to contact Sega about the story is hypocrisy of the highest order. No one at Sega is out to get you, Spong. You just messed up. Admit it.
Other sites handled the admittedly confusing situation much better. GamerFeed posted their original story with a disclaimer saying that "none of the information in this story has been confirmed by Sega," and then posted an update culled from C&VG that took on a rather mature, reflective tone: "The deal below seemed too good to be true anyway. Hopefully, Shenmue III will be confirmed soon. Keep your fingers crossed." GamePro's story was simply titled "Is Shenmue III happening" and detailed the rumors surrounding the game without making a firm announcement one way or the other (as they couldn't, really, without confirmation from Sega). Slashdot Games posted a summary from Insert Credit that detailed a timeline of the conflicting announcements and mentions a "minor controversy and buzz" around the latest announcement.
None of these sites were as irresponsible in their news postings as Spong, and none of them were as bitter when a more complete picture came to light.
A sentence near the end of the Tuesday Spong article gives a good look into the psyche of the staff there: "Indeed, it would be fair to argue that a game announcement has never been so openly longed for as this." Wishing for something does not make it so, Spong. When you grasp at straws, sometimes all you get is air. There's no reason to be all pissy about it. Admit your mistake and move on.
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