Policies

All of the words and ideas on this page are subject to change.

If you’ve found your way here, it probably means you’re looking to work with me in some way. Or maybe you’re just weird and super curious, which is okay too. I love hearing from people. I do, however, get a lot of email every day, and by a lot, I mean a lot. Since I run this site pretty much by myself, as a hobby, I would appreciate you taking the time to read this page before reaching out. It would be even better if you mention that you’ve seen this page, so I don’t have to get all awkward and ask questions and stuff. Anywho, here we go.

Can I pay you for a favorable review?

Figured I’d get this one out of the way right off so you don’t waste your time. The answer is no. No you can not. My opinions are my opinions. To say it more bluntly – If you’re trying to buy a good review, move along. I don’t want to talk to you.

Don’t mistake this for me saying I don’t get paid for anything – I’ll occasionally get paid for my content, and I’ll cover specifics on that a little lower on this page. If I do accept payment, it is clearly noted and does not impact the opinions in my review whatsoever.

Before you ask, no, I’m not just saying that. If you pay me for a Kickstarter preview or something, and expect that payment is like a wink wink “we didn’t say it but you’re gonna give me preference” kind of thing, you’ll be disappointed. But that’s not all! If I catch wind of it being some sort of unspoken expectation of yours that I give your product preference, I won’t work with you again. Non negotiable.

Will you review my published game?

If I already own a copy, or you are willing to send me a copy, lets talk. Most of the time the answer is “I’d love to!”, but sometimes my tastes and your product just won’t align. In that situation, it might be better for both of us to get that straight before product is sent out. If you send me a product and we haven’t discussed it, there’s a good chance it won’t make it into my review rotation at all.

Will you do a Kickstarter preview of my game?

Short answer: Maybe.

Long answer: I am not at all opposed to doing Kickstarter previews – I love crowdfunding! It has played a huge part in the recent board game revolution. That being said, there is a ton of stuff on Kickstarter, and more is added every day. From a logistics standpoint, I can’t say yes to everybody.

Things that will improve your chances of me previewing your game:

Have a nearly finished product to send me. This goes double for art. I don’t want to put ugly images on my site – it won’t help you and it won’t help me. I don’t want to spend my time on a product that doesn’t at least mostly resemble the final product. This means, as a general rule, I’m not really interested in PnPs.
Agree to send me a copy of the deluxe version of the game at production. This serves a few purposes. First of all, I love the hobby, and will likely actually enjoy playing your game. Second, it allows me to update photography and even put out a separate final review of your product.

Can you have content ready by…?

Short answer: Maybe, but only if we agree to it.

Let me be frank. It can take me quite a while to get around to a review, especially if it is a heavier game or requires more than a few people to play. It isn’t uncommon for a game to sit on my shelf for months before it gets reviewed.

That said, I am relatively flexible. As long as you have a game to me a month or two in advance of when you need content done, we’ll probably be square. This will depend on my current backlog, and if I actually agree to have it done by a set date. If you need a quick turn around, there’s a good chance I’ll charge a fee.

Will you send my game back / forward it to another reviewer?

Short answer: Any product, game or otherwise, that is sent to me for review or preview will be considered a gift to me unless otherwise agreed upon before product is sent.

Long answer: I’m a pretty reasonable guy. You’re probably reasonable too. But just in case, lets cover this. Most of the products that are sent to me are of published games or released products. When that is the case, I’m pretty much expecting to hold on to it after the review. Let’s be real, this is a hobby for me. I love writing and I love gaming -reviewing games is my way of indulging both of those things.

That said, I completely understand that prototypes are expensive to produce, and it would be unreasonable for me to refuse to send them back or on to other reviewers. However, it is equally unreasonable for you to expect me to pay to ship your product anywhere, even from my house. So, as long as we have the discussion ahead of time and you are willing to provide a shipping label or compensation for shipping, I will happily return or forward prototypes on.

In the case of a preview, I do have some soft expectations that I will receive a production copy when they become available (see the Kickstarter section above). This is because, 1) I love gaming, and 2) I want to create content for stuff I love. If you send me a production copy after I have previewed a product, I will endeavor to use it to update photography and post an official review.

Can I use your photos?

Short answer: Only if I say so, and only for what I say you can use them for.

Can I contribute to Critical Chit?

Let’s talk! I’m always down to collaborate, but we’ll want to talk specifics before we jump in. Do you want to contribute regularly, occasionally, one time? Do you have your own tabletop outlet you want to trade guest posts on?

If it gets posted on Critical Chit! I’m going to be doing the final edits. That means you have to be open to your work being edited. It’s only fair that I expect the same if I’m making an appearance on your site.

What about Sweepstakes and Privacy?

Okay, time to get all legalese up on this post, because good faith usually works out, but sometimes doesn’t. I’ll admit I’m no lawyer – this was cannibalized from a website somewhere, and seems to cover all of the bases. Here we go.

I occasionally run sweepstakes that may request personal information from you including your:

Name
Email address
Phone number
State or zip code
Age

This personal information may be accompanied by questions relating to your opinion of features on our website as well as our website as a whole.

The personal information we collect is used to contact you in the event that you are selected to win a prize from the sweepstakes, in addition to sending you special offers and other marketing material.

We do not sell or otherwise share the information you provide to us via sweepstakes. This information is only used internally to compile anonymous statistics about our user base and to create a contact list for sending special offers and marketing material.

You can choose not to include some of the information requested, but some of it is required (usually name and email address as a minimum so that we can contact the winner).

You have the right to not provide the information requested or can simply not enter our sweepstakes if you do not wish to provide us with your personal information.

All data collected by our sweepstakes is protected by the same security measures and procedures as the rest of the data we collect and process on our website. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us via the email address provided below.