UPDATE: The reviewer in question, Filip Miucin, has been terminated by IGN. The company released the following statement concerning the matter:



Our original article continues below.



Popular gaming and media review site, IGN, has found itself in the middle of controversy after it has been revealed that a reviewer may have copied the review of a smaller, YouTube based reviewer.

The allegations came to light after YouTube reviewer, Deadite of Boomstick Gaming, released a video comparing his review on the game Dead Cells to that of IGN’s Filip Miucin. “I put out my Dead Cells review last week,” Deadite stated in the video, “And then IGN put out their written and video review today, and it turns out the gentleman at IGN seems to have watched my video, and copied a lot of it.”

Throughout the video, the Boomstick Gaming reviewer points out several phrasing similarities, beginning with the following comparison:

“Dead Cells takes the progression of a Metroidvania, and integrates it into this procedurally generated action-roguelike, that has you slowly chipping away at its steep difficulty.” – Deadite

“It takes the progression system of a Metroidvania, and transforms it into a proedurally generated action-roguelike.” – IGN

Deadite continues pointing out similarities until he concludes on his ‘personal favourite’, that starts at 3:07 in both recordings:

“Dead Cells figures out an intriguing way to have your rogue-like and Metroidvania experience all in one, by focusing on your failures and urging you to try something new the next time.”

– Deadite

“Dead Cells strikes a perfect, and engaging balance between the Metroidvania and rogue-like experiences, by focusing on your failures, and urging you to experiment each time you do fail.”

– IGN

Boomstick Gaming’s complete video may be found below.

Since learning of the accusations, IGN has withdrawn the article in question, and made the following statement:

“As a group of writers and creators who value our own work and that of others in our field, the editorial staff of IGN takes plagiarism very seriously. In light of concerns that have been raised about our Dead Cells review, we’ve removed it for the time being and are investigating.”

Plagiarism is a serious accusation in any profession, but especially so in writing-focused fields. We urge readers to keep in mind that the accused is innocent until proven guilty, and that IGN is currently conducting its investigation into the matter.