I've had the same feeling as Desslock for quite a while, and I certainly haven't tried to keep it a secret - I still believe DA will be a solid title, despite the marketing department in EA being completely bonkers.
It's just something about the way David Gaider, Patrick Weekes, Stormwaltz and so on show up on our forums and defend the title. They sound honest. Why bother coming here to lie in our faces? That makes no sense; everyone who knows anything about the Watch knows that most people around here are too thorough to buy a game based on hype anyway.
It's nice to get a confirmation that the game seems to be on the right track though, from such a well established writer as Desslock (especially after he got to play the game for several hours).
If I was Gaider, I'd probably beat someone up over at the marketing department: "I've been working on this title for FIVE LONG YEARS, and you good-for-nothing morons manage to squeeze it through the same marketing scheme as The Sims!".
For my part, I've never suspected those developers of lying.
It's not about that, it's about how being part of that environment can color your own perceptions, especially if you're directly involved in the development of said title. I don't think you'll find many developers who think of themselves as lacking in creative integrity - and obviously companies like Bethesda and Bioware consider themselves on the forefront of gaming development.
It's only natural they'd come here to defend their titles, as it's their livelihood and likely their passion.
I'm sure many would come here and defend Jade Empire and Mass Effect, for instance, calling them great games. Many here would agree, but I consider them both gigantic steps back in most of the important ways.
Unfortunately, we all expect different things - and personally, being an enthusiastic "hardcore" gamer - I despise the mass market approach, no matter how understandable it is.
So, it's not as clear cut as you might think.
Anyway, in this case - based on Desslock's comments, I'm inclined to believe I might have been too harsh. I'll gladly eat my words about it, and apologize if that's the case. Not that anyone cares, but I think it's only fair.
But I'll have to wait and see the final product and play it for a good while before making my mind up. Again, first impressions are often very misleading in this modern gaming industry.