Rab's point was that when enthusiast press does nothing to distinguish itself from companies PR, when it indulges in whatever schemes they cook up (such as hashtag giveaways, or Doritos orgies), then it has no worth.

All this nonsense about Wainwright actually being on S-E's payroll (which is hilarious) came up afterwards.

As for whether or not her position influenced her opinion, that doesn't matter. It really doesn't. Deus Ex was a good game. It got good reviews. That hers happened to be one of them isn't a big deal. I'm sure some people will like the new Tomb Raider too. What matters is that she didn't feel obligated to excuse herself. Just like she had no idea what's wrong with professionals entering hashtag giveaways.