MTV Multiplayer details the process in which a developer would receive royalties from those who publish their game. The amount and overall any amount of money they receive is sometimes based on the score based off of Metacritic.
"Here's the way it works: a game publisher agrees to finance the work of a development studio and includes a stipulation that certain bonuses or royalties won't be delivered unless the game achieves a certain Metacritic score. If you're that developer and you agree to that deal, you better hope reviewers give you a fair shake, no?
One developer, who asked not to be named told me about an instance in which their company didn't receive royalties for a game that sold more than a million copies. The reason was because - as had been stipulated in a contract with the publisher - the Metacritic score for the game was too low."-
