Should you be worried about Watch Dogs' review embargo?

VideoGamer: "Ubisoft's long awaited Watch Dogs releases next week, and, somewhat controversially, the publisher has revealed that the review embargo lifts the same day.

Many feel this means the much-delayed open world title will suck. But what can history teach us about such matters? VideoGamer.com looks back over a select choice of games that also tied their 'umbongo' into launch day to see if a trend exists"

[MultiConsoleGamer]

Review embargos always have me worried, but I'm more concerned about the frequent delays (always a bad sign) and stories of journalists receiving free $200 tablets at preview events for the game.

I'm still hoping to be pleasantly surprised by this game. I finally got a pre-order just a few days ago.

[MasterCornholio]

I'm actually going to read a few reviews and a performance analysis to make sure this game is worth playing. Development has been really shaky with this game which is why I wont buy it at launch.

[Anthotis]

Same.

I'm suspicious of stuff like this, when you compare the behaviour of Last Of Us publishers to the Watch Dogs pubs.

I was looking to get it at launch, but i'll see what's up first.

It could still be a purchase for my PC if despite whatever problems it might have, it is outweighed by what the mod community can provide.

[TomShoe]

Review embargoes aren't a big deal.

You could always just buy it day two, you know. It's not like the game changes.

[ZodTheRipper]

Seems like I'm in the minority but I preordered it through PSN yesterday after seeing some convincing gameplay. I actually think that this COULD be way better than GTA5 after seeing the footage. I hope I'm right, can't wait for next week =)

[Clown_Syndr0me]

Ive preordered it, but disc copy as always so if I don't like it, or finish it quickly I can sell it on and get 80% of my money back.

I don't understand people who preorder digitally, if it turns out crap those people are screwed.

[ZodTheRipper]

Well I have other advantages though ;)
My brother has a PS4 too, we share all games together ...I would need to buy the game twice to play it with him. I can't sell them but it's very convenient to switch between digital games. I went full digital for PS4 (and PC) and I don't regret it at all :)

[djplonker]

Simple fix for this

Dont buy the game until the reviews are out!

[Dspdspes]

I'm not worried anymore. Fro what i've seen, it looks gorgeous and interesting enough. Still.... Four.... Days..... Though......

[Spotie]

Not any more than for any other game. Though there was a little kerfuffle about downgrades, there really hasn't been anything to be worried about.

[markyboy2181]

after watchin the gameplay demos on my 1080p tv last night b4 watchin was cancelling pre-order after watching def not hardly any downgrade from e3 2013 at all so smooth as well cant wait:)

[Nerdmaster]

I honestly can't understand what you're trying to say.

[GuruMeditation]

I've got a rough English translation:

"Before watching the gameplay videos (on my 1080p TV) last night, I was convinced I should cancel my pre - order. After watching, however, I have decided to get it after all; there are no visible downgrades from e3 2013 IMHO and very smooth gameplay on show. I can't wait!"

[Fasttrack76]

My only worry in all live videos ive watched is the lack of pedestrians otherwise i cant wait to play this.

[Codewow]

Noticed that too.

[Clown_Syndr0me]

Alot of people seem concerned by this. Ive never been to Chigaco but in my city in UK there certainly isn't huge crowds of pedestrians around every corner.

If I walked a couple of miles through the more residential areas I may only see between 5-10 people.

[Bugz]

I got my X1 dedsec edition delivered today! :D if i can, i will post a review on the game. (Thats if im not completely hooked)

[CptFlashHeart]

Lucky S.O.B if you have. My retailer is holding them til Saturday for delivery Tuesday, but I'm in the UK and Monday is a bank holiday (no postal system deliveries included) so I'm actually doubtful this will even arrive on time.

[Bugz]

mine was direct from Ubisoft... kinda weird theyd be early with delivery...

Why have people disagreed with me?

Jealousy.

[JOEgolferG]

You have a mind of your own don't you? If you like the look of a game go with YOUR feeling's and not the opinion of somebody else, this is what i have done since forever. Review's can be pure bulls**t.

[DirtyMagician]

Damn straight!

Don't trust another person's opinion to be the same as your own. Saying that however, games aren't exactly cheap right now so it could be an expensive mistake.

[DragonKnight]

Normally I would agree with you, however there is one issue I would want to bring to your attention.

Reviews that are able to be done before game release can tell you things about the game that you can't know from just seeing gameplay. Things like bugs, or awful missions kept out of trailers, or other stuff that the publisher doesn't want you to see. A review embargo that lift on the day of release prevents anyone from seeing stuff that would be a deal breaker for them before the release and a lot of people preorder games.

That said, you could make the argument that people should have self control, but when's the last time that that was common?

[MonstaTruk]

I personally don't have a problem with reviews. Like you, they're very informative to me. What I DO have a problem with is how that final score for a game has been bent over and ankle-grabbed by publishers, console makers, game lobbyists, Doritos, Mt. Dew...you name it.

Message to gamers: READ the reviews. SCREW the final score.

[sdozzo]

I think it will be spread too thin. Nice game but falls short because it's crossing a few genres. Everyone will say... oh gta has a better world, So and so has better stealth, etc.

[CptFlashHeart]

But this is a new IP so if it's half as good as GTA is after 15 years maturing then there's a lot of promise for future iterations of this.

[bienio]

Amen to that👍

[Tru_Ray]

Excellent point! It is unrealistic to expect it to be as good as GTAV, but hopefully they can create a strong foundation for future releases. It is not as if Ubisoft does not have SIGNIFICANT experience with open world games.

Tru_

[sdozzo]

I guess. Half as good as GTA doesn't make something good. People are harsh critics and will pinpoint all sorts of crap. Looks fun though.

[CptFlashHeart]

Yeah I can't wait to explore this. Been looking forward to it for years.

[Codewow]

I've been watching gameplay of the game for the last few days. Plenty of youtubers have them up already. The game looks like it'll be pretty fun. Not sure about the story though. I've only seen some of it, but mostly the multiplayer.

[bobtheimpaler]

Apart from the visuals, which are a downgrade from the initial reveal, the game looks boring. Been watching streams and the lighting is nowhere near as good.

It will sell well based on media hype, but I feel that people will be disappointed afterwards.

[bobtheimpaler]

I just don't get what people see in this game. Much like titanfall, the hype for this game is manufactured by ubisoft and the media. What will this game offer past 'press x to hack'?

Wolfenstein on the other hand is an extremely awesome surprise. So much fun.

[objdadon]

You don't need to see what people see in this game. Just continue playing whatever you are playing while i and others play watchdogs. You don't have to buy it at all! Can't satisfy everybody. Gamers have become so whinny now and days!

[kevnb]

I don't run a website, so no.

[ruefrak]

What does it matter? Plenty of great games have had embargoes until the day of release and plenty of garbage titles have ones that end a week early.

If you're making a purchasing decision based on when a review for a game is coming out, then it would probably be wise to rethink your buying decisions. Because what you're really talking about here is pre-ordering the game. Otherwise just wait until tuesday, read the reviews, and make up your mind. Or, hop onto youtube and watch the game. It's not like there are many secrets about this thing.

[lnfiniteLoop]

if a software developer is honest and believes in their own product there is no need for an embargo on reviews… was gonna order this, but will now wait for its release, won't touch it until I see it...

[objdadon]

That's bs! I've seen many good games shot down by reviews that I decided to take a chance on and end up loving it! I'm sure all devs believe in their games! Some deserve the low scores and some don't! But I'll be damned as a gamer to let someone tell me if a game is good or not! If it looks like something that I'll be interested in then I get it, simple as that!

[mhunterjr]

Most games have such embargoes... Regardless of the end quality. Why does Watch Dogs suddenly get scrutinized for this.

[objdadon]

Stop worrying about if it's as good or like gta! This is watchdogs, an open world game about hacking and using your surroundings to your benefit! I could care less about a review, I've been waiting to play this game for over a year now and nothing is going to stop me from getting my gaming hands on it this Tuesday!

[TheBusterMan]

What annoys me is the invasion of other players when you're playing single player.This is why I did a lot of jobs on GTA V online in solo or invite only.The amount of 12yo running you down and annoying you is annoying.Also,don't you mean 'I couldn't care less'?

[coolbeans]

That's definately a bit worrisome. I suspect Ubi' tactics might be similar to AC1's at the time. I distinctly recall some journos saying they were give an okay to break embargo IF they wanted to give it a 9/10 or higher score for AC1. That's what resulted in such swing from beginning meta to final meta on there.

I still enjoy that game from beginning to end, but still...that's just unfair pub tactics that just annoy the consumer in the long run.

[DragonKnight]

You mean I'm not the only one that likes AC1?! They told me this would never happen, that I should abandon hope, but somehow I knew, I knew that I couldn't be the only one.

[coolbeans]

Absolutely not, man. I can't say where it lands when it comes to my favorite AC (only jumped into 1+2 and plan go through series this year), but I was blown away by it. AC1 falls in that strange category of me liking so much of it but also giving a reserved recommendation b/c I have to acknowledge the repetition complaints around a lot of stuff.

It certainly has a stumbling block like that, but it fades overtime when I was sucked into everything else: the new ip feeling that broke its own mold, the artistry of these orgnaic environments in such a underutilized timeline for videogames, the interesting philosophical aspects tied into the duality of the narrative, and on and on.

[DragonKnight]

AC1 is my favourite in the series because it really sparked my love of open world games. At the time, I had very little experience with open world games due to the types of games I enjoyed having never really ventured into the genre, but AC1 just opened so much to me.

The combat may have been repetitive, but I simply took that as a reason to challenge myself to play it differently and invent a more robust stealth gameplay style than the game allowed for.

AC1 also has my favourite setting due to me being a history buff, favourite Assassin, and favourite story.

It's what I consider to be the pinnacle of Assassin's vs. Templars and I really wish the series would return to those roots and ditch the sci-fi stuff.

[coolbeans]

Wow. That's a pretty cool way to get into open world games.

The combat as well, but the repetitive aspect that was the most annoying for me was the side missions that lead up to an assassination. It does make sense contextually (gathering info on a target), but starting wearing on me towards the end. That's a good way to look at the combat, too.

Hopefully I'll take advantage of an opportunity in the near future to just sit down and catch up on all the AC's that can be played on console just to see where I stand with them altogether.

[DragonKnight]

I agree with the side mission criticism. Ubisoft should have varied up the ways you can get information on your target so it wasn't always "follow this person and pickpocket them, then beat up this guy who is just talking about the target out in the open, eavesdrop on people in plain sight."

I guess in the later games they were able to remove all of that because the other Assassin's weren't being punished like children and forced to gather information the way novices would.

Still, AC1 will always remain my favourite just because of the setting, story, and Altair.

Might just play all of them again myself for the hell of it.

[Meltic]

im only worried that the ps4 version isnt pretty enough. Dont have the system reqs for the ultra quality on pc. Love graphically good games

[brich233]

It looks really good on ps4, there was a video the other day, in HD in very high quality and no youtube compression.

[Meltic]

Thanks. I dont want to Watch due to spoilers

[incendy35]

Definitely not a game I would pre-order. Hopefully it turns out good but I am definitely waiting for the reviews on this one.

[unjust75]

Yes

[mcarsehat]

no it's the strategy ubisoft are going with. It's on a "Watch review and play next day basis." If you see this game getting 8 or 9/10 and want it, you can buy it anytime that day it's simple.

Games like transistor have had the review embargos dropped until the day of release and that game got excellent reviews so overall, no i'm not worried by this one bit.

When i see Watch_Dogs, it shows how suspicious and nervous gamers can be, why does everything normal have to have some kind of threat with it?

[DaleCooper]

I decided to pre-order this game, but I'll be waiting til day 2 to pick it up. GameStop holds the game for 48 hours. If it gets bad reviews on launch day, I won't be picking it up, simple as that.

[mcarsehat]

Why rely on reviews, make your own decisions!

[DaleCooper]

That's a 60 dollar decision! I can't afford to buy bad games, so I rely on other people's opinions.

Oh, and I pre-ordered to make sure I get the pre-order DLC. Just in case it is good, I didn't want to miss out.

[mcarsehat]

It's not classed as bad UNTIL you play it so it's a vicious circle. What if critics liked it and you didn't would you force yourself to like it or blame them for somehow making you buy it?

[AgentSmithPS4]

Interesting idea ty but I'll be looking to see if other stores have a longer preorder unopened return policy so reviewers and Joe-public have time to go wild with complaints.

@mc
Why rely on the limited info the company allows you, make informed decisions!

It isn't about the 10/10 it's about having the right to know what I'm buying, what's good, what sucks, what's ok, what needs patching, etc. Does it give me enough of what I'm looking for, do they deserve less money for a lesser game (sales later etc)? Then how does the company deal with fixing their game, do they take their time like ea or what.

[s1xt6en]

Guys don't worry. I can vouch and say thus game is great. I've had my copy for about 24 hours and I am loving every minute of it. The only downside is the driving. The cars do not handle very well in my opinion, but I haven't unlocked them all. If you have any questions or requests hit me up I am happy to tell you anything you're looking for but I can guarantee this game will get at least an 8 by reviewers. There is a lot of side missions and things to do. Also, the potential crimes happen way more often than I thought they would. Like I said hit me up if you want to know anything.

[clevernickname]

Why not just wait until the reviews are out and then make your decision?

Excepting perhaps some of the special editions of this game, it won't be an issue finding a copy of the game on the release date.

[dmonee]

I wouldnt be worried. Watch the conan obrian clueless gamer review. While there is alot of tounge in cheek humor to the segment, the game looks awesome. Looks better than gtav, alot of influence. Shows alot of driving, swimming, shooting, hacking, and cops. It is good to see normal gamepkay footage as opposed to seeing 10 minutes of developer footage showing only the best of the gameplay, and camera angles. Im more excited about now then I was yesterday

[uth11]

I don't think embargos are about hiding anything embarassing, but more about the publishers wanting to manage the messaging and pre-release hype.

When you spend millions of dollars on development and marketing, you don't want some reviewer somewhere to damage your efforts..

[troylazlow]

This game is going to be a let down... Just a feeling

[Gardenia]

An honest review about a game like Watch Dogs could be hard to find. The gaming industry has become like Hollywood, were it is not about quality anymore but only the money. Most are blinded by the hype for this game

[spoonard]

You could skip the stupid reviews and just watch the streams of the game online that are happening. There were about 10 streams last night on Twitch and Ustream. I watched one for about 5 minutes and to me the game just looks like GTA only with the hacking aspect added in.