Evolve’s Critic And User Review Scores Are Polar Opposites

One Angry Gamer "Metacritic… the averages for Evolve have finally come trickling in as major gaming media websites trounce out their opinions and quantify them in the form of numerical values that represent “good” and “bad” on a scale of “buy-worthy” and “skip it for now, Ace”. Well, there’s a huge disparity between what the critics think and what users think about Evolve."

[DarkOcelet]

Simple.

Reviewers are getting paid to put those high scores.

Gamers are paying to put those low scores.

Journalism has hit yet a new low.

If a game like this can get a 9/10 then they sure as hell better give Blooborne 10/10.

"My own thoughts of Evolve mostly align with the negative and middle-of-the-road user reviews. I just can’t get into the game, and there’s just not enough content to justify $60."

At least the author agree that the content doesnt justify 60$.

[Relientk77]

I'm surprised Evolve has been getting scores this high

definitely was not expecting it

[DarkOcelet]

Its simple my friend. Those journalists are getting paid to put those high scores because no way in hell a game like this would get such a high score without a big paycheck is being paid.

[Ballsack]

Shows you how deep the level of corruption goes in the gaming media..

I remember gametrailers purposely passing off ps3 footage as 360 footage because ps3 won a multiplat comparison which lets face it was rare for ps3... But gametrailers could not handle that fact the ps3s version of the game was better.

Gaming media is soo corrupt how can anyone really take any of their reviews seriously?

Look at the blatant trolling,biasness and lies from polygon when reviewing microsoft exclusives to sony exclusives

We need to stop giving these sites hits..its the only way to try and put a stop to this cancerous bullshit the gaming media are pumping into our beloved hobby.

[Gazondaily]

Aside from the nauseating victim complex above, I don't think you all should jump the gun and take this as definitive proof of corruption in the industry.

Whilst a lot of gamers have taken issue with the pricing, the reviewers could be assessing the game on its merits in terms of fun and gameplay and not necessarily the price/content value. I personally wouldn't ignore the issue to be honest but the knee-jerk reactions here calling this definitive proof of mass-payouts on the part of the devs is just silly.

[BigShotSmoov007]

It's a great, deep and fun. I'm not surprised at all as I'm enjoying the game

[G20WLY]

MS have the advertising rights to Evolve and it's their big hope in the absence of exclusive big-hitters for the first half of 2015. It stands to reason the usual sites will back the game to the hilt and 'not notice' the flaws in the game itself, the DLC issues, the lack of single player campaign or the repetition that sets in.

Maybe it's paid reviews. Maybe the reviewers are worried they won't get an early review copy of the next game if they don't give a good score. We may never know.

I like good games, but - from what I played - this is little more than another generic MP with a pretty dress on and an filthy DLC approach (probably ripped from the finished game) and I'm not falling for it, nor will I support these kinds of practises.

We're in danger of encouraging this behaviour from developers if we don't set a precedence by giving this game the cold shoulder. It's a shame, as I liked the concept.

[Army_of_Darkness]

the media/ critics gets a "complete" Evolve game with ALL it's "so called" extra dlc content included for free! so why would they complain about getting ripped off by dlc when that obviously doesn't effect them at all?!

Us gamers have too actually "pay" for the game($60), then pay a whole lot more(+$180) just to get the same completed game with all it's content that the media got all for free, which might be a tiny, bitsy reason why it bothers us. ... So yeah, I can't see why there's a very different perspective between the two parties at all?!?! SMH.

[viperman240]

This happens all the time when theres a major release that publisher are pushing really hard, yet gamers see through that deception and don't buy into their narrative.

I hate using metacritic, but here is a sample of what I mean.

Critic Score = CS User Score = US

Evolve.............CS 78 - US 4.7
Forza 5............CS 79 - US 5.7
Diablo 3...........CS 88 - US 3.3
Mass Effect 3..CS 93 - US 5.3
Dragon Age II..CS 79 - US 4.4
SimCity...........CS 64 - US 2.2

I could go on and on and on, but you get the point. This isn't new. But this needs to stop; such blatant shilling and selling out.

[Kamikaze00]

This game is a massive middle finger to the gaming community, the most expensive DLC to date, bare bones MP, mediocre graphics, and the beta was the most boring thing i've played this year.

Journalism will have the nerve to tear The Order apart for ridiculous reasons next week, but fail to even mention the $136 price tag of the DLC on this one.

WAKE UP.. Journalism is a hoax, largely paid off, and mostly agenda driven.

[acekaze]

They reached that number because they added all the individual skins up and the packs including those same skins together.

So if you check the real value sold in dlcs in skins It's actually ~$60, and it's all just cosmetic skins.

Long live the chu chu train.

[shammgod]

Don't forget no single player option...to go along with the bare bones MP

[Ninver]

So you're telling me ps3 gamers werent wearing tin foil hats last gen afterall? Well i'll be.....

[gangsta_red]

So you definitely know that The Order will get ripped to shreds by journalists.

When did review scores become such a corrupt business like boxing?

Reading a lot of comments here and I am convinced that no one can have an opinion on any game no matter if it's a reviewer or a commenter on a game site.

When did games stop becoming fun with some of you?

And why are we talking about The Order in an Evolve article?

[viperman240]

Watch them flip the script with The Order.

No SP in Evolve? No problem.

No MP in The Order? Shit game, 5/10.

[IrisHeart]

Considering the full content is gonna cost you about 150$...I'd hope so.

[DarkOcelet]

180$. I did the math. Such an outrageous practice and i am glad gamers are taking a stance and are not taking this BS.

[Spenok]

Honestly assuming reviewers get paid to give good review scores is ignorant. I review games myself, and get my games from the publishers, so I have some knowledge of the fact. Personally, I don't hold the truth back, and if a game sucks, my review will for this will echo that.

In my opinion 90% of the time the reason you see good scores on games that don't deserve it is NOT because the publishers paid them, but because if you score a game badly, especially one hyped like this game is, the publishers can, and sometimes do, refuse to send you games in the future. While that in my opinion is just as bad of a reason to give a game a good score when it doesn't deserve it. It's not the same as getting paid.

I've only been reviewing games for a few months, and have had minimal contact with publishers. But I have not once seen them even suggest I give their game a high score for any reasons. The only thing I see is them asking we send them a copy of our review. I've even reviewed a couple games badly, and the only thing I've gotten was a thank you for taking the time to review their game.

Again, it may not be a good altenate reason, but it's the only one I can come up with.

[Man_Among_Mice]

So they're basically getting paid to give high review scores just not by the publishers directly. It's still the same thing. If they don't give misleading scores then they don't get review copies and suffer, so they bite it just to stay in good standing with the publishers. All in all, it's an extremely poor excuse.

[mydyingparadiselost]

This mirrors a lot of what Jesse Cox, you tuber and consistent member of the co optional podcast, has said recently about UbiSoft. If I remember correctly he was getting copies of games to play and trips to events for UbiSoft games, but after playing those games on his channel and talking a fair amount of trash about the games all of that stopped, and now Ubi never contacts him for anything anymore.

Like I said Jesse is a you tuber and not a reviewer, but I can easily see many companies doing the same kind of thing to critics and reviewers. It's shameful, wrong, and most importantly deceitful. Companies should have to send out review copies to either everyone or no one, picking and choosing your critics is slimey and might as well be a paid kick back

[Pintheshadows]

'I've only been reviewing games for a few months'

That is the most vital part of your comment.

These huge sites like IGN, Gametrailers, Gamespot etc are not you. They are corporations. And more importantly they act as PR companies for publishers.

This isn't new information, it is just information people find very hard to accept as most are incredibly naive when it comes to the media.

[qwerty676]

well said,

for example ign and turtle rock have a good relationship and got a lot of early access stuff about the game

it would be giving the devs a middle finger if suddenly they gave the game a 7/10 and lose any early access to TR next game in the future.

is it right? no

is this what happened? i have no idea but probably

[vallencer]

I love tin foil hats. They are fun!

Let's face it people hate the game because of their DLC model. If that wasn't there people would love it. It has 60 dollars worth of content at launch. 12 hunters 3 monsters and 16 maps is pretty huge. But hey by all means keep jumping on the band wagon of hate. Oh and their dlc model isn't even bad. It's mostly cosmetic stuff with maps being free. Yes some monsters and hunters you have to buy but even if you don't you can play with people who did. I don't see the damn problem. Just don't buy the costumes!!! It's a fps anyway so why spend money on the costumes?!?!

[Pintheshadows]

'12 hunters 3 monsters and 16 maps'

That would be great in a game that had more than one thing to show you gameplay wise. As it is, you run after a monster until they are done evolving, and then fight them for a few minutes.

Or, you trap them early and kill them really easily.

That is my experience with this game and I am shocked anyone could defend it. 'JUST DON'T BUY THE COSTUMES'. That would be great if that was this games only issue. It isn't.

[vallencer]

@pin

Well ok let me ask you then. Why is call of duty worth 60 dollars when I know what to expect from it every year? It doesn't have more then one thing to show me gameplay wise. And they are charging for costumes and hell they locked zombies being the season pass this year. I'm just saying that evolve has 60 dollars worth of content in it regardless of their dlc model.

[Pintheshadows]

It isn't.

And it doesn't. It has a one note MP mode and that is it. If that is worth $60 to you, cool, but to many many people it isn't. I don't see the value there.

[Scottyxboxoneandps4]

@dark ocelot
U again moaning about evolve? I get it u don't like it or just plain shite at it, that's cool but why bring up playstation exclusives u haven't even played saying "this should get 10/10 cos that got 9" boo hoo!!!
As for the user reviews? Who's saying they are not from sad disgruntled fanboys who don't agree with the dlc/microtransactions or are just following the crowd just to hate on something and that don't even own the game? I would rather trust my own opinion of playing the beta and I must say it's great!!!
As for the microtransactions? Don't all games pretty much have this sort of thing skins/weapons ect... Don't see everyone crying about that do we?
It's people like you that are gonna make devs stop taking risks to give us something different. And when that happens,I worry about the future of this industry as a whole.

[dreamed]

Reviewers are being paid to give it 9s & 10s......so obvious.

[Game_face2]

Shows you what's wrong with gaming journalism these days. I hope this game flops hard and Turtle Rock go bankrupt.

Sick of garbage practices like this taking advantage of the naive gamers. Eventually it sets a standard for all devs and then we all have to deal with it.

[dreamed]

Agreed,theres a few devs/pubs that could do with going bankrupt imo.

[FrostedFire]

I hope that doesn't happen,because the game seems very interesting an there are a lot of good ideas in Evolve which they can work on and make better,its 2K that is forcing these bad business practices its sucks that Turtle rock has to deal with this.I would support them but then I was be supporting 2K so I am not doing that.I really hope Turtle Rock doesn't go bankrupt(I don't think they will).

[Game_face2]

I wouldn't just blame 2k. Turtle Rock developed all their day one dlc, including things like the $15 monsters.

The concept of the game is a good idea, I agree. But L4D was way better imo.

[ifistbrowni]

@game_face, really? You wouldn't blame 2k?

Look at GTA 5. Patch RP and Money glitches IMMEDIATELY, nerf job pay outs and hope that players get fed up and just "buy" their money through Shark cards.

NBA 2k14 (last nba I played), 2k patched it soon after launch to make it "always online." Then they attached VC (virtual currency) to everything in the game. VC was extremely slow to earn and you had to use it in every game mode. Want to acquire good trades in be a GM? Well, you'll need VC to rank your GM up. Want to have a decent player in MyCareer? You'll have to use VC for that too. Where do you get VC in 2k14? Well, the marketplace, of course!

Now, we have Evolve. I think the issue definitely lies with 2k. I fear for the next Red Dead. On next gen Red Dead could potentially be one of the greatest games ever. But, if 2k imposes their microtransactions and expensive DLC practices onto Red Dead, it could very well ruin the experience.

I think it's too early for most gamers to notice, but gamers will soon discover that 2k is way worse than EA ever was when it comes to microtransactions and overpriced DLC.

For example: EA puts things in games that seem impossible to obtain through playing the game. These "impossible" unlockables in EA games can be obtained legitimately (by playing the game) or you can spend money to take shortcuts. But instead of 2k/turtle rock attaching the camos in Evolve to "high end" challenges, they put them exclusively as paid content.

When Turtle Rock worked for Valve they charged like $5-7 per EXPANSION on Left for Dead (free on PC). Now, they're charging that for a weapon skin while working for 2k. Let's not point the finger at 2k, right?

[Rooted_Dust]

Can anyone tell me if any of the $120 of DLC is anything other than cosmetic bullshit?

Is it really such a big deal? If you want a skin you can pay for the one you like, and leave the rest.

[DarkOcelet]

Mate, You already paid 60$. So these cosmetic BS should be in the damn game as unlockables or rewards. How effin hard is that?

[Scottyxboxoneandps4]

@Rooted dust
No it's not a big deal pal, it's the same as,well any other game. My advice? Don't listen to the idiots on here play it for yourself, give it a good chance you will see how good a game it really is and like any other game the microtransactions don't even effect the unlocking process of characters etc...
If u don't want different skins for your monsters don't buy them. It's as simple as that.

[Hanso]

im glad i stopped listening to reviews in the middle of the ps3 gen i knew sth was wrong..
I played long enough in my life to decide for my own if a game is for me or not.
Only information nowadays im looking in reviews is:
-Has the game tearing or framerateproblems
if so then ill wait till a patch comes out like for example what i did with The Evil within

[StarLord_Who]

It's simple, i can say this for games, films, any other medium.

Journalists: know what they are talking about to a point, they aren't exactly analysts now are they?

Users: don't.

The largest demographic of users are the man-children aged bewteen 19 and 25, they have a tendency to become very rebellious at that age and do everything in their power NOT to follow the rues. (another word would be Hipsters, there are no hipsters, it's an age thing.)

[Scottyxboxoneandps4]

@starlord who
That made me chuckle. It's so true though.

[shammgod]

This game seems more suited to be a MP mode from a game like Lost Planet or something....just one mode out of several and also a single player option.
But its not...it is all this game has to offer.

[finite]

The only thing wrong with Evolve is the season pass that gives you nothing special and the ingame dlc which us all cosmetic, the actual game is fantastic to play.

[SynestheticRoar]

Devolve is a 7 at best. 60 dollars for half a game. Another 30 dollar disguise as DLC.

[WellyUK]

No point in buying any game from now on then as your just buying half a game according to everyone on this site... You do realize you DON'T have to buy the dlc right? No one is forcing ANY OF YOU TO BUY IT, yes it should be in the game but it's been happening for like 5 years now...

[ifistbrowni]

"It's been happening for like 5 years now." Honestly, I don't think I've ever seen a game do it as bad as Evolve.

They only have 1 unlockable skin per monster in the game (you have to master the monster, which will take dedication).

COD is the only other game I know that sells camos, but they also have 10-15 camos to unlock per gun that are attached to challenges in the game. Therefore, if you just want a camo on your gun you can unlock one. If you want a special camo, you pay for it.

Evolve gives you 1 camo option, and only the dedicated will get it. The rest are exclusive to paid content.

[mydyingparadiselost]

And people have been rampantly complaining about it since it started, but instead of more common sense DLC practices the majority has just gotten worse. I remember when the 360 was nearing its launch and games started to cost $10 more for a couple of extras (making of video, maybe a retro title from the same sites). Later it was confirmed that those were just to see if people were willing to pay the higher price, and when they did it showed that "next gen" games could use that price as well.

I think DLC is the same thing. People showed last gen that they're willing to pay for it so it's just going to get more extravagant, higher priced and most importantly, more necessary to the base game. This is an industry begging to be shot by its customers and it's handing out the bullets with which to shoot it. There's tons of game I don't buy now and this is the main reason for it, why would I pay so much to play a game and then pay even more to get the rest of it? Video games used to be like a piece of painted art, but now they are more like the ball and cup street corner con artist.

[ManAnimalX]

@SynestheticRoar

I hear ya Roar, and that's even being generous, I'd honestly give it a 5. people say but the "gameplay" the "gameplay"!!,

And that's all that matters?, as a whole this game can kiss my {you know what}, gameplay is ony 1 ASPECT of the game.

This Business Model they chose, is a "Wallet Rapist".
Its a damn crime they've committed against the gaming consumer.

[phoenixwake]

It seems to me that reviewers (whose reviews have ranged from 7s to 9s mostly) are rating based on what the game HAS, where as most users are rating based on what the game DOESN'T have.

I agree that day one DLC is BS (any DLC built after the game has gone gold is legitimate in my eyes), but I think the community may be being a bit harsh on Turtle Rock on this one. 2K is no stranger to DLC, and with gamers by the droves throwing money at at $15 a pop, you have to consider that people buying the DLC so readily has made it a viable sales tactic.

If you think the DLC is mispriced, don't buy it! I'm loving Evolve personally, but I won't be buying cosmetic DLC.

[OC_MurphysLaw]

I actually don't mind day one DLC IF the value proposition of the game "out of the box" is worthy of the new game price. I think the major flaw here is this game should have priced in the $30-$40 range given the direction they have gone with DLC and the sparse amount of included content for new game purchasers.

[OC_MurphysLaw]

I think if this game came out at $40 the reception from many might be a bit more favorable. I think the reality here is that there just isn't enough variety in the maps included and a lack of an actual SP Fullblown story to justify the $60.

Devs/Publishers need to get a better handle/understanding of their value offered and the damage they are doing to their brand and IP by putting out things like this. The game very well may be super fun but when its fun for just a short time and then repetitive/un-inspiring shortly after due to lack of variety or longevity of play with a high AAA price it should and must fail commercially.

[Jamiex66]

I think a lot of the bigger sites had the advantage of getting coaching sessions from Evolve's developers and also were able to join with multiple players who actually wanted to work as a team.

Personally after 20 hours of gameplay, I barely have met players wanting to work as a team and nobody on my friends list is playing. Evolve is fun when everything aligns, but that isn't often.