Destructoid Review: Vanquish

Destructoid: "Vanquish is a game that intends to speed up the typically methodical cover-based shooter and, fundamentally, it has done this. Armed with his ability to glide along the ground with a ludicrously fast rockstar-style knee slide and assaulted by enemies who act more like Ikaruga-style SHMUP enemies than the beefy blasters of Gears of War, Platinum has most definitely succeeded in making a cover shooter with energy. At least ... aesthetically."

[big_silky]

written by jim sterling, don't waste your time.

[N4GAddict]

I was expecting him as the reviewer with the low score.

[MachinaMaw]

Raised an eyebrow when I saw the score...then I realized when I saw the name.

[lastdual]

But seriously, I wonder if anyone here will actually refute his points. After actually reading the review, some of them, like his complaints about the recycled bosses, seem pretty valid.

[zatrox]

Playing the game at this moment.

Most of the oh-so-called "recycled" bosses are in fact, bosses that became normal enemies.

I.E., you say "Wow, this dude was pretty though.." and at the next level you have to kill 3 of them at the same time.

[lastdual]

Good point, and to be honest it never bothered me when Bayonetta did the same thing, although Bayonetta was about 3 times as long (and still had many unique bosses) so it was easier to look past. In a game that's under 6 hours, I'd want as many unique combat situations as possible.

[badz149]

from a site that gave deadly premonition 10/10! nuff said!

[MidnytRain]

What some people forget that these games are reviewed by different people. Just because they write for the same site doesn't mean they have to share the same opinion. There may be another reviewer at Destructoid who thinks Jim's crazy. That's why some sites have "Second Opinion" pieces.

[rockleex]

In case you did not notice the name Jim Sterling on every single ridiculous Destructoid review.

Also, there's no point to counter argue his points when his arguments are based on trolling concepts.

[Cold 2000]

Please guys dont give him a hit!

[xino]

the farking link is broken anyway

[PrimordialSoupBase]

I really hate that one of the few reviewers who knows how to use the complete 1 to 10 scale is a total moron. If his scores were rationalised and substantiated in a professional manner, I'd personally take no issue with this. Unfortunately, his piss poor writing and nonsensical thought process is reflective of a manchild desperate for attention and nothing more.

[despair]

thanks for the warning big_silky but once I see the score there's no way I would give them a hit by opening the obvious hit seeking article.

[Downtown boogey]

It's seems valid, though...

"There's a distinct lack of content in Vanquish. In fact, if you've played and been impressed by the game's demo, as I certainly was, then you've already seen what the game has to offer. There are a few extra weapons, but they're all discovered within the first 10% of the game and you'll soon learn that the assault rifle's the only useful gun anyway. There are no new moves to unlock, no cool weapons found later in the game, and the only upgrades available are increased ammo counts. There's simply nothing compelling the player forward. It certainly isn't the story, which is asinine and attempts to be political while Sam Gideon does his best Solid Snake impersonation. Even the final boss is just a repeat of a boss fought at the end of the game's first act. Except now there's TWO of them, wooooah!"

[PS360fanboy]

Thanks for the advice.

[zatrox]

Seems like Jim is crying because the game kicked his ass, and the review's a full rant about "How the mechanics suck because I don't know how to use them properly and in wich occasions", "The game is full of one-hit kills", etc.

[Tikicobra]

I knew immediately that it was him when I saw the score.

[JonnyBigBoss]

I give Jim Sterling a 5/10.

[NewsForMe]

That's a bit generous.

[Downtown boogey]

"At the very least, the game is very pretty to look at. The various visual effects and explosions, not to mention the fact that individual bullets have been animated and are visible in slow-motion, all deserve praise. The bright colors make a welcome break from the dreary browns of most cover shooters, and the enemy design is especially cool. The aesthetic portions of Vanquish are very impressive indeed, so if all you care about are graphics, this is your game."

[zatrox]

Did he EVEN play the Demo?

It has the best number of ammo BUT THE WORSE DAMAGE OF THEM ALL.

[AKS]

I can take even HHG's reviews more seriously than Sterling's.

[FwanK]

I read jim sterling and i walked away

[MidnytRain]

...from your computer? What was the purpose of that? I'm pretty sure you came right back to type your comment. lol

[AwesomeJizz]

I'm getting tired of this guy, he should be fired.
Giving Deadly Assonition 10/10 and Castlevania LOS and Vanquish 5/10 is ridiculous.

[SWF Joker]

well done Jimbo. Great read

[OhMyGandhi]

huh?
his score wasn't criminally low, and his review made valid arguments for and against the game.

how is this Jim Sterling effected you guys in such a way that you won't read his reviews? has he touched you? should I be concerned?

[zatrox]

Some of his complaints of the game are in fact, not true.

He talks about he missed punching an enemy and depleted his bar, he couldn't run away, and ended up dying.

Actually, if you miss a melee attack in game, it doesn't depletes the A.R.S. Bar, and thus, you can rocket slide out of danger.

Just a little detail I found while reading his review.

[DeathGazer]

Destructoid needs to go away.

[westy552]

Why disagree with him? They are a horrible site and give crap arse reviews.

How does ign give it a 8.5 and jim the joker give it a 5?!

[VictoriousB13]

Maybe because all reviews are objective (or should be) and everyone has a different opinion? Fuck man. Just because IGN gave the game an 8.5 doesn't mean Jim has to be a sheep and follow. Most of the people who have commented on this page are retarded if they think everyone is going to think Vanquish is above average.

[shadowfox]

I could give him so credit, except he only ranks the highly anticipated games poorly.

He regularly gives the shit ass Dynasty Warriors/Samurai Warriors games 8s and 9s, Deadly Premonition a 10 but then AC2 a 4, Castlevania and Vanquish a 5. It's a joke, he's doing it solely to get hits - rating good games poorly and bad games well.

[Unicron]

I'm gonna guess Sterling.

Yup, figures. This joke needs to stop gaming, period.

[blackburn5]

IGN is another crappy review site that's why. Their reviews make no sense half the time

[Lionalliance]

It seems they took it down!

[SWF Joker]

embargo not up yet. he tweeted about it

[Lionalliance]

oh, link plz :3

[Fulensenca]

works for free ... because I don' t see how he could get paid for THAT kind of work ...

[ironcreed]

It may be a short ass game, but no way is it a fucking 5. How is this guy still employed? Destructoid is actually an OK site, it is this Jim Sterling cat that is the problem. His reviews are a straight-up joke and he only does this for attention. He only needs to be allowed to have a blog, not be put on fucking Metacritic. I mean, my God.

[CrzyFooL]

Page is unavailable. Did they pull it?

[Ahasverus]

This and castlevania according to Sterling? God please kill that man

[bart999]

page is yanked. Frankly I'm not surprised by the score, the demo blew chunks imo.

[jackisgod]

Well it looks like his opinion does not matter to metacritic as his reviews for enslaved, lords of shadow, and sonic 4 are not shown lol

[jackisgod]

just checked gamerankings as well and guess what the reviews are also not there , I guess people caught on to his game of off beat reviews to get his crappy site more hits

[AKissFromDaddy]

this link is broken :-( or destructoid has removed this review whenever I've click on the link.

[Leafhopper]

I didn't expect a score like this from Destrctoid of all sites.

[jc48573]

It's a joke guys. If you look at the back of the case, it states "bloody terrific" from Destructoid.