Wake Up, Game Criticism, It’s Time to Die

Darkstation writes: "Years from now, when I think back on 2011, ensconced in my adamantium dreadnought with a snifter of Blue Label and an ottoman resembling a taxidermied Bobby Kotick, I’m going to remember what was easily the busiest autumn release season in the history of gaming."

[Dante112]

I think number review scores should go. It seems like more and more people are depending just on the reviewers' scores of a game to justify a purchase than actually reading the reviewers' opinions on the game to later decide for themselves if it's worth the buy. And to make it worse, journalists now are even using metacritic scores in this lame console war generation to make claims that "X" game is better than "Y" game as fact, even when that same game is just one point higher on metacritic or really down to personal opinion.

Edit: Probably won't happen though since "low scores = BIG HITS".

[MsclMexican]

This is so true.

Game scores just need to die. They really do. Metacritic, gamerankings, all of it.

What should matter is the content of the review.

The reason I hated on the AV club review of Uncharted 3 is not because of the fact that it is the lowest score Uncharted 3 has received, but rather the fact the review was so poorly written.

Guy barely knew the plot points of the game kept refering to the Atlantis of the Sands to the Atlantis of the Desert, and always kept changing his reason as to why he did not like it. Hell he never gave examples to back up his claim to this day.

Just watch
http://reviewsontherun.apps...

and then watch
http://www.youtube.com/watc...

He said before the beta had SO MUCH PLEASURE
Then when the game released he said it was boring

WTF? How does an opinion change like that?

Also on his twitter he constantly made fun of the fans of Uncharted and then continued badgering the game for trying to be a movie.

Seriously... context is important and quite frankly that review had none

[Skip_Bayless]

The critics are valid and justified. The scoring system needs to be changed and not thrown out though. Because you can't force people to throw something out that has been engrained in the culture. But you can change it.

The low review scores are correct and it gives a sense of spread in what a good game is. More scores between 0-6pts need to be used and are welcomed. Use the whole god damn 10-point scale! I'm tired of 7 being average, 8 being good, 9 being great, and 10 being amazing.

Also aggregate scores from metacritic and gamerankings work. I'm not say it's perfect, but come message me when you have a better idea. Things cannot be "pie-in-the-sky".

[P_Bomb]

@MsclMexican
It's true. At least take some responsibility for getting the controls/names right before calling everything the dev' did cr@p and throwing in a spoiler to boot.

That's what happens though when editors/producers keep airing the dirty laundry of guys like ScottCJones with no checks & balances for journalistic integrity. It's the wild west. Then the next 'pro' learns it's okay to phone it in too, the sensationalism for hits will take care of itself at which point they can go on Twitter and keep the fire burning with a link back to Victor Lucas' production company or whatever for good measure. It's almost formulaic. Doesn't sound very professional, yet according to metacritic, it is.

It's unfortunate because a lot of writers who actually like their jobs, try to be accurate, get their own quotes and mind their p's and q's...don't get the same kick at the can. Negativity gets more attention. As I speak, IGN's worst games of 2011 is stickied up front.

All I can say to new critics is keep at it. Don't let the business of ratings & hits change how you play games to the point that you stop enjoying them and lose your objectivity.

[MsclMexican]

Yes what you said is true... Reviewers need to kill of scores permanently. They are ruining games.

The thing I hate is when a reviewer acts innocent as if they did not do anything

[Studio-YaMi]

The score(number) review is meant for fanboys to gloat about a certain game for there preferred console of choice.

That being said,some developers actually stick these ratings and numbers on there game boxes so that the consumer get pumped to buy it,it's also a way for lazy or uneducated people who don't like to read and would prefer just skimming there eyes over a score out of 10,5 or 100 to have a quick decision to either get a game or not.

All in all,it's just a lazy system and should just die already ! I miss the days where you actually have to "read" a whole review to have a good unbiased opinion on a game.

This system alone kills a lot of integrity in gaming journalists(and journalism as a whole) of today.

[moosekebabs]

There would be nothing wrong with a numerical score if people actually read the reviews. Sadly the chances of the general internet public changing into thorough readers who carefully consider detail before reacting is about zero, so I guess the review scoring will have to adapt to them instead...

[Hicken]

There would be nothing wrong with the numbered score, similarly, if it properly reflected the reviewer's opinion.

I remember once arguing with an n4g member over his review of a game. He said it had a few flaws, but was, overall, a great game. Then he proceeded to give it a 3/5. I argued that, no matter what size the scale, a 3/5 didn't mesh with his review. Whether it's 6/10 or 60/100, that's still not much better than an average game, while he'd said it was great.

And do you know: I got bashed for "not liking" his review.

I think that if games were given scores that more adequately reflected the reviewer's opinion, there'd be a lot less to complain about. On that front, anyway. There's still the issue of too many poorly written and/or heavily biased reviews, but that's neither here nor there.

[Ducky]

Seems awefully rude to tell them to wake up while promptly uttering a death threat, don't you think?

[GamerSciz]

I review games on my site on a 1-10 with a .1 difference. However I state in my about me that my reviews are simply my opinion, a gamer. I am no journalist nor do I want to be one. That's not to say I don't like sharing my opinion with my fellow gamers though.

One thing I will probably never do is give an even 10...On my rating scale a 10 is the perfect game in every way and that's probably not ever going to happen.

I will admit as far as gaming journalism today...I find it a laughing matter but it's not really that funny but rather sad.

[Gaetano]

I think criticism of game criticism needs to go. It's no less pretentious than the douche bags that downground games for screen tearing.

[Jonah_Reese]

These folks who review games should just do a way with the numbers and switch to something else like "Buy" "Rent" "Barrow" or something of the sort. I hate metacritic and I hate the whining over a number.

[GamerSciz]

I have noticed recently a fair amount of smaller sites like myself who simply say Buy it now! Or It's worth a rent...and so on. That is becoming more common.