Gamespot Reviews The Orange Box for the PS3: 9/10

The Orange Box is one of the greatest values in gaming history, because it's jam-packed with a variety of world-class content.

The Good
* The Half-Life 2 saga represents some of the greatest shooter gameplay
ever made
* Portal is a brilliant and humorous puzzle game
* Outstanding visual and audio design
* An unprecedented value.

The Bad
* The frame rate struggles at times and the loading times are a bit
long.

[gamesblow]

Unheard of... uncharted 8... this 9?? Please... what a joke.

[FirstknighT]

Still crying I see...*

[Seraphim]

So True!! But Uncharted at 8 should be criminal. At least most gaming journalism sources gave Uncharted a fair score. Even the Critic Average at Gamespot.com is 9.0 which is easily the minimum score that game should have received.

On one hand it's certainly great to see that gamespot.com actually gave it a good score, but at the same time, in general this game is overrated. The PC version I could see might deserve a 9.5 because not a whole lot has changed on PC, and there isn't much there coincides w/ Orange Box. But a 9.5 for the 360 version and a 9.0 for the PS3 version is BULL!! It might be a great value having all these games packaged into one box, but the fact of the matter is that the game isn't all that anymore; especially compared to console games. It certainly was this good 2 years ago when it was released, but now it's not only outdated, but feels out of place on a console. It feels to much like a PC game running on a console so the gameplay gets a major knock in that regard. Valve/EA should have tweaked the gameplay to feel more at home on a console. Furthermore this game pails in comparison of recent releases this year. Orange Box has nothing on CoD 4, Bioshock, Uncharted, and many other games across the board. Needless to say this is just another prime of another highly overrated game this year.

I think this year might go down in history for all the wrong reasons. The negative effect gaming journalism has had on the industry as a whole. Not only that but the extremely high number of overrated and over scored games in the History of gaming. There's been so many overrated games this year I wouldn't even know where to start. It's sickening.

Glad I don't rely on reviews for purchasing decisions. Furthermore as time continues to pass us I see more and more the irrelevance of gaming journalism and just how broken, and likely bias it is...

[gamesblow]

Hey, Knight... did you know that no one here likes you? It's all over the place...

[killax3563]

Pre-Gerstmanngate this would have gotten no higher than an 8.5, probably an 8.

If uncharted were released now GS would probably give it an 8.5 maybe a 9.

[InMyOpinion]

Uncharted has an 8.8 average at Metacritic

http://www.metacritic.com/g...

[Kleptic]

this was pretty predictable...that site is on the verge of collapse...they will be trying to get on everyone's good side for the next several months...and probably will never make a "controversial" review ever again...

I thought IGN's 8.4 was pretty much spot on...the fact that the devs couldn't effectively port a 3 year old engine effectively is ridiculous...especially considering how well UE3 is running on the hardware now, as well as games like Uncharted and HS...

nice try GS...you still suck though...

[FirstknighT]

Still angry I see...*

[nanometric]

Still and idiot, I see!

[Bubble Buddy]

Gamesblow, no shiet its a 9, because it is on the 360 o_0. What if it was only ps3 = 8. And 1UP is pissing me off, i swear I've seen at least 5 games for ps3 all 80's. do they care about rating? or do they just copy paste? and FirstknighT...

and Gamespot... you're done.

[The Snake]

Uncharted got a 4/5 star (i.e. an 8) review score from Playstation Official Magazine. Was that a biased review? No. It was an honest opinion, which is exactly what I would imagine Gamespot's reviews are. BTW Orange Box is one of the best games on any system this year. The only people who say it's not a great game are the ones who haven't played it.

[InMyOpinion]

It's nice that I get 7 disagrees for posting facts. I guess you agree with Metacritic.com? You stupid little toys...

[toughNAME]

looks like it back to the drawing board sony boys

[Relcom]

Gamespot clearly sucking up to us PS3 guys. A game with this many problems (cause the asshats at EA made it, and yes they did valve let EA make this version of the game) Deserves a bad score end of story. No fuking way this 10 Frame per second game deserves a better score than Ratchet and Clank, and Uncharted. EA and Gamespot FTL!!!

Boycott of EA games continues

P.S. Has anyone else noticed EA has ruin the one of the greatest shooters of all time. Hard to do but they did. .l.. you EA

[toughNAME]

now your complaining Gamespot scores PS3 games too high?

[Relcom]

I've never said sh*t before now. So piss off. I'm saying there just trying to get there site vistors back. By the way you just pegged me as a Sony Fanboy and that i'm not.

[toughNAME]

it just seems like there's always conspiracy theories floating around the Gamespot comment section

[Relcom]

Deserves a better score than Ratchet and Clank and Uncharted. Hell even Heavenly Sword. So yeah there is merit to conspiricy theory here.

[toughNAME]

It's a reviewers opinion? Where's the conspiracy?

And if your suggesting Microsoft paid them off for some reason...

give me one piece of proof...until then you are one crazed f*ck

[Relcom]

No one paided them off quit jumping to conclusions of what i think. "They are clearly trying to win back fans" That is what i'm saying. No one and i mean no one likes a horribly choppy game see the comparison GT did the framerate is awful(which is key for a shotter by the way). No way this reviewer gave this a 9/10 without a little nudge from the editors there saying "hey man we need web hits bad, how bout a good score this time" wink wink

[WIIIS1]

Bud, you pegged yourself as a Sony Fanboy when you said "sucking up to us PS3 guys". Why deny your proud heritage now?

[Kleptic]

BS3...unlike your pathetic world of purchase justification...there are some of us "PS3 guys"...that are nothing like fanboys (i.e. you)...

he didn't admit to being a retard fanboy (i.e. you), he simply stated that he was an owner of a PS3...ownership does not immediately create a dumbfeck half-wit (i.e. you)...

and Relcom...completely agree...past GS reviews would have nailed this poorly ported Orange Box to a cross...it is completely obvious that they are not going to step on a single toe for a very long time...listen to last weeks podcast...they are trembling...

[Fedorov]

You're sucking up to 2pac. SO THERE!!!

[GlossGreen]

you have actually played the game, or are you just buying into the stories put out about it? Never rush to judgement unless you've played it yourself.

[jabberjak]

talk about turning the tables......from the video comparison i would say this is bs cause clearly ps3 had frame rate issues, cause it was auto saving, and the load times were pretty bad, but 9/10 is way too high not that im saying its not a bad game just comparing uncharted review with this review and it seems they are just trying to make the ps3 crowd happy..... by the way i also have a ps3 the name is "dhanu" for now so add me wen ever u like.

[SIXAXISofEVIL]

From the review "The frame rate hiccups are inexplicable because they can occur when almost nothing is happening onscreen or when you're in the midst of a big battle. It's not a huge gameplay issue, but it is very noticeable and a significant irritation."

I wish there was a video showing this instead of the quicksave lag. So far haven't seen any problems with the ps3 version, at least nothing that was "very noticeable." Suprised that a 9 is coming from gamespot.

[jackdoe]

They are being too generous to EA IMO.

[DemiseofPandas]

I agree with you Jack, I mean they gave Madden 08 the same scores on the 360 and PS3 even with the obvious difference, whereas most multi games GS gives the PS3 the short end of the stick... it is at least interesting that both of these strange scores have to do with EA...

[Astro]

Somebody is going to get fired for this review!

Anyways, the PS3 version of TOB is sh1t. Good for PStards!

[SIXAXISofEVIL]

When you say ps3 version of TOB is sh;t, what are you basing that on? Have you played it?

[FitzDWG]

if your going to get the game any way like i am than why complain about a great score if it would of gotten a 7.5 then we should complain but all in all just enjoy the damn game

[bootsielon]

There's no conspiracy you morons, GameSpot's disaster shows in their change of attitude. Well, I guess I'm only talking to one, but preemptive for the rest of the b1tches.

[toughNAME]

I'd give you a bubble for common sense...but I took one from you yesterday:P

props for having a sony filled, but OPEN mind

[unrealgamer58]

wow in y opinion this seems like a joke

[andrewf91]

at least another positive review came out who cares if it's from EA if your on a budget this games for you 5 for 1 games that awesome, no probs with mine so far only when I quick save is when I have probs thats all go pick it up TF2 is as well great no lag yet

[ISA_Scum]

Um...yeah, ok Gamespot. Ratchet and Clank 7.5, Uncharted 8 and then you give a lagging pile of crud that takes forever to load a 9? Value or not, this isn't right. Something reeks here, and it's Gamespot sucking up to the man to get back on track. And the PS3 gamer I guess too....but if they want me back as a read, change that R&C review! Still love how 1up suggests thats what planted the seeds for the AC fallout!

[andrewf91]

IMO 1up blows they only want hits, so they say random crap ahead of time to get more hits 1up is a disgrace

[Danja]

so Gamespot gives a game like this a 9.0 even though it has major flaws..but a game like Uncharted gets an 8..? lol..ohh wow it seems like traffic hits are way down...R&C a 7.5...lol

wait didn't AC get a 9 also and it had major flaws...ohh well im still not buying this game...

[WIIIS1]

Maybe excellent games with some hiccups are still better than mediocre games without hiccups?

[Danja]

Umm dude the only mediocre game I mentioned was Assassin Creed...this game is far from beign excellent...s many freaking flaws I won't even get in detail

The Orange Box..is amazing collection of games...it's just not that great on the PS3

Uncharted and R&C..are two of the best games of the year with no hiccups during gameplay but yet they get lower scores than games with actuall flaws...

just doesn't seems fair...

[ThaGeNeCySt]

lol gaming publications just can't win with you guys huh

low score... outrage

decent score... outrage

high score... outrage

lmao

[AngryTypingGuy]

Sony fans can't stand that the 360 has higher rated games.

There is truth to above statements though. A game like Uncharted deserves higher than 8. A super-crappy framerate deserves lower than a 9. The 360 has the better version of this game. Better framerate, and achievements. Maybe the PS3 will release an update eventually to help fix those framerate problems.

[shrimpboat]

To be honest with you the game is basically the same for the PS3 and 360. The only reason the 360 version is better to you is because you have a 360 and care about Achievements. Neither one has any extra content so neither one is better. They are Equal. The PS3 version has a auto save function that the 360 version doesn't have that can slow the game a little while autosaving but thats about it. Thats were the frame rate issues come from.

[socsca]

What are you talking about? Of course the 360 version has autosave... Only it doesn't slow down. Not beeing fanboy about it, just stating fact.

[AngryTypingGuy]

For those who disagreed, check out the comparison video: http://kotaku.com/gaming/cl...

Shrimpboat, I never talked about extra content. You're right, they are basically the same game, but the 360 version has a better framerate and it has achievements too.

If you watch the video though, you'll see that except for the vehicle part, the framerate holds up OK on the PS3 version. Notice how much smoother the 360 version is though.

[shrimpboat]

I haven't played this game yet so I won't comment on the Score but these guys gave Ratchet and Clank a 7 or 7.5.

Either way the Orange box is a good value. I might get it.

[XxRoosterxX]

I don't care what the score is. Anyone who has not played Half-Life 2 needs to buy this

[eagle21]

Fake bots don't understand. The graphics are superior on PS3 (check out video) and the medly of multiplayer helped the score.

[HarryEtTubMan]

HAHA LOOK AT THE JEALOUS xBOTS ALWAYS FEEL THE NEED TO COME CHIME IN THERE BULLCRAP. THE XBOX 360 IS A DEFECTIVE PIECE OF GARBAGE.

[Cat]

If you have a PS3 and you don't have a gaming PC or a 360, you have to buy this, frame rate issues or not. I think Gamespot gave it a 9/10 b/c in spite of the frame rate issues it's by far one of the best returns on your money this year in gaming.

[PimpHandHappy]

The 360 is the cheap mans PC gaming rig

get over it

This game will average over a 8.5 and tell the truth any game over a 7 can be a buy if its what your into

Let them have this FPS. The 360 will never have a lag free 32player game! The PS3 has 2 already

Thats cool your service is good but its a shame that rig you call a 360 can never handle Warhawk or Uncharted! The list will continue to grow and when your into your 5th 360 in your 5th year of paying 50bucks a year come talk to me. You should have a PS3 by then

[BubblesDAVERAGE]

and Gamerscore are for losers.....I mean what can you do with them Xbots are loser...5million gamerscore and cant do not but be happy about being the biggest no life having gamer...Just have fun with you games no matter what system who cares if you the best are you having fun??????

[BubblesDAVERAGE]

Can you use the points for anything...its just a ploy to get you to buy games....and guess what it works...

[pwnsause]

?WTF? you give this piece of S**t an 9 and give games such as rachet and clank and uncharted an 8 and under, WTF??? gamespot=S&&T

[fopums]

wtf......all I can say...

gamespot just keeps getting crazier and crazier

[Figboy]

as to why Orange Box would get an 9/10, and Uncharted would get an 8, and Ratchet and Clank Future a 7

Uncharted - PS3 Exclusive
Ratchet and Clank - PS3 Exclusive

Orange Box - *MULTIPLATFORM - reviewers dare not speak ill of a game you can also get on the 360. i mean, if they do, they can't use the tried and true "well, if i were you, i'd get the 360 version over the PS3" they've been patenting all year.

personally, Valve, and EA can lick my nuts, as there's simply no excuse for Orange Box to run the way it does on the PS3, while it runs silky smooth on the PC and 360.

i've stated it before, but i refuse to buy a game from a company that, one, trash talks the system to no end (thanks Gabe Newell...douche), and then expects us to buy their product for a console that should, *ahem* "have a do-over."

the relationship between gamers and developers is a two-way street, a symbiotic relationship.

we trust game developers to deliver us the best experiences they can, and they trust us to support their efforts buy purchasing their products, so they can continue to supply us with the best experiences they can, and so on and so forth.

Orange Box is clearly not worth it. i don't care if the slow down isn't "that bad." on other consoles, there *IS NO slowdown. why should i be penalized because i bought a PS3 over a 360? (i bought a PS3 over a 360 for games like Folklore, Ratchet, Uncharted, Heavenly Sword, etc)

i'm annoyed and disappointed in Valve, as i own Half Life 2 on the PC, and i was really looking forward to picking up Orange Box on my PS3. i picked up Unreal Tournament 3 instead, and am *NOT disappointed (no shoddy framerate here, thanks). i'm just eagerly awaiting the mod community to start cranking out more mods, and Epic releasing the PS3 tools to the modders, which apparently, should be soon.

if you continue to treat the PS3 like a bastard stepchild, Valve and EA, i'll continue to ignore your mediocre products, and support 3rd party companies that actually give a damn about the platforms they're developing for (ie, Infinity Ward, Bethesda, Ubisoft, etc, and their games, COD4, Oblivion/Fallout3, and Rainbow Six Vegas/GRAW, etc).

[g-nome]

When did we start caring about Gamespot reviews again.....

[eddierivera]

And i dont care what you xbox 360 guys say about wich version is better, and i know you guys dont actually care about what we say cause lets face it,, we all love our game systems, i like the xbox too though, but all these game review websites are totally ignorant when it comes to rating games,, now they dont wanna rate games too low cause if jeff gerstman can get fired, then they certainly will,, we shouldnt pay attention to what they say, and dont even listen to what the developers have to say, cause they just wanna sell their product,, so what i suggest for you guys to do, sony and xbox fans, is to watch the reviews, and watch as many different ones that you can, thats how i figured out army of 2 was gonna be a crappy title,, me and my friends were so hyped about that game, but after reviewing the videos,, not the trailers, but gameplay videos ,you can tell if you have any common sense what the game is about,, The only one i cant tell is GTA4 cause its got crappy graphics, from what i seen, but obviously its still gonna be cool messing that lil city up with chaos,, oh yeah , and battlefield,, the new engine has good ideas, but i just seen some videos and it needs alot of polish,, not as pretty as call of duty 4,, so anyways, do you get my point guys? Both systems have their pros and cons, but what everyone should think about is not where we are now with video games, but where we are headed,, by the way,, EA cares nothing about us hardcore gamers, their has been so many articles about them only caring about the casual side of gaming,, they just wanna make money and they dont care about the integrity an quality of the games they make,, some games are good, but most are crap,, make sure you guys really look out for these crudy half assed games they produce,,,, I wish i could just fire all of them and run the business myself, but money rules everything,, bye now

[uHuRu]

GameSpot are trying to win people back, this game in no way deserves a 9/10. Lots of issues in the game for it to deserve that score.

GameSpot, too little, too late. no one takes your reviews seriously anymore, except densed GameSpot fanatics or ignorant people.

[Blademask]

Its like the 112th ranked site in the world.

I think its a good thing to see it ignoring huge flaws in a PS3 title. It at least shows they they have their head up their asses now for both consoles.

While I think that games with severe flaws dont deserve to be 9+ They do. I mean look at the score these guys gave Assassins creed. Clearly they are getting paid off by someone.

However they didn't give Mass Effect a pass.

I think they just mix the ratings now to drive traffic.

@ the people talking about Uncharted on Metacritic.

Well, its a 90% on Gamerankings.com. Now the odd part about both of those sites, is that "one" is trusted over the other, while they are both owned by Cnet. And while they both dont add from a wide variety of trusted review sites with medium to large communities and traffic. Its about time GAMERS get their news from a non PARTNER of Microsoft source. Both of those sources add fanboy sites for both consoles. YOu dont ask a site with clear bias towards one site to review a game, KNOWING that they KNOW that will affect said average of the game. Thats just retarded.

Someone outside of Cnet needs to develop a rankings site.

[MK_Red]

Pretty strange if you ask me. I was expecting 8/10 or even a 7.5/10 from GS. Could this have something to do with new management / Gerstmann effect?

[Cat]

It does seem strange, and I wondered the same thing. While I can explain away the 9/10 (The Orange Box is an amazing value, and I think PS3-only households should still get it) in spite of frame rate issues, I wouldn't expect that sort of generosity from Gamespot.

[MK_Red]

True, the value in Orange Box is worth more than the frame rate issues and also true that it was indeed unexpected from GameSpot.

[MRMagoo123]

I dont care how good anyone thinks this is im not buying anything EA again there just lazy and stupid.Ill stick to the ppl that make good games like naughty dog infinity ward and the rest of them oh and by the way thanks for uncharted naughty dog what a heck of a game it is mind blowing

[socsca]

Why are people comparing this to R & C and Uncharted? This game, with a couple of hickups in frame rate and a bit long loading times AND inferior graphics blows away those two games. You can't even compare, its just incredibly much better. And YES I've played them all.

FFS, you guys need to remember what games are all about, gameplay, having FUN while playing and not only looking at the graphics.
And please make up your mind, these guys can't give a score without beeing critized by you, high = it sucks, average= it sucks, low= M$ paid them.

EDIT: @ Below, why exactly does a game loose half its value after two years? If a game is good, it'll hold the test of time, YOU mentioned Counterstrike Source, hasn't THAT game lost some of its value? Oooops? See, you are not even reading before you reply, you are still just thinking about the graphics! R & C DID get a stupid score, waaay too low, but still it was basically just a Ratchet game with incredible graphics. Uncharted... also could have gotten a bit higher score, but not so much. Yes, the graphics are awesome, agree, but besides that? The gameplay was ok, good in fact, but not the greatest nor the most original today (unlike for example Portal, and laaaarge parts of episode 2). The story was a joke and could only satisfy the mind of a child to be honest. Obviously, GS reviews sucks to you because they don't value graphics as much as you do.
Truth is, despite minor issues, the PS3 OB should have gotten a higher score. Its 5 games, 5! Not only that, its 5 very very good games that haven't lost any of its value because despite beeing 2 years old it hasn't been equaled and let alone surpassed by any fps to come out.

Wow, can't believe I wrote that much, lol.
Please guys, set aside your hate and enjoy the greatest package evaaaar.

[Bolts]

Half Life 2 is two years old so there goes half of the game's value. It doesn't matter if you haven't played it before, it's two freaking years old. To add insult to injury Orange Box doesn't include Counterstrike Source, which is the most popular Halfe Life 2 engine game of all time. You can buy Half Life 2 for the PC for $20 and it'll come with CS: Source but the $60 console package is mysteriously missing a game that comes at zero cost.

After all this the PS3 version is inferior techincally to the 360. Yet for some reason it still score a 9 outta 10 while Uncharted and Rachet doesn't even break 9. Thats just another reason why Gamespot's reviews sucks. They don't make any god damn sense and their scores are totally random when grading PS3 games.

[felidae]

gamespot is a joke .. they gave Uncharted a 8/10 and this is easily the best videogame ever made.

btw. i played both versions of the Orange Box and the graphics are much better on the ps3.

fvck fanbois

[mistertwoturbo]

but tell me how the ps3 version is better graphically? i actually rented the game and waiting for it to come in. i played the 360 version and it plays how it's supposed to play. like a pc game i guess.

just curious. no fanboy remarks.

[Altair-HD]

we are not falling for your bulls7it gamespot

[Rice]

Wow i expected a 8.5 or lower, im suprised.

[Azailex Sorrow]

its what you'd expect from gamespot, the best thing to do is just dnt listen to any of there reviews, and so i just leave it at tht, people want reviews they can count on, but i cnt trust them anymore..

maybe next year they'll give MGs4 a 9/10, or FFXIII a 9.5/10 for good reasons, and tht'll give me a reason to re-open arms..

all seriousness though, reviews are just other people's thoughts..

it dos'nt matter if there 360-fanboys, i just really think good games deserve good scores..

[iiprotocolii]

When you say that 360 games have higher rated games, are you talking about the handful of good games the 360 has with it's one-year lead over PS3? Let's see... Gears of War, Halo 3, Mass Effect (which wasn't that good... I played through it), and umm... Project Gotham? You really can't say anything else. With a one-year lead over the PS3, the PS3, in 3 months, has already released exclusives that are GREAT games (Heavenly Sword - although short-, Ratchet & Clank, Uncharted, Unreal III).

Please, when you say something ridiculous like that, make sure it's sensible. As for the PS3 version of TOB getting an 9, it should be held off. No I haven't played the game, and no I don't plan to own it (I have it already for the 360). This is only being said because Gamespot cannot be taken seriously since the whole Kane & Lynch situation... I can't take their opinion to heart... I'll wait till 1up/EGM, IGN, and/or Kotaku says something about it.

[sonyfanonly]

YOU SEE GAMESPOT ONLY GIVES GOOD REVIEWS FOR FPS UNCHARTED IS BETTER THAN THE SH^T BOX

[name]

Their strategy is to always go against whatever makes sense. If it's a low budget, barely advertised game that no one cares about it gets a good score. If its a game no one was gonna buy on the ps3 in the first place, it gets a high score. If its a good game, that ps3 owners actually cared about then they find reasons not to like it. Bravo gamespot.

[Salvadore]

Looks like they are desperately trying to win back fans.

[gunnerforlife]

ive got half a mind to say

suck ups to gamespot u aint getting me back to ur site no matter what

[Dukester101]

There's no way a PS3 game can score that high... and who's to trust Gamespot?

They're biased for whoever throws money at them!

[mintaro]

so you say the reviews biased because theres no way a PS3 game should score that high? honestly it was a great game on the 360, and although it may have technical issues its not surprising that it got a high score on the PS3

so dude the only thing thats biased is your way of thinking.

[UltramanJ]

The Orange Box is a fantastic package (I got rid of Halo 3 for my copy) that PS3 owners should still check out. Of course that's after you've bought Uncharted and Ratchet.

[dabizo]

lmao....Gamespot suck - no I MEAN IT THEY REALLY SUCK :) The game has serious framrate issues that really affect the game..buggy, glitchy blah blah but hey its a 9.0 !! LOL
I cant take this game seriously anymore, I think I am gonna stick with Insomnia, Epic and Naughty dog to name just a few developers who produce decent games for PS3.

[SweeneyTodd]

Gamespot is full of sh!t. They only told us about a few glitches but thats BS. This game is filled with FR issues from the start, anytime, and everytime a lot is occuring in the game, i.e. the lighthouse defense, explosions guns. AI etc, the FR drops bigtime. No its not the ps3 that cant handle it, from first hand experience i can say that EA is off of my list of reliable games, I will NEVER buy an EA games again, nor will i ever trust of belive Gamspot EVER AGAIN!. The only thing you can do nowadays is to rent a game you think you might like, then buy it. Thats it,. Dont ever trust another biased gamesite again. it sucks now I have to trade the orange box for something else, DONT BUY IT!!!

[TwissT]

I really expected 8.5 but 9 really nice.

[solar]

gordon freeman > master chief :D and no i aint hating on halo3 :P