This week, we'll be joined in the studio by a special guest to be named later and the topic will be game reviews. We're looking for your questions and thoughts concerning what you look for in game reviews, and whether or not you find them useful in your purchasing decisions. Fire away in the comments below!
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RPG-fan
I find game reviews to be useful in making purchasing decisions. I go to different gaming websites and read several reviews on a game before deciding to buy it or not. I tend to look for pros and cons and sum up whether the game is worth buying. If I'm still not sure to purchase the game, or not, I just rent it first and make up my own mind. But sometimes even if a game received positive reviews from majority of reviewers, doesn't mean I too will agree with them. For example, I bought Splinter Cell: Conviction without even renting first because it received mostly positive reviews but I found the game wasn't quite as spectacular as the reviews are making out to be. Oh well, different strokes for different folks, it happens. Doesn't mean I go the websites and say the reviewers is wrong and it should have got so so out of 5 or say the website is bias, like some people tend to do.
dinn-dinn
Crackdown 2 is an example of Bioshock 2 or Resident Evil 5. In 2007, The Original Bioshock and Crackdown came out with Resident Evil 4 and all got five out of fives. But today in 2009 and 2010 their sequels got lower scores even though they used the same gameplay. I think people like the same gameplay but want it mixed it up a bit when they play a sequel. What do you think?
RPG-fan
Questions: how do you guys decide who should review a certain game? Are you thinking of assigning more than one reviewer on one game in the future?
enano623
Game reviews to me are only useful to a game you are not so comfortable with or know nothing about. Because for me if i really like a game and am going to buy it if i see a review that trashes it i could careless in my opinion i could care less i am still going to buy this game i've been wanting for months. As for the numbers, i hate them becuase if u read a review there might be more pros than cons but those cons will give it a lower score than u might hope. People should know that not all games are perfect and should look for the opinions of others but most importantly their own opinion because in the end the real question is "do I like this game?"
WobagUK
Analysits recently claimed that the current drop in game sales is partly due to enduring content like multiplayer and other DLC.
I thought the reason companies were trying to extend the life of games was to prevent copies entering the used game market, but it looks like publishers are cutting off their nose to spite their face.
Is this a no win situation? Are developers just stuck until they can go digital?
rikkuster
I think we all know Adam's take on the number system when rating video games so will G4 ever get rid of the numeric rating system? I do think a number can help determine an immediate idea of how good a game is but a full review is definitely more helpful. It's good to know what factors made the game good and not so good.
Socrates'sMind
I find game reviews important to whether I will buy a game or not... I look to a lot of different places and friends for what they think of a particular game... I try to ignore the biased reviews as much as I can... I want as much of an unbiased opinion I can get.. The one thing i never look at for every game review is the score... To give a game a numerical score for how good or bad it is to simplistic... I mean one negative thing could really sabotage a games score with that system of rating.. Thus, turning people away from a great game that has a few flaws... I guess its a necessary evil.... I care more for the written word from our dear reviewers... I want to hear what they liked, what they didn't, and why... I want to hear what the game does well.. How the controls feel, if the story is good, if it just plays great.... Then I want to hear where the game misses the mark... Clunky controls, broken gameplay, camera issues, etc...That's what i want to know.. Then from that I will make up my mind as to whether to buy... I think the industry as a whole needs to find a way to do away with the numerical score...
Sphincterror
The main things I look for in game reviews are the shortcomings and excelling moments of that particular game. If it's a game I have been interested in for a while and I am intent on purchasing and playing it, then the review has little to no effect on my decision to buy the game. My buying habits concerning games that I am on the fence about, however, are affected more by the review. If a review can save me from buying a game that is weighed down by bugs, shoddy design, or a sundry of other annoyances, then all the better. As for the actual score...I put very little weight on what number was slapped on the top of the written review.
Tmidiman
I feel sorry for Devs who give us lots of button combinations that give us different moves. You can hit A for a basic move or X+Y for a super cool move. The gamer gets to choose how they want to fight.
Problem is that some gamers AND reviewers will only use the A button. "Oh it must be a button mashed, this sucks!" NO. You are too lazy to to learn more moves. The Devs problem was that they trusted your lazy a** to actually be creative and have fun.
Dear Devs, give the lazy people MGS and Uncharted 2 games with pretty cut-scences, then you'll get high review scores. Smart gamers and reviewers know how creative you are but many are too lazy to understand.
mrtategamer
I use reviews to see what the game i want has to offer wether was the part i was looking forward to is good or not. Like when i want a game that shows potential in like Multiplayer i read G4 reviews to see if the games lived up to as it promised.
specialk1990
Is there a point at which a review has become no longer relevant, due to changes in society?
Game_Wizard
I use reviews as a general rule of thumb but I usually go with my own judgment on things which I think most people generally do. It may be shocking to realize but different people have different opinions, reviewers of the game especially. Even if a game gets a low score or not a glowing review, people will still buy a game or at least rent a game like I do to see if a game is worth an investment of a larger amount of my money.
As far as usefulness of reviews and how it effects my purchasing decisions I find them useful in sort of justifying my own opinion. Even if a reviewer doesn't agree with my point of view I won't buy a game or not buy a game just out of spite to this reviewer I will probably never meet anyway. I guess in short, I use reviews mainly to validate what I think and if it doesn't well it isn't the end of the world now is it. I have also never used a review of a game to influence me in how I will buy something, that goes back to renting. Instead of allowing myself to be swayed by another person's opinion I will do the smart thing and actually see for myself if a game is good or not and worth my attention and money.
Ramen_Comet
What's your views on episodic downloading? If successful could it be the end of disc games leaving only data versions available?
feeishkane
Have you every reviewed a game but later thought you were wrong? Or have you every reviewed a game and had the public think the exact opposite (Not just fanboys but a majority of gamers)?
FuzzyKnuckles
I apologize for the length of this, but I needed to get this off my chest.
TOPIC: Nintendo equals hardcore? Really?
Let me start by saying the 3DS looks potentially VERY cool. Given, I don't play portable games, but the technology there looks to be a great step in the new 3D direction.
However, when looking at Nintendo's game lineup, I wasn't nearly as blown away as everyone else apparently was. (Kirby and Mickey looked innovative and interesting, the rest were the same old crap.) I guess what has irritated me the most about all of the E3 discussions is the repeated use of the word hardcore to describe Nintendo s direction. Nothing I saw from Nintendo screamed hardcore to me, nor has anything they have done in the past several years. I think we need to better define the term hardcore .
When I think about what constitutes a hardcore game, I think about games that are visceral, adult-themed, and most importantly, not casual games. For the most part, I don t think of Nintendo games. Nintendo has definitely been focused on casual gamers for the past several years. None of what I saw this year seems like a big departure from that. Nintendo is releasing a bunch of games that moms can feel comfortable buying for their 7-8 year old kids. Given, adults can enjoy these same games, but are they really hardcore games?
It seems to me that some of you equate the term hardcore with nostalgic. Just because an IP has been around for years and years and years does NOT, in my opinion, make it hardcore. I totally understand that a lot of older, adult fans of Nintendo are pleased to see new iterations of old licenses, but use of the term hardcore to describe these games seems like a real stretch to me.
Do you guys agree with any of what I just said? Furthermore, do you care about any of it?
Doctor Professor
The only thing that has real sway over my game purchases is word of mouth. There are some things written text just can't convey. For example, I had never even heard of deadly premonition but after watching you guys talk about it so affectionately I decided to buy it. For me seeing someone talk about how much they love a game is a much stronger endorsement than any written review. Even the video reviews on x play don't have as much power as an overly excited gamer. That's why I love watching feedback because the reviewers can just be themselves and talk about the games without worrying about being biased or following a script.
tha_destroyer_86
for me a review does weigh in on my decision when i purchase a game but i also do look at wat people are talking about as well do my own investigation on the game because hearing it from people from other games is always welcome i also have to decide for myself whether is the game for me. SPECIALLY WHEN CASH IS LIMITED WITH WIFE AND KIDS SHOUT OUT TO MY WIFE IRENE AND MY KIDS NOELIA AND AYLSSA IF U READ THIS COMMENT ON UR SHOW. THANKS
xondak
I have a feeling you all were as disappointed as I was with Microsoft's show at E3. However, I'm very optimistic for the potential of Kinect. I personally would like to see games that you play with the controller (Halo, Gears, etc.) augmented by Kinect as a head-tracking unit to give the illusion of depth without the need for a 3D TV. I think Kinect would work in very subtle ways, and not as a complete controller replacement, what do you think? What would be some games that you would like to see using Kinect's technology?
OcelotFox
When I read or watch a review of any kind of entertainment, I'm usually looking to not only be informed about the item being reviewed, but to get a fresh perspective on the item. Many people seem to expect reviewers to make a very general, by-the-numbers review that caters to any audience the review may be read by. If it somehow comes across as antagonistic towards a certain audience, many of them claim bias. However, the mark of a good reviewer, in my eyes, is one that approaches a game open-mindedly, but with a framework of experiences as a gamer that allow them to point out faults or credits of any game they review. Sure, they may count something as a fault that I would not, or vice-versa, but that's a difference in opinion, and I'm more informed for seeing where the difference in our views lie.
swordgoatz
As I perused X-Play's top games of 2010 so far, I couldn't help but revisit a question I've had for a long time. I agree that the video game industry gets a bad rap in the mainstream media, mostly because they only pick up stories when a controversy arises. However, I think that from the outside the video game industry could be seen as easy pickings because all of the top-selling hardcore games are pretty violent. Don t get me wrong, I love Halo, Bioshock, Fallout, Borderlands, Assassins Creed and Red Dead Redemption (they re great!), but let s face it: the base mechanic in the gaming industry is walking around and killing stuff. Even our buddy Mario gets in on the action. I was hoping you could discuss why you think this mechanic creates such an addictive and visceral response in gamers, and why you think more original ideas (portal, etc.) may gain some success, but not the kind of response we see from MW2. It seems to me that the early days of video game programming (the 8-bit days) took many different approaches to the idea of what a game could be, but that we ve been slowly bottlenecking to where we are today.
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