Why is it such a sin for a game to be scored lower than an 8.5?

I was reading (on this site) a review for an excellent game called Persona 4 Arena, and I made the horrible mistake of scrolling down and reading the comments. A lot of people complained because the game got an 8/10. Because an 8/10 is soooooo bad right, P4A must be a terrible game since it didn't score an inflated and exaggerated score of 10/10 RIIIIIGHT?

Suddenly gamespot is getting bashed for being crappy reviewers and having terrible taste in games because it gave a good game a score it deserves. And this is just one example. I see it on numerous games. A game gets a good score ranging between 7-9 (yes I actually consider 7 a GOOD score) and people whine like its the end of the world and the reviewer has no taste in games. As if its the end of the world if one reviewer on one website doesn't like a game you enjoyed.

There are games that got a 5-6 on gamespot that are still playable and actually halfway decent in my opinion (i.e. Lollipop Chainsaw, Red Ninja, the Persona 2 remake) Personally I'm more concerned with the content of the review than the score. This isn't school, its okay to score lower than an 8/10. Anyway thats just my 2 cents.

So...does a game scoring less then an 8.0 mean its a dealbreaker for you? Why is that such a big deal? How much do reviews influence your decision to buy a game? Would you get as angry over Gamespot's scores if you actually calmed down and stopped to look at other sites reviews to compare?

I've never let a game review affect my purchasing decision. Never. I treat reviews like an entertainment news article. I usaully read reviews after I finish the game to see what others think about it. Kinda like what I do with Ebert's review. I dont agree with all his reviews but I still like to know what he thought of the movie.

That said, if a game review fails to point out game breaking bugs like the Skyrim fiasco then i'd be pissed because they have effectively reviewed a product they havent spent any time with.

Like rag above, I used to care about the scores early on this gen. I still remember the rage I felt when Gamespot gave Uncharted an 8.0 soon after rating Ratchet a 7.5. Oh the rage. :lol: The 10.0 they gave to MGS4 a few months later came as both a shock and a pleasent surprise to me. It was beautiful. But thats when I realized that there is no conspiracy, some people just have different taste in games.

Curiosly enough, I didnt mind the 8.7 they gave MGS3. As much as I love the series, I always knew the series had some serious control issues that Kojima didnt bother fixing so it was a relief to see Kasavin knock some points for it.

90% of the internet's population rates everything they like 9 or 10 and everything they dislike 1 or 2. There are no grey zones in their minds. Reptylus

Outside of using them to avoid the really horrible games out there, scores mean next to nothing.

Because people are idiots and can't realize that a nine isn't the only good score on the scale.

Those complaints just prove that some gamers can't think for themselves.

Some people just refuse the fact that their favorite games actually have flaws and the flaws should be noted.

I don't have a mandatory criteria to go by. I can tell by watching gameplay if I want the game, But I still look at and listen to reviews and adjust my expectations for what to expect (GTA 4) or know how much content and value for the money I'll get.

Well for one a numeric rating is a stupid approach to something that is not quantifiable.What is the real difference between a game rate 8 vs 9 or 9 vs 9.5 (which is even more stupid that the previous comparison)?

I would love to know too. I mean most of the games I've played this gen I would give a 7 or an 8...Which I think is really good, So yeah.

Because gamers are a bunch of idiots.

seriously, I agree with most of what the OP and Ragnar said. If you like a certain genre or publisher/ developer and their game scores a 6.5 or above, you might want to consider checking it out. See if you can tolerate the issues. Anyone who says a score of like 8 is bad needs to get their head out of their bumhole.

Because games like Metal Gear Solid 4 and Mass Effect 2 get undeserved 10/10s.

A game getting a 5 from Gamespot doesn't mean a damned thing to me because one of my favorite games of this gen got exactly that score.

If you actually think that a total stranger with completely different tastes in games than you is a reliable source of information, then by all means read those reviews. Personally I've found myself having a hell of a lot more fun since I started ignoring the reviews and just buying whatever looks interesting to me. Sure I get the occasional dud, but at least I'm not constantly wasting money on utterly mediocre crap just because it's popular.

Because games like Metal Gear Solid 4 and Mass Effect 2 get undeserved 10/10s.

RageQuitter69

Haven't played either of these games so I can't really defend them but I'm wondering if you have played either of these games.

I'm not trying to personally attack you or anything, but it seems another issue with reviews is that when a popular game gets a high score, some people, especially those who's favorite games are not nearly as popular or not seen as good, seeth with rage and denounce the game without having ever played it. These people can't seem to grasp that some of these popular games might actually be good and deserve the score they got. And then comes the accusations of companies paying reviewers off and blah blah blah.

I know some popular games are automatically given good scores when they aren't even that good but come on, this comes back to what I mentioned in my original post. A review is a review, someone's opinion, you don't have to agree with it. But maybe its a little harder with popular games because they're critically acclaimed by fans and critics alike, as well as constantly talked about. Maybe some people feel the balance of the universe will be tipped if they don't spout their hatred to counterbalance all the praise.

I dunno. You guys tell me.

Because of this.

I have no idea why gamers believe that everything they like deserves a 9 or a 9.5. For me personally... anything that gets a 7 or higher is worth a purchase.

It always makes me chuckle when gamers spit their dummy out due to the fact that someone has a different opinion to themselves concerning reviews, ratings and overall game scores. :)

The only time I was ever bothered by a game I like getting a score of 8.5 or lower, was with Assassins Creed: Brotherhood. That game got an 8.5. It deserved at least a 9.Kevlar101

Why is that such a big deal?

Lucky_Krystal

It's a conspiracy, I tell's ya! Because now members can't get the "Good Taste" emblem at GS because the average score required for the emblem is 8.6. So basically you need to clear out your collection until you have games that scored 9 or above :lol:

[QUOTE="Kevlar101"]The only time I was ever bothered by a game I like getting a score of 8.5 or lower, was with Assassins Creed: Brotherhood. That game got an 8.5. It deserved at least a 9.Allicrombie

People want to justify their purchases, they want to epeen flex their favorite games/series/franchises off to other people like their taste matters in life (look at System Wars).

For me there's 3 ways of looking at a game

I'll buy it now or the Game is a day 1 buy

I'll buy it later down the road or i'm in no hurry to play said game (this is avg games to me)

I'll skip said game cause it doesn't look appealing or it looks like I wont enjoy it

People need to realize that the scoring system is a persons opinion that isn't yours on how they thought a game should be.

The only time I was ever bothered by a game I like getting a score of 8.5 or lower, was with Assassins Creed: Brotherhood. That game got an 8.5. It deserved at least a 9.Kevlar101

Is a 0.5 rating below what it "should" be really that big of a deal? I mean it would be different if the game got a 5 and clearly deserved a 9, but...0.5 points guys?

[QUOTE="Kevlar101"]The only time I was ever bothered by a game I like getting a score of 8.5 or lower, was with Assassins Creed: Brotherhood. That game got an 8.5. It deserved at least a 9.Lucky_Krystal

Is a 0.5 rating below what it "should" be really that big of a deal? I mean it would be different if the game got a 5 and clearly deserved a 9, but...0.5 points guys?

[QUOTE="Lucky_Krystal"]

[QUOTE="Kevlar101"]The only time I was ever bothered by a game I like getting a score of 8.5 or lower, was with Assassins Creed: Brotherhood. That game got an 8.5. It deserved at least a 9.Kevlar101

Is a 0.5 rating below what it "should" be really that big of a deal? I mean it would be different if the game got a 5 and clearly deserved a 9, but...0.5 points guys?

Like others said, it's either a 10 or a 1. Grey zones are a no go. Reviews are never personal opinions either, but should consist only of facts that apply to every person currently alive.

It's such bs. Not to mention looking at a review is only an indication for how good some people think it is. Some of my favourite games of all time scored 7's or even lower. And there were games that got AAA status but I ended up disliking them.

People never read reviews anymore either. You might aswell give a 10 second fragment of gameplay with the pro's and con's and people would take it in.

Because scores are a really big deal.

Critics typically give a game a lower score than a player would give it, since they're being critical of the game and looking for any faults in the game. I do listen to reviews, though, so if a game I really want scores really low on most review sites, chances are I won't buy it unless it's on sale.

People on this site go ape s*** if a game doesn't receive a score they think it will get. At the end of the day, everyones individual scores are the only ones that should matter to them.

[QUOTE="Allicrombie"][QUOTE="Kevlar101"]The only time I was ever bothered by a game I like getting a score of 8.5 or lower, was with Assassins Creed: Brotherhood. That game got an 8.5. It deserved at least a 9.Kevlar101

I thought Brotherhood was too frustrating when it came to stealth and certain missions that involved following targets. It wasn't as fun as AC2 so I personally would give Brotherhood 8.5/10.

The infatuation with scores is odd. I used to just think it was a SW thing but after looking at other sites and comments here I realized there are people who genuinely consider the score as a buyer's guide.

Hell, my favorite game this gen scored a 6.0 but if people gonna limit themselves that's on them.

A better question would be:

Why does it matter what some twit with a typewriter and a mail order English degree has to say about a game to begin with?

One thing I've learnt from watching and reading many reviews is that the people doing them no nothing more about games than I do.Its just an opinion and everyone has slighty different opinions.I've read many reviews where faults in games were brought up only to play the game and not see any issue at all.If I like the look of a game then I will try it out regardless of what anyone else thinks.

I've played lots of games that scored low and really enjoyed them,then theres something like COD that always scores high that I've no interest in at all.

I've noticed a lot of gamers on the Internet don't just use review scores as a rough indication of how good a game is, but actually get personally offended when a reviewer doesn't give them a high enough (or low enough) score to match their tastes, as if they're just looking for professional critics to validate their own opinion.

It's quite sad really. They're not there to appease fanboys, they're supposed to give their own honest and balanced judgement of the game.

I notice Gamespot gets a lot of hate for their review scores, but personally I find them to be fair most of the time.

The only real problem with a low score on a good game is that it might hurt sales of that game. Now it doesnt matter if its a big name game cuz its probably gonna sell anyways, but with an indie game getting a low score it might kill its sales and then cause the game not to get a sequel and/or put the developer out of business. And even then its not the reviewers fault that the public didnt buy the game, its the publics fault. Problem is the general public just buys what other people (reviewers mainly) say is good.