Do you give your opinion on games you haven't played?

There are things you can say and things you can't depending on your exposure to a game. If you've watched enough, you can comment on graphics, sound, story, things like that. I mean do you really never give your opinion on a game you haven't played? What about games that are yet to be released? Trap shut? Doubt it. It's a nice idea, but very few practise this. I will happily give my thoughts on a game I haven't played, because I can differentiate between biased ranting and curious/honest analysis of what I can.

Depends on the game. Like:

-Super Mario Run

-Miitomo

-Pokemon GO!

-Sonic Boom (how it continues the resurrected and dreaded Sonic Cycle)

-Sonic Genesis GBA

-DBZ: Sagas

-DBZ: Ultimate Battle 22

-Diablo III

-Sim City 2013

Yes and no. I didn't have to actually play through all 20 mind-numbing hours of Overblood 2 myself to know the game is garbage. Watching someone else play through it all was enough for me. Also, just the other day I read the plots/watched cutscenes for FEAR 2 and 3 and decided the stories were incredibly fucking dumb. So yes I've absolutely given my opinion on games I haven't played before. Like shewgenja said, I think it's more than fair to make criticisms on specific aspects (like plot) of games without having played them first as long as you have sufficient and unbiased information about those parts of the game. Judging gameplay however is a lot more nuanced and in general I would say it's hard to form a solid argument on how a game plays without actually getting your hands dirty, so to speak. I don't think all the videos in the world could tell how different it feels to play Call of Duty vs. Turning Point: Fall of Liberty even though on the surface they are both just shooters.

But, I consider situations like those I talked about above fundamentally different to me waltzing into a thread and shitting on something like Overwatch even though I've never seen more than thirty seconds of it. I see a lot more of that type of "criticism" on here than the former, people giving opinions on games either without any knowledge/experience to back it up, or people who are so biased that even if they actually play the game they've already decided going in how they are going to feel about it.

@Juub1990:

I think everyone is guilty of this at some point. I've done this about the Xbox One, and even games like Overwatch. But soon as I got the actual console of Xbox One, I now don't say anything bad about it. Yup, I'm what you call a seasoned hypocrite! ?

Uh, no. You can have opinions on anything. That's how opinions work and that's why they are opinions and not facts. I can have an opinion on wars not being a totally great thing without being in one. I can have an opinion on cancer being a terrible disease without actually suffering from it. We all have countless opinions on basically everything.

A big lulz for all the people in this thread sitting on the high horse pretending otherwise. So you all don't have any opinions on upcoming games that nobody has played yet, right? Nonsense. You think something looks good and might be interesting for you? Congrats, that's an opinion.

Yeah, like all Sony games. You never talk about them, right? You haven't mentioned them a single time on this forum I guess. Self-awareness at its best. Are you actually serious?

No, I only harshly criticize games that I've played. For games that I haven't, the most I'll say is whether they look appealing or not to me.

No not really unless it's something I know for certain I won't like such as any Call of Duty game,I know for a fact I won't like it at all.

Yeah I used to that a lot more than I do now. These days I post about games that I actually played which is why I have no real opinions about GOTY because I only beat UC4 last year.

My other criteria is that if I didn't enjoy one game in the franchise than chances are I am not gonna like its sequels (ex. I got bored with Hotline Miami). Furthermore I don't have time to play every new game especially with a backlog that is enormous.

ANd then there are games like Sonic Boom which I don't have to play it to realize it is gonna suck.

@nethernova: because war and cancer are interactive mediums right?

Nope.

I don't judge any games that I have yet to play, even a sequel to previous games which I played before, but I do say my impressions after watching some vids, e.g., "I think this game, gamerplay looks good, fun or interesting ...

@Juub1990: some games yes. For instance COD is played out. I know what to expect in that series and I'm no bored of it I know I won't like it. I'm also aware of my likes and dislikes in games. I know I'm not going to enjoy Horizon Dawn. Looks incredibly stupid. However I love survival games that deal in post apocalypse words. So TLOU2 is going to be boss.

I agree about Bioshock Infinite. I played the whole game after people told me it was an awesome game, but I thought it wasn't all that.

On the thread topic, sometimes I make statements about gameplay mechanics that might take away from the game or are unnecessary, but the most I say usually is how interested I am or not. It's always better to try it first! The game might be better than people are saying it is! Such was the case with Godhand, which reviewers just did not understand for some reason.

Well, I haven't played Fallout 4 yet, but I'd heartily recommend it. haha

@Juub1990: if ive seen somone play it i wil. And if i know the previous installments if being atleast a squeal i will aswell.

Ive played games long enough to know when i know enough about the game

sure, why not? i dont give a ****. that new god of war vikings game? that thing fucking sucks ass. fact

@Juub1990

I only criticize games I haven't played that can be objectively criticized without the need to be played, e.g. shallow games like No Man's Sky or mechanics where you can understand every facet of it without having to experience it yourself.

I'm assuming this thread came to fruition because of my Quantum Break interaction in your Uncharted thread with QuadKnight where I highlighted him and people like him attacking the game without having played it.

When it comes to system wars usually bang the keyboard and make chimp noises.

I believe the younger users call it shit posting.

You mean Dad of War? Murderous psychopath raises a kid.

Thank you! It's like saying that every person should play every little game that's ever released before passing their feelings about the game. That's practically impossible. The sole purpose of the gameplay trailers is so you could form your opinion about the game whether you want it or not. Another factor is previous entries in the series and developer/publisher past.

This is SW where logic and reasoning is often never seen. I never comment on games I do not or have not played. People around here are like the reviewers for Yelp - they want everyone to know that they are somehow important for posting a review of a place they have eaten but often times have no idea wtf they are talking about.

@nethernova:

I'm talking about the common opinion on here that goes like, "this game sucks and that's game sucks" when they haven't even played the game. You bringing up things that isn't even discussed in here and I'm talking about the opinions that go on in here on a daily basis.

Stay with the topic of what goes on in this board.

Also, did you just give an example that you need to have cancer to say factual that's it's a terrible disease lol??? Really now?

I sometimes do, but I make it known that it is my opinion, and will buy a game if it's getting great user feedback even months later, no matter my initial opinion.

Asking some elaborate or deeper question or a question to which the answers is obvious to people who are in the know will get you no intellectual response. Basically any question that requires someones expertise. So if I have a question like that I sometimes state my weirdest guess as if I know it's true, in the hopes that someone who actually knows will tell me how wrong or right I am. Then I just have to sift through the 'you shouldn't talk about something you haven't studied for your entire life, look at me I am a master of knowledge who does not share' comments to find a nugget of truth.

Aside from that I don't really lie all that much.

squadron 42 is awesome.

In my own opinion, I always like to be honest with myself when it comes to games I think will turn out to be crap or not, I prefer to play the game first and foremost from start to finish and give out my fully opinion. Take UC4 for example, I didn't have any problems with the game at all. I didn't see it as some folks called it at walking simulator whatever, I really enjoy the game for what it was, it was a treasure hunting theme for that as well. I almost pass on Doom 2016 just by looking at it as a Retro bad in a way until I play the game myself and I was wrong, so I like to pass on judgment by playing the game at it's fullest.

Now however, there are times I will make judgments on a game by looking at the trailers/gameplay, I have no issues of calling the game out but let's say Horizon: Zero Dawn, to me it looks something newer and refreshing for a new IP, I think it will be great and the same for Resident Evil: 7 despite it's no new IP. Looking at the upcoming game Prey, it didn't peak my interest so I'm calling the game out and that's my opinion but I tried to remind as open minded as possible.

I do list reasons why I don't get/buy a game. Last guadian for example: it looks outdated and the catbirddog thing is a pain. Everyone agrees that he doesn't react to your input and you have to repeat your input several times and hope he does what you want. That's horrible gameplay to me, so I don't care. Even if the fans think it makes the monster more "realistic"

Never ever evah... I need to play through the entire SP and MP at least a dozen times before I say word one about a game. :o

No really, just ask anyone. lololol :P

There really are no way to criticize a game you dislike. If you have purchased the game and haven't played it to completion, people will tell you to beat the game before judging or ask you how many hours you've played... if its anything under 10h, they'll tell you to play for longer before complaining. When you do finally beat it and is still negative about it, they'll ask you "why the f*ck did you buy a game you dislike" (i love this one! with Destiny alone i had dozens of people ask me that same question). If you don't buy the game and have negative things to say, they'll tell you to buy it before i'm able to point out the negative aspects of said title. If you ignore any of the above, you're a fucking TROLL. Its funny, really.

all the games you have already played similar to the game in question is your experience.

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i usually don't like to tell people what they should and should not play. everyone is different and are allowed to enjoy what they want.

usually i just say the game looks meh, or trash to me. i leave it at that.

Welcome to system wars.

I'd hazard a guess that the overwhelming majority of people who claim they actually don't comment on a game without playing it first is either a liar or has a selective memory.