Are game reviews to uptight now a days?

I'd much prefer a game review to nit-pick and under-rate a game than jump on the hype bandwagon and give it a 9/10 without really playing it.

Why is it that for everything else 5/10, or half marks, is considered average, but with games reviews, 7/10 is regarded as average, but 5/10 is bad?

I agree with the above posts... Gamers basically will base a games score off of how fun the gameplay is, whereas reviewers have to take all technical issues into account.

For instance, I give Mass Effect a 10 because I just enjoyed it that much, but a game reviewer has to take into account texture pop, framerate drop, and a variety of other glitches that don't effect gameplay.

Yes... especially gamespot.com reviews... read a few of them in a row and you will see... in one review it will say the controls are to complex, in another they are to simple... one game is too gory... the next is not gory enough... one game is too easy... the next is impossible... it seems that game devs can't make a game the gamespot.com reviewers enjoy...Squeets

the way i look at the scores

9+ must buy (considering genre)

8.5+ great

8.4- good

7.9- average...buyer beware

the way i look at the scores

9+ must buy (considering genre)

8.5+ great

8.4- good

7.9- average...buyer bewarefsem10

So something scoring 79% gets a buyer beware from you? Wow is that harsh!

As long as consumers continue to think like this, then reviews become meaningless, as companies will only send games for reviews with places they think they will not just get good reviews, but amazing reviews that sing the praises of their game like it is the coming of the messiah - hence the fiasco that was Kane & Lynch, and the subsequent fallout here on Gamespot.

Everyone needs to take a step back and rethink how they use reviews. If 79% is a buyer beware or average level, then unless you read the reviews from someone who is very easy to please you will miss out on loads of really good games.

Also for your sake I hope you school/college/university lecturer doesn't take the same view when they mark your papers - a lot more people would be F students if 79% was a bad result!! :D

[QUOTE="fsem10"] the way i look at the scores

9+ must buy (considering genre)

8.5+ great

8.4- good

7.9- average...buyer bewareAvenger1324

So something scoring 79% gets a buyer beware from you? Wow is that harsh!

As long as consumers continue to think like this, then reviews become meaningless, as companies will only send games for reviews with places they think they will not just get good reviews, but amazing reviews that sing the praises of their game like it is the coming of the messiah - hence the fiasco that was Kane & Lynch, and the subsequent fallout here on Gamespot.

Everyone needs to take a step back and rethink how they use reviews. If 79% is a buyer beware or average level, then unless you read the reviews from someone who is very easy to please you will miss out on loads of really good games.

Also for your sake I hope you school/college/university lecturer doesn't take the same view when they mark your papers - a lot more people would be F students if 79% was a bad result!! :D

I had an issue with the Army of Two review. The reviewer indicated that he somehow didn't appreciate how the game treated the subject matter and he let his personal political views affect the score.

Games are entertainment and should be reviewed as entertainment.

[QUOTE="Bigfred19882000"]What I mean by uptight is that sometimes they nit pick at the little things that for the most part wont alter the players experience. Dont get me wrong I trust these reviews from my usual sites(IGN,Gamespot) but when you see a game get something like a 7.2 but the readers average scores are usually atleast 1 point higher than the reviewers score its just kind of hard to judge. Does that mean gamers are overly optimistic about the games they paid their money for or are reviewers just to uptight. Just an observation.DataDream

I think usually the gamers are just basing their ratings on how fun a game was to play for them - whereas a reviewers job is to critique the software from all the technical aspects - which results in a more harsh score.

Just my opinion though.

your opinions are correct sir! dude next weekend we gotta play halo or something man. what other multiplayer games do u have data?

I haven't trusted gamespot.com reviews since crackdown in 2/2007... that game was a lot of fun and they made it sound horrible...Squeets

[QUOTE="Bigfred19882000"]What I mean by uptight is that sometimes they nit pick at the little things that for the most part wont alter the players experience. Dont get me wrong I trust these reviews from my usual sites(IGN,Gamespot) but when you see a game get something like a 7.2 but the readers average scores are usually atleast 1 point higher than the reviewers score its just kind of hard to judge. Does that mean gamers are overly optimistic about the games they paid their money for or are reviewers just to uptight. Just an observation.DataDream

I think usually the gamers are just basing their ratings on how fun a game was to play for them - whereas a reviewers job is to critique the software from all the technical aspects - which results in a more harsh score.

Just my opinion though.

That's exactly it. Although I do think they tend to get too harsh when it comes to very small technical aspects. Like when they complained about the trees in PGR3...Give me a break.

[QUOTE="Squeets"]I haven't trusted gamespot.com reviews since crackdown in 2/2007... that game was a lot of fun and they made it sound horrible...wildnine00

didn't they give Crackdown 7.8? That's more than it deserved. Crackdown was mediocre at best.

[QUOTE="wildnine00"][QUOTE="Squeets"]I haven't trusted gamespot.com reviews since crackdown in 2/2007... that game was a lot of fun and they made it sound horrible...luc11044

didn't they give Crackdown 7.8? That's more than it deserved. Crackdown was mediocre at best.

And there you have it...some people love crackdown, others don't, a reviewer need to give an analysis of the game from a technical standpoint as well as a personal, to give readers/viewers a rundown along with an opinion