@NeoMortiny You're obviously entitled to your opinion. If you didn't like Bioshock Infinite, then to each their own. But if you played through the whole game, you'd understand exactly how and why the vigors were developed. No part of the story was "slapped on" as you describe – not only did it all make sense, but it was pretty brilliant the way it all came together. Too bad you didn't catch onto that.
The ridiculous of the argument that violent video games cause real-life violence cannot be overstated. Like most controversial subjects, those that have the strongest opinions are usually the least informed. Which is why it's so disappointing to see Tom McShea write absurd statements like: "These games epitomize what's wrong with video game violence."
What everyone seems to be forgetting is that 99.99% of the world's population can enjoy these video games with absolutely no consequence. Think about the gravity of that statement. Would we completely ban YouTube simply because it hosts a video that may have influenced violence? Or should we ban rap music because it occasionally incites drive-by shootings? Maybe we ban religion, simply because a few nutjobs take it too far.
The overwhelming majority of stable society should not be punished for the crimes of a few anomalies. More importantly, we're overlooking the bigger issue: the identification and rehabilitation of those with serious mental health problems and violent tendencies. I'm aware that, in an effort to understand a terrible tragedy such as the Sandy Hook massacre, people want to make broad assumptions and demonize an easy scapegoat. But it's just not that simple. Until we start treating the root of the problem, we'll unfortunately continue to see more of this violence while we waste time bickering over irrelevant issues.
Not sure why everyone has been hating on GameSpot reviewers lately. Maybe it's one of those things that has always been happening, and I just noticed it now. Either way, Kevin Van-Ord is and has always been a terrific editor, writer and reviewer. He never inflates a game's numerical score; rather he holds games to the highest standard because he loves them and expects the best. As far as I'm concerned, he's the most trustworthy reviewer out there. I find it odd that so many people take it personally when a game receives a 7 or 8 when they expected a 9 or 10, but then again those are probably the same people who simply look at a game's "number" without actually reading the review.
Wow, this forum looks a lot cleaner and less hateful than it did yesterday. The moderators have clearly been busy. I don't know what makes people want to personally attack a talented editor for doing her job and stating her opinion, but I really hope that it isn't a growing trend.
@monks99 Take it easy, there's absolutely no need for that kind of vitriol. Carolyn is a terrific editor, and has an opinion just like everyone else. She's not personally attacking you by pointing out a game's minor flaws. Also, keep in mind that she scored this game an 8.0, which is "Great" according to GameSpot's standards. And at the time of this post, the game's score on Metacritic is a solid 80, so if anything, I'd say that Carolyn is right on the mark with her assessment.
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