Author Topic: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'  (Read 216681 times)

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Offline D_Average

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #625 on: September 01, 2009, 01:46:41 AM »
That is an amazing contradiction.

Mario Kart DD is regarded as a non-casual classic, but is not online.

Mario Kart Wii is online like non-casuals demand, but is recognized for casual plastic waggle.

It's like the media insists on walking through a door, without actually opening it.  Kisser up against the board, face swelling red with determination.  They hope to eventually succeed, awaiting their moment of glory.

I didn't see reviews going after Mark Kart Wii for the Wii Wheel.  They went after it for the cheap rubberband AI the series has used for years and a perceived lack of depth in the powersliding due to the need to remove snake-ing.

I agree.  I read a lot of reviews and the consensus was the wheel was a cool bonus since it was not required.  In addition to the AI, the game was rightly knocked for appearing so similar to the DS version, a lack of moving the series forward.  How I miss the awe of seeing Mario Kart 64 for the first time after playing the snes version for years. 
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Offline Mop it up

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #626 on: September 01, 2009, 01:50:08 AM »
I didn't see reviews going after Mark Kart Wii for the Wii Wheel.  They went after it for the cheap rubberband AI the series has used for years
The funny thing about that is that the game actually has less rubber-banding than previous versions.

Offline broodwars

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #627 on: September 01, 2009, 02:04:23 AM »
I didn't see reviews going after Mark Kart Wii for the Wii Wheel.  They went after it for the cheap rubberband AI the series has used for years
The funny thing about that is that the game actually has less rubber-banding than previous versions.

True, but it had even more cheap item usage than in previous versions, so it balanced out.

And regarding the Wii Wheel, most reviews I saw just commented on how it was kind of silly, but if you didn't want to use it you didn't have to so you could always just use the nunchuck + wiimote.  Some even commented that the Wii Wheel controlled very well, but it just wasn't their thing (I think that was IGN's remark).
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Offline NinGurl69 *huggles

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #628 on: September 01, 2009, 12:06:15 PM »
I'll just post this here.

"Nintendo to let 3rd parties lead the way.  Fans, press, and industry figures complain about the lack of compelling Nintendo software on the DSi."

(my prediction)
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Offline Peachylala

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #629 on: September 10, 2009, 01:40:58 PM »
If that comment was really made, Nintendo would receive +100 WiFi battle points in it's Mario Kart Wii race.
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Offline GoldenPhoenix

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #630 on: September 16, 2009, 12:59:00 AM »
Gamespy on Scribblenauts

http://ds.gamespy.com/nintendo-ds/scribblenauts/1024739p1.html

Quote
Even with the flaws in Scribblenauts' controls and the level editor -- which only allows you to make levels for use on your own card, and not share them with others -- it holds a special place in my heart for being the most fun I've ever had improving my vocabulary.

Turns out it has wi-fi that lets you share with your friends. Oops.
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Offline BlackNMild2k1

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #631 on: September 16, 2009, 01:22:32 AM »
Gamespy on Scribblenauts

http://ds.gamespy.com/nintendo-ds/scribblenauts/1024739p1.html

Quote
Even with the flaws in Scribblenauts' controls and the level editor -- which only allows you to make levels for use on your own card, and not share them with others -- it holds a special place in my heart for being the most fun I've ever had improving my vocabulary.

Turns out it has wi-fi that lets you share with your friends. Oops.

YAY for gaming comprehension!!

Offline KDR_11k

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #632 on: September 16, 2009, 06:33:24 AM »
Gamespy completely hit the shitter when they redesigned the site and instead of posting any news mostly just posted "humorous" crap. Before then the site was somewhat useful as a source of news and some reviews but since then... **** off.

Offline broodwars

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #633 on: September 16, 2009, 11:17:02 AM »
Gamespy on Scribblenauts

http://ds.gamespy.com/nintendo-ds/scribblenauts/1024739p1.html

Quote
Even with the flaws in Scribblenauts' controls and the level editor -- which only allows you to make levels for use on your own card, and not share them with others -- it holds a special place in my heart for being the most fun I've ever had improving my vocabulary.

Turns out it has wi-fi that lets you share with your friends. Oops.

It's possible they got a review build that didn't have that feature.  That has been known to happen before, though I can't remember the name of that game at the moment.  It caused some trouble with some magazine publication in Europe, I believe.
« Last Edit: September 16, 2009, 04:27:13 PM by broodwars »
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Offline EasyCure

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #634 on: September 16, 2009, 11:27:20 AM »
Gamespy on Scribblenauts

http://ds.gamespy.com/nintendo-ds/scribblenauts/1024739p1.html

Quote
Even with the flaws in Scribblenauts' controls and the level editor -- which only allows you to make levels for use on your own card, and not share them with others -- it holds a special place in my heart for being the most fun I've ever had improving my vocabulary.

Turns out it has wi-fi that lets you share with your friends. Oops.

It's possible they got a review build that didn't have that feature.  That has been known tio happen before, though I can't remember the name of that game at the moment.  It caused some trouble with some magazine publication in Europe, I believe.

It's still the publications responsibility to include some kind of editors note, that could of read as simply as follows:

*Editors note: Our writers here at Gamespy were testing the game under a preview build and certain features might not of been available.

or

*Editors note: At time of write up, our staff was working off a preview/early build of the game. Gamespy has since then confirmed with the publisher that X feature is implimented in the retail release

Easy enough i'd say.
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Offline KDR_11k

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #635 on: September 16, 2009, 11:57:09 AM »
It's possible they got a review build that didn't have that feature.  That has been known tio happen before, though I can't remember the name of that game at the moment.  It caused some trouble with some magazine publication in Europe, I believe.

I think you mean Eurogamer reviewing some WMP game, the Wii they used for testing (a dev unit) had outdated firmware which seriously impacted the control quality.

Offline broodwars

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #636 on: September 16, 2009, 04:16:07 PM »
It's possible they got a review build that didn't have that feature.  That has been known tio happen before, though I can't remember the name of that game at the moment.  It caused some trouble with some magazine publication in Europe, I believe.

I think you mean Eurogamer reviewing some WMP game, the Wii they used for testing (a dev unit) had outdated firmware which seriously impacted the control quality.

Yeah, that's right.  It was Power Slam Tennis (or Grand Slam Tennis...I can't remember the proper name for the WMP Wii Tennis game) if I remember right.  They were having control issues because their firmware wasn't up to date or something.
« Last Edit: September 16, 2009, 04:22:51 PM by broodwars »
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Offline NinGurl69 *huggles

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #637 on: September 16, 2009, 04:18:15 PM »
*Grand Slam Tennis
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Offline Djunknown

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #638 on: September 23, 2009, 11:49:11 PM »
An incomplete review about Muramasa.

Straight to the point:

Quote
Disclosures: This game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the Wii. Approximately 3.5 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was not completed. There are no multiplayer modes.

The bolding is the author's emphasis.

Now I don't know a lot about the game in question (yeah, I know, bad Djunknown!), but what I do know is that not playing a game to completion is not a review. It can be impressions, previews, hands-on, whatever. But not a full review.

To top it off, it shows up on Metacritic. I double checked the original review to look for a number or letter score, but found none. But on reading Metacritics small italics:

Quote
If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review.

So....uhhhh...double fail?
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Offline broodwars

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #639 on: September 24, 2009, 01:19:34 AM »
An incomplete review about Muramasa.

Straight to the point:

Quote
Disclosures: This game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the Wii. Approximately 3.5 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was not completed. There are no multiplayer modes.

The bolding is the author's emphasis.

Now I don't know a lot about the game in question (yeah, I know, bad Djunknown!), but what I do know is that not playing a game to completion is not a review. It can be impressions, previews, hands-on, whatever. But not a full review.

To top it off, it shows up on Metacritic. I double checked the original review to look for a number or letter score, but found none. But on reading Metacritics small italics:

Quote
If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review.

So....uhhhh...double fail?

The score's there.  Gamecritics policy is to hide the score at the end of the review in invisible type so you have to highlight the space after the last word to see it.  That's to keep people from just looking at the score and moving on, emphasizing actually reading the review.  He gave it a 3/10, which given his text is perfectly justified.  I ended up liking Muramasa more than he did (I would have given it a 6-7/10 myself), but I can see how he could dislike it so much because it is extremely repetitive and relies heavily on its visuals instead of gameplay outside the bosses.  And read the comments below the review.  The author defends writing the review when he did during his playthrough, stating quite matter-of-factly that if the game can't draw your attention within 4 hours of play, it doesn't deserve to get finished.  Quite honest and to the point.
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Offline KDR_11k

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #640 on: September 24, 2009, 02:17:26 AM »
Indeed, if it fails to be fun for 3.5 hours most people are going to give up on it even if it does become some kind of revelation later on.

Offline mac<censored>

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #641 on: September 24, 2009, 09:04:53 AM »
Hmm, the same reviewer (Brad something) completely disses "Uncharted" -- a fantastically fun game -- which makes me rather doubt his taste...

Offline Djunknown

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #642 on: September 24, 2009, 11:41:34 PM »
Quote
The author defends writing the review when he did during his playthrough, stating quite matter-of-factly that if the game can't draw your attention within 4 hours of play, it doesn't deserve to get reviewed.

Fixed. Call it something else. Make it a blog entry, a rant. But don't call it a review.

One of the underlying assumptions I have about game reviews, is that the reviewer finished the game to completion(With the case of online multiplayer, MMO's, play through the game modes as much as possible). Is that too much to ask? Should all game reviewers just stop playing the moment they feel bored, write what they have, and call it a review?

I like this comment.

Quote
"Review" is commonly reserved for completed games, while "Impressions" applies to incomplete play-throughs. While the disclosure at the end is nice, titling this post as a "review" is a bit misleading.

And this is from a poster who liked it this...string of words and phrases...

P.S I did see the score upon further inspection, so I take that back at least.
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Offline broodwars

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #643 on: September 25, 2009, 12:29:05 AM »
One of the underlying assumptions I have about game reviews, is that the reviewer finished the game to completion(With the case of online multiplayer, MMO's, play through the game modes as much as possible). Is that too much to ask? Should all game reviewers just stop playing the moment they feel bored, write what they have, and call it a review?

Alright, let me ask you a simple question: for the purposes of this discussion, I'm gong to assume that since you brought this up and are complaining about it that you have played Muramasa all the way through with both characters.  Otherwise, you'd just sound silly.  Now, looking at this review what have you seen in that post-3.5 hour playtime that would significantly change a person's impression of the game if they disliked what they had already played?  What game-changing addition suddenly makes the game worthwhile if you find it monotonous already?

I can tell you this: I have played through the game and beaten it with both characters, and the experience in hour 8 is the same damn experience in hour 1.  The only difference is the size of the special attacks, the damage they do, and the damage the enemies can do and receive.  Otherwise, it's the same damn game recycling the same damn dozen backgrounds over and over again.  Based on that, I say the critic was right to stop when he did before the monotony unduly influenced him to score the game even lower.  Now, if the game evolved or became deeper in some manner, I could agree with you.  But it doesn't.  What you see is what you get.
« Last Edit: September 25, 2009, 12:31:37 AM by broodwars »
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Offline NinGurl69 *huggles

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #644 on: September 25, 2009, 04:13:06 AM »
"and the experience in hour 8 is the same damn experience in hour 1."

Whoa.  So my 1 hour just became EIGHT.  Wish I could do that with real life time.

"What you see is what you get."

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Offline Khushrenada

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #645 on: September 25, 2009, 03:49:14 PM »
One of the underlying assumptions I have about game reviews, is that the reviewer finished the game to completion(With the case of online multiplayer, MMO's, play through the game modes as much as possible). Is that too much to ask? Should all game reviewers just stop playing the moment they feel bored, write what they have, and call it a review?

Alright, let me ask you a simple question: for the purposes of this discussion, I'm gong to assume that since you brought this up and are complaining about it that you have played Muramasa all the way through with both characters.  Otherwise, you'd just sound silly.  Now, looking at this review what have you seen in that post-3.5 hour playtime that would significantly change a person's impression of the game if they disliked what they had already played?  What game-changing addition suddenly makes the game worthwhile if you find it monotonous already?

I can tell you this: I have played through the game and beaten it with both characters, and the experience in hour 8 is the same damn experience in hour 1.  The only difference is the size of the special attacks, the damage they do, and the damage the enemies can do and receive.  Otherwise, it's the same damn game recycling the same damn dozen backgrounds over and over again.  Based on that, I say the critic was right to stop when he did before the monotony unduly influenced him to score the game even lower.  Now, if the game evolved or became deeper in some manner, I could agree with you.  But it doesn't.  What you see is what you get.

If a person doesn't play it all the way through, how can he rate the rest of this game? By word of mouth from other people who have? Maybe the game is the same all the way through, I don't know. But even still, his job is to review the game, not to give it a shot for awhile and render a verdict.

Let's look at it this way. I've never seen the movie Apocalypse Now. Oh, I know what it is about and am familiar with the story and characters and actors in it. I've seen clips of the movie on various shows and read reviews on it before. I guess I should write a review on it. I'm clearly qualifed since appearantly it is ok to go by word of mouth when reviewing something. Tell you what. Just to be safe, I'll watch the first 20 minutes. I'm sure the experience of the first 20 minutes will be the same all the way through the whole film.

Compare this to an actual movie critic like Roger Ebert. There have been movies he absolutely hated. Heck, he published a couple books on reviews of movies he hated. And even though he didn't like the movie, he watched the whole thing. There are some movies he was hoping would just end, that sickened him. But he did his job and stuck it through. That is why, agree or disagree with his opinion, when he gives a review, it has more weight to it than someone who watched the first half hour. Really, what kind of credibility can one hope to establish by offering a review on the whole product when only sampling a part of it?

And why would you argue in favor of such sample reviewing?
« Last Edit: September 25, 2009, 03:51:26 PM by Khushrenada »
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Offline vudu

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #646 on: September 25, 2009, 03:53:42 PM »
I stopped reading after you admitted to never seeing Apocalypse Now.
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Offline NinGurl69 *huggles

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #647 on: September 25, 2009, 04:05:35 PM »
/irony
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Offline ShyGuy

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #648 on: September 25, 2009, 04:19:03 PM »
www.pixlbit.com lulz. Apparently, everyone is a game journalist these days.

Offline NinGurl69 *huggles

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Re: The PATHETIC state of the gaming 'media'
« Reply #649 on: September 25, 2009, 04:25:56 PM »
Is pixlbit a response to the "p____" state of NWR?  MYSTERY
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