Post by: WindyMan on February 17, 2003, 05:22:10 PM
Personally, I rarely buy a game based on its review scores. The only thing I've ever bought due to reviews alone was TimeSplitters 2, and I must say I'm happy with it. Virtually all the other games I've bought are ones that have either proven themselves before (Super Monkey Ball 2, NHL Hitz, Madden, etc.), and the obvious Nintendo games that are going to kick ass automatically. Some games I'm going to buy automatically, because I'm a die-hard series fan (Extreme-G, Burnout 2). Basically, if I'm not familiar with a game, I don't usually risk buying it, even if it does have favorable reviews.
However, I must admit that I do like to read reviews of games after I've bought them, to see if the opinion of the reviewer matches my own opinion of the game. That way, if I ever do decide to get another game blind off of a review, I can check those sites (and individuals) to see if it's the game fror me.
What are all of your thoughts on reviews? (Please refrain from saying IGN and GameSpot are biased. Individuals have their biases, but entire sites do not.)
Post by: Sean on February 17, 2003, 05:27:12 PM
I enjoy IGN Cube, but I read most online sites and print mags, although I only subscribe to EGM, a magazine I trust a good deal, mostly because I'm so familiar with the reviewers' tastes.
In the end though, the case is: I just love games, I love reading about them, arguing about them, looking at them, admiring them, etc. I think the more you know about gaming--the more experience you have with them-- the more you enjoy the subtle things that stand out and set great games apart from good ones. This applies to movies and books and most anything else.
Post by: Marcus Arillius on February 17, 2003, 05:39:33 PM
Quote
Originally posted by: WindyMan
Personally, I rarely buy a game based on its review scores. The only thing I've ever bought due to reviews alone was TimeSplitters 2, and I must say I'm happy with it. Virtually all the other games I've bought are ones that have either proven themselves before (Super Monkey Ball 2, NHL Hitz, Madden, etc.), and the obvious Nintendo games that are going to kick ass automatically. Some games I'm going to buy automatically, because I'm a die-hard series fan (Extreme-G, Burnout 2). Basically, if I'm not familiar with a game, I don't usually risk buying it, even if it does have favorable reviews.
However, I must admit that I do like to read reviews of games after I've bought them, to see if the opinion of the reviewer matches my own opinion of the game. That way, if I ever do decide to get another game blind off of a review, I can check those sites (and individuals) to see if it's the game fror me.
I'm the same way. I love series games that you know will be amazing i.e. Zelda and Final Fantasy (of course, so fanboyish and amatuer, I'm proud of it though). I'd go as far to say that I NEVER buy games based on reviews. I only buy based on the premise of the game or if its a continuation in the series. Sometimes I'm ecstaticly pleased (any FF, Zelda, GTA,) and sometimes I'm putridly disgusted (Sonic for Gamecube was just God awful, Mario Sunshine was meh....hard to say, I wasn't happy with it, but I wasn't displeased) I'm almost always pleased with Nintendo 1st party games (Pikmin, how I adore thee and prayest for thou sequal.) so you could say that I buy based on the developer as well.
Post by: Mingesium on February 17, 2003, 05:41:02 PM
automatic buy - Super Mario Sunshine, Super Smash Bros., Resident Evil Zero, Wave Race: Blue Storm, Metroid Prime, Tony Hawk 3
got because of good reviews - TimeSplitters 2, Super Monkey Ball, Animal Crossing, Pikmin.
I usually buy the franchise games without a review. If the franchise game gets bad reviews, then I might picked it up later for a cheaper price. I depend on reviews of unknown games. Word of mouth also sways me to purchase games. I heard good things about Animal Crossing from my sister. After reading these boards, I'm tempted to get Skies of Arcadia Legends.
I like IGN's reviews because I think that their taste in games is very similiar to mine.
Post by: Reverse_Gecko on February 17, 2003, 05:48:37 PM
I only read reviews for entertainment and to hype me up.
Post by: Calibretto on February 17, 2003, 08:26:42 PM
Post by: theaveng on February 18, 2003, 12:51:26 AM
Unfortunately, that methodology didn't work here, because the moderators don't allow people to ask questions like that. Dumb.
Post by: Hemmorrhoid on February 18, 2003, 12:58:58 AM
Quote
In the end though, the case is: I just love games, I love reading about them, arguing about them, looking at them, admiring them, etc. I think the more you know about gaming--the more experience you have with them-- the more you enjoy the subtle things that stand out and set great games apart from good ones. This applies to movies and books and most anything else.
Absolutely right, very nicely said
I think reviews are important because theres too many games around that look promising so you have to be guided on which ones you pick.
Its not like I totally rely on what reviews say, but, they have a defined standard with which they rate a game, and they usually explain this standard. So if IGN gives a game 9.0+ its usually a pick for me(if the game interested in the first place). But I also rely on other sources and perhaps primarily on fellow board cubers.
Its also surprising how differently some games are rated, ive seen 5.something(IGN) reviews for DMC2, but also very good scores 80%+ for DMC2.
Post by: mouse_clicker on February 18, 2003, 02:24:55 AM
So overall, I depend on reviews very little if at all. I do like to read them, though, for the games I already have.
Post by: WesDawg on February 18, 2003, 05:01:37 AM
Post by: David G on February 18, 2003, 05:20:51 AM
Post by: Biohazard on February 18, 2003, 05:30:32 AM
Post by: Kellk on February 18, 2003, 05:47:49 AM
Reviews are always subjective. And even when care is taken, sometimes you're gonna get a guy that hates RPG's and likes fighting games reviewing some tactical strategy game set in a fantasy world and they just won't understand what's to like about it. That's when you look for more reviews or public opinion to straighten things out.
I like the IGN reviews best, and generally go to them first. Then I'll check Gamespot. Then I'll go to Gamerankings and get a general feel. Nintendo Power has multiple reviewers for each title, and I like that in principle (and I especially like how they rank the reviewers' preferences of genre) but for some reason their reviews don't work for me. Maybe it's because they don't devote enough space to explain their thoughts, or maybe they just suck. /shrug. I love reading Penny Arcade and like their opinions, but I don't tend to like the same things they do. For instance, MoO is a whole big pile of boredom to me. OPM seems to do a better job than Nintendo Power, but of course, they review different games. I get a sense that they are given more leeway for independent thought than the NP guys.
Post by: Ian Sane on February 18, 2003, 06:45:25 AM
There are of course titles that I'm only sort of interested in and I always read reviews ahead of time for those. In those situations I'll usually check a lot of reviews just to make sure the title is worth owning. In those cases the average score on GameRankings.com plays a big part in my decision. Something like Tube Slider for example is a title I'm interested in but I don't know much about the game so I'll check out every review I can when it comes out.
The final score does play a part in my decision but it's usually the content of the review that really helps me decide. Now if a title gets like a 3/10 I won't even bother to read the review but if it gets like a 7.5 or an 8 I'll read the whole review just in case what the reviewer didn't like I'm willing to overlook. It's the same thing with a high score like a 9. Resident Evil got pretty high scores but I didn't buy it because of the controls. Most reviewers were willing to overlook that issue but I wasn't so I didn't buy it. I've learned to do that ever since I bought Jet Force Gemini (which got good scores) and realized that the aiming was just too irritating and I couldn't enjoy the game.
There are other factors that play into things. My birthday is in December so I don't buy many titles that are released late in the year because I can instead ask for them as birthday or Christmas gifts. In those situations I'll read many reviews because often I'll have a good period of space between the release date and the time I recieve the game as a gift. In those situations I read the reviews more to hype me up for the game rather than to tell if it's worth buying. Another factor is that I rarely buy two brand new games in one month so if two games I'm really interested in come out at roughly the same time I'll likely read a lot of reviews for the title I don't buy with the intent on buying a used copy down the road.
One thing worth mentioning is that if I didn't read reviews I never would have even tried Super Smash Bros Melee. I hated the first game and assumed I wouldn't care for the second but every review I read said it was the best Cube game released yet so I gave in and rented it for a friend's birthday. I absolutely loved it and it's one of my favourite Gamecube titles. I never would have given it a chance if I hadn't read reviews beforehand.
Post by: WhoDey on February 18, 2003, 06:47:20 AM
Reviews are cool because it gives you an idea of what the game is like. Now just because some game gets 9's and 10's across the board doesn't mean I'll go buy it. I still don't have Smash Bros' because I don't like fighting games. And just because someone gives a game a 5 or 6 doesn't mean I won't enjoy it.
We all know what kind of games we like. It's stupid not to use reviews to make sure it's what you think it is. Even if you just listen to a friend, he's still giving you his review so really you are using reviews. Use common sense and looking at reviews can't hurt.
Post by: Christberg on February 18, 2003, 08:45:04 AM
I certainly don't consider reviewers the end all be all decision makers on whether a title is worth purchasing or not based on the raw scores due to the fact that they tend to be jaded and only pay attention to highly hyped titles or on the flip side of that are wined and dined for good scores and I take that into account when I read the review. If it seems pretty apparent that the actual text of a review says one thing but the rating says another then I discount it. Then again, if I see a game having a pretty poor average review rating then I tend to relegate it to "rental" status if I was planning on buying it and "no buy" if I wasn't interested. In all actuality modern review scores 7 is actually an average game too which is a real problem.
Post by: couchmonkey on February 18, 2003, 11:01:10 AM
Of course as you get to know game companies, one starts to learn who makes good games and who makes bad games, but if you rely totally on the reputation of a company or a series of games you can still get burned. Nintendo has a great reputation, but I still thank my lucky stars that I didn't buy Yoshi's Story before I read some reviews. Conversely, people who completely ignore Acclaim just because many of its games are mediocre are missing out on some great titles like XGIII.
Post by: TAYREL713 on February 19, 2003, 10:31:24 AM
Post by: Marcus Arillius on February 19, 2003, 01:14:19 PM
