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Why you don't need game reviews in your life

TCRS

Banned
I don't even remember the last time I read a review. I can tell if a game is good or bad by either watching videos or playing demos/beta. 99% of the time I'm right and games that I considered shit or mediocre turned out to be shit or mediocre (Destiny for example). I trust my own judgement.
 

daxy

Member
GAF told me to buy Ridge Racer Vita with its DLC, because it would be quite a complete RR experience. I guess they failed to mention that there's no career mode and you can only grind racing against ghosts for progression. I played exactly one race and uninstalled. No trade in because it's digital.

Moral of the story: don't take anybody for their word. Read multiple sources to get a more balanced opinion on a game. A game's OT might be misrepresenting a game just as much as a professional reviewer. These people have just thrown down money at this potential garbage and may be trying to justify their shitty purchase.

Not every game reviewer is going to be the greatest at their job and I don't see the point of expecting that. Take from their work whatever is relevant to you and move on.
 

Remote

Neo Member
Great post. I agree with you. But I don't agree with the title. If reviews are done right, they definitely have a place in gaming. I always found people like TotalBiscuit does a great job of sharing his experience with the game while allowing the viewer to weigh up the different aspects of the game and decide for themselves if it would be a good buy. He takes a better approach to game reviews. He doesn't tell you whether you should or shouldn't buy but rather gives you a brief review of the aspects of the game and how they work together.
 

martino

Member
OP : to sum up critiscism is not your strong point (or you're too lazy to do it). Gameplay is good but looking a game don't give a hint of how it feels and controls.
Your opinions are unique but they always share commun points with others even journalist ...if you want complete information, you can reach it by looking for people that like games petty much like you or that you understand the way to like games and what it means for you.

but sure good information don't fall straight into the lap
 
Eh, I think reviews are fine. People seem to put too much stock in scores and seem too willing to take reviewers at their word, though. Some reviewers are pretty bad at games, and I usually find that if someone is bad at something, their critique of it is borderline worthless.
 

sublimit

Banned
I will never understand the obsessive review collection that happens on gaf everytime a game comes out.

Me neither. I wish those types of threads were not allowed here. The moment gamers start to ignore reviews (and especially review scores) the better this industry will start to become.
 
I can see reading reviews for entertainment value if nothing else, but all in all I agree with the OP. I only occasionally look at reviews out of curiosity, never as a buying guide or anything I'd seriously take into consideration. I don't trust their opinions as far as I can throw 'em.

After years and years of reading this stuff I've found they miss a lot of information, sometimes playing games completely wrong (coughNier) and more often than not they base reviews not on what the games actually are, but on a preconceived notion of what they think they should be. And basing that notion on other games they liked. They love making comparisons to other games they hold in high esteem.

They're glorified op eds and I certainly don't need them.
 
I prefer reviews that keep a neutral stance and simply explain what the game is about and how you may or may not like certain elements. But since a review is usually subjective, it just comes down to being able to extract that information from the text.

I get most of my 'should I buy this?' recommendations from reading user opinions on message boards etc. I actually prefer this, because it's usually very concise and to-the-point. Reviews can drag on and often spoil parts of the game. The worst being the reviews tagged with "this review contains spoilers." Really now? Anyway, I mostly just don't like how reviews often have to have a score at the end. The obsessions with scores and typical Metacritic worshipping are the worst part of reviews.
 

rainz

Member
I guess I am old school in the way I love reading a decent 6-8 page review of a game, by a reviewer I know or have followed for a while. I just enjoy a well written review of a game, always have.

I am intelligent enough to discern when a reviewer isn't being objective enough, or when their opinion wouldn't reflect my own.

There is no reason why forums can't complement a well written review. I love gaming magazines and grew up with them, and I love proper in depth video reviews, as well as forumers opinions. No reason they can't all exist.
 

JNA

Banned
Serious question: Why do you think people listen to Sports "experts" or "analyst"? Why do people those people have the jobs to just be on TV and discuss their opinions about what will or could happen in this game, or that game?

The same reason we listen to game reviewers. Whether we like to admit it or not, no matter how much we say "oh who cares what they think", deep down, we do care. We care so much, that WE are the reasons those people have jobs for it. We enjoy hearing other people's opinions on various subjects and topics, even if we disagree with them (whether it's Youtube personalities like AngryJoe, or that Polygon writer many people here hate). We give them the views, the clicks, and the ratings.

It's why Metacritic is as big as it is now for Video Games and Rotten Tomatoes for movies. We have constant "reviews thread" solely dedicated to discuss other people's opinions/ratings of said game. It's kind of ironic in a way. XD

Do we NEED game reviewers? Of course not. As you said, we can judge for ourselves right? But we sure as hell want game reviewers. Whether it's to hear them solidify our opinions on said game(s), hear other viewpoints from another angle, or just to hear them talk. Sometimes we just like hearing other people talking about it. It's why Let's players are a thing, and why Twitch is kind of a big deal.
 

FeiRR

Banned
I don't agree with your last point though. It's not just money. Unless if you're a billionaire, money does matter. If I pay for a piece of shit game, I've supported a bad publisher and/or developer. I've also wasted money that I could have spent on something else.
Fair point, I forgot about it. There are franchises/publishers/developers I'll never support, no matter how cheap the game is. This point also comes from my very personal attitute towards money or life in general, which is not on-topic really.

Sorry, I disagree completely. Your first point in particular comes way to close to the "Objective review" nonsense that I've seen some people try to bring up recently. Reviews are inherently about the opinion of the reviewer, a good one will explain what they liked in a game and what bothered them in it and from that you can make your own decisions on how you would receive those things.
Maybe I made a mistake calling them "reviews". I should have written I find hands-on (with those points I mentioned) useful while I consider reviews useless for me.

What people really need to do is stop overreacting like this to reviews/previews and learn to accept that other people have different opinions and just because yours don't align with popular reviewers it doesn't inherently mean their reviews are bad.
The problem is that people take reviews seriously. And most importantly, publishers/devs too. They base job bonuses on metascores and "listen to the community". I know it's viable for commercial reasons but if it goes too far, we'll have 90% of "open world MMO shooters with towers and no story" one day.

"Why you don't need game reviews in your life"

The operative word. Other mediums have managed to maintain objectivity.
We're in a gaming forum, aren't we? I don't read any other reviews (films, books) either, if you want to know.

Main problem with your post OP is that you're arguing against your own arguments. I don't need opinions in mah reviews! But go read GAF, because those guys are totally objective.
I didn't write I trust every person here. I wrote I find users' reviews more useful.

You don't need reviews? Fine, but don't come complaining that you bought Unity and it is a complete buggy mess then. An expert gamer should've known that just from looking at a gameplay video, right?
I actually enjoyed Unity even with all the bugs in it and I knew what I was getting, mostly thanks to GAF and gameplays. I could choose to buy the game used because of that. Reviews wouldn't help me with their "7/10"s.
 

Melchiah

Member
Yeah, I've pretty much stopped reading reviews, and basing my purchase decisions on them. Back in the PS1/2 days I could trust the Official UK PlayStation magazine's reviews, and I never end up being disappointed when I bought a game due to their recommendations. I really dislike the current trend of comparing platform exclusives with each other, even when they're different kind of games; Resistance: Fall of Man vs. Gears of War, Driveclub vs. Forza Horizon 2. It doesn't mean anything to me if one is better than the other, as I only own one system. I'm never going to play the game they're using for comparison, so it's completely moot point for me. I also doubt many reviewers play the games enough to form an educated opinion, and even if they do complete the campaigns they probably rush them through in order to meet the deadlines. Which is precisely why I trust the collective opinion of Gaf gamers more. Dozens of opinions give a better picture, than a handful.
 
The more I grew up the less I felt like reading reviews.

Turns out now I have more experience in games than most reviewers out there so I don't think I can accept someone's opinion other than a friend's.

As in everything in life, if its fun...its fun :) No amount of opinion can tell how much you will like something.
 
Serious question: Why do you think people listen to Sports "experts" or "analyst"? Why do people those people have the jobs to just be on TV and discuss their opinions about what will or could happen in this game, or that game?

Some analyst are actually goods.

Game jornous are 99% kids who started on the internet and have no idea what real journalism is.
 

Bricky

Member
I actually enjoyed Unity even with all the bugs in it and I knew what I was getting, mostly thanks to GAF and gameplays. I could choose to buy the game used because of that. Reviews wouldn't help me with their "7/10"s.

The reason most reviews gave it a 7/10 is because they still enjoyed it despite its problems. If anything that is more in line with your opinion than Gaf, where most people say it's not worth buying because of Ubisoft being a bunch of asshats lately.

The fact you don't like that games are given meaningless numbers is fine, but that doesn't make reviews entirely useless. They give their opinions on games the same as Gaffers or YouTubers would. Of course they shouldn't be the deciding factor in whether you buy a game or not, but they have their place as a source of information just like any of the other ones you listed. The fact you don't like most professional reviewers out there is an entirely different matter, and even then your main reason for disliking them is that they give opinions which is a completely ridiculous argument (since that is the point of a review, 'objective' reviews don't exist).

tl;dr: I don't disagree with your conclusion, of course you don't 'need' reviews, it's just that your arguments against them aren't reasonable. 'I don't read reviews at all, here is a list of what modern reviews do wrong despite me not reading them'.
 

Nestunt

Member
I disagree

I dont have time for letsplays or quicklooks and since I started looking at general reviews (metacritic for example) when I am deciding where I will spent my money between two games I am already interested, the fact that I started to choose the one with considerable higher average has generated a lot less disappointment

When I did not care about reviews and only bought based on what I read on magazine previews I used to be a lot more disappointed
 
Nah I'll keep looking at game reviews. I got burned 2-3 times by watching cherry picked footage from a game and believing internet/GAF hype while the Metascore clearly was in the low 70s or something.

I know the few cases in which I'll buy a game that got bad reviews regardless. But for games at large so far good reviews meant good games.
 

-Ryn

Banned
Interesting post.

I enjoy reading reviews though. However I think it's important to experience a game for yourself and make your own opinion. I don't use reviews to convince me on a game so much as to just get some sort of recommendation. I also enjoy watching stuff like Zero Punctuation as it's critical while being entertaining.
 

thelastword

Banned
Reviews from the media have less meaning now, especially after all the gates and inconsistencies found or highlighted in games journalism. It's been a while since I've favored user reviews over the IGN's, gamespots, eurogamers etc... but what helps me most are gameplay videos.

At this point, I know what I like, I know what genres I prefer, so it's really not hard for me to make a call on the games I like. All I need is to know if the game is broken or not, is it a 5fps game, is it riddled with bugs, does it freeze all the time, that would be more important to me as I wont want to waste my money on a broken game, that's why you'll find me in many df threads. Apart from that, I don't need a game to be a 90-100% on metacritic to buy it. I've loved many 70+ games over the years, sometimes ever moreso than games with better critical acclaim.
 

2San

Member
Gameplay footage have tricked me a lot more than review scores. I understand the hate for metacritic, but most of the time it is a decent ranking measure for games.
 
I like reading/watching previews and hands-on, but I really don't care much about reviews anymore. Maybe because videogames -especially 3d ones- are still evolving too fast in regards of mechanics, cinematography and/or whatsoever.

Anotherthing is I really can enjoy almost every game, but here are times that one particular game is the most boring mess ever produced, but on another point of my daily life it will get a really great experience.
 
Aren't reviews opinions like anyone elses? I really don't get why people need to argue that strongly that reviewers are from Mars.

Some reviews really sucks, but as does many opinions from those that write on forums and post videos on youtube also? Even the opinions from friends and colleagues suck sometimes.

If I'm unsure about a game, or haven't heard anything about it all, well written reviews does help. You just don't blindly trust a single one, just as you don't trust a single written opinion about a game on Neogaf.

That metacores are worthless, that's one thing, but I find the opinion that all reviews are useless a bit weird.
 

klausbert

Member
To see if i'll like a game, i rely on GAF, ClassicGameRoom, demos, if available, and gameplay videos. That's all i need and i haven't based my purchases on any video game review with ratings for a long time now. I also haven't purchased any dud since.
 
One review alone may not be all that useful but it can be very informative when there's a real consensus - or even when you get a lot of polarized reviews
 
I rarely read reviews. I pay closer attention to posts on Neogaf and what people say about the game in terms of gameplay, mechanics, performance, bugs etc.

My favourite reviewer is David Jenkins from Metro GameCentral as his reviews are concise and informative. I feel I can go away from the review with a pretty good idea as to the quality of the game.

Reviews used to be a big thing back when you couldn't share thoughts on games over the internet e.g. Super Nintendo era but it is so easy to get an idea as to whether you will like a game by watching videos and doing some research on what it offers.
 

jesu

Member
I like reviews and I use them when deciding to get a game sometimes.
Works for me.

edit, I find it hard to use a random internet users opinion, as the hyperbole usually swings to far for me.
The massive amount of negativity I see from user opinions on the internet never ties in with how I feel about a game.
So I find it best to ignore.
 

IvorB

Member
I agree 100%. Games reviews should be like other software reviews: just a clinical description of features. The opinion of some random dude on the internet is completely worthless to me. Funny you mention Eurogamer since they're one of the worst around. Their reviews are all subjective bullsh*t and high school level literary analysis.
 

Nokterian

Member
Don't read reviews, you wouldn't want all those marketing money to be wasted in vain because of a bad review. Trust the publisher. Don't doubt the publisher.

I never did and go towards people here on gaf or mostly my self what i feel to spend money on also sharing my experience on how the game is. Seeing how Driveclub is getting more attention here on gaf and even who don't have a account buying the game right now is great this is just a example i never read anything on those websites at all. The only thing i watch on youtube are Jim Sterling,Angry Joe and even TB because they talk also what is good and shit just like any gamer should do.
 

Kelegacy

XBOX - RECORD ME LOVING DOWN MY WOMAN GOOD
I think reviews are more worthwhile than reading previews, which tend to be free pr almost exclusively and only serve to hype games that wind up reviewing poorly. Since so many gamers have zero restraint they read previews only and make their purchases from those at launch. Then reviews can come out damning the games the site has hyped for a year and people get mad.

Dont be impulsive or preorder, read reviews from a variety of sources and dont believe previews too much. Use them for basic info only, because 99% tend to be overwhelmingly positive because they are just PR.
 

LAA

Member
Ive certainly got less inclined for reviews nowadays. Score I pay even less attention too. All I use reviews for now are for the general conensus/opinions on things. For instance, I plan to use it for Order 1886, I'm not so sure it'll be something I'll like, though admittedly havent seen so much of it yet.
Other problem with reviews that has probably been mentioned already is that 8-10 is what is only used nowadays and anything less is seen as bad. One could say its because game's budgets are so high nowadays they need to make sure its a damn good game to get profit, and now perhaps its less common to see a really terrible game on a console at least, at least from more major publishers.

I usually can just tell from the look of a game whether I'll like it or not and I can trust my instincts. Only case I can think of recently where that let me down was Destiny. I wasn't expecting the game to be as short as it was, or to lack story like it did. The Bungie name also made me hopeful I could trust the game to be epic as I love the Halo game series, but they seemed to have dropped the ball for it. I've played games for a long time, so I think I can judge what I will like the look of, what looks good, etc. It shouldnt matter whether the game gets a 8/9/10 score, just that you enjoy it really, and only you can make that call, all reviews help me with is explaining any bad points (and I decide whether I agree with them or if they're so much of a big deal)
 

FeiRR

Banned
tl;dr: I don't disagree with your conclusion, of course you don't 'need' reviews, it's just that your arguments against them aren't reasonable. 'I don't read reviews at all, here is a list of what modern reviews do wrong despite me not reading them'.
I think you assume that I want reviews to disappear since they're useless for me. Not really that way. I just presented my opinion and it seems some people think similarly. If more people follow the idea of abandoning reviews, gaming portals will lose revenue and will have to find new ways of attracting readers. At the same time sites which provide factual information about games could become more popular, just like streamers. I think peer distribution of information is the future and technology now makes it possible and provides growth. The more centralized the media, the easier it is for various entities (be it government or corporate) to control so I think it's a good way. But I'm against demanding or forcing anybody to change their ways. If you feel convinced by my rant, good. If you find my arguments inadequate, I'll live with it.

As for reviews, I really don't read them. Many people quote large parts of them on GAF and report on what they read. It's enough for me to get the picture that nothing has changed for years or is becoming even worse. If the trend of "Why you should/shouldn't buy game X" prevails, it will be even easier for publishers to control the media. I think they are fully aware of those technological changes we're facing and they're desperately trying to condition the masses while they still can.
 

elhav

Member
I think what people should generally do is ignore the score itself, and read the actual review.

Understanding the gripes a reviewer has with a game helps you understand if you two have the same tastes in games.

Reviews themselves can be important, provided you actually read them, to your evaluation of a game in question.
 

thelastword

Banned
At this point there are many ways to gauge a game, twitch has blown up, live with playstation will give you an accurate assessment of how a game plays on that particular platform. There's shareplay, a great feature where you can sample games from friends who buy many games.

The way I see it, review outlets are becoming less and less important for the gamer as a result. I doubt the average PS gamer will go read the IGN review on COD-AW or Mordor, he'll simply fire up live with playstation, see how it plays, listen to the gamer right there on the app for feedback, he can ask questions and interact as well, from there he will form his opinion.

Just as gaming print media has become obsolete, I envision many sites will shut down in the coming years. Remember when 1up was the hottest thing, that's gone, remember when gametrailers blew up, to be honest, I only remembered gametrailers exist since writing this line, have not been on that site for years. I guess this puts things in perspective, at least for me.
 
Eh, there a couple of things I agree with and a couple of things I don't. The whole complaint about reviews is a bit suspect since personal opinions are sort of the point of reviews. If "reviews" were as you want them to be they'd basically be a spec chart with little information on how good the game plays or how good the story is. Not that a spec chart isn't useful sometimes, but I do want a game to be judged by subjective qualities just as much (and most times, more) as objective ones.

Also, while there are people I know have similar opinions to me I tend to avoid OTs for my purchasing decisions since they tend to be biased towards the game (not always though).

I do agree with watching gameplay > reading review though. It's way more useful in every way.
 

Shengar

Member
It's funny, I avoid nowadays reviews because most of the time they only consist the information that you listed in the op. That's boring for me, I prefer opinionated review with good argument and deep understanding of the genre rather than bulleted list of technical and general gameplay of the game since those thing is easily gathered around the web, especially when Let's Play video everywhere.

I don't know why opinion in general sounds like a vile word. Opinion is good when it backed up with compelling argument (though most of the time it's only made up by one sentence, or worse, one word)
 

Truant

Member
Reviews as they exist today are pointless. Quick Looks, general impressions and streams usually give me enough indication that I will like something.

Between that, developer history and just common sense you don't really need reviews.
 

Mman235

Member
Reviews are just another resource for information (setting aside the awkward ways they mesh with the industry anyway), just like all the other resources, and they definitely have a place in the (unfortunately) few cases they are well-written and come from a position of knowledge. Stuff like videos are good for getting a quick read on whether I'll like the general mechanics of a game or not, but good reviews tell me about how it will hold up in the long run, and whether the game evolves beyond what the videos show or if that's all you get (which otherwise isn't possible to work out until a game has been out for a bit), or, alternatively, if there's something unique about the game that can't be communicated well through videos. A review just needs to tell me the reviewer's opinion, which will inherently tell me what they value and whether I value those things too; in most cases they won't be much use, but I only need one or two reviews that do focus on the things that interest me for them to serve their purpose.
 

Bricky

Member
I think you assume that I want reviews to disappear since they're useless for me. Not really that way. I just presented my opinion and it seems some people think similarly. If more people follow the idea of abandoning reviews, gaming portals will lose revenue and will have to find new ways of attracting readers. At the same time sites which provide factual information about games could become more popular, just like streamers. I think peer distribution of information is the future and technology now makes it possible and provides growth. The more centralized the media, the easier it is for various entities (be it government or corporate) to control so I think it's a good way. But I'm against demanding or forcing anybody to change their ways. If you feel convinced by my rant, good. If you find my arguments inadequate, I'll live with it.

As for reviews, I really don't read them. Many people quote large parts of them on GAF and report on what they read. It's enough for me to get the picture that nothing has changed for years or is becoming even worse. If the trend of "Why you should/shouldn't buy game X" prevails, it will be even easier for publishers to control the media. I think they are fully aware of those technological changes we're facing and they're desperately trying to condition the masses while they still can.

You can't not read reviews then make a point of reviews being badly written. Sorry, but that's not a solid argument.

Like I said, I don't think your opinion is wrong, but you're not good at presenting it.
 
Reading GAF OTs has to be the single worst way to tell if a game is good or not.

Generally the OTs are full of hyped up people who are justifying their purchases to the world. Even more so if a game is an exclusive, in which case the OT is beyond useless.

For the most part game reviews are pretty ok in sorting the good from the bad. Obviously there will be differences of opinion from time to time, which is why it pays to read more than one outlet.

Saying ignore reviews and listen to GAF makes no sense to me. GAF is overrun with fanboys so you would be jumping out of the frying pan and into a fucking huge inferno of a fire if your aim is to get a decent opinion.

Funny that this is off the back of the thread about The Order too. A thread about a preview which is quite balanced and justifies every point it makes, yet goes against the wailing fanboys who just want to hear blind praise for a game they haven't played.
 

RedShift

Member
I think reviews are pretty much pointless when you can go on YouTube and watch someone play the game for a bit. How much you'll enjoy a game depends so much on taste anyway, it's better to figure it out for yourself.
 
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