What's up with Gamespot 's reviewers?

[psychobrawler]

Gamespot used to be the place I always looked for reviews. Seems lately they've either got a grudge against xbox, or they've got something to prove. SC:CT averages about a 9.6 according to gamerankings.com, and gamespot gives it an 8.6. Jade Empire is getting high nines, and gamespot gives it an 8.6. Have they decided to be the "bad guys" and dwell on every games shortcomings, or are they just holding new games to some high standard game that I have yet to know about... Are they too cynical, or just realistic? No game is absolutely perfect, but once you hit a level where it's so much fun that you lose yourself to it for the duration of the campaign, that's what it's all about. Are these guys just not having fun?

I'm all for varying opinions. I still read gamepots reviews because they do tend to highlight the negatives more. I like to know both sides, especially if I'm considering shelling $50 for a new release. But lately I've been feeling that their reviews are just bitter and negative. They seem to spew about what their vision of the game is, instead of scoring the game that they actually have in front of them. Knocking down Chaos Theory because it's too much like other Splinter Cell's, and knocking down Jade Empire because it's not enough like other BioWare Games? Seems a little odd.

Just random thoughts...

[Apossum]

All I know is that 8.6 isn't bad at all and reviewers don't always agree. I don't understand why so many people think anything under a 9(or even a low 9) is a bad score.

[Ozzkev55]

gamespot puts time into their ratings, and any unbiased game player can agree with their reviews, the only time ive ever disagreed with thier ratings was over metal gear solid 3, and thats only because i was biased, if you check an 8.6 is great by their accounts, only four games on their have the highest honors and they deserve it

[Apossum]

Just read the review of jade empire-- it's an 8.4 but, it's a great review. The guy laid down his valid criticisms and went on to say that it's still a great game, but has it's problems.
And I saw most of the things he's talking about first hand in the demo...
it seems like much attention was paid to the game and he let us know exactly what we'll get when we pick it up....which I can't wait to do tomorrow.

[Murcielago77]

dude, gamespot's reviews are usually dead on, since they put time in them, like they go farther than just 2 hours of playing. Also they are hard raters, so the scores will be lower than others. Though Tekken 5 is a bit high and MGS 3 is a bit low, but other than that, they have rated many other games very fairly and a lot were spot on.

[Kaijufan]

I usually trust Gamespot more then I trust IGN, as they seem to be a bit more accurate IMO. While 8.4 isn't bad at all, it's too bad they don't like JE as much as IGN likes it.

[Ozzkev55]

i know, all ive been seeing lately is ign handing out 10s to everyone with some playabililty, and to murc finally someone who agrees with me on mgs3, also i stopped going to ign, when they started charging for game guides on gamesages, back in the day

[help1]

I think that 8.6 on SC:CT was a guess...

[Ozzkev55]

I think that 8.6 on SC:CT was a guess...

whats with you and chaos theory, please think for a second that maybe you have a biased opinion, rather than an informed opinion

[Matt Young]

Scores are only a guideline. Everyone has their own opinion, so what is really important as far as I'm concerned when reading a review is the actual critique of the game, not the score itself. That information will aid you more in a purchasing decision than some random number. What does a number mean? I can't tell what separates a 9.5 from a 9.4 myself.

[danny90044]

gamespot is generally corect on there reviews....i dint agree on the mgs 3 score but thats cause i love the series...but meh watever

[Xevious]

I will have to agree. Gamespot is the toughest but at the same time, their reviews are the most accurate.

Its IGN's reviews that I distrust the most. They are usually first out of the gate but they tend to praise really bad games (like True Crime: Streets of LA).

I'm glad Gamestop is tough. Good for them and good for us!

[CaseyRyback]

I will have to agree. Gamespot is the toughest but at the same time, their reviews are the most accurate.

Its IGN's reviews that I distrust the most. They are usually first out of the gate but they tend to praise really bad games (like True Crime: Streets of LA).

I'm glad Gamestop is tough. Good for them and good for us!

their Xbox section is the worst. Raw 1 and 2 both got in the 9's and Blinx also scored really high as well

^^referring to IGN

[Lina]

Raw 1 getting a 9? Oh dear...

I don't read any reviews.

[Scorch]

IGN is either paid off or stupid. I don't trust IGN's reviews. Gamespot isn't as much of a pushover.

[psychobrawler]

Interesting opinions. Like I said, I was more curious than anything about what others thought. I definately agree that IGN tends to overrate a bit. I have no problem with pointing out a games flaws in a review either. As stated in my OP, I read gamespot's reviews to find out what the shortcomings are. Just wondering what they're looking for in new games. NOthing seems to be exactly what they're wanting recently. I usually look at gamerankings to get the best idea. I'll read bits and pieces of various reviews, but I seldom read all the way through any of them. I think as long as you know generally what the game is about, gamerankings average gives you a pretty good idea of how well the developer pulled it off. Just seems that gamespot has chosen to be the "balancing" force in a lot of these averages.

[ECW_fan]

"Lately" is an understatement they all ways have put, down the Xbox and its games.

[punqsux]

i believe ign reviewers double as gamefaq's posters.

i actully trust gamefaq's user reviews more than i trust ign's reviews

[vherub]

anytime a thread on reviews pops up, i instantly think about the reviews mario kart 64 got (mid 80's) a game which i hold as one of the best made of all time
then i switch to think about star fox adventures and the uproar over the poor review from egm- and here's a game to me that very much deserves those low scores.

Some people really do prefer Barbie Horse Adventures to Halo.

[Xevious]

their Xbox section is the worst. Raw 1 and 2 both got in the 9's and Blinx also scored really high as well

^^referring to IGN

http://www.gamespot.com/xbox/sports/wweraw2ruthlessaggression/index.html?q=raw

Gamestop game it a 6.9. That is a huge difference IMO

[coolsteel]

I agree with others, gamespot seems to just say straight up what is wrong with a game and score accordingly, which is the format I prefer. IGN has had reviews before I completely didn't agree with while gamespot got it right on the money most of the time. But in the end the best reviewer is yourself so this is pretty moot anyway.

[KaneRobot]

This is just what works for me, but much of the time if I average the IGN (too high) and Gamespot (too low) scores I get a score that's pretty dead-on with my own opinion.

[Rozz]

I always find GameSpot's reviews the best and most informative, while I take IGN's reviews with a grain of salt.

[Wet Ninja]

This is just what works for me, but much of the time if I average the IGN (too high) and Gamespot (too low) scores I get a score that's pretty dead-on with my own opinion.

I do the same thing. It seems to work pretty well for me in most cases.

[magikman]

I always make a point to check GameSpot's ratings against the "average". I think their reviews and ratings are more conservative and thus more realistic.

[Daywalker]

The thing I like about Gamespot is they don't follow the hype. Everyone else says, "OMG, they gave Splinter Cell CT a 8.6!" Well, that's not exactly that bad. But is this really THE BEST XBOX GAME EVER? I've been playing this game and as a fan, I wouldn't think so. It's so much like Pandora Tomorrow and they released this game so quickly too. Pandora Tomorrow came out 3/23/04 and Chaos Theory came out 3/28/05. I mean it's a suped up version of Pandora Tomorrow with a few new features, but that doesn't mean this game should get a higher score than Pandora Tomorrow since this IS a new game but in the eyes of the few, it's Splinter Cell 2.5.

[Chris in Cali]

They both (IGN and Gamespot) have there share of odd reviews. I used to trust GS ratings way more, but lately I've found IGN to be much more in depth, and accurate. GS hardly updates their site compared to IGN now too, plus their new design change is ugly, and riddled with ads that freeze my comp for about 30 secs everytime I go there.

[Scorch]

The thing I like about Gamespot is they don't follow the hype. Everyone else says, "OMG, they gave Splinter Cell CT a 8.6!" Well, that's not exactly that bad. But is this really THE BEST XBOX GAME EVER? I've been playing this game and as a fan, I wouldn't think so. It's so much like Pandora Tomorrow and they released this game so quickly too. Pandora Tomorrow came out 3/23/04 and Chaos Theory came out 3/28/05. I mean it's a suped up version of Pandora Tomorrow with a few new features, but that doesn't mean this game should get a higher score than Pandora Tomorrow since this IS a new game but in the eyes of the few, it's Splinter Cell 2.5.

But then again, Pandora Tomorrow was done by a different studio. Chaos Theory is by the guys that did the original Splinter Cell.. they've been working on this one for two years.

[Sleepkyng]

gamespot give re4 a really highly praising review, and acutally i don't think they're over critical at all.
most games are pretty bad. for me, i only buy a game if i know or feel that i'm absolutely going to love it (Tales of Symphonia aside), and when a gamespot review is 8.7 or above it has generally been right on for me.

i hate ign's site, can't stand their reviews either. they come off as more fanboys than people really interested in critiquing a game.

[Lina]

I prefer reading what bitter people like me have to say on message boards.

Of course, this lowers the amount of games you'll buy... but, that's not a bad thing.

[manofpeace20]

I prefer reading what bitter people like me have to say on message boards.

Of course, this lowers the amount of games you'll buy... but, that's not a bad thing.

I agree with you. Hearing what bitter people have to say is generally effective because you are getting opinions from mainstream gamers rather than some asshole with a vendetta against certain games/companies. Sure it is flawed method, but you get a better idea than reading a "professional review"