Who's game reviews do you trust?

L0sther0

L0sther0

CAGiversary!
I go to teamxbox for their reviews. They are on par with my tastes in games. Every once and a while they will rate a game high that i just don't like or i don't care for the genre but for the most part we are 99% dead on.

So who do you trust for your reviews of games?

Any system. Even different sites for different systems / PC

*Please exclude meta critic as it is a review based on other websites reviews
 
EGM and 1up was my old go to.

Now I don't really use any. Just stick to major AAA games, sequels to series I love etc. that I know I'll like, and maybe check out some other stuff based on impressions and buzz about them in the forums here. For those I'll check the aggregate review sites (game rankings etc.) and maybe read the Gamespot or IGN reviews to see what they liked or didn't like--but I don't really trust them per se. They just have pretty detailed reviews usually and I can get a sense from the aggregate scores and specific pros and cons as to whether it's a game I should check out myself.
 
X-Play is my tried and true game review source. Out of watching them since Extended Play, I've only disagreed with maybe two of their reviews.
 
I typically play demos or read what other CAGs have to say. I use IGN loosely, but they are way off the mark sometimes.
 
I will look at collective scores from GameRankings and Metacritic and usually read IGN, Gamespot, and Game Informers reviews.

But these days, a good demo is more important than reviews. I would have never bothered to play Arkham Asylum but that demo sold me on the game and I bought it day one.
 
I prefer Game Trailers reviews over all. Not because I agree with thier scores but rather it's a video review. If there's a hi-light or low-light I have an image along with it. With the visual it helps me make up my own mind. As for scores I go to Game Rankings and get the average.
 
Metacritic

I dunno why you'd exclude it. An average of all reviews seems like a pretty good way to tell if a game was well reviewed or not.

Generally, if a game is well reviewed its doing something right.
 
Nobody's. At all. Ever.

The only game reviews I like even seeing at all are ClassicGameRoom's video reviews, but just because I like the guy talking about just what a game plays like (rather than numerical graphics and controls scores or whatever). I don't watch them (or any review) to find out if a game is good or not, or even to find out anything about the game that I don't already know; I just to hear the guy talk about them, and how much he likes them (he's pretty enthusiastic).
 
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[quote name='crystalklear64']Metacritic

I dunno why you'd exclude it. An average of all reviews seems like a pretty good way to tell if a game was well reviewed or not.

Generally, if a game is well reviewed its doing something right.[/QUOTE]

I would exclude it because although it is a good over all rating of a game it doesnt review it itself. There are metacritic scored games that have really bad over all scores that also have one or two really good reviews. and vise versa.

I was looking for what reviewing source do you the CAG rely on.
 
none.i use reviews to ust get an idea of what the games like and i use video reviews to see the game in action. in the end i use my own judgement on whether a game seems worth it or not. if believed all the reviews id own the new ratchet and clank but i used my time with the demo to know the game is a wait if even that. i havent trusted a reviewer since sushi-x in EGM when he left my heart was broken and i had to move on...........
 
[quote name='Vinny']
But these days, a good demo is more important than reviews. .[/QUOTE]

Very good point. Reviews are definitely less important these days. If I liked a demo of a game I was unsure of (i.e. not something like a sequel that I'll know I love) then at most I'll check metacritic or game rankings and make sure the actual game is also good.

There's no better critic than oneself when it comes to stuff that's up to individual tastes and preferences. Reviews can still serve as a buffer to weed out games that had good demos but weren't that great as a whole.
 
CoffeEdge - Thanks for mentioning that Classic Game Reviews site. I've been looking for good video reviews of retro games. I'll definitely check it out.
 
[quote name='Rodimus']CoffeEdge - Thanks for mentioning that Classic Game Reviews site. I've been looking for good video reviews of retro games. I'll definitely check it out.[/QUOTE]

You're welcome. Check out his video reviews on Youtube, if you haven't already:
http://www.youtube.com/user/InecomCompany

Like I said, they aren't the usual "Graphics: 4.5, Sound: 3.0, Gameplay: 4.0" kind of things. He basically just shows a lot of footage of a game, talks about what it's like, and what he likes about it (usually; there are rather few wholly negative reviews), and just tries to be entertaining and enthusiastic while talking about games he likes. If I relied on any sort of game journalism, it would be this kind, rather than the usual model seen on IGN or Gamespot.
 
Metacritic blurbs and word of mouth (especially CAG). If there's a good buzz on a game in the forums here, I'll take a deeper look into it.
 
I don't agree with the scores of any site 100% of course, but the reviews I like reading (or watching) are at Eurogamer, 1up, GameCritics, and GameTrailers.
 
Nada. I have a really good instinct to know if a game is going to be good or not. I had heard virtually nothing about Borderlands, save for a few tidbits here and there, and went and purchased it day one on impulse, and loved it. I'm just weird like that. Dead Space and Left 4 Dead are a few of the other ones that I did like that.
 
I usually read IGN and 1up's reviews, but I take into account how people talk about games on podcasts more and more lately it seems.
 
[quote name='Allnatural']I don't agree with the scores of any site 100% of course, but the reviews I like reading (or watching) are at Eurogamer, 1up, GameCritics, and GameTrailers.[/QUOTE]

I'm not sure why but I always feel most comfortable and like I relate the most to Eurogamer's reviews. Definitely my favorite site for game reviews.
 
[quote name='Rodimus']I prefer Game Trailers reviews over all. Not because I agree with thier scores but rather it's a video review. If there's a hi-light or low-light I have an image along with it. With the visual it helps me make up my own mind. As for scores I go to Game Rankings and get the average.[/QUOTE]

You use the same logic I do for gametrailers. However for an opinion on a game, I only trust my friends who have a similar taste in a certain genre that I do.
 
My friends notwithstanding, my most trusted review sources are Eurogamer, 1UP, RPGamer (for RPGs, of course), GameLife (usually just Chris Kohler's reviews, though), and Shipwreck's reviews here on CAG.
 
Not really sites that I "trust" (subjective nature of personal judgments, the whole "how can you quantify that without points of comparisons, of which could undermine the entire endeavor", etc), but I do think the stuff is really informative and entertaining.

Plus, like most Americans, I rather watch my reviews, rather than read them:

Zero Punctuation Yahtzee barely has anything positive to say, and whatever faults the game have, he will put a sizable spotlight on the subject. Not for everyone but he doesn't use a scoring system which I like but rather uses his colorful Australian insults to get the point across (such as "shite", "abortion that should have been" and "pants-on-head retarded").

Co-op Coming from the now-defunct EGM (correct me if I'm wrong), not the usual review per-se, but rather a group conversation about the games they're covering. Can be a little chatty, but again, does somewhat of a good job pointing out the flaws and whatnot.

Speaking of Co-op, I would highly suggest that everybody in CAG visit the Revision 3 website. It's been my default go-to source of original Web Shows for the past 2-3 years now.
 
IGN, Gamespot and the excerpts on MetaCritic. While I know there is a ton of Payola going on in the game review world, between those three, you can usually find an inkling of truth about a game.

The only thing I don't like is when then measure replayability. They never seem to get that one right. Maybe it's because they have to drop old games to make room for the new, but who knows.
 
Yea, it think its more about who has similar tastes because I know a number of sites Ill read wont like a game for some particular reason that I either like or dont mind and vice versa. You really have to take a pragmatic view and go to meta critic or gamerankings and just kinda pick and choose. Although if the general consensus of numerous sites says that its bad, thats usually a good indicator. What I do sometimes is pick IGN as a base review, and read the site with the top score, and the site with the lowest score. That way you get a rough idea of what your looking at.
 
IGN, Gamespot, and X-Play on G4 to get an idea on the games features(since a demo will not tell you the whole story). After that check out it's score on Metacritic and then hear what CAG's have to say about the game also.
 
GameTrailers, because nothing beats actual footage, and I really like the voice of the guy who does most of their reviews. Also Eurogamer, because they are pretty tough, so if they like a game, you know it's special. Most other sites will give a game an 8.5 just for existing. And 1UP just for Jeremy Parish's reviews-- he is the man, I could practically blind-buy anything he likes and almost never go wrong.
 
I generally stick to metacritic and depending on the individual site's reviewer I may read it. A new up & coming site I've been checking out occasionally and tends to have reviews I enjoy is levelupnews.
 
I usually just look at 1up and IGN. I actually don't trust any of IGN's scores...it's just, I have my game collection over there (so I see the scores anyway). They (IGN) rate things too high, IMO.

Still, I don't really use any place in particular. I play any game I'm interested in (with a rental). If I know it's gonna be good, I buy it. NSMB Wii, for example.
 
I distrust IGN...They've been completely off the mark a few times (True Crime: Streets of LA anyone?)...

I prefer Gamespot and Shipwrecks reviews.
 
I cross reference a lot of different places along with IGN and gametrailers.com and if I can get the demo. Then I make my choice.

I use http://news.bigdownload.com/ they do some really nice articles explaining almost every aspect of the game, good or bad.

I also use http://www.joystiq.com/ and http://epicbattleaxe.com/,
http://www.n4g.com/ , http://www.edge-online.com/,http://www.thirteen1.com/,http://www.bluesnews.com/

http://www.theoldergamers.com/xbox/reviews/ because it's been a long standing gaming clan of older gamers usually 24+ but the majority i think is in their 40s and I just like a regular mature gamers perspective sometimes. Yeah I know I go to a lot of places but that's what helps me make a good choice. So i have all these places bookmarked and I just read all the reviews on the game I'm interested in and it is pretty smooth sailing from there.

For MMORPGS I go to http://www.mmorpg.com/ and http://www.massively.com/

Also, my friend has trouble rating games for her 12 year old son. So I also read some reviews here http://www.gamingwithchildren.com/ Gamerdad likes to play all of the new games, he gives you a really honest review from one gamer to the other and adds a section for the kid factor. Great for indecisive parents.

Hope this helps! I know it helps me :bouncy:
 
I watch IGN's reviews, basically to see what the game is like, and get an opinion on it. I'm not much of a fan of their scores though.

Also watch Classic Game Room on YouTube, he's pretty cool.
 
Back when I read magazines I used to go to EGM for opinions. When print started to feel the heat from the popularity of the internet though they changed their reviews to a sort of roundtable bloggish thing where they referenced the other reviewers and it all went downhill... the reviews just turned into shtick.

I've been going to IGN since 2001 and I've never had any problems with their reviews, I trust what they say(and to the above, I DID like True Crime!), and even if I didn't I'd like to think that the gameplay videos are enough for me to make a decision. It seems like many of us at CAG go through games quite rapidly so it's kinda weird to hear all this stuff about cross referencing reviews, polling your friends, etc.
 
I go the demo route now. Honestly, I don't know why every big game doesn't get a demo.

If it plays well enough, I'll go online to see what other features will be in the full game. I'll also come here to see what the buzz is.
 
No one's really, I infer my own opinion about a game after watching gameplay videos of it. But usually when I do go check a review out I go to Gametrailers.com afterwards, if I am still on the fence about it. I go ahead and read user reviews instead.
 
No one, anymore. I don't feel like being brainwashed into thinking something, or focusing on a negative aspect I may have not noticed. I like to go into games with a blank slate, and leave it with solely my opinion.

There used to be a day when I used GI before it became a part of Gamestop and I noticed all the high selling games received the highest scores. PSM in the days of PS1 was really grand, I still read the old issues from time to time.
 
I don't trust Game Informer and Official Xbox Magazine [OXM]. Game Informer is obviously on the take. OXM because it is naturally biased, plus some past reviews have been way off .

I tend to agree more with CoffeeEdge and Rig. Take multiple sources into consideration and then form your own opinion. Some demos also don't serve the complete game justice; the difficulty or fine tuning may not be the retail version. Final: read, read, & read.

Another tip is also to read about glitches. This reveals polish, and any game-breaking events you may not be able to live with.

edit: I also extensively use, read & research, the CAG general info & discussion forums on games I'm interested in purchasing. These aren't necessarily reviews, but I do get a good picture of what the gaming community thinks of a particular title. This has often directly resulted in a purchase, or a complete avoidance of a game. So thank you CAGs!!
 
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I must say I'm quite proud of our CAG community. This thread has almost 50 replies and over 900 views and nobody has criticized the OP for his flamingly homophonic title. : )
 
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