What Game Are You Playing At The Moment?

[Space Indaver]

I do think a number can be applied to "quality" of a game, eg. I would probably give Resi Evil 5 at least a 7.5 based on its production values, but for personal taste it would get around a 3.0 purely because of the aiming.

Using that Batman as an example, it seems to have got a 7.5 based on the fact that the guy reviewing it doesn't really like 2D fighters or the art style or something. It looks like a very well made, solid game.

[standardman]

Originally Posted by Space Indaver

I do think a number can be applied to "quality" of a game, eg. I would probably give Resi Evil 5 at least a 7.5 based on its production values, but for personal taste it would get around a 3.0 purely because of the aiming.

Using that Batman as an example, it seems to have got a 7.5 based on the fact that the guy reviewing it doesn't really like 2D fighters or the art style or something. It looks like a very well made, solid game.

My problem with it is that reviewing anything is subjective and numbers suggest it's objective. As if there's some dark science to evalutating a game/movie/album/whatever. Bump mapping on level 3 is worth 0.04 review score points, poor checkpointing is -0.3 and the delivery of this character's final soliloquy has a -1.5 to 3.0 range. Reductive and dishonest nonsense.

[Space Indaver]

I think there's merit to quantifying your views in some way, especially if your reviews are aimed at being a buyers' guide.

I toyed with the idea of writing a monetary value on a game, sort of "buy it when the price drops below X if the premise sounds appealing", but at the root of it, that's the same thing.

[standardman]

I'd much rather read a review than be served with a meaningless number. The money thing keeps cropping up lately, due to Microsoft charging as much as they can get away with for XBLA games. Which is the only real monetary value of anything - as much as you can get away with selling it for - something Activision know all too well.

[Space Indaver]

Games are a bit of a strange market, in that a large proportion of buyers aren't actually informed. The likes of CoD create the impression that high price points are viable, but that's really demand-by-proxy as they're buying for their kids.

It does seem that the industry's coming round to the idea that games aren't all worth £40, and supply and demand rules do still apply to the industry like any other. It probably helps that "gamers" are now grown-ups too, and it's their own money they're choosing to part with.

If prices on the whole stay too high, people will go back to playing Rubik's cubes. (or at the very least, Flash games)

[standardman]

As much as I have problems with the used games market, it does help that it immediately kneecaps any high price point.

I rarely buy console games on release, £40-45 is far too much.

[rhesusattack]

I'm with standardman on this one. Putting numbers on review scores just encourages the Metacritic standard for videogames, where anything less than an 80 might as well be shit. I feel like a review should just tell me about the experience the reviewer had while playing it, whether it was engrossing or fun or whatever, and whether the price justifies the purchase or maybe it should just be a rental.

[Space Indaver]

Oh I agree, in my ADD-nerd future all reviews will be mini conversational podcasts, a la GiantBomb's Quick Looks.

[Chmpy]

I am a game developer and I absolutely HATE numbered reviews, but they absolutely control sales. I have had a game be reviewed in the us with an "ok" written review but a bad number (3.0 out ouf 10!) because the reviewer "Doesn't generally like this type of game"... but then in another country the same game got a 9 out of 10 and went on to sell really really well there. So either games are more fun based on the country you live in and both reviews reflected the population they represented... or reviews are totally subjective and you should read a review for the content and decide for yourself if it's the kind of game you want to play.

[Space Indaver]

Like I say, there is some use to numbering IMO, if only to point out which games don't function or control to a satisfactory level, or don't provide enough bang for the recommended retail buck. But if you look at what a number tries to achieve, ie. an at-a-glance preview of whether a game should be worth the reader's attention or not, a quick pros v cons bullet point list can achieve the same thing.

When all is said and done though, if I have a few quid to spend on a pre-owned or older game, and my brain is drawing a blank (as is the way with the law of sod), I'll jump on to gamerankings or something similar just to drum up some ideas.