The Video Game Critic

How much do you let reviews impact whether you buy a game or not? Like, I know people who don't have a ton of money so they'll only buy the games that are rated the best of the best and not waste time or money on lesser games. I also know people who will ignore reviews entirely and buy whatever they want. I can see the appeal of both sides. Sure the first group might be missing out on some good or great games, but at least they're not gambling their money away on games they may not end up enjoying. A few of my favorite games (like Nier or Tales of Xillia) aren't rated all that highly by most reviewers and I still love them. As for the second group, they might buy a game just because it looks cool, and it ends up sucking royally and being a total waste of money.

Honestly... for modern games, I don't ever trust one reviewer one I buy a game. I tend to look at like 10 different reviewers from metacritic and go from there. If everyone I trust seems to hate the game then I stay far away. Just because 1 person hates it though doesn't mean I stay away though, although if it has mixed reviews I tend to wait until the prices drop.

Now for retro games... sometimes all you can find is 1-2 reviews so it's really a judgment call at the time.

Many moons ago I swore off reviews. Modern mainstream reviews carry absolutely zero weight in my eyes. The things that I'm personally looking for in a game are NOT what neatly fits into most reviewers checkboxes. Reviewers, by in large, put too much emphasis on story, multi-player, game length, and all sorts of other stuff that really doesn't matter. It's the reason why games like Vanquish miss getting critical acclaim while some overhyped, by the numbers sequel, like Modern Warfare II bask in it.

I know people that won't see movies simply based on Rotten Tomatoes scores and they won't buy games because of low Metacritic scores. If feel that by doing this you're going to missing out on plenty of unique and weird experiences. My motto is if you have an interest in it, or it looks cool, then go out and see it or buy it. Support artist's who aren't afraid of putting out something different. Give the little guy some love.

Another thing I almost never do is buy a game at launch. I almost always wait until a game gets down to $30 or less. With Amazon it usually doesn't take more than 3-4 months. So I will gladly take a risk on a game without the fear that I squandered $60.

Thats actually why I love this site. The critics reviews are pretty much how I feel on the genres of games I like to play. He has saved me a bit of money at times when it comes to newer games.

If the review is well-written (as they consistently are on this site), then I will know whether or not I would personally like the game regardless of the score. I've owned or bought some D's and F's that have been reviewed here because the review told me I would get some enjoyment out of the game.

Failing a good review to fall back on, I generally rely on screen shots to help me decide on my purchases. To clarify that, I'm not a graphics junkie, so it is more a matter of if the game looks like my style/type.

My policy is simple. I will not buy a game I haven't played. I pre-ordered a game only 1 time. WWE Smackdown vs Raw 2009 and after that I vowed never again lol. so If I'm interested in a game I rent it first and if I like it after that then I will buy it. Or if a friend has it I'll borrow it from them for a few days and if I like it then get my own copy.

JustLikeHeaven wrote:Many moons ago I swore off reviews. Modern mainstream reviews carry absolutely zero weight in my eyes. The things that I'm personally looking for in a game are NOT what neatly fits into most reviewers checkboxes. Reviewers, by in large, put too much emphasis on story, multi-player, game length, and all sorts of other stuff that really doesn't matter. It's the reason why games like Vanquish miss getting critical acclaim while some overhyped, by the numbers sequel, like Modern Warfare II bask in it.

This is the perfect explanation with the perfect games as examples.

It's less about reading a review then it is seeing a game in motion and hearing the player react to it, especially if it's someone whose taste tends to align with my own. Reviews are useful for alerting me to games I'd be unaware of otherwise or for making me give something a second chance - and occasionally, like with those written by Tim Rogers, reviews can be entertaining or informative even if you don't care much about the game - but I've usually made up my mind about whether I'm interested in a game by the time I read one.