Worst VGC Reviews?

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m0zart1
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Worst VGC Reviews?

Postby m0zart1 » July 27th, 2007, 10:00 pm

[QUOTE=Adamant]Certainly. They are decent adventure games with a couple gameplay flaws, pretty graphics and awful cutscenes that everyone tend to judge the entire game on (plus, the "I'm dying!" "Good!"-scene in Gamelon made me chuckle).

They are in no way "great" games, and certainly not comparable to the other Zelda games, but they are decent adventure games in their own right, and, like ET, get far too much undeserved hate from peopel who haven't even played them.[/QUOTE]

I hold E.T. in much higher regard


Cataclysm1
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Worst VGC Reviews?

Postby Cataclysm1 » July 27th, 2007, 11:55 pm

My problem with Critic's reviews is that he plays so many that he gives lower scores to difficult games. Shmups are notorious for being difficult but Critic understands that. But what about F-Zero GX or Blaster Master?

Behind every bad review the game is always a difficult game (unless it is an arcade game).

And I do agree his Smash Brothers reviews are off. But, again, they are highly complex and require time invested

Most gamers do not have the game collection Critic has. We love some of these more difficult games because it gives us a long term value. I think Critic should consider that his playing so many games can turn into a liability as easily as it can turn into an asset.

KanYozakura

Worst VGC Reviews?

Postby KanYozakura » July 28th, 2007, 1:23 am

I just noticed something kind of off in the Neo Geo section: Ninja Combat.  While this game is far from classic material, I think an F grade is undeserved.  The last boss alone is worth at least one letter grade, and the dialogue is absolutely hilarious.  I would compare this game to Burning Fight, which you gave a C.  They both have their strengths and weaknesses, but are worthwhile titles to play if you have a Neo Geo system.  Just my two cents.

Alienblue

Worst VGC Reviews?

Postby Alienblue » July 28th, 2007, 4:14 am

I just realized this myself with his THE GOONIES 2 review but yeh, the critic does not have many hours of free time to devote to adventure type games (he doesn't review RPGS at ALL)...I wonder if he is a bit hypocritical in giving high grades to the Atari 5200 adventure because he PLAYED 2600 adventure and thus is biased towards it. I don't think (like most gamers) he gave E.T. or RAIDERS a chance, and certainly GOONIES 2 is not as bad as he says, it's just DIFFICULT and LONG!

Maybe the RPG'er should review adventure games too?

mappymousepd

Worst VGC Reviews?

Postby mappymousepd » July 28th, 2007, 11:26 am

[QUOTE]My problem with Critic's reviews is that he plays so many that he gives lower scores to difficult games. Shmups are notorious for being difficult but Critic understands that. But what about F-Zero GX or Blaster Master?[/QUOTE]

Yeah, I've noticed this, too.  His reviews are generally spot on for games that are easy to pick up and play, but anything that requires a few days of practice or anything that's too complicated can get lower scores that the game deserves.  It's one of the drawbacks to this system of one person reviewing hundreds of games.  

He has done a good job, though, going back and giving some games another shot, like Star Raiders for the 5200, which originally got an F. 

Adamant1
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Worst VGC Reviews?

Postby Adamant1 » July 28th, 2007, 12:43 pm

[QUOTE=Alienblue]I wonder if he is a bit hypocritical in giving high grades to the Atari 5200 adventure because he PLAYED 2600 adventure and thus is biased towards it.[/QUOTE]

Adventure 2 is a homebrew made by Adventure fans for Adventure fans. It's not a standard game anyone can stumble upon without specifically looking for it, so assuming that people looking into picking it up are already fans of the original is certainly not far-fetched.

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VideoGameCritic
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Worst VGC Reviews?

Postby VideoGameCritic » July 28th, 2007, 1:19 pm

[QUOTE=mappymousepd][QUOTE]My problem with Critic's reviews is that he plays so many that he gives lower scores to difficult games. Shmups are notorious for being difficult but Critic understands that. But what about F-Zero GX or Blaster Master?[/QUOTE]

Yeah, I've noticed this, too.  His reviews are generally spot on for games that are easy to pick up and play, but anything that requires a few days of practice or anything that's too complicated can get lower scores that the game deserves.  It's one of the drawbacks to this system of one person reviewing hundreds of games.  

He has done a good job, though, going back and giving some games another shot, like Star Raiders for the 5200, which originally got an F. 
[/QUOTE]

I consider it a flaw when the game requires a large time investment before you begin to derive any enjoyment from it.  If the game is designed well, it can still be satisfying in the early stages (think Zelda).  Also, if a game is very difficult, I think that is another flaw (Ninja Gaiden for the Xbox is an example). 

I understand that these issues won't phase the hard-core types, but the other 90% of gamers will just say "hell with it" and move on.

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Worst VGC Reviews?

Postby VideoGameCritic » July 28th, 2007, 1:23 pm

[QUOTE=JustLikeHeaven]

[QUOTE=andrew]Why is there an f- on some reviews? An f is an f meaning failure. There's no such thing as f- or f+. All F- should be just F.
[/QUOTE]

Critic, you really should have a page that explains in detail your grading system.  You can explain what the difference between the grade C and B is, and also how you grade on a scale.

I think this would be helpful since a game that gets a C on your site is usually still a pretty decent game.  Most people see the grade and the instant think its crap. 

Just an idea that could help those new to the site.
[/QUOTE]

Actually I think my grading system is as intuitive as you can get, with a "C" being dead average.  Unlike most sites which inflate their grades, I think you'll discover that my average grade is a "C".  The exceptions may be systems which I don't have enough reviews for (yet), but in the long run they average out.

In most other sites and magazines, most games are rated "above average" (which is illogical), and the worst games are given "average" scores.  I think they are really the cause of the confusion.  On my site, an "average" score means the game is perfectly decent.

My use of "F-" is typically for comic relief. 

Also, I am gradually working to replace/update my older reviews which tend to be mediocre, and I've been doing this for some time.  I usually don't announce these changes unless I re-review the game from scratch (which is sometimes necessary).

gleebergloben1
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Worst VGC Reviews?

Postby gleebergloben1 » July 28th, 2007, 2:28 pm

[QUOTE=andrew]Why is there an f- on some reviews? An f is an f meaning failure. There's no such thing as f- or f+. All F- should be just F.
[/QUOTE]

i love it when the critic gives out the occasional F- grade.  when i see that, i know that a scathing and usually hilarious review is about to come.  draws me like a moth to a flame.

andrew

Worst VGC Reviews?

Postby andrew » July 28th, 2007, 3:33 pm

[QUOTE=gleebergloben]

[QUOTE=andrew]Why is there an f- on some reviews? An f is an f meaning failure. There's no such thing as f- or f+. All F- should be just F.
[/QUOTE]

i love it when the critic gives out the occasional F- grade.  when i see that, i know that a scathing and usually hilarious review is about to come.  draws me like a moth to a flame.
[/QUOTE]

Usually an F does it for me to anticipate a bad scathing and hilarious review.

This is pertinent to the thread but does not affect vgc. Have you ever read a review that gives praise and no faults but ends up giving a low review? Blades of steel 99 on the n64, which by the way is awful was reviewed by nintendo power under the old five category breakdown system. Blades got above average praise in each category and no actual negatives but the actual grade given for each category and overall were quite mediocre. Talk about misleading someone!


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