VGC Anti Atari??

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David
Posts: 191
Joined: April 20th, 2015, 3:10 am

Re: VGC Anti Atari??

Postby David » September 20th, 2018, 8:29 pm

VideoGameCritic wrote:I think part of the confusion stems from the fact that people aren't used to seeing F grades! They take offense!

I've heard people characterize F games as:
- Unplayable
- No redeeming qualities
- Broken
- Not worth playing

But that's not how I see it at all. F games are simply the counterpoint to A games.
If 20% of games get A's, then 20% should be F's. They are the least fun games for a system, but not necessarily terrible.

Plus I'm grading on how fun they are now.
I'm not going to pretend to be a wide-eyed 14 year old from 1991.
Certain games don't pass the test of time very well, but others age like wine!

If you want to play an F game, more power to you! Maybe you'll see something I missed.
People find beauty in different things.


Hmm...so just as an example, I took a peek at your Wii U reviews. About 75 percent of them are C- and above. So are you planing on going back and docking the grades of everything above it to establish an equilibrium of grades?

goldenband
Posts: 766
Joined: April 8th, 2015, 10:29 pm

Re: VGC Anti Atari??

Postby goldenband » September 20th, 2018, 10:30 pm

David wrote:Hmm...so just as an example, I took a peek at your Wii U reviews. About 75 percent of them are C- and above. So are you planing on going back and docking the grades of everything above it to establish an equilibrium of grades?


That's not an ideal example since he hasn't reviewed the complete Wii U library yet. However, the set of reviews for North American 32X games is just one game shy of completion (35/36), and it's quite close to the proportions the VGC describes:

A range: 6/35 games = 17.1%
B range = 9/35 games = 25.7%
C range = 4/35 games = 11.4%
D range = 10/35 games = 28.6%
F range = 6/35 games = 17.1%

That's a pretty darn symmetrical distribution!

David
Posts: 191
Joined: April 20th, 2015, 3:10 am

Re: VGC Anti Atari??

Postby David » September 21st, 2018, 10:18 am

goldenband wrote:
David wrote:Hmm...so just as an example, I took a peek at your Wii U reviews. About 75 percent of them are C- and above. So are you planing on going back and docking the grades of everything above it to establish an equilibrium of grades?


That's not an ideal example since he hasn't reviewed the complete Wii U library yet. However, the set of reviews for North American 32X games is just one game shy of completion (35/36), and it's quite close to the proportions the VGC describes:

A range: 6/35 games = 17.1%
B range = 9/35 games = 25.7%
C range = 4/35 games = 11.4%
D range = 10/35 games = 28.6%
F range = 6/35 games = 17.1%

That's a pretty darn symmetrical distribution!


Ah, that’s true. Maybe my issue is that an F is generally seen as terrible, whether it’s applied to games, movies, music, etc. Hypothetically, if the Wii U library was complete, there would have to be games arbitrarily receiving poorer scores not based on their quality, but just because there’s a curve. It makes it harder to compare the quality of a console’s library to another.

SavagePencil
Posts: 39
Joined: July 26th, 2017, 12:34 pm

Re: VGC Anti Atari??

Postby SavagePencil » September 21st, 2018, 5:47 pm

It is shocking to me that a fan-centric website would find someone's opinions that do not closely align to their own to be biased.

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noah98
Posts: 511
Joined: June 27th, 2015, 6:59 pm

Re: VGC Anti Atari??

Postby noah98 » September 21st, 2018, 7:52 pm

One of the reasons I started visiting this site was because I knew the critic did reviews on classic games, and that he appreciated the classics. Even when I don't agree with him, I think he's fair. Except for his review of Animal Crossing...a complete and utter disgrace, and a black mark on his impeccable record! One of the greatest games of all time given a subpar grade :shock:

In all seriousness, the critic is clearly an Atari fan.

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C64_Critic
Posts: 440
Joined: April 11th, 2015, 11:51 am

Re: VGC Anti Atari??

Postby C64_Critic » September 23rd, 2018, 4:47 pm

It *may* have something to do with this pic from his last Video Game Mania tournament...

https://missilecommand.files.wordpress. ... jpg?w=1000

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scotland
Posts: 2561
Joined: April 7th, 2015, 7:33 pm

Re: VGC Anti Atari??

Postby scotland » September 23rd, 2018, 9:59 pm

Can't be that -- that happens at the end of *every* game of Missile Command

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Retro STrife
Posts: 2531
Joined: August 3rd, 2015, 7:40 pm

Re: VGC Anti Atari??

Postby Retro STrife » September 24th, 2018, 3:51 pm

VideoGameCritic wrote:I've been told that there are actually threads on Atari Age discussing how I am biased AGAINST Atari systems!
Are you guys aware of this? What do YOU think?


That's pretty surprising. Correct me if I'm wrong, but my recollection was that the Atari 2600 was the system that first got you interested in gaming as a kid, and then got you interested in retro gaming in the 90s. You also have one of the largest collection of 2600 reviews on the internet -- whenever I'm digging through a pile of 2600 games at a flea market, convention, etc., it always seems like you have a review for every obscure game that I come across. You don't review as many 2600 games nowadays, but that's largely because you spent the early years reviewing so much of the library. If anything, with your history I'd be worried that you'd be biased FOR Atari systems, although I haven't noticed that either.

thrust26
Posts: 21
Joined: July 31st, 2015, 9:31 am

Re: VGC Anti Atari??

Postby thrust26 » September 25th, 2018, 1:04 pm

I briefly searched AA for such a mentioned thread and could not find it. Does anyone have a link?

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txsizzler
Posts: 163
Joined: April 12th, 2015, 8:21 am

Re: VGC Anti Atari??

Postby txsizzler » September 25th, 2018, 1:51 pm

David wrote:
goldenband wrote:
David wrote:Hmm...so just as an example, I took a peek at your Wii U reviews. About 75 percent of them are C- and above. So are you planing on going back and docking the grades of everything above it to establish an equilibrium of grades?


That's not an ideal example since he hasn't reviewed the complete Wii U library yet. However, the set of reviews for North American 32X games is just one game shy of completion (35/36), and it's quite close to the proportions the VGC describes:

A range: 6/35 games = 17.1%
B range = 9/35 games = 25.7%
C range = 4/35 games = 11.4%
D range = 10/35 games = 28.6%
F range = 6/35 games = 17.1%

That's a pretty darn symmetrical distribution!


Ah, that’s true. Maybe my issue is that an F is generally seen as terrible, whether it’s applied to games, movies, music, etc. Hypothetically, if the Wii U library was complete, there would have to be games arbitrarily receiving poorer scores not based on their quality, but just because there’s a curve. It makes it harder to compare the quality of a console’s library to another.


I agree with David.. the grading system should be based on merit, and not based on some balancing system. If the game is truly terrible, an F score is certainly warranted.. just like games that are made well, and are fun to play should garner higher scores. If, for example, every single Wii U game ever made was of superb quality and fun, then they should ALL get high scores. If they all suck balls, then they should get scores that reflect that... D's and F's.


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