Game Review Scores Suck

Discussion around game reviews for any platform, whether it's a Nintendo Switch, Xbox, PS5 or PC game, has always been a bit messy, and a large part of that is thanks to numbers. Some thoughts.

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[Clyburnhi]

I tend to buy what interests me based on past experiences with the series, company, and what fun I will get from the game. I've played games that people find awful because of graphics or the small context involved and found them great. People have forgotten about having fun and base everything around price or peer pressure logic. Play what you want and if they demoralize what you play just don't give them attention. Game on.

[NoNoz]

I definitely encourage you to create more content like this. It’s engaging, relevant, and definitely not redundant…yet. You know how the surf on YouTube is with people riding others’ waves. You’re in the front Kev.. Use that momentum!

[tylerroach]

It's better to just listen to what the reviewer says rather than look at the score

[_MrJasonW]

More of these types of videos please. Much more engaging and thought-provoking than just another controller review.

[NoNoz]

Very well said, Kevin. This is why I think free demos are a great thing. Each player will feel differently about a game. If they played a demo before reading reviews and ratings they can then just take the reviews with a grain of salt. I trust my own subjective opinion after a hands on experience much more than another’s point of view when viewed with no experience of my own.

[JZekis]

I think I learned with movies years ago that the best way to find a movie you like is to try to find a reviewer, or better yet a few reviewers, who have somewhat similar taste to you and stay open to their recommendations

[shortazn]

it's a double edged sword how saturated the game market is. I love the sheer amount of different games out there -- there's truly something for everyone! But also it's so overwhelming how many games there are (especially indie titles, which are the games that are usually trying something new and taking risks) but also a lot of big studios keep hashing out repetitive shit too

[bill]

That's a blanket statement. Also, anyone who pre-orders games in todays climate is just not an intelligent person.

Individual reviews can be pretty far off at times but most of the time they're accurate. It all depends on who the reviewer is.

That's why Metacritic is almost always highly accurate. It's rarely ever off but sometimes it is. There's been instances where reviewers were paid off for good reviews or where people start being biased towards a game because of some personal reason.

These things are very rare, though. Like, I've never once played a game with a Metacritic score in the mid 90's (out of 100) and not had it end up being a masterpiece.

Likewise I've never once played a game with a Metacritic of 90 or higher and had it be a bad game.

[junix]

we're always ready for videos that are relevant to gaming and topics that are not often talked about kevin. thank you! hoping to see more

[whoyacallinpinhead]

Ive always felt this way about a lot of Ubisoft games. Watch Dogs, Far cry, Asassins creed, I would say personally are 8-10s for me. To the majority, probably not. But I've learned not to rely so much about what other people think and do my own thing. Now if I said redfall was a 10, we would have issues 🤣

[SpiderLuke]

I’m glad you made this. I get so pissed and the idiots that jump to conclusions about the reviewer being paid off or if they react negatively towards them for their solo opinion. It doesn’t change what the reader feels. That’s what one other person felt.

[Kruxx]

Great video, Kevin. You have summed up most of my feelings towards reviews and award ceremonies nowadays. I have been enjoying games a lot more by looking at how they play or what they have to offer instead of looking at a single number score and discarding it right away.

[theLethalRabbit]

There is an obsession with numbers and statistics and scores in our society. Probably because 1) it's simple to understand a score (while exchanging real arguments is harder) and 2) it gives an impression of "objectivity". But as you say, there's no such thing as an "objective" experience. Somehow people tend to forget this and presume their personal taste could be the same for everyone else... And numbers don't always tell the truth.

There are times that I think it would be better if there weren't any scores at all. No grading systems. Just written reviews - no scores. Just opinions, without little numbers to accompany them. I know this could never happen in our world as it is right now - but sometimes I wish it did.

I'm really enjoying your videos. Keep up the good work!

[okestgamer]

Great video! I’ve definitely seen reviews used as a definitive decision on whether something is good or bad. I myself have done this without even realizing it (rotten tomatoes for me). If a game gets below 5/10 average I usually suspect that there is definitely something up haha. But I’ve also wondered when I see 7/10s. Interesting video for sure, something to think about more when I notice my reactions to scores.

[lespaulpanhead]

I love this video cause Kevins saying “play the game for yourself and decide whether it’s good or not.” Well done Kevin.

[chanandlerbong]

Reviews are food for thought for me to decide if I want to jump into the game as well or pass and save my monies :)

[Nonameplz_]

I 100% agree! I think it's better to look up a few individual reviews of people you tend to agree with, and a little bit of gameplay from the first half hour to hour of a game.

[chestonrobbinsii]

Ok I agreed with 80% of what you said. I disagree when it comes to the company and “game journalists” that give out reviews which show up on a games Ad or on game of the year boxes. Those company’s have access and certain amounts of power with company’s. When games are bad or broken, like the newest Pokémon games, it’s their responsibility to an extent to give a honest review to hold those company’s to the fire. I think that’s why a lot of people have been so angry with review scores recently.

[latch]

I agree with the 7's are not bad I feel reviews are more important now than ever before.

With games costing as much as $125 aud and coming out broken as hell (golum/redfall/cyberpunk)or missing major promised features (halo/no mans sky), I feel reviews are the only thing that are keeping the publishers honest. Cause good reviews move units.

Would you buy a chair missing all legs, then being told, "The legs will come out over the next 6 to 8 months, so you need to be cool with us doing that otherwise you are ungrateful" you wouldn't buy the chair would you? The company would collapse for shipping a dodgy product, but this the total norm for gaming; its not a balanced scale for consumers. Until the gaming publisher industry decides that shipping a broken product voids xyz, we need reviews to hold them accountable. They are taking good money for a product that has been falsely advised. Until the industry builds basic guidelines I.e. if you show something must be in game and outline platform it was displayed on; reviews are needed.

[geek-elite]

I always appreciate it when any folks with an actual platform come out and definitively say "There are no objective reviews." I hate how often people pan a review for being subjective when what they really mean is that it differs from *their* opinion. I can't even quantify the amount of pushback I've gotten for saying this very thing, and it's frustrating. Thank you for this video.