Destiny Review - World of Chorecraft

DTWolfwood

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The confirmation bias i have right now is overwhelming. I want to say "I told you so," so bad. But that doesn't help anyone.

Maybe it comes with age, I'm beginning to see a lot of over hyped games these days are based on gimmicks that hook you in at first, but after a few hours of gameplay you realize just how vapid the experience really is. Titanfall is guilty of this. It's also beginning to look like EVOLVE will fall into the same category (Also not liking the fact they will DLC the fuck out of that game.)

Perhaps age hardens you to the corruption of marketing, or maybe you just become way more cynical, but everyone need to temper their expectations. Don't let the PR and Marketing departments fool you. Low expectations can only mean you'll be pleasantly surprised if something does become great. You'll never be disappointed.

Jim, sorry about all the people claiming you are hating it only because everyone else loves it bullshit that has already been flung your way.
 

Neurotic Void Melody

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Us console owners...when will we have a decent MMO??

The darkness is, by far, the most generic name any species could ever come up with. Disgusting waste of creativity. Wtf happened to, i dunno, actually thinking? With their brain? At all? And what the bloody fuck does that giant floating death st...er, ping pong ball do?? Does it kick any ass?!
 

WhiteTigerShiro

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I guess it just goes to show: The Bungie that brought us Myth and Myth II is long-since dead. All we have now is some team wearing their skin and using their name for it's marketing clout. And here I was clinging to the hopes that Halo being so lackluster was mostly the fault of Microsoft being too over-bearing and forcing changes on the game for the sake of marketability over quality.
 

Vigormortis

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Soviet Heavy said:
But, Destiny isn't really competing with Titanfall. The only thing that really connects them is that they are both science fiction FPS games where you shoot stuff. Apart from that, can you really say that Destiny is in the same vein as Titanfall?

That's like comparing an FPS like STALKER to Call of Duty because they both have Russians. They really aren't compatible.
Oh, I'm not. Don't misunderstand me. I'm not saying they're competing for the same audience. I'm not saying they're "compatible". I know they're completely different games.

What I was saying was, the same criticisms that were levied against Titanfall, of which significantly lowered it's "score" for some critics, are also being levied against Destiny, but have had an almost negligible effect on the overall rating.

I know they're two completely different games. It just seemed...odd to me that some critics aren't aware of the double standard in their criticisms. Made doubly odd by so many gamers drawing parallels between the two games.[footnote]Which we both agree is odd in and of itself)[/footnote]

Granted, that sentiment seems to be in the minority, so in the end it doesn't really matter. It was just an observation.
 

Soviet Heavy

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Vigormortis said:
Soviet Heavy said:
But, Destiny isn't really competing with Titanfall. The only thing that really connects them is that they are both science fiction FPS games where you shoot stuff. Apart from that, can you really say that Destiny is in the same vein as Titanfall?

That's like comparing an FPS like STALKER to Call of Duty because they both have Russians. They really aren't compatible.
Oh, I'm not. Don't misunderstand me. I'm not saying they're competing for the same audience. I'm not saying they're "compatible". I know they're completely different games.

What I was saying was, the same criticisms that were levied against Titanfall, of which significantly lowered it's "score" for some critics, are also being levied against Destiny, but have had an almost negligible effect on the overall rating.

I know they're two completely different games. It just seemed...odd to me that some critics aren't aware of the double standard in their criticisms. Made doubly odd by so many gamers drawing parallels between the two games.[footnote]Which we both agree is odd in and of itself)[/footnote]

Granted, that sentiment seems to be in the minority, so in the end it doesn't really matter. It was just an observation.
The thing about Destiny getting major marks off for its boring story is because that's a significant part of the game. Like I said in another thread, one of the selling features of the game was supposed to be this rich, engrossing, encyclopedia's worth of narrative content. It's obvious that Bungie and Activision wanted people to care about this game's world, and that it is so generic just makes the disappointment sting more.

Titanfall has a barebones story, but people aren't really playing Titanfall for its story. It was built as a multiplayer affair foremost, and that is what it delivers on.
 

laggyteabag

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Vigormortis said:
myke66 said:
You explained the reasoning for your feeling in your opening remarks. "A short time playing". The game fleshes itself out the longer you play. I challenge you to come back here after you have completed the first Strike on the Moon and see if your feels are the same. I will tell you that it didnt really "hook" me until around level 10-15.

This is my main gripe with this review, the thing reads like the author never even reached max level to see all the game has to offer.
Your projecting a bias onto me that I don't have, or you didn't understand the context of my post. I didn't say I've only played it for a very small stint and stopped. I played it for hours with my friend and it failed to hook me. Even as our characters gained levels, skills, weapons, etc, the fun factor never increased. At that point it feels like a very standard MMO-grind-fest. Hell, many reviews have even been saying as much; and that includes high-level characters. Even the end game sounds barren. (though the friend-only raids might remedy this)

So what I was saying was: after sinking some decent time into the game, further visits to Destiny's world aren't appealing.

In the future, please don't immediately jump to the conclusion that someone with a differing opinion to yours just hasn't "dedicated" themselves enough to the material. And unless something drastic changes with the game, my "feels" will remain the same.

Besides, if a game basically says, "This game isn't fun at all until you've already sunk dozens or hundreds of hours into it.", then it's a terrible game. It's one of the primary reasons I have stayed the hell away from MMOs like World of Warcraft. It makes me cringe every time someone says to me, "You have to keep at it! The game gets fun at level 70!"

No. Fuck that.
Pretty much hit the nail on the head there. If a game doesn't interest me in the first few hours, then why should I have the patience to slog through the rest of it. Many games have fallen to this, and the promise of a better game later down the line isn't enough to justify spending more time playing a game that isn't overly satisfying to begin with. In most cases the game will still be the same later down the line than it is now, and if the story isn't overly compelling or told very well to begin with, there isn't going to be some huge payoff at the end, so there is very little point continuing.
 

Laughing Man

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All in all I personally would give Destiny an 8/10, with the caveat that most of the glaring issues are going to be worked out via patches.
Please don't get my comments twisted, i'm not saying Destiny is a perfect game, but it still deserves a fair review for the type of game it is.
Interesting you state he should review it fairly, well he did that he reviewed it based on the game he had in front of him, on the other hand your review ended with a score based on a caveat that the game gets fixed with DLC updates, so which of the two reviews is actually the most fair? The lower score based on the game in hand or the higher score based on the assumption that it will be fixed at a later date with updates? Of more interest is given that you gave it an 8 out of 10 on the basis that it gets fixed what score would you give it in it's current state?

He should have, you're right. Thats why Bungie had the review embargo up, for this exact reason.
Lol, agreeing with the sarcasm, that's brilliant and a review embargo doesn't scream we are going to make the game better at some point in the future please don't pre judge it, it screams we aren't sure the game is as good as we have been claiming it to be and blocking pre release reviews is the only way to protect our day one sales.

I'll be honest I have no interest in this game what so ever, everything I've seen of the game registered as meh with a little bit of oh that kinda looks like Borderlands (a game I love) thrown in. Jim's review at least confirms that it isn't anything like Borderlands but it also confirms everything else, the game is meh! and after reading one or two things about it it seems very very expensive meh! It's a Steam Christmas sale purchase two years down the line when it is being sold for £5.
 

Davroth

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Some people in here need to remember that a 6/10 from Jim Sterling isn't a bad rating.

Good, but flawed, I believe is how he put it once. So yeah. If you feel like anything below 8/10 is crap, well, that's on you. That's you internalizing the way big news sites give out scores to generate hype. I for one am glad that Jim doesn't play that game.
 

Vigormortis

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Soviet Heavy said:
The thing about Destiny getting major marks off for its boring story is because that's a significant part of the game. Like I said in another thread, one of the selling features of the game was supposed to be this rich, engrossing, encyclopedia's worth of narrative content. It's obvious that Bungie and Activision wanted people to care about this game's world, and that it is so generic just makes the disappointment sting more.

Titanfall has a barebones story, but people aren't really playing Titanfall for its story. It was built as a multiplayer affair foremost, and that is what it delivers on.
Heh. We're actually fairly in line in terms of our thinking on this. And I agree with your statement entirely.

But that was my point in the previous post. Most people didn't really expect a complex narrative from Titanfall, but that didn't stop some from viewing a lack of one upon release as a major strike against the game. A failing that couldn't be outweighed by any other aspect of the game. Yet, when they expect a complex narrative from Destiny, but end up with shallow rubbish, it's just sort of excused because, "At least PvP is fun!"

That's what I was getting at.

And again, it seems to be an opinion that is in the minority, so it's not really something I'll be dwelling on.
 

Shamanic Rhythm

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myke66 said:
The game is designed with "end game" in mind. You arent meant to spend most of your time on the campaign, you get through the campaign to begin gearing up your character for the challenges setup to be done at max level.
In that case I agree, it's definitely not worth 6/10. If you have to play it for twenty hours before it gets good, then it's more like a 4/10.
 

Andy Shandy

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Sounds about right, from everything I've heard about it. Bit of a shame really, especially considering the money and the development team behind it. Ah well.
 

Vigormortis

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Laggyteabag said:
Pretty much hit the nail on the head there. If a game doesn't interest me in the first few hours, then why should I have the patience to slog through the rest of it. Many games have fallen to this, and the promise of a better game later down the line isn't enough to justify spending more time playing a game that isn't overly satisfying to begin with. In most cases the game will still be the same later down the line than it is now, and if the story isn't overly compelling or told very well to begin with, there isn't going to be some huge payoff at the end, so there is very little point continuing.
Precisely my point.

I'm all for a game getting better over time. I love seeing a game expand and grow as the developer and community contribute to it.

However, if I have to wait for those contributions to come around before the game becomes fun...

Yeah, no. I will flatly refuse to devote any time to a game that doesn't have some degree of "fun" to it from the outset. This is doubly so for narrative-driven games and competitive online games.[footnote](I would not have devoted hundreds of hours of play time to, nor worked my way up to doing amateur and pro-level scrims in, Left 4 Dead 2 and Dota 2 had they not been fun to me from the outset.)[/footnote]

Now I will freely admit that some of the gun-play in Destiny is fun. However, it's not quite fun enough for me to want to devote any time to it's seemingly barren world.

Once the (promised) end-game content starts rolling out maybe that'll change. But as it is: It'll be a fun game to occasionally play with friends, but not really one I plan to visit often.

And really, I think that's what a lot of people were expecting. So all-in-all I imagine it's lived up to the expectations of many.
 

Fsyco

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Charcharo said:
People.
A 6/10 is NOT a bad score with Jim. Not at all.
It is above average. Good.

The average score for video games should be around 5. Maybe just a tad more.
Currently it is around 7...
That is not right.
That's probably because most people think of scores in terms of school grades. It's pretty natural, really. People think of a new, abstract thing in terms of something else they understand better. The reason you have the '7-9' scale is because in school, knowing at least 70% of the material means you pass the class, and below that is considered failing. Shifting it down just fucks with people's heads, since they have nothing else to really compare it too. While a 6 means an above-average score, and that Jim liked the game, people think he's giving it a failing grade.

Of course, that's assuming you normalize the distribution of scores so that, by definition, 5 is in the middle, which means you have to compare it to other games, which is a bit of an issue if you have a big glut of shit games, since games have certain objective indicators of quality (technical stuff, like how it performs and controls). I have no idea how you'd factor in objective AND comparitive, subjective stuff into calculating a single score.

In short: Making a decent scoring system is hard and complex. Personally, I vote to scrap it all together since I, like Yahtzee, believe opinions cannot be properly expressed by a single number, but alot of people seem to like them and want to keep them, so we're stuck with the system we have.
 

MonkeyPunch

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myke66 said:
Pretty piss poor review in my opinion. Harps on the story and downplays the best parts of the game to push the "edgey" bad review out of Destiny. Author even admits he's still hooked and enjoying it.

The story was not meant to be the main focal point of the game. Anyone who played D3 should understand the concept of Destiny. It's not about a long campaign like Halo was, it was about creating a world and setting where you will be playing in over and over. The game is designed with "end game" in mind. You arent meant to spend most of your time on the campaign, you get through the campaign to begin gearing up your character for the challenges setup to be done at max level.

Any review that isnt taking this into account doesn't understand what Destiny is, and frankly shouldnt be writing reviews.

Dont get me wrong, Destiny has its flaws. Lack of matchmaking for story/public missions, lack of social features, slow pacing regarding loot while leveling up. But these are patchable items, growing pains if you will for any new MMO. This should also be remembered and talked about while reviewing the game, it doesnt end at the content on the disc, Bungie has already stated its intentions for updates and new (free) content. This may be a new concept for console users, but pretty standard for PC gaming.

All in all I personally would give Destiny an 8/10, with the caveat that most of the glaring issues are going to be worked out via patches.
So what you're essentially saying is that you'd give it an 8 out of 10 for something it may or may not do..? Maybe?
You need to remember that Jim is reviewing the game as it is and not reading in to the future (thank god) and playing a guessing game or reading a magical ball.
You could apply your statement to a lot of games. SiN Episodes ring a bell? Promised episodes which never materialised. Not saying Destiny won't have any DLC but you cannot review a game based on what may or may not be, maybe, as promised, potentially etc.
Totally ignoring the fact that if I buy a game I want it to be good without the DLC. You can review the DLC when it comes out. This product is sold as-is and needs to be reviewed as such.

Secondly you seem to magically know what the developers intended.
Not only that but you're criticising the reviewer for playing the game how he wanted and chose to play it. "You're doing it wrong! Play it like this!". Naw man.
Destiny is what it is, not what you think it should be and Jim isn't going to review the game with your delusions as a consideration.

Also listen to the Giant Bombcast [http://www.giantbomb.com/podcasts/]. Bunch of them have a fairly similar opinion and gripes about Destiny. (they start talking about it a couple of minutes in)
 

Barbas

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myke66 said:
Vigormortis said:
What's been fascinating me most about this game release is the disparity in the critiques. Or rather, the double standards some critics have been showing. And my point of reference is Titanfall.

Titanfall - Great PvP gameplay! But mediocre story and not much content. 3/10
Destiny - Great PvP gameplay! But mediocre story and not much content. 9/10

I just....don't get it.

Anyway, relatively spot on review compared to my experience so far. But after only a short time playing the game online I find myself yearning to return to one of my other current go-to online PvP or Co-op games. I'd just rather play something else rather than sit for any length of time in Destiny.

It seems to me almost like Bungie has lost their "spark"; their creativity. It sounds cliche but Destiny just feels soulless.

Perhaps future content updates can remedy this. I don't know.
You explained the reasoning for your feeling in your opening remarks. "A short time playing". The game fleshes itself out the longer you play. I challenge you to come back here after you have completed the first Strike on the Moon and see if your feels are the same. I will tell you that it didnt really "hook" me until around level 10-15.

This is my main gripe with this review, the thing reads like the author never even reached max level to see all the game has to offer.
He does a lot, so I doubt he'd have time to get that far into a game. "It gets better at x" is not much of a defense if reaching x is the work of a full day or more.

Vigormortis said:
Eeyup. Fallout: New Vegas was an infamous mess on release and as a result, I spent a few hours playing it and deleted it in disgust, not touching it until over a year later.

Precisely my point.

I'm all for a game getting better over time. I love seeing a game expand and grow as the developer and community contribute to it.

However, if I have to wait for those contributions to come around before the game becomes fun...
...then what's the rush, right? It's only going to cost more now anyway. Pardon my crudity, but once a game becomes a chore, it's only a small matter of time before I realize I could be wanking instead for free.
 

Fsyco

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myke66 said:
Please don't get my comments twisted, i'm not saying Destiny is a perfect game, but it still deserves a fair review for the type of game it is.
What's unfair about Jim's review? He played many hours of it, thought it was above average but very flawed, and assigned a score coinciding with his opinion.

If the initial experience of the player isn't fun, and all the good bits are at the end, it is not the player's duty to sludge through the beginning to get to the enjoyment. It is the fault of the developers for not designing the game well. Inserting a horse's cock into your anus might be a jolly good time once your sphincter has adjusted to accommodate it (or has lost all feeling), but the initial, unlubed intrusion isn't going to be fun, and the barrier to entry will turn alot of people off the experience.
 

MonkeyPunch

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Fsyco said:
If the initial experience of the player isn't fun, and all the good bits are at the end, it is not the player's duty to sludge through the beginning to get to the enjoyment. It is the fault of the developers for not designing the game well. Inserting a horse's cock into your anus might be a jolly good time once your sphincter has adjusted to accommodate it (or has lost all feeling), but the initial, unlubed intrusion isn't going to be fun, and the barrier to entry will turn alot of people off the experience.
Amazing analogy!
(yes, yes I saw it too analogy)
 

Baresark

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I looked at this game quite a bit and even with all of the play videos from the beta, it never looked fun to me. I'm not inclined to buy it. Especially hearing it's very "MMO-y". Guess I'll skip it, for now at least.