Escapist Podcast: 022: Pizza, Modern Warfare 3 and VGAs

[Mikeyfell]

Notice I didn't say feeling don't or shouldn't be able to effect negatively as well as positively, I was merely point out that the two points were not directed at the same thing. I can subjectively let my feelings dictate that Baldur's Gate is an amazing experience that I greatly enjoy, despite knowing its flaws. I can also objectively say that Gran Turismo is an excellent racing game despite having almost no interest in it.

I guess my point is simply even if you flat out dislike MW3, I can't see someone making the argument that it's more poorly constructed game than Thor: God of Thunder or some other equally broken/bad title. I could certainly see personal dislike knocking it down into the average range of 4-6/10, but 0 just strikes me as intentionally bias and not approaching it from both the subjective and objective angles.

I do see your point about the Thor comparison. In order to respond to that I'd have to reveal my own bias. It partly has to do with expectations, like Steven Spielberg releasing a terrible film versus a student film being awful. Some companies responsible for these games have juggernauts backing them with mounds of money and their perfectly functional game is still awful (based on personal preference). Where smaller companies that don't get as many resources releasing a barely functional game, I think the former is worse.

If you add a point for everything a game does right and subtract one for everything a game does wrong you could easily get a zero score. Especially if you weigh each thing you rate differently.

 

[Susan Arendt]

Notice I didn't say feeling don't or shouldn't be able to effect negatively as well as positively, I was merely point out that the two points were not directed at the same thing. I can subjectively let my feelings dictate that Baldur's Gate is an amazing experience that I greatly enjoy, despite knowing its flaws. I can also objectively say that Gran Turismo is an excellent racing game despite having almost no interest in it.

I guess my point is simply even if you flat out dislike MW3, I can't see someone making the argument that it's more poorly constructed game than Thor: God of Thunder or some other equally broken/bad title. I could certainly see personal dislike knocking it down into the average range of 4-6/10, but 0 just strikes me as intentionally bias and not approaching it from both the subjective and objective angles.

I do see your point about the Thor comparison. In order to respond to that I'd have to reveal my own bias. It partly has to do with expectations, like Steven Spielberg releasing a terrible film versus a student film being awful. Some companies responsible for these games have juggernauts backing them with mounds of money and their perfectly functional game is still awful (based on personal preference). Where smaller companies that don't get as many resources releasing a barely functional game, I think the former is worse.

If you add a point for everything a game does right and subtract one for everything a game does wrong you could easily get a zero score. Especially if you weigh each thing you rate differently.

If you're really dead set on giving a game a lousy score, you can certainly find plenty of ways to justify it. But that's having an axe to grind, not writing a review to be informative and helpful. Ideally, you review every game in a vaccuum, judging on its own merits and nothing else - not other games, not who made it, not what else is out at the time, nothing.

 

[Mikeyfell]

Is it possible that someone hated every single aspect of MW3? Sure, absolutely. Does that mean the game is a 0? No - it means it's a 0 for them. The multiplayer works quite well, as do the core mechanics of the game, etc - even if you don't personally enjoy it, you must be able to take an objective look at a game's elements in order for your review to have merit for others. (Of course, as you point out, objective is a relative term, but I think you get my point.) I personally cannot stand Ocarina of Time or Majora's Mask because of the graphics and sound. Something about the combination of the two - the angles of the polygons and the shrillness of the fairies' laughs - sets my teeth so on edge that immediately become agitated. I quite literally cannot bear to play those games - but giving them a 0 would be ridiculous, because I'm clearly having a very personal, emotional reaction to them. Looking at them while putting my personal issues aside, I can see why people love them, and understand why, despite the fact that I hate them, they're still not "0" games.

Based on our scale here, if a game works - that is to say it runs - then that alone brings it up to a 1. A game would literally have to not function in order for us to give it a 0.

The way I see it who else are they supposed to be zeros for? It's your review if you had a zero time you should express that. Not everyone will agree but that's just more information about how well your critical spectrum lines up with those of your readers. After reading enough of your reviews I know how much your opinion matters to me. If you hate a game then write a review that says "The mechanics are fine and X Y and Z. You use a controller, it comes in a box." That tells me nothing about how you felt about the game, that makes it harder for me to compare our opinions.

If you're really dead set on giving a game a lousy score, you can certainly find plenty of ways to justify it. But that's having an axe to grind, not writing a review to be informative and helpful. Ideally, you review every game in a vaccuum, judging on its own merits and nothing else - not other games, not who made it, not what else is out at the time, nothing.

I typically use reviews to help me decide what games to buy or movies to see. If I can read a review (that I trust) that will strait up tell me X is better than Y I'd appreciate it.

Also I count amount of fun had as a pretty important merit. Not so much who made it, like I said getting pissed at big developers that resell the same game over and over is my vice.

 

[Right Hook]

Good episode, I liked it.