The folly of review scores - The Bear and Badger

Sasukekun

With the new Family guy game getting a panning, and Official XBox Magazine's rather damming 'Choose Your Own Review Content' review, is it time that magazines dropped this rather archaic practice altogether?
Yes I understand some people feel 'safe' with review scores. Somehow that number on the end allows them to justify their future (Or in some cases Past) purchase(s). But, for these people, surely writing the review itself is pointless? If they're going to base their purchase on nothing more than a number attributed without reading the reasons why then why not just have a page, with a title, and then a giant number underneath?

It's high time magazines ditched that number, and let their words do the talking. Who knows, it might actually help people with their reading skills?

I realise that we've done the reviews are subjective argument before. But I felt that this thread would dissolve into the argument once again (either that or a new sandwich discussion), and decided to just base the whole thing around it.

Dark Soldier

They won't drop the scores, the world's still teeming with idiots who refuse to read and see the number as the be all and end all. Reviews are fucked, however, if the numbers begin to go over ten as I believe such cunts would struggle then.

Moot_Geeza

I had a sneaking suspicion Edge were going to drop the scores with their last last redesign, but alas, they dropped the overall quality instead.

[Deleted User]

I gave Family Guy a [5] apparently.
I ticked a few boxes purely because I didn't like the writer's self-sucking writing style.

Terrible way to write a review and indeed anything else. The game may well be shit but write a proper review rather than being a sarcastic prick.

Mod74

I'm confused. It's time to drop review scores because a licensed stocking filler based on a TV show turns out to be pish?

equinox_code

Balls to getting rid of scores completely. Sometimes I'd like to gauge the quality of a game without finding out too much about it. The best example I can think of right now is Demon Souls (or whatever the 360 version's called). I've seen the scores and the massive thread, but avoided reviews completely. I don't want to know anything about it, with perhaps the only exception being a numerical value which tells me it's good.

Sasukekun

Mod74 wrote:

I'm confused. It's time to drop review scores because a licensed stocking filler based on a TV show turns out to be pish?

I wouldn't class something that would cost Â£39.99 a stocking filler.

Jacuzzi_Jackson

Publications want to appear on the front of triple A games or big budget films giving the high reviews and the game or film producers want to adorn their adverts and packaging with five stars and high scores from the publications. Its far more about advertisement for both parties than anything else i would think.

Yossarian

I like scores. It lets me tell at a glance which reviews are worth reading. Back when I was getting Edge, I'd read a review of anything that got an 8 or higher (or 4 or lower) regardless of platform. No scores and I probably wouldn't bother looking at reviews of games for consoles I don't own.

Dark Soldier

I like how those Family Guy reviews manage to use absolute fucking base humour banging on about how WACKY and RANDOM the show is because people aren't aware of that and haven't been since 1999. Espesh OXM which is the best review EVAR because you can click boxes haha!

Up ya game ya dicks.

hylian_elf

Scores are great. They should never be dropped.

Mod74

Sasukekun wrote:

Mod74 wrote:

I'm confused. It's time to drop review scores because a licensed stocking filler based on a TV show turns out to be pish?

I wouldn't class something that would cost Â£39.99 a stocking filler.

Depends how rich you are.

What I meant was that it's the usual Christmas shovelware.

Elmlea

Scores are great. Â The text of the review generally goes towards justifying the score so I think you need both. Â I also don't get why Family Guy being shit means we need to change our mind over scores?

adkm1979

I like review scores. Â While the furore about Stanton's review of Resident Evil not (obviously, at first glance, without engaging the brain) matching the score highlighted an issue, I'm generally not opposed to a critical review with a high score, or a approving review with a low score. Â A score provides a nice perspective for the words. Â Reviews would have to be considerably longer, in general, to encapsulate all the required information and the right tone. Â Not only that, but if I'm standing in a shop, looking at a game, considering a purchase, I'd rather use my phone to look up metacritic than read half a dozen individual reviews. Â Now, the scores may well be mid-range, suggesting further research is required, but if I couldn't do that, went home, read a few trustworthy reviews, realised everyone loved it and went back in to town to find it was no longer in the sale, I'd be miffed.

Sasukekun

Elmlea wrote:

Scores are great. Â The text of the review generally goes towards justifying the score so I think you need both. Â I also don't get why Family Guy being shit means we need to change our mind over scores?

The purpose was never 'Shit game is shit, we need to change how we review things!' It was prompted by OXM's create-a-review with it's subjective score at the end. Basically prompting people to read each section and click the boxes that apply to them.
Knowing that it would most likely go into a discussion on review scores in general I decided to make it into a thread.

Kow

I just read that OXM review and it's not any kind of "do-it-yourself review". It's taking the piss and saying that the game is utter shit.

Elmlea

Yeah, I don't think it can ever be as simple as "if you agree with these statements/like these things then it's this score." Â Edge were always fairly sharp with their description of scores back years ago, pointing out that those who enjoy a particular series or genre would very probably enjoy a game in that series/genre that only scores a 5 or a 6 because they're willing to gloss over its obvious issues. Â But for a game to score that, it must have some obvious issues.

That worked for me all the time. Â I've enjoyed some Edge 5s (Alpha Protocol!) and 6s (Tenchu Z!) because I liked that sort of game. Â I could see the errors and problems that cut their scores down, but because I'm smart enough to read the reviews to contextualise the score, I realised there was a lot I'd like. Â Likewise, they can go on about the dynamics and technical achievement in Bayonetta (an Edge 10) as much as they like, and I can agree and say it sounds like it's a worthy Edge 10. Â But I also know it's not my type of thing and I'm never going to enjoy it, so I can make an informed judgement from both elements of the review.

JonB

I find scores have a use, but the exploitation of them has become too great. It would be worth seeing them go just to get rid of all the ridiculous publicity business that surrounds them. It would be harder to buy reviews, devs wouldn't be rewarded for aiming at metacritic scores that mostly reflect the thoughts of mediocre reviewers, and mags/games sites couldn't live off throwing around 'controversial' numbers. I like knowing that Edge gave this game a 7 and this one a 9 just to get a general measure, but that's all it should be. And unfortunately it isn't.

mistercrayon

I think its hard to put games as seriously as a medium next to fillums and music if you can't trust the maturity of the audience to accept scores in the same way as review scores for those are accepted.

tis a nonsense that scores are related to bonuses of payment though.

beano

JonB wrote:

I find scores have a use, but the exploitation of them has become too great. It would be worth seeing them go just to get rid of all the ridiculous publicity business that surrounds them. It would be harder to buy reviews, devs wouldn't be rewarded for aiming at metacritic scores that mostly reflect the thoughts of mediocre reviewers, and mags/games sites couldn't live off throwing around 'controversial' numbers. I like knowing that Edge gave this game a 7 and this one a 9 just to get a general measure, but that's all it should be. And unfortunately it isn't.

See current topic of activision contract. RE: $2.5m bonus.

google

Sasukekun wrote:

With the new Family guy game getting a panning, and Official XBox Magazine's rather damming 'Choose Your Own Review Content' review, is it time that magazines dropped this rather archaic practice altogether? Yes I understand some people feel 'safe' with review scores. Somehow that number on the end allows them to justify their future (Or in some cases Past) purchase(s). But, for these people, surely writing the review itself is pointless? If they're going to base their purchase on nothing more than a number attributed without reading the reasons why then why not just have a page, with a title, and then a giant number underneath? It's high time magazines ditched that number, and let their words do the talking. Who knows, it might actually help people with their reading skills? I realise that we've done the reviews are subjective argument before. But I felt that this thread would dissolve into the argument once again (either that or a new sandwich discussion), and decided to just base the whole thing around it.

Bezza89Â onÂ 27Â NovÂ '12Â said:ReportÂ thisÂ postÂ ReplyÂ withÂ quote
Best.Â Review.Â Ever.

MoreÂ likeÂ thisÂ please!

EvilRedEye

One argument against review scores it that it discourages people from reading the text but on the very rare occasion I read the Observer I struggle with the film reviews because there are no scores and nothing to draw me into the review at a glance. I think the problem is that because games are still expensive, there's a tendency to have overly detailed scores (allowing arguably unnecessary comparison with other potential purchases) and to place too much importance on them (making them the conclusive final word instead of the broad lure that newspapers use scores for). I think scores are necessary but I'd be more happy with an out-of-five score at the beginning of a review than an out-of-a-hundred score at the end.

Yossarian

Yeah, out of five seems the way to go, with 5/5 being used very rarely. Even ranking out of ten seems like overkill.

EvilRedEye

Seemed to work OK for Digitiser back in the day.

Elmlea

I miss ACE and its scores out of 1000.

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