Comments on: Nathan Drake and the Secret of Metascores http://www.couchcampus.com/lecture/nathan-drake-and-the-secret-of-metascores/ Sat, 24 Jul 2010 22:09:50 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Dougie http://www.couchcampus.com/lecture/nathan-drake-and-the-secret-of-metascores/#comment-1513 Dougie Sat, 30 Jan 2010 07:51:39 +0000 http://couchcampus.com/?p=3451#comment-1513 Oh man am I glad this game is getting the respect deserved. Oh man am I glad this game is getting the respect deserved.

]]> By: SideMission http://www.couchcampus.com/lecture/nathan-drake-and-the-secret-of-metascores/#comment-582 SideMission Sat, 24 Oct 2009 21:01:04 +0000 http://couchcampus.com/?p=3451#comment-582 Presumably developers and producers get Metacritic target incentives too.. they're the ones who directly influence the product. PR people can affect hype, sales, etc. but if part of their job is to pressure writers into giving a game good scores, alarm bells go off a bit for me. I hope in the long run PR people focus on -communities- which are, with online modes, etc. increasingly becoming part of the product. Presumably developers and producers get Metacritic target incentives too.. they’re the ones who directly influence the product. PR people can affect hype, sales, etc. but if part of their job is to pressure writers into giving a game good scores, alarm bells go off a bit for me. I hope in the long run PR people focus on -communities- which are, with online modes, etc. increasingly becoming part of the product.

]]> By: deftangel http://www.couchcampus.com/lecture/nathan-drake-and-the-secret-of-metascores/#comment-575 deftangel Sat, 24 Oct 2009 00:40:33 +0000 http://couchcampus.com/?p=3451#comment-575 The biggest problem with Metacritic as far as the industry is concerned is that some publishers treat it as the only barometer of quality that matters. Peter Moore has been quick to point out that the FIFA franchise getting over a 90 on Metacritic means they've made a great game. He's right. EA would be pretty wrong to not pay royalties / bonuses etc. if they got a bit unlucky and "only" got 89 though. Sadly, that happens some of the time. PR departments get Metacritic "targets" (what are they supposed to do if the game sucks?). Metacritic should be taken for what it is, a useful snippet of information about any given game in terms of "what have the reviews been like". No more, no less. The biggest problem with Metacritic as far as the industry is concerned is that some publishers treat it as the only barometer of quality that matters.

Peter Moore has been quick to point out that the FIFA franchise getting over a 90 on Metacritic means they’ve made a great game. He’s right. EA would be pretty wrong to not pay royalties / bonuses etc. if they got a bit unlucky and “only” got 89 though.

Sadly, that happens some of the time. PR departments get Metacritic “targets” (what are they supposed to do if the game sucks?).

Metacritic should be taken for what it is, a useful snippet of information about any given game in terms of “what have the reviews been like”. No more, no less.

]]> By: lemon http://www.couchcampus.com/lecture/nathan-drake-and-the-secret-of-metascores/#comment-572 lemon Fri, 23 Oct 2009 22:29:42 +0000 http://couchcampus.com/?p=3451#comment-572 The metacritic average or even the # of perfect scores mean less to me than the fact that no review from over 80 reviews scored the game less than a 9/10....when i read reviews, i normally read 2 from the top, 2 from the other end of the scale and 2 from in between... There's normally someone that doesn't like the game, but in this instance, with only scores over 90...it really speaks volumes about the quality of this title... And to be fair, i believe most of the games that scored over 90% in teh last 18 months actually deserved it.... The metacritic average or even the # of perfect scores mean less to me than the fact that no review from over 80 reviews scored the game less than a 9/10….when i read reviews, i normally read 2 from the top, 2 from the other end of the scale and 2 from in between…

There’s normally someone that doesn’t like the game, but in this instance, with only scores over 90…it really speaks volumes about the quality of this title…

And to be fair, i believe most of the games that scored over 90% in teh last 18 months actually deserved it….

]]> By: Phaethon http://www.couchcampus.com/lecture/nathan-drake-and-the-secret-of-metascores/#comment-571 Phaethon Fri, 23 Oct 2009 19:58:13 +0000 http://couchcampus.com/?p=3451#comment-571 I'm not a huge proponent of the metascore, I prefer to read a solid review instead of checking them. Although I do glance at them to get an idea of a game's reception. If I'm still not sure about it I'll look for reviews on smaller sites. Typically if you have any lingering suspicions the author will still be around to answer a follow-up question and not bouncing off to their next paid review. I don't think they teach developer's lessons. A lot of times the failures of great games aren't highlighted. At the same time a bad game could have been made great by a simple change, but a publisher is most likely going to look at the scores and the sales and toss it in the bin. It's a horrible situation the industry is in only looking to these scores when games need a more important basis for criteria than music and movies. A lot more has to go on in your brain when you play a game, so that should be the case when you judge one as well. I don't think reading is out of the question when you're really unsure of something, but scores alone aren't helping anyone in this industry. I’m not a huge proponent of the metascore, I prefer to read a solid review instead of checking them. Although I do glance at them to get an idea of a game’s reception. If I’m still not sure about it I’ll look for reviews on smaller sites. Typically if you have any lingering suspicions the author will still be around to answer a follow-up question and not bouncing off to their next paid review.

I don’t think they teach developer’s lessons. A lot of times the failures of great games aren’t highlighted. At the same time a bad game could have been made great by a simple change, but a publisher is most likely going to look at the scores and the sales and toss it in the bin.

It’s a horrible situation the industry is in only looking to these scores when games need a more important basis for criteria than music and movies. A lot more has to go on in your brain when you play a game, so that should be the case when you judge one as well. I don’t think reading is out of the question when you’re really unsure of something, but scores alone aren’t helping anyone in this industry.

]]> By: SideMission http://www.couchcampus.com/lecture/nathan-drake-and-the-secret-of-metascores/#comment-568 SideMission Fri, 23 Oct 2009 18:36:08 +0000 http://couchcampus.com/?p=3451#comment-568 I like to think that games are getting better :) And I think Uncharted 2 deserves a great score. I just find that the difference between say, an 80 and 94 is usually pretty subjective. And there are ever-increasing numbers of games cracking 90. I did some digging (woohoo, statistics): Games to score 90 or better in 2008: 17 In 2007: 14 In 2006: 8, if you expand the results to include Xbox 1 and PS2 (and only 4 if you don't). So I stand by my suggestion that scores are on the rise. There are many reasons they could be on the rise, I've attempted to touch upon some of them. There are 12 90+ games thus far in 2009 and critical acclaim season is upon us... we'll see how it goes. btw I'm personally not cursing any this, I'm stoked... there is a lot of great product out there... and I love great games. I like to think that games are getting better :) And I think Uncharted 2 deserves a great score. I just find that the difference between say, an 80 and 94 is usually pretty subjective. And there are ever-increasing numbers of games cracking 90.

I did some digging (woohoo, statistics):

Games to score 90 or better in 2008: 17
In 2007: 14
In 2006: 8, if you expand the results to include Xbox 1 and PS2 (and only 4 if you don’t).

So I stand by my suggestion that scores are on the rise. There are many reasons they could be on the rise, I’ve attempted to touch upon some of them.

There are 12 90+ games thus far in 2009 and critical acclaim season is upon us… we’ll see how it goes.

btw I’m personally not cursing any this, I’m stoked… there is a lot of great product out there… and I love great games.

]]> By: Benson http://www.couchcampus.com/lecture/nathan-drake-and-the-secret-of-metascores/#comment-567 Benson Fri, 23 Oct 2009 18:18:03 +0000 http://couchcampus.com/?p=3451#comment-567 Just to point out, if you look up N4G's cumulative score (which is unweighted), currently out of 259 reviews Uncharted 2 is at an average of 97. They pretty much include just about every published review out there. http://www.n4g.com/ps3/games/g-343455/tt/metareviews.aspx?ListType=1&SortBy=reviewscore Just to point out, if you look up N4G’s cumulative score (which is unweighted), currently out of 259 reviews Uncharted 2 is at an average of 97. They pretty much include just about every published review out there.

http://www.n4g.com/ps3/games/g-343455/tt/metareviews.aspx?ListType=1&SortBy=reviewscore

]]> By: stupidBlogs http://www.couchcampus.com/lecture/nathan-drake-and-the-secret-of-metascores/#comment-566 stupidBlogs Fri, 23 Oct 2009 14:19:06 +0000 http://couchcampus.com/?p=3451#comment-566 Metascores should have been questioned a long time ago, but not with Uncharted 2. This is the greatest game ever created, and it should have been at the top of the list. Critics are becoming more strict as the technology improves, don't kid yourself, these new games are many times better than the older ones. I don't know why you centered this blog around Uncharted 2, since it is the single game on your list that actually deserves it's score or a higher one. Metascores should have been questioned a long time ago, but not with Uncharted 2. This is the greatest game ever created, and it should have been at the top of the list. Critics are becoming more strict as the technology improves, don’t kid yourself, these new games are many times better than the older ones.

I don’t know why you centered this blog around Uncharted 2, since it is the single game on your list that actually deserves it’s score or a higher one.

]]> By: hector http://www.couchcampus.com/lecture/nathan-drake-and-the-secret-of-metascores/#comment-565 hector Fri, 23 Oct 2009 14:07:49 +0000 http://couchcampus.com/?p=3451#comment-565 Chris, Which is more useless, the article or the jackass posting a three page response to the article? All I heard was "blah, blah, blah, blah, blah" Chris,

Which is more useless, the article or the jackass posting a three page response to the article? All I heard was “blah, blah, blah, blah, blah”

]]> By: tarbis http://www.couchcampus.com/lecture/nathan-drake-and-the-secret-of-metascores/#comment-564 tarbis Fri, 23 Oct 2009 13:51:26 +0000 http://couchcampus.com/?p=3451#comment-564 Well, ratings is always one way to tell gamers if the game is worth buying at all, saving consumers their money and to be spent on really good games. This also tells the devs who made the game if their game sucked or if needed just improvements and revisions. They're not just numbers, it's to let the devs know how they've done well. Much like how we got scores on test papers. To many regular joes, these scores mean nothing. But means a lot to devs. Well, ratings is always one way to tell gamers if the game is worth buying at all, saving consumers their money and to be spent on really good games. This also tells the devs who made the game if their game sucked or if needed just improvements and revisions.
They’re not just numbers, it’s to let the devs know how they’ve done well. Much like how we got scores on test papers.
To many regular joes, these scores mean nothing. But means a lot to devs.

]]>