Dishonored

[GrrSnort]

When Mark of the Ninja came out on XBLA, I was reminded that I really enjoy playing through games in a pensive, pedantic nature. Everything I've seen from this game seems to indicate that my particular brand of playstyle is whole-cloth welcome. And that is why I want it.

[J Arcane]

Maybe it's love or old age softening me, but I'm starting to find the merit of trying so hard to convince people that an unreleased game is awful to elude me.

[Savok]

Originally Posted by GrrSnort

I'm not really sure what you're trying to accomplish here. If it's anti-Bethesda conspiracy theorizing, then I believe the only thing you're successful in so far is looking paranoid. If it's to discredit the plethora of game critics by saying Bethesda has had a hand in bumping review scores, I believe your both giving too much credit to Bethesda and not enough to the REAL people that write those words. Not everyone writing stuff on the internet are automata.

Nothing against Bethesda personally (except what they did to Obsidian), every major publisher does it.

Gaming "journalism" is a joke, even when they're not getting free prostitutes (actual scandal with reviewers here in the 90s) they don't want their ad money going away or worse, their review copies being cut off.

Best way to get a feel for the game is to lurk various forums. Shills and trolls are generally easy to spot and the ones you miss average each other out anyway. Sift through enough threads you'll get something resembling the truth, more then a nerd living the dream will give you.

[GrrSnort]

Reviews aren't journalism, be it games or otherwise. They are critiques meant to be buying advice. Confusing criticism with journalism is more a fault of the reader or their expectations of the review than the review/reviewer itself.

[GrrSnort]

And while I do take gaming peers critiques into account, they sometimes fall into inflammatory territory a bit too much for me to only put stock in forum peeps.

[Ink Asylum]

Originally Posted by Savok

Best way to get a feel for the game is to lurk various forums. Shills and trolls are generally easy to spot and the ones you miss average each other out anyway. Sift through enough threads you'll get something resembling the truth, more then a nerd living the dream will give you.

Ugh. No thanks. The last thing I want to do is wade through a bunch of hyper-critical anonymous jerks overreacting to everything.

The only forum I'll bother with when it comes to opinions is this one, where I've spent years and have a pretty good sense of the regulars if I haven't met them in person already.

When it comes to getting opinions I go by the following in order:

1. Friends/family
2. CoG
3. Aggregate review score
4. Individual reviews from select sites

[Karak]

Originally Posted by GrrSnort

And while I do take gaming peers critiques into account, they sometimes fall into inflammatory territory a bit too much for me to only put stock in forum peeps.

That is how I feel about reviews. They rarely sit within the middle ground of truth. You get the hyperbole and factually incorrect stuff from RPS or you get people hammering the hell out of good games with nitpicking so minute that it would take a specialist to remove the piece of coal up their ass.
There is almost no middle ground anymore in reviews.
Then again reviewers are almost ALWAYS peeps on internet forums as well.

I try to find 1 reviewer who's past reviews aligned somewhat with my own thoughts on games. However even that doesn't work as people change quickly and you find them hating Sleeping Dogs.
Which means they deserve a special place in hell.
Because this was me playing Sleeping Dogs.


And the reviewer I used to follow felt that it was a shallow dog turned that had 1 redeeming quality.
It could be shut off.

[Savok]

Well they make it hard when they're also reporting news inbetween.

And that's why you don't listen to them directly. You're not counting the drops of water in the ocean you're watching the tide.

[GrrSnort]

That's why I read reviews from people who's tastes line up with my own. I find that the random forum guy to be too incendiary either way to put so much stock in their appraisals. My views on buying advice fall more in line with Ink Asylums overall.

[Ghostbear]

I'll probably end up cranking out a review. That will be "definitive".

[Karak]

Originally Posted by GrrSnort

That's why I read reviews from people who's tastes line up with my own. I find that the random forum guy to be too incendiary either way to put so much stock in their appraisals. My views on buying advice fall more in line with Ink Asylums overall.

I do as well. Then I found out Purple Santa didn't like Jade Empire.
Defriended forever

[Karak]

Wow good deal on this from GreenMan Games as well. Damn.

[Savok]

Originally Posted by Ink Asylum

Ugh. No thanks. The last thing I want to do is wade through a bunch of hyper-critical anonymous jerks overreacting to everything.

The only forum I'll bother with when it comes to opinions is this one, where I've spent years and have a pretty good sense of the regulars if I haven't met them in person already.

When it comes to getting opinions I go by the following in order:

1. Friends/family
2. CoG
3. Aggregate review score
4. Individual reviews from select sites

Each forum has its own bias you gotta take into account.

And thanks for helping major publishers kill gaming.

Originally Posted by Karak

Then again reviewers are almost ALWAYS peeps on internet forums as well.

Same reason modern comics are as shitty as they are, the loonies are running the asylum.

However even that doesn't work as people change quickly and you find them hating Sleeping Dogs.
Which means they deserve a special place in hell.

Agreed.

Because this was me playing Sleeping Dogs.

No, no no no, not fucking Disaster Carl with Commiegirl. Holy fuck I need to sleep soon and his shiteating grin is going to be in my nightmares. Fuck you.

[GrrSnort]

Originally Posted by Karak

Then I found out Purple Santa didn't like Jade Empire.
Defriended forever

WHAT? Pitchforks and burning crosses at Purple Santa's house!

PS: That reminds me, I need to reinstall it and play it again. It's one of the 5 games I replay each year.

[Karak]

Originally Posted by GrrSnort

WHAT? Pitchforks and burning crosses at Purple Santa's house!

PS: That reminds me, I need to reinstall it and play it again. It's one of the 5 games I replay each year.

Ya. I thought about flying to his home to personally walk him through his decision process but found that sending him a postcard of a Navy Destroyer with the statement, "This is just 1% of the firepower I will unload on you if you don't change your mind." Was enough.


Also a yearly play for me. That, Bully, and sadly Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 1-2 are also yearly plays. I say sadly because I REALLY should move on.

[Ink Asylum]

Originally Posted by Savok

Each forum has its own bias you gotta take into account.

So does each review site. Reading reviews is a lot less annoying than reading through most forums, though.

And thanks for helping major publishers kill gaming.

It is the third thing on my list, you know, not the first.

[Spigot]

I don't even look at the aggregate sites any more. My list is similar to Ink's minus the metacritic score and friends/family is essentially equal to CoG posters since few of my RL friends/family game.

With reviews, I have a few sites I trust because I've grown accustomed to the voices of their reviewers. I may not agree all of the time but I know where my tastes and their's synch up and can read their reviews with a critical eye.

In this case, I'm interested to see what those of us on here think of the game. Karak's reports have been interesting, but they are third-hand. I am interested to hear his take on the game when/if he plays it.

And I rarely watch playthrough videos because its BOOOOORING to watch someone else play a game, even if it's the best game ever.

[Karak]

Originally Posted by Spigot

I don't even look at the aggregate sites any more. My list is similar to Ink's minus the metacritic score and friends/family is essentially equal to CoG posters since few of my RL friends/family game.

With reviews, I have a few sites I trust because I've grown accustomed to the voices of their reviewers. I may not agree all of the time but I know where my tastes and their's synch up and can read their reviews with a critical eye.

In this case, I'm interested to see what those of us on here think of the game. Karak's reports have been interesting, but they are third-hand. I am interested to hear his take on the game when/if he plays it.

And I rarely watch playthrough videos because its BOOOOORING to watch someone else play a game, even if it's the best game ever.

Ya that is a good point. I watched it from beginning to end. But it is indeed watching it. Which I think lets you pay attention to some bits and pay less attention to other bits.

Really I don't find them that boring. I was never going to pay full price for a game this short so that was my only option
I may gamefly it if they do indeed do an expansion or something.

Also I want to make sure I am clear. I don't think its bad. I think its ok. It had ok elements. Not BAD.
The more I see people play it the more I am surprised by their sanity in their posting actually. So I don't think even the people posting really hate it. There is just a lot of "eh...or meh." Kind of reviews. Which I am actually more inclined to add weight to than if someone was attacking it for minutia.

[PathMaster]

RPS Review:

If you want to rush around with a gun, shooting anything that moves, don’t buy Dishonored. It has put those things in there for you, and it offers slick, brutal, varied permutations on how to use them, but they are not its all. If you’re looking for 10+ hours of shooting men, or even stabbing men, you are well-served already and forever by games that do that, do it well, and do it for a long time. You and those like you are the victor of the great games race, and you have the spoils, many times over.

So let us have Dishonored. Let us have this one expensive, luxurious game that only truly works, only sings a glorious tune, only becomes a 20+ hour game if met by those who treat it in the spirit with which it is offered. Don’t tell us it’s too short and too slight just because you don’t find combing through its many layers, peeling back every last millimetre of artfully subdued skin, of interest. Because you want to rush to the conclusion, and you don’t believe anything that doesn’t explicitly inform reaching that conclusion is worthwhile.

[menage]

I dunno, sites like Edge and Eurogamer may be inconsistent, but they have no problem blasting a hyped game to hell if they don't like it. I have no doubt this game is pretty good if you go in blank.

I think people are expecting too much and are not getting what they want a lot as well, instead of looking at it objectively. Gamers are incredibly biased before they even touch the pad as well.