MetaCritic pressure on devs is “ridiculous,” says Splash Damage boss

Yeah, Metacritic is unfair…

Unless you make a good game!

Or pay/threaten everyone for good reviews.

Totally agree about switching to stars. Or no scores. Scores are for attention-deficient intertards.

Stars are a crap system.

How can I tell the difference between an ‘only just missed out on 5 stars’ game and a ‘only just scapes 4 stars’ game?

The difference in 4 stars is between 61 – 79%!

So? Are you really unable to make a judgement from a review text or do you actually need some number? Are you a computer? Lacking critical thinking skills?

It’s a guide, not some definitive judgement on the quality of a product, therefore it doesn’t need to be precise. There’s no logical way to define the scoring criteria that doesn’t lead to ambiguity.

Scores are stupid. Stars are the best choice of a bad set.

When a game has 30+ reviews, I’m not going to read all of them.

If we’re talking about combining multiple review scores into one ‘uber-score’, then stars are pretty useless, because one review could have scored a game 61 (4 stars), and another could have given it 79 (also 4 stars).

That’s my only problem with stars. they’re not precise enough.

However, with an out of 100 score, one version of a game could score 88, and if the next version gets 81, then it says a whole lot more than the both of them getting 5 stars.

Christ. Choose a couple of review sources you trust and read them. It’s not hard.

I’m not talking about combining scores into an uber-score. I don’t see the point of that. Indeed, it’s my opinion that buying games statistically is a really daft way to do it. Especially when the numbers the statistics are based on have no coherent definition.

“one version of a game could score 88, and if the next version gets 81, then it says a whole lot more than the both of them getting 5 stars.”

Does it? Really? I mean, can you actually draw any conclusions from that that would stand up to scrutiny? I know I’d feel uncomfortable doing so.

Scoring out of 100 is nothing short of mental. How can anyone possibly determine “well, this feels like an… 84. It’s slightly better than an 83, but we’re not quite at 85 yet.”?

Out of 10 is just about doable, although I prefer the straight-forward ‘out of 5′ (crap, below average, average, above average, great) myself. That doesn’t half bugger up your Metacritics, though.

Percentages were good enough for Zzap!64 and Crash, n00b5.

They were wrong, too.

I don’t think Paul Wedgwood realises that the film industry has it’s own equivalent of Metacritic in Rotten Tomatoes which is watched closely by showbiz in the same way.

Yeah, I have to admit, I’ve always preferred out of 100 scores, because I got used to them through the days of Zzap64 and CVG, so maybe I’m just old school…

As for an 84 vs an 85, then the way that I make sense of this is that I use the first and second numbers as different scores.

So an 84 would actually just be an 8, but the 4 would give me an indication of how near/far it is to either a 7 or a 9.

So for example, in the case of a game getting a 79, I regard it as basically being an 8, or ‘slightly less than very good’.

I read the text and see what the reviewer says about the actual game.

I also read magazines in the eighties, so I doubt it’s just that.

“As for an 84 vs an 85, then the way that I make sense of this is that I use the first and second numbers as different scores.

So an 84 would actually just be an 8, but the 4 would give me an indication of how near/far it is to either a 7 or a 9.”

Heh. Yeah, that’s kind of the way numbers work.

Doesn’t mean they’re a good way of judging the quality of a game.

“Heh. Yeah, that’s kind of the way numbers work.”

But apparently they are too confusing for you…

I just can’t see how you could have been fine with the review system used by everyone in the 80′s/90′s and then decide that it’s rubbish unless it’s too confusing for you or something.

In the old days, of Crash! and Zzap!, a 5 out of 10 game was still a recommendation. Back in those days, zero started at 4 (or possibly even 3). Over the years competition has heated up to ridiculous levels. Until recently, zero started at 6 – now if a game gets a 7 it’s seen a failure. How long before a game is only seen as being any good if it gets a 9 or above?

Bring in stars, that’s what I say. Blerk’s right – there’s no need for more than five levels of grading in a score. If you feel like you need more detailed info, may I suggest you read the fucking review?

“But apparently they are too confusing for you…”

Way to miss the point!

“I just can’t see how you could have been fine with the review system used by everyone in the 80’s/90’s and then decide that it’s rubbish unless it’s too confusing for you or something.”

When did I ever say I was fine with it then? I’ve always thought reviews scores are pointless, which is why I make my decisions through other means.

Zzap !?!

Crummydore benders !

I’M SORRY, I CAN’T HEAR YOU OVER THIS WONDERFUL THREE-CHANNEL LOADING MUSIC

But… surely the whole point of magazines is to review games…

So if the entire review system is totally built on a score system that is out of 100, then…

…why buy the magazine if you think it’s all pointless?

Seems like a waste of £2.95 to me.

Ah, memories of the music from my childhood (not from a bloody Gameboy either)

Are you really this dim? I read the review. You know, all those words before the score at the end. I don’t think reviews are pointless; I think giving a score is. Words convey far more information than some near-arbitrary number.

That still no less ridiculous.

‘I’m gonna read the review, and then cover my eyes so that I can’t see the score, because it’s pointless!’

yeah right…

It’s like saying that you like watching football but you never care about the score, because it’s pointless.

And the number is only “near-arbitrary” to people who find some pathetic reason to be cynical about it.

Review scores are a system used to compare tens of thousands of games on an equal (as possible) footing.

Everyone knows what type of game a 9/10 is. Everyone knows what kind of game a 2/10 is.

Someone could write a million pragraphs about how good a game is, but the best way to sum any game up is to give it a score. Or are you too dim to understand that?

Teary-eyed nostalgia

“‘I’m gonna read the review, and then cover my eyes so that I can’t see the score, because it’s pointless!’”

No. I see the score. I just ignore it. I’ve already read the review, so the score doesn’t matter.

“Review scores are a system used to compare tens of thousands of games on an equal (as possible) footing.”

Ahahahahah. That’s priceless.

“Everyone knows what type of game a 9/10 is. Everyone knows what kind of game a 2/10 is.”

I have no idea what type of game a 9/10 is. I’d read the text to find that out, then decide whether I want to buy it or not. A score tells me relatively nothing about a game, except that the reviewer has given it a score. The review itself should tell me whether a game has the content and features I’d like.

“Someone could write a million pragraphs about how good a game is, but the best way to sum any game up is to give it a score.”

It really isn’t. Unless you can’t understand words. Scores are for people who can’t make their own judgements.

“I have no idea what type of game a 9/10 is. I’d read the text to find that out, then decide whether I want to buy it or not. A score tells me relatively nothing about a game”

That is nothing less that utter gibberish.

Yeah, I suppose a game could get 9/10, but when you read the review, you actually discover that the reviewer thought that the game was rubbish right?

and a game could get 2/10, but when you read the text, you discover that this was the best game that the reviewer had ever played in his life, right??

Nonsense.

“Yeah, I suppose a game could get 9/10, but when you read the review, you actually discover that the reviewer thought that the game was rubbish right?

and a game could get 2/10, but when you read the text, you discover that this was the best game that the reviewer had ever played in his life, right??”

I didn’t say that. You seem to have a disconnect between what is actually written and what you think has been written. Making stuff up doesn’t help your argument.

@ Retroid: Jon Dunn is my hero.

No, that’s pretty much what you said.

Yay

Look, it’s simple. A score tells me only that a reviewer thinks a game is good or not. It tells me nothing else about the game. I’d need to read the review to do that. If I’m reading the review anyway, then I may as well dispense with the score, as I can make my own judgement from the review.

If we really need to have scores then a star system is good enough. Having anything more precise is nonsense.

“No, that’s pretty much what you said.”

No, it’s not. Reading comprehension fail.

I give your opinion 8/10.

“Look, it’s simple. A score tells me only that a reviewer thinks a game is good or not. It tells me nothing else about the game. I’d need to read the review to do that. If I’m reading the review anyway, then I may as well dispense with the score, as I can make my own judgement from the review.

If we really need to have scores then a star system is good enough. Having anything more precise is nonsense.”

Ah right, finally we’re getting somewhere. So now you admit that a score lets you know if the reviewer though that the game was good or bad… woo hoo!

Well done.

So what logically follows on from this is that using this score, we can now gauge whether or not the reviewer thought that the game was crap/meh/average/above average/good/brilliant/AAA system seller.

We are talking in terms of quality here, not content like ‘this game makes you collect ammo’, or something like that, which no-one has ever claimed to be quantifiable using a score.

So again, what logically and sanely follows on from this is that the more accurate the score system is, the better it is as a means of summing up the quality of a game.

WHich was what I was saying in the first place.

3 stars out of 5 is 4-6/10. But which one?

Is it a 4, which is below average, or a 6, which is above averge?

The reality is that you need a combination of score and text to get the most accurate picture of the quality of a game. Text on its own can still leave you unsure. A score on its own can still leave you unsure.

And the better scoring system is the more accurate one. Stars are crap because they’re too vague. Especially when you can’t even tell if a game which the reviewer commented as having good and bad points, is below or above average.

Christ on a fucking bike, I give up. You’re an idiot, as evidenced by “The reality is that you need a combination of score and text to get the most accurate picture of the quality of a game.”

Only if you’re a fucking idiot.

“So now you admit that a score lets you know if the reviewer though that the game was good or bad”.

Yes it does. Of course it fucking does. I thought that was taken for granted in this discussion. That doesn’t mean I’d put any faith in it or want to be basing my purchasing decisions on it.

“3 stars out of 5 is 4-6/10. But which one?”

OMG WE’LL NEVER KNOW. PANIC!

“Especially when you can’t even tell if a game which the reviewer commented as having good and bad points, is below or above average.”

And a number at the end helps you decide that, huh? If they can’t clearly convey it in a review, what are the odds they can get a score right?

G1GA, you’re so unbelievably wrong. There is no discernible difference between “crap” and “meh”, between “above average” and “good”, and between “brilliant” and “system seller” as you put it. As teh Blerk said, “crap/ below average/ average/ above average/ excellent” is all you need. If you want more detail, read the fucking text of the review. What could be simpler than that?

How can you have increased objective accuracy about a subjective opinion?? A more detailed scoring system overcomplicates something very plain – whether a game is worth playing or not. You don’t need to score something that simple out of ten or (heaven forbid) a hundred.

As it stands, scoring out of ten is broken anyway. It’s only a four point scale these days anyway, 7 – 10, as everything else is considered a flop by people that give a shit about review scores.

Oh dear… LOL

Look who’s blown his lid because he realises what an utterly stupid point he’s been trying to argue.

If you want to meet up and call me such names to me face, then I’d be more than happy to arrange that. No, I’d prefer it. You can contact me on my username at hotmail.com and we can arrange somewhere to meet up, so that you can show me just how brave you are in the real world.

Big man!

Come and find out what happens to you when you can’t hide behind a computer.

You have no point. You can’t even argue whatever point that you might think you have logically, and now you’ve turned into a foul mouthed lunatic.

Come on then big man, I’m waiting for you.

Just Beat It, Beat It, Beat It, Beat It
No One Wants To Be Defeated
Showin’ How Funky Strong Is Your Fight
It Doesn’t Matter Who’s Wrong Or Right
Just Beat It, Beat It

Yeah Stickboy, you’re right.

The entire gaming press has totally got it wrong for the last 3 decades, and nobody knew what they were doing.

I suppose they’ve just been doing it without really knowing why all this time…

And of course, nobody has ever found review scores useful. I suppose that I’m the only one in the world who mistakenly thought that this totally bankrupt scoring system had any use whatsoever.

Oh, what a silly boy I’ve been. All this time i’ve been judging games based on review scores, but they were in actual fact, totally and utterly not in any way an accurate representation of the quality of the game.

Thanks for clearing that up for me.

I don’t know what I’d do without your amazing wisdom.

I think everyone should go read part one of Shawn Elliott’s Symposium on review scores.

http://shawnelliott.blogspot.com/2008/12/symposium-part-one-review-scores.html

Are you threatening me? Awesome. Who’s blown their lid? Who’s playing the big man? If we did meet up, would we wrestle oily and naked?

OK. To defuse your anger, I’ll take it back, you’re not an idiot. I apologise. You are definitely wrong, though.

The Wargamer doesn’t do scored reviews. Escapist doesn’t do scored reviews. I’m sure there are plenty of other places I’ve not seen (or can’t think of) that don’t do scored reviews. When I talk to my friends to get their opinion, they don’t blurt out a number at the end. Scores are not necessary for a review.

Oh dear.

It’s been fun!

The internet.

Truk said: “The Wargamer doesn’t do scored reviews. Escapist doesn’t do scored reviews. I’m sure there are plenty of other places I’ve not seen (or can’t think of) that don’t do scored reviews. When I talk to my friends to get their opinion, they don’t blurt out a number at the end. Scores are not necessary for a review.”

I rate this advice 7/10.

Ohmylol. The community awards this year are going to be awesome.

You mean I’m getting best poster, right?

Actually, make me a “bored poster” category.