Sometimes, yeah. After blocking maybe five people, I'm forcing myself to not read any Smash/Sakurai threads outside of the Smash 4 OT. As hilarious as some of the Smash fanbase's hyperbole is, the overwhelming cynicism has just worn me down. Not worth it.
The hyperbole is also kinda bad in the Zelda Wii U demo thread but that's only how people get emotionally defensive against Skyward Sword criticism. It's generally chill otherwise.
Unfortunately the publisher control the information and the gaming media tends to go along with that.
For example no review mentioned that ME3s ending was going to be what it was.
So blaming the consumer is a bit problematic, particularly when the game in question is well reviewed, by a prestigious developer and part of an acclaimed series. And most hate targets seem to be one or several of those.
Again, there would be hate anyway for other reasons like platform fanboyism, but some of it stems from the fact that it's very easy for major dissapointments to happen.
Exactly, quite alot of review sites have changed their strategy seemingly excluding a few, who have now turned the customer into the product, for sale at the highest bidder. At-least that is what the cynic in me says whilst cryptically reading between the lines of ingenious reviews, tech analysis, youtube videos + other viral marketing. GAF = The truth.
I try to keep the commandment "Thou shalt not doubt another's fun." It's one thing to question why somebody enjoys a certain game, but when it gets to the point of concluding that their enjoyment isn't "real" because you don't feel the same way, that's just being a solipsistic jerk.
There still quite a few people who do this, unfortunately. If you mention that you like Destiny, for example, you'll almost certainly get some replies telling you that your preferences are somehow incorrect, you're a viral marketer, experiencing Stockholm Syndrome, brainwashed, just pretending to enjoy something that you know is bad, etc.
I come across lots of those kinds of posts too, but I like playing games more than complaining about them, so I tend to keep scrolling rather than engaging the poster.
The antihype doesn't affect my opinions or enjoyment as far as I can tell, but it can be excessive.
It only seems to happen mostly on this forum on the internet I've noticed. Most other places are usually more civilised and people don't just hate, hype or be cynical just because they see everyone else doing it. I usually just ignore those kinds of threads because its way too biased.
I think the internet, poorly chosen words and an inflated sense of self-worth tend to amplify people's opinions more extremely. It happens to me, at least.
The NPD threads are the worst! If you you think about it, the results are absolutely pointless. The way people get personally offended when their console of choice isn't #1 is hilarious but also sad.
Agreed, a lot of hard work goes into games, years of these peoples lives to be ripped apart by randomers on the internet, highly criticised without fly-on-the-wall perspectives.
Flip side: we pay good money, sometimes day 1 for the game, so I hope when they read some 'balanced' comments, ignore the rhetoric and sometimes 'feel' screw our publishers for making us rush this work of art out the door before its completed.
There are a lot of nasty comments made on an almost daily basis. I try not to let it get to me, but it's the shock value that goes into some comments that messes with me.
I think with some comments, it's about using it as a vessel to declare hatred or blind faith of a person/company/game etc without actually being transparent about it.
Example is, you can't openly say "I hate X company" but if you find a product related to that company, and mock every little detail about it (even the ones people might not care about), the message is almost the same.
I think you hit on the nail on the head when you said hyperbole and hatred are much easier ways to get noticed than actually taking the time to write down well-thought out arguments about why a person likes/dislikes a game.
Unfortunately, as more and more people post hyperbolic statements, they start to lose their effect and people have to one-up each other to get attention, leading to definitive statements like "X game is the worst game I have ever played," even if it's generally accepted that said game is at least average, if not excellent.
Edit: It's almost like children who throw tantrums and get punished. In their mind, negative attention is better than no attention at all. And with the sizes of forums like GAF/reddit, it can be disheartening to post an opinion and see it instantly swallowed up and forgotten because there are 10,000 other more "controversial" responses that people would rather pick apart.
*Watches program/plays game* Hey that was pretty cool, let me go see what the internet thinks.
*Reads thread full of hate/disdain* Whoa what the heck?
This has happened to me so many times over the past few years that I just don't read as much feedback as I used to. I'm content consuming stuff at my own pace, forming my own opinion and either keeping it to myself or sharing it among a few individuals that I know aren't crazy.
Once you step out of the "only reads GAF and never plays games" vortex, it's hard to go back. Not to single out GAF mind you, this stuff obviously happens everywhere.
Being so fanatical about games on GAF means we get the ridiculous E3 hype trains, the amazing GIFs and photoshops, and some of the most insightful criticism about games.
It also means we get the most enraged fanboys and entitled whining.
I like to say that pro wrestling is simultaneously the best and worst of American entertainment. It's the same with GAF for the gaming community.
Unfortunately the publisher control the information and the gaming media tends to go along with that.
For example no review mentioned that ME3s ending was going to be what it was.
So blaming the consumer is a bit problematic, particularly when the game in question is well reviewed, by a prestigious developer and part of an acclaimed series. And most hate targets seem to be one or several of those.
Again, there would be hate anyway for other reasons like platform fanboyism, but some of it stems from the fact that it's very easy for major dissapointments to happen.
I agree with you there. I still don't think anyone should expect a dev or publisher to not hype their product.
If reviewers are just going along with it when consumers look to them to inform them about a product to sway any purchasing decisions then it is still the fault of the consumer for putting too much trust into them. Especially after recent events.
I would expect a "hey ME3s ending sucked" from a reviewer. Definitely not from the devs or pubs.
I was also referring more to enthusiasts like us who frequent gaming forums making informed decisions based on our own research and not so much the general public.
*Watches program/plays game* Hey that was pretty cool, let me go see what the internet thinks.
*Reads thread full of hate/disdain* Whoa what the heck?
This has happened to me so many times over the past few years that I just don't read as much feedback as I used to. I'm content consuming stuff at my own pace, forming my own opinion and either keeping it to myself or sharing it among a few individuals that I know aren't crazy.
*Watches program/plays game* Hey that was pretty cool, let me go see what the internet thinks.
*Reads thread full of hate/disdain* Whoa what the heck?
This has happened to me so many times over the past few years that I just don't read as much feedback as I used to. I'm content consuming stuff at my own pace, forming my own opinion and either keeping it to myself or sharing it among a few individuals that I know aren't crazy.
Once you step out of the "only reads GAF and never plays games" vortex, it's hard to go back. Not to single out GAF mind you, this stuff obviously happens everywhere.
Hate hyperbole and cynicism does not get to me because I am the person who takes very little stock in what a herd of people will say, I play games for me and nobody else. Now that can get problematic when what I want is not what most people want and that puts what I like in jeopardy.
One thing to note is humanity LOVES drama, look no farther than sports, you think most people watching it loves the game? Hell no it's a great vehicle for people to attach themselves to and drive drama from.(It's why I call sports the fucking soap operas for men who scoff at it) That is why the hate threads can grow so much. It's also why hype threads grow so much to. (I find both to be stupid and counter productive unless you are a troll)
Next thing to note is Publishers AND consumers must realize the issues they can cause knowing that people are like that. Destiny is a great example people on gaf roast is, it's more played than wow. And people will say "Why are they playing it still" People find value in different things. I left Destiny because the issues that I have with it could be fixed in Destiny 2 so I won't be be buying the dlc there is no point, that's too much work for them.
Keeping on the Destiny Ass Creed and other games marketers should be a bit more mindful of what they are selling and people should be wise and say "These guys are bullshitting me". Like the Destiny thing when one say they were gonna ape a MMO and they had no experience in MMO design you should have flags go off in your head and look at the game in a different light. Won't say much on Ass Creed never liked Ubisoft's games and their whole "We got massive crowds" thing came off like bullshit to me too, they have huge teams and nothing that shows that they had the technical chops to actually do what they were selling.
All in all I enjoy the games I play, I love DOA and people try to dismiss it calling it a tity fighter while playing KOF and using Mai
I'll let the irony fix that one out.
I just laugh and move on.
I think there are some things that could fix this, for example the trying to be witty first post that derail threads, I think some action on that to discourage that behavior could help, most people are not witty. Another thing could be just the community be more mindful that can fix things as well. Right now things are like this because of far deeper issues and until that is adressed some people will lash out in places they feel safe, in that case try to fix the underlying issue and ignore the ones out there and it will diminish.
It works both ways. The hyperbolic praise the week of release aka "the honeymoon phase" is more annoying, particularly when you know those games will be forgotten fast and won't make many GOTY list here (Titanfall, Destiny, Shadow of Mordor, Far Cry 4 and so on...).
Classic sentence to check : "I'm having a blast" without any explanation as to what part they are enjoying.
I'm equally sick of irrational hate and of being labeled a hater for thoughtful criticism. I've also noticed moderation has become increasingly arbitrary on GAF over the past several years, which imo has hurt discourse in multiple ways.
It works both ways. The hyperbolic praise the week of release aka "the honeymoon phase" is more annoying, particularly when you know those games will be forgotten fast and won't make many GOTY list here (Titanfall, Destiny, Shadow of Mordor, Far Cry 4 and so on...).
Classic sentence to check : "I'm having a blast" without any explanation as to what part they are enjoying.
So someone being positive annoys you? I think that might be an issue for you to figure out about yourself. Someone being positive on the internet hampers nothing.
I had a blast playing Dragon Age: Inquisition, and now Far Cry 4. That shouldn't annoy you.
Assassins Creed Unity is garbage. That should annoy you.
It works both ways. The hyperbolic praise the week of release aka "the honeymoon phase" is more annoying, particularly when you know those games will be forgotten fast and won't make many GOTY list here (Titanfall, Destiny, Shadow of Mordor, Far Cry 4 and so on...).
Classic sentence to check : "I'm having a blast" without any explanation as to what part they are enjoying.
I've learned to distance my own personal tastes from Gaf awhile ago. I come to Gaf to see these extreme differing opinions after all. That's what makes Gaf so damn entertaining. When a game has positive momentum on Gaf, that honestly can probably increase my appreciation for a title. It's cool when something you like is appreciated by a majority of your peers. However, when something I enjoy gets lambasted by others on Gaf, I'm able to distance myself such, that nothing I read will diminish my enjoyment of said thing. Then, it can be very entertaining to observe how widely my own opinions differ from people on here.
The other thing people need to realize is that arguing about things here is usually completely pointless. Nobody actively engaged in a system wars thread is going to change their mind no matter how well reasoned your arguments. Sure they may be completely wrong but they aren't going to change their minds so why bother engaging them? If people could exercise restraint in replying to such things those posts would just get lost in the churn. By replying, you're keeping that shit thread on the front page and exacerbating the problem.
"But I need to set the record straight." What record? Who cares?!
"This moron may sway somebody else who may like game x/system x" Who gives a shit? What's it to you?
I'm not perfect, but I'm really trying to ignore the shit threads entirely. I'll post my opinion when I want to contribute to a thread but I'll try not to engage anyone in debate. That sounds counterproductive at first because debate is good, but ask yourself honestly "Will anyone's opinion change because of what I posted?" 99.9% of the time the answer is no.
Don't think that is his point, his point seems to be "the honeymoon phase" - ie playing the game for a limited time, showing elation without proper perspective, not sure I agree with shadow of mordor especially given its nominees and general reviews (but that is opinions for you) but his meaning has merit.
Do I get that right? You get depressed because random people on the internet have opinions about some piece of plastic? (btw I own a vita and think its better than the 3ds)
That doesn't sound healthy. Please tell me thats a joke I'm just to dumb to get.
Do I get that right? You get depressed because random people on the internet have opinions about some piece of plastic? (btw I own a vita and think its better than the 3ds)
That doesn't sound healthy. Please tell me thats a joke I'm just to dumb to get.
Yup, it gets incredibly annoying and old. Like, for example, any article on games like Destiny will have people rushing in trying to be first to throw out an insult or snide remark. If you don't like it, don't click on Destiny threads. Let the many, many people who do like it enjoy in peace.
Any article on stuff like The Order is filled with people hating without ever even playing it. We know what the game is like, if it's not what you want just avoid the threads
Stuff related to VR has people hating and making hyperbolic statements. UC4 and all the premature downgrade stuff, bashing studios like Quantic Dream just because they make games that some don't consider games (as if their opinion is some kind of fact).
The constant whining about PS4 having no games, or about indie gamaes, or about F2P or about the OS or really anything PS4 related
And the list goes on and on.
It's awful and makes me seriously consider starting to use the Gaf ignore list, but I just don't like that.
Yeah it does. Just shut the fuck up and play games. Nothing is really reinventing the wheel right now anyways. Until Occulus Rift/VR becomes mainstream, at least.
Honestly, it does get to me sometimes. I've found GAF to generally be one of the more "possitive" gaming communities but I've visited other places were basically 99% of the threads and topics are "why this sucks", "why this was dissapointing", "why this was so much better before"..... and it does get annoying
