There's a difference between just looking at numbers to make your decision and actually reading about the game, though. You can read a review that slams a game and still come away thinking you may enjoy it. I had a friend who said "don't get NMS, it's all exploration and crafting and it's boring." And to me that sounded kind of great. The key is waiting until the finished product is in the wild and THEN reading up on it - this whole cycle of reading previews and preordering and finding a game isn't what was advertised is so avoidable.
I would agree, although for me the problem is gamers reading previews, watching promotional stuff, digesting all the info out there; and then believing that is representative of the final product. Down that route lies disappointment and internet shrieking.
My comment was more aimed at people who say stuff like
"I was really interested in NMS, but AngryJoe hated it so I guess I won't bother" or when the first reviews drop and its stuff like
"5/10? Welp I'm out then" as if they need that validation from external sources to have a go at things they previously believed they will enjoy. It irritates me irrationally.
There's a difference between taking a chance on a game where your not sure if the concept is for you and just blindly rushing out and buying a game on day 1 before waiting for impressions and finding out its totally broken. I have ended up with games I don't like and thats fine but I've never felt like I've been conned into it.
I've never felt conned either. And I'm never disappointed because I don't believe E3 trailers, previews and the like. I didn't believe a jot of the NMS stuff - seeing all these video comparisons of the early videos vs what was released is laughable to me - same for Witcher 3 rage when that was release, or Watch_Dogs, who is watching these videos and thinking this is what I will be playing in a year. Idiots, thats who.
My original point was to do with those games where you're not 100% sure its for you, but there is a still something about it that interests you - in those situations I say go for it when time/money/backlog allows. There are a ton of reasons not to buy games of course, lots of them entirely personal to the individual. I just don't think the opinions of others or a metacritic number should hold that much worth if its something you feel could be for you.