COD has little to do with it. The passionate esoteric nerd types just lost control of their own industry to business savvy peoples.
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Halo 4: Review Thread
- Thread starter Vire
- Start date
COD has little to do with it. The passionate esoteric nerd types just lost control of their own industry to business savvy peoples.
Does this even mean anything?
Reactions like this are frankly embarrassing, especially given the recent outcry on Neogaf for higher quality work. If you guys are going to behave like moronic fanboys who mewl like infants when their beloved game gets single average review you might as well stop asking for high quality "journalism" as it would be completely wasted on you.
billy beane
Banned
Welcome to GAF.
I wouldn't say it's ignorant, it just seems like he wants more scripted shit in his games. The thrills and glossy paint that impress at first but offer absolutely nothing on repeat playthroughs.
He clearly seems to understand the distinctions between the two games, so I couldn't really call him ignorant. And I respect his right to an opinion, even if I soundly disagree with it. I'm just saying it doesn't call into question his integrity as an editor, is all.
Demoncarnotaur
Member
You know something, you may be right about the SP; I don't know as I haven't played it. I have noticed a lot of reviews have pointed out the SP scenarios are a bit lacking and that the sandbox is a bit too familiar. As a fan I definitely share sentiment that there could have been more sandbox items such as weapons/enemies/vehicles that weren't as predictable. But thats not why people are calling out the review. People are calling it out for the passing of opinions as facts such as a game not having ADS makes it dated, or that open-ended environments is a deterrent. Could things be better? Probably. But its the way you put things in the review that is raising eyebrows.
I agree with you on this point, but the critique of the review in question boils down to a similar sort of defunct logic.
You can't criticise a game for being too slow and in the same breath request the ability to aim down the sights. The two are oxymoronic.
PsihoPerihelion
Member
I haven't even cried about the scores below 9. They are fantastic all over the place and I couldn't care less if Dorito McDewmount gives the game a 2 out of 30. Someone claiming that Halo needs innovation citing COD as an example is just laughable here and in any other place.
Baconsammy
Banned
Feel free to "freak out" when you hear a reviewer posit a completely stupid design idea though. Like slowing down Halo multiplayer with iron sights. Or shrinking the battle fields. Or turning one of the rare non-CoD games into CoD. You can accept this stupidity all you want, but dont expect the rest of us to. All the other stuff you pointed out that he didnt care for is fine. When it gets to the idiotic be-more-like-CoD section, it negates anything worthwhile in the rest of the review.
You're redefining that.
Every time a reviewer criticizes a series for not being enough like CoD and speaks about CoD features as necessarily being great and modern and everything else being stodgy, I die a little inside. As of today, I am completely numb to this phenomenon. I have no sensibilities left to offend.
That quote you quoted is pretty much the worst set of words I've read in awhile.
It would also seem lost on you as it seems you are perfectly fine with reviewers suggesting games lose some of their identity to copy other popular games in the genre. I mean it's only an opinion right? an opinion that should be saved for a blog or a forum post not on a professional review. A game should be judged on it's own merits not on what somebody wants it to be.
You keep bringing up this Doritos / Dew / Geoff stuff but you clearly have no idea what it is actually referring to.
The outlying low review is the one that has been compromised by close ties to Halo 4 promotions. Makes sense!
Bornstellar
Member
The score isn't what matters - it's the content and context of the review itself which draws deserved criticism.
spootime
Member
I came in here to defend that reviewer just based on the score, but after reading it there isn't really much to say. He faults it for not innovating and then goes on to say the best way to fix that is to make it a corridor shooter with iron sights. If you think the game deserves a 7/10 then thats fine.. I don't even think thats a bad score. But the reasons you faulted Halo are ignorant and show a very very shallow understanding of the FPS genre.
Nah, it's just an aggregate. Outliers should be identified by the readers and nothing more.
Metacritic is already weighted. They never tell us how of course, but it isn't just an average.
Thank god 343 didn't listen to anybody like the EGM reviewer. I don't want my Halo to drastically change, I don't want iron sights, I don't want big ticket scripted events, I want large environments, I want slow methodical combat. I don't care if everyone else is sick of the same old Halo and wants to give it whatever score they want because of that. Halo has been my game since 2001 and I never want it to change. Small refinements, new mechanics, improvements, and features? Awesome. But never change the core gameplay please.
Franklinator
Member
Well put, I think that's what everyone criticizing the review here is trying to say.
Baconsammy
Banned
People aren't whining about low scores. People are whining about high scores, and there's recently been criticism of a review that claimed Halo's biggest fault is that it's not CoD enough. It's about the content not the score. You'd have known that if you actually paid attention.
GarthVaderUK
Banned
Exactly. If anything, given the EGM reviewer's thoughts on things that are pretty fundamental to Halo, he probably should've scored it lower!
Reviews are opinions - full stop. The idea that games should only be judged based on what they are instead of what they are not or could be is tautological - every game is exactly what it is.
And again, I don't agree with his opinion at all, I hate COD-style games. That Halo is behind the times because it doesn't adopt COD conventions is not something I agree with, but I can understand what sort of person would think that and that sort of person probably wouldn't be into Halo 4.
When you read a review you try to understand what the taste of the reviewer is and if that taste is similar to your own. Here the answer is "no" but that's still perfectly fine as a review.
There are probably a fair number of people who do see Halo as getting a bit crusty and are wondering if Halo 4 has become more "modern" in their eyes. This review is useful for that type of person.
I think you are looking for reviews you agree with, whereas I am looking for reviews where I can ascertain the tastes of the reviewer and evaluate the review accordingly.
Reviews these days suffer terribly from being faux-objective and samey. I'd much rather read a variety of reviews from people with a variety of tastes. If some Arma fanatic gives Halo 4 a 3/10 because it's not at all realistic that's fine to me - I don't value realism in Halo so I wouldn't put much stock in it but whatever.
Silly.Mikey
Banned
Pretty much spot on.
Vire
Member
I like you.
ViewtifulJC
Banned
Bornstellar
Member
Baconsammy
Banned
Holy Christ, did he just imply CoD has "soul".
Someone needs to take that This is Neogaf gif and change "Neogaf" to EGM. I remember a time when EGM used to be worth a shit. James Mielke would have thrown this guy out a window if he was still working there.
Someone needs to take that This is Neogaf gif and change "Neogaf" to EGM. I remember a time when EGM used to be worth a shit. James Mielke would have thrown this guy out a window if he was still working there.
HollovVpo1nt
Banned
It's funny really. He basically descibed the heart and soul of Halo in his rant and closed with Halo needs soul.
MarauderShields
Member
Surface of Me
I'm not an NPC. And neither are we.
Wow, the EGM review. It really is like he is complaining that it isn't a CoD clone. Too big of levels? Needs more scripted events? SMH.
grimshawish
Banned
Someone didn't get any doritos.
Vire
Member
Atmosphere? Convey Scale/Epicness? Vehicular battles? Lot's of enemies? Multiple pathways to flank?
I really could go on for about an hour.
Neuromancer
Member
I'm going to pretend that particular quote from that EGM review is a joke.
UGH....
Baconsammy
Banned
Yeah, why shoot enemies with great AI when you can slowly aim down your sights and shoot a bunch of scripted dummies running straight at you in the same exact pattern each and every time. Now that's gaming with soul!
We don't need FPSes with awesome vehicular combat. That's soulless.
Surface of Me
I'm not an NPC. And neither are we.
Choice in how you approach encounters? You could say this about any shooter ever, "Well it really just boils down to shootin dudes. Might as well make it shootin dudes in a hallway".
Silly.Mikey
Banned
This gif too funny.
Somebody who thinks Halo should be more like Call of Duty quite simply should not be writing a review for Halo 4. The review is helpful for very few people if anyone at all.
A professional review should not suggesting a game move away from it's roots in order to satisfy people who enjoy a different style of FPS.
As for that last comment - That is a very weak and paper thin shot at trying to justify your defense of the review in question. How could I or anyone else be looking for reviews we agree with when we haven't played the game?
Oh and that quote above just pretty much ended our discussion....
Bornstellar
Member
Hint - unlike CoD, enemies in Halo don't randomly spawn. Also, unlike CoD, you can usually explorer multiple ways to tackle your objective by pursuing different paths. Also, unlike CoD, you can find hidden easter eggs and such with a little exploration.
spootime
Member
What are the ADVANTAGES of sitting in a corridor, waiting for the enemy to do a scripted head pop up so I can tap my right trigger on his head? Think about it man. There's no room for dynamic encounters, giant scale/scope, huge sprawling environments, etc. Back in Halo 1 the most memorable moments were looking up into the sky, realizing youre on a giant space ring, and thinking "holy shit." You don't get that feeling when youre holding down the trigger on a monster closet in a favela. You just want to kill yourself.
Are you fucking with us?