Yeah but that's not how games are supposed to work, right?
Hey, first playthrough might suck a bit but if you give it a few more tries, you'll kinda start liking it.
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The Zero Punctuation Thread
- Thread starter Shard
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Yeah but that's not how games are supposed to work, right?
Hey, first playthrough might suck a bit but if you give it a few more tries, you'll kinda start liking it.
Coppertracks
Member
I dunno, I think when one of your big criticisms is that you hate the menus for looking similar to the developers last game, your argument is weak.
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I think the bigger criticism was that control scheme is rubbish and he even suggested a much more workable alternative.
Bottom line is any portable game that relies on a stand to be played is gonna open itself up to criticism.
Because he has an opinion, is generally smart and witty and quite fun to listen to. I take him as seriously as any other game reviewer, regardless of how seriously they take themselves.
Well yeah, that's because in the videos he's playing an overly negative, shouty character and everyone gets the same amount of vitriol.
But it is a character and the videos aren't meant to be taken seriously. They're meant to be funny. I guess when he gets a genuinely flawed game you can usually tell, but most of the time he gets good-to-great games and accentuates the hell out of their flaws. I kinda got tired of the angry man shouting at shit that a lot of people seem to be doing, so I've stopped watching the videos so much, but they're still pretty good.
RurouniZel
Asks questions so Ezalc doesn't have to
His complaints about the poor controls and the need for a stand to make the damn thing work are perfectly justified. I still love the game but I do grow weary of the "you get used to it" arguments I hear. That's what people used to say about the tank controls of old school Resident Evil. I still love those games (esp. REmake! <3), but I'd never defend the controls. 
He was exaggerating throughout the rest of the review for laughs though. Well, that and I'm pretty sure the humor just didn't jive with him, which is fine. And his complaints about always hating 3D and never using it are the same as his arguments against reviewing the multiplayer to some extent. They're obviously different in some respects, but it's just one of those things he doesn't give a shit about.
He was exaggerating throughout the rest of the review for laughs though. Well, that and I'm pretty sure the humor just didn't jive with him, which is fine. And his complaints about always hating 3D and never using it are the same as his arguments against reviewing the multiplayer to some extent. They're obviously different in some respects, but it's just one of those things he doesn't give a shit about.
But you don't even need the stand- it's just an extra option for players, one of many that the game has. All you need to do is find a way of supporting your left hand because that's the hand carrying most of the console's weight. That's why I either play with the 3DS on my knee, or on a pillow on my lap, or while lying on my stomach. Sure it's not like a controller where you just grab it and go, but anyone with even a slim ability to adapt shouldn't have any problem.
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No, it's simply because he's not bias towards any brands. I understand why this may be a novel concept for some people. Think about it over and over again and eventually the penny may drop.
Clearly, his reviews are taken seriously by many, many people, if Painkiller's sales figures are any indication.
Nintendo fans get too defensive and anti-nintendo posters try to use his review as if it's actually legit.
People can take the reviews as seriously as they like, doesn't change his intentions when making them.
I think you'd have to be pretty dense not to see that.
See, condescension goes both ways
People can take the reviews as seriously as they like, doesn't change his intentions when making them.
I think you'd have to be pretty dense not to see that.
See, condescension goes both ways
It's possible to be both funny and serious you know? Occasionally ZP goes a bit too far and misses the point, but generally he's both on-the-money and humourous.
Night_Trekker
Member
Correct!
Riposte
Member
Really?
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I get pissed at people who try to discredit him because he doesn't like their favorite games/conform to their agenda. He's pooped on many games I've liked. Just deal with it.
In a sea of shoddy journalism in this industry, he's the closest to an unbiased critic.
*shrug* I guess.
He could take my favorite game of all time and shit down its mouth for all I care and I'll still watch it, as long as he keeps it funny and/or entertaining. Which he does most of the time.
Riposte
Member
Yahtzee struggled to understand The Witcher 2 like it was quantum mechanics. Similarly, he has problem with other, even simpler games. The dude is quite hard to take seriously as a "critic".
Unbiased critic is just a completely vapid phrase.
Criminal Upper
Banned
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That's great. Go back to watching GameTrailers then. I'm sure you'll enjoy the next 10/10 they give Call of Duty.
Oh, because Valve put out that many shitty titles every year, they deserve to be pooped on. Even though he said Portal 2 wasn't as good as it predecessor and made numerous criticisms of it.
Riposte
Member
lol... Yeah. We wouldn't want to be bias fanboys now would we?
Fimbulvetr
Member
Not especially.
I mean, I still enjoy his schtick, but accentuating the negative doesn't have anything to do with being unbiased.
Exactly. When he rags on an actually bad game, then it's easy to agree with him. Most of the time though, he's just being hyberbolic for the sake of his routine.
Salacious Crumb
Junior Member
Yahtzee thread keeps popping up on the front page? Must've been a Nintendo game this week... I see we even have a few people saying they've grown tired of his shtick. Like clock work.
Hahaha I just saw the KI:U review, that was hilarious. I don't see a point of getting worked up over ZP's reviews in general, ZP to me is an entertainer, first and foremost. There's no point of watching his reviews for an actual detailed opinion on a game because
1) His reviews typically come out a week after everyone elses
2) His exaggerates EVERYTHING. Mostly for laughs, I think he's on the record for saying he doesn't truly many of the games he's reviewed. He bashed Portal 2, but made his top 5 game of the year, etc.
PS: It's good to see him actually playing Kid Icarus: Uprising
1) His reviews typically come out a week after everyone elses
2) His exaggerates EVERYTHING. Mostly for laughs, I think he's on the record for saying he doesn't truly many of the games he's reviewed. He bashed Portal 2, but made his top 5 game of the year, etc.
PS: It's good to see him actually playing Kid Icarus: Uprising
Passed chapter 9. It's a pity he didn't talk about Hades during his review, but perhaps that could have been based on respect?
Yeah but the thing is he's not even that FUNNY to me anymore. If I can't take his reviews seriously (and I laugh at people who actually do this and then proceed make ad hominem attacks against "defensive Nintendo fanboys") and also begin to sigh at his humorous approach, what's the point?
He brings up some valid criticisms sometimes - as much as I love Uprising, the controls and stand are absolutely reasonable to criticize - but they're oftentimes exaggerated and nobody sees Yahtzee reviewing an objectively BAD game anyway. It wouldn't make for good entertainment, which is understandable, but I'm not sure if his brand of humor has declined at this point or has simply become stale and run-of-the-mill. I dunno if I'm really the only one who feels this way but whatevs.
There are still a few good gems here and there I guess. I thoroughly enjoyed his Skyward Sword video.
One of the lines in the credits refers to him.
Chuckpebble
Member
I liked this review and I still plan on owning KI:U at some point.
The thing I like about ZP is that its crass and blunt. And you know for damn sure the review wasn't influenced by ad dollars or exclusive access to early copies of games for review. Thats where you can call his reviews "honest".
The thing that sucks is that there are those that take his opinion and make it law and then there are those that take his opinion and trivialize it by calling it schtick. Both mind sets are wrong.
The thing I like about ZP is that its crass and blunt. And you know for damn sure the review wasn't influenced by ad dollars or exclusive access to early copies of games for review. Thats where you can call his reviews "honest".
The thing that sucks is that there are those that take his opinion and make it law and then there are those that take his opinion and trivialize it by calling it schtick. Both mind sets are wrong.
ZP is honest in the same way that comedy is honest. They take real, but often insignificant aspects of things, then blow them up into monsters for humourous effect. He's not lying per se, he's just being intentionally disingenuous about the experience. Because it's funny (supposedly).
No man, he HATES Nintendo!
Jake Tower
Banned
PezDispenser
Banned
This is the correct answer.
Kai Dracon
Writing a dinosaur space opera symphony
But it's a bit like saying "Well there's only one honest man in the room, except while he tells the truth he also punches you in the face. Don't criticize him for that, after all, he's the only one who's honest."
I wouldn't say he should be invalidated as a critic - the entry barrier for "critics" is pretty damned low as it is. I wouldn't say he's a particularly great critic in terms of what his "act" brings to the table though.
As said upthread, he uses the exaggeration of comedy to inflate what are technically valid, but sometimes trivial, points.
He IS useful in that he will point out things that nobody else really points out. The downside is that you can't actually take his appraisal as any indication whatsoever of how good the product is as a holistic whole.
I'm the opposite. I disagree with his review for this game, but what I found disturbing is that his latest review wasn't as funny as the last one I saw. He sound like he's droning on about points covered by other reviewers and the script just doesn't seem witty and feels like it was grasping for straws.
If you feel like that when someone criticises a game you like (however fair or unfair they may be) you are indeed better off not watching his videos.
Key word, there.
The one time were I thought he had absolutely nothing of any use to say was when he did Soul Calibur 4. He pretty much starts the video by saying he doesn't get fighting games, invalidating anything that comes after. It's not even remotely funny, either.
Anything multi-player is beyond him. At least competitive multi-player.
Yeah, his stuff can only supplement other reviews.
FieryBalrog
Member
Looks like Yahtzee can revive his flagging viewership by only reviewing Nintendo 1st party and exclusives from now on.
Easter Egg in the QR code for those curious.
QuickSilverD
Member
what is it?