How much stock do you put in reviews/impressions

[ryan36]

I loved Chris's reviews this year...the most in depth a Madden review has seen in awhile.

It seems that all the "legacy" issues that bug the crap out of me in Madden are still there, and I haven't played it yet. I read the demo roundtable... and one of the contributors said that the demo seemed worse than retail.

...and then I read there are certain bugs (while trying to stay out of the bugs and glitches thread)...as well as crazy design decisions, some of which probably won't bother me.

The thing I know I will HATE is the commentary/dead crowd which made Madden 11 pretty boring to me. I know the game will take sliders to be closer to sim.

Yet I STILL WANT TO PLAY FOOTBALL... I already traded in NCAA this year, I found it lacking in many ways.

So how much do you weigh other people's opinion when considering a buy?

[KBLover]

Re: How much stock do you put in reviews/impressions

Largely, I used the demo, but I did consider some things I read in the impressions thread to decide to give M12 a shot.

[Gotmadskillzson]

Re: How much stock do you put in reviews/impressions

I play the demo to make my impressions. Sure I read everybody 2 cents because I love reading, but at the end of the day I make my opnions based on what I see with my own eyes.

Tons of youtube videos exists for every game that is out or about to come out. So therefore it is a lot to gather info from.

[poisedjase]

Re: How much stock do you put in reviews/impressions

none at all review and impressions mean nothing to me thats how they feel about the game they dont have the same taste in games i do

[CRMosier_LM]

Re: How much stock do you put in reviews/impressions

I always go by my own personal tastes. Demos do nothing for me really unless its a game that is a first run. Reviewers are the last place I pay attention to.

[CigarCityBandit]

Re: How much stock do you put in reviews/impressions

Here is how I use Reviews:
I go to gamerankings.com and I several Bad reviews, several great
reviews and the several average reviews of the game.
Sometimes there are upwards of 50+ reviews of the more popular titles.
After using this process I usually know all of the flaws and positives of any
given game. This process has saved me LOTS of cash since Ive started
doing this. So while reviews are valuable-I NEVER use one review
as a guideline for whether or not I will like a game.

[roadman]

Re: How much stock do you put in reviews/impressions

I read them because I'm interested in others decision, but I don't allow the reviews to impact my decision.

I'm my own best critic.

I just felt from Chris's review that he tested the game out of the box without slider adjustments and he might have said that in his review, can't remember.

I said this in another thread, there isn't a sports game on the 360 that I haven't personalized sliders to my enjoyment of the game.

[poopoop]

Re: How much stock do you put in reviews/impressions

Individual reviews little to no stock at all.

Reviews overall as a group a decent amount. When you read 10 reviews that all say the same thing, easier to believe it's true.

[raguel]

Re: How much stock do you put in reviews/impressions

ryan:

One positive I've noticed: IMO the crowd noise is much louder. Of course this is a new tv so that may have something to do with it
Also if you're the home team and you make a big play td, the camera shakes.

[WizKhid]

Re: How much stock do you put in reviews/impressions

I rarely read reviews or what other say about the game. I based getting the game by either the demo of the game or just buy it (if its a really good game)

[misterkrabz]

Re: How much stock do you put in reviews/impressions

I've found that games that get critical acclaim are games that I dont really enjoy (on average). Meaning I usually have the exact opposite impression of most reviewers opinion. This years Madden is a classic example, on average this madden has gotten luke warm reviews and this is the first Madden on next gen that has held my attention and that I really enjoy. Previous next gen Maddens were always 9+ scores and I hated them, couldn't play them for more than a game or two at most.

It's not universal, but on average it holds true...looking at Metacritics top ps3 all time games (grand theft, uncharted 2, little big, red dead, bioshock, mass effect) are games I've tried and didn't really like.

[Tomba]

Re: How much stock do you put in reviews/impressions

Depends on the review/reviewer.

If i'm already with what Ive seen of the game in off screen video captures then i'm usually sold based off of that.

Also demos

never thought i'd get Rugby world Cup 2011 per say now yeah and then rugby Challenege too lol

[ultralow36]

Re: How much stock do you put in reviews/impressions

none only review i care about is mine

[The Amaizen Blue]

Re: How much stock do you put in reviews/impressions

Considering I read the negative reviews, bought the game, and highly enjoy it... I think I came out a winner. Sports game reviews never matter anyways, I only look into them for games with a story.

[jfsolo]

Re: How much stock do you put in reviews/impressions

My own read is obviously what really matters, but with that being said, after being here at OS for so many years, there are quite a few posters here who's opinion I can trust.

They are going to evaluate the game that is in front them, period. No comparing to previous games in the series, no comparing to games of other publishers, no comparing to other sports genres, no comparing to other gaming genres, just how good is this game in and of itself. It seems that no "review" of sports game is made using that process, so they're all pretty much useless for me.