This fascination with the scores that GS is giving games is silly anyway. People are basing their views and ideas of the game solely on these numbers when they should be using it as a reference, and then going out and at least renting the game to get their own impression of it.

There is so much dislike being generated on the website lately just because of this one aspect of the site. The scores are just a fraction of what this site is useful for.

I think this mostly stems from Gamespot's old review system.

you mean Big Red Racing didnt start at a 10?

In Dangerous Minds, Michelle Pfeiffer's character let all her students begin the semester with A grades: "At this point, everyone has an A. But it's up to you to keep it." It seemed to work nicely for her, her students and Coolio. I'm just sayin'.

Lark, I don't think I can go to your profile anymore. Everytime I am here I am reminded that I don't own Left 4 Dead and that it keeps being out when I try to rent it.

Someone -- maybe more than one person, I forget -- suggested this myth or something like it on my blog about Reviews (I think it was the Kevin Pereira Too Human one), and thought it was prudent to say that a game review that doesn't do something quantitative like this doesn't serve a purpose. I had to laugh at that.

So games that haven't yet been reviewed by Gamespot score a zero? Good to know

it's true but I don't think we should trust all reviews.if there's a game we want,and even though reviews are horrible,and we still want it,we should get it.it happened to me with Mercs 2 and I'm happy I got it.Reviews are just to make yourself an opinion about a game,that not being you judgement over it.I also don't care about what score the game has,I'm more interested in what the reviewer has to say

oh be honest

I can't even see why anyone would think about the score while they play the game.

you are right that's always happen when i review a game

haha, thanks Eddie

I didn't think so. You reviewers are smarter than to do that.

i think nobody use that system, hopefully. but reviews from GS is not based on thin air, you really put much thought into it. if we really pay attention GS reviews are actually reasonable, for me at least. but a there is such thing as a 10/10 game. for me a perfect 10/10 game is a game that is really hard to make, minor glitches and other flaws is never a concern to me

"you don't start out a class in school with an A and lose points by not doing homework or missing questions on tests"....That's not what my high school teachers told me (and I'm not kidding). And sometimes, I see certain points as keeping a game from being perfect (it's too short, the bosses can be too easy, etc.). Other than that, on my part, I just use a blank slate for each game, then see where it goes. If it starts to become good, points go up. If it sucks, it goes down.

I've said it before and I'll say it again...any kind of score or grade for a game is meaningless, since at some point, on some level, it reflects the reviewers personal opinions. If I buy a game simply because someone gave it a high score, then I'm guilty of surrendering my judgement to another individual, and letting them make my decisions for me.

What's much more important in any review (imho) is providing sufficient information to allow me to judge for myself whether or not I will like it. Someone may give a low score to a game I love, but that doesn't mean they are wrong, or their review is no good. It just means we have different likes and dislikes. As long as they provide sufficient detail, and are accurate in describing various features or aspects of a game, then I find it useful for helping me arrive at a decision of my own, regardless of the score (or final opinion) they have for the game.

I think that's a big problem with the way many readers evaluate player reviews. If the reader doesn't agree with the reviewer's over-all assessment of a particualr release, then the reader is often too quick to discredit the entire review and give it a thumbs down. Personally, I could care less how someone else rates a particular game, just so long as they give me some details.

along with the time u see a great game is actually good not great

I agree. There are games I've played that don't have any major flaws (or reasons to lose points using the start from 10 system) but don't have anything majorly awesome about them to earn them those extremely high marks either.

I totally agree, some of my friends talk how a game isn't how it should be (e.g. Fallout 3 being different and not as great as Fallout 1 or 2) but i believe it brought some new aspects into the RPG feild.

You should base a game on how good it is not its faults.

Bacchus: I know what you're talking about in depth. Hell, I've seen it all the time (NiGHTS, Dragon Quest IV, Final Fantasy IX, etc.).

Ok.. which 5th grader did you hear saying that.. lol. But yeah its better to clarify rather than ignore the ignorance.

editorial : you are so right.

i agree

At my school, we actually do start with an A and lose points as we go on. Other then that I agree.

Overall I think that a panel of guys should review games.

"Overall I think that a panel of guys should review games."

In a perfect world, sure. But there's no way this can work in a world where you'd have to pay salaries to all those people, coordinate the schedule so that they all finish it in time to get a review out (along with the schedules of all the other games those people would be playing).

It would lead to better reviews, probably, but it's just not efficient because of all the extra people you'd need to hire/organize.

In the past if a game didn't get above an 8, I wouldn't even consider it. If it didnt get close to a 9, I most likely wouldn't buy it. Since GS is the site I always use because of the site layout there. Recently I've been relying more and more on IGN and some other reviewers because GS has been overrating certain games and underrating others big time. its sad, but its just losing my trust...really wish IGN site layout was better...but it hurts my eyes.

Games cost 60 dollars and renting them is a hassle and if its a bad game playing it is a bigger waste of time and money then going to see a movie that got crappy reviews. Gamespot has always been fair with scores although recently I find myself putting less and less stock in what they say I find IGN to be more on point with some games but not all.

In my mind a good review should be as close to the average critic review and gamer reviews as possible to be fair. Its like in school if you have a professor who thinks grades are inflated and wants to be a maverick by making a C+ the average and therefore acceptable grade but everyone else is using a different scale it makes his grading scale unfair for the students (the games in this analogy). I could have used an analogy about the Puppy Who Lost Its Way and related it to the industrial Revolution but I'm running out of time. PS...The guy who underated PoP imo also underated Mass Effect which i think shoulda been a lock for an editors choice..every rpg player in the world and then some should play that game

PS slamming games for minor glitches is the worst thing to do..i dont care if the textures dont load immediately or if twice in the play through my knees are in the floor..no one cares about but reviewers always harp on stuff like that while the average gamer rarely mentions that in their own reviews of the game.

Actually you are quite wrong, on an assignment you are docked for wrong answers and not rewarded for correct answers. You start out with 100 points and then wrong answers are docked from there. The simple fact of the matter is it is easier to dock negatives than to add up positives because most people get better than 50% on assignments.

If you are going to make an analogy, atleast make a correct one.

I read your post and was amazed, I had never even thought of it like that until you had said something, but based on many of the comments I read here, it apparently struck a chord.

I think that there is definitely something to be said for games having to prove their mettle. That being said, I think reviews are based on opinion, background, level of nerddom, and other factors. There is no one review that Joe or Jane Six Pack will all agree on. They are entirely subjective.

I have read reviews before on a few websites, but GameSpot is the only one bookmarked. I have also read them in various magazines I used to subscribe to. I would read reviews of games that I wanted to try and then GameFly (or rent from Blockbuster, however you got to do it) them. Upon playing, if I liked it, I would buy it and be on to my next try game.

One thing to note is that as I read the same peoples reviews, I would form a "relationship" with these people and would understand what they were saying good or bad. A few people, I will leave them anon for now, said a game was good, and I had agreed with their tastes before, so based solely on their (imho) expert opinion, I would purchase a game.

Thanks for the thoughtul and thought provoking post.

Spiritof

@ endocrine...

Actually, YOU are the one who is quite wrong. You used a completely different analogy from Lark's. He compared game scores to a course grade...I admit it's been a while since I was in college, but from what I remember, my grade for the term was based on adding up my performance on all tests and assignments (which was the TC's point). YOUR comparisson is based on a single test or assignment, which DID start from a "100 points possible" kind of theme, but my final result was based on how many answers I got RIGHT as much as it was based on how many answers I got WRONG.

Perhaps you should take your own advice...

"If you are going to make an analogy, atleast make a correct one."

...rather than nit-picking at the TC's obvious intent.

Good to know Gamespot doesn't use it

I've written like 30 reviews and that system is absurd...

Reviews are there to give the potential buyer an idea of what they should expect with the game. It's not always going to be the final say in what to buy or even how that reader will rate the game. I do find that it's nice to read a review, but also what other readers have to say as well. It's the balance that counts. Back to OT - Every reviewer will come into most games with a biased based on the hype of the game. That will weigh the starting point of the score and could go up and down from there. I'm sure a reviewer that gave Gears of War a 9.0 will go in assuming GOW2 will be a high rated game. It can still totally bomb, but the expectations are there.

thats good that u don't use that

Interesting concept. One point I would like to make however is that in my school we do start out with an A and lose marks or percentages or whatever your being graded on for your mistakes.

I only read and watch the reviews to see people opinions on that game. But even if that game got a bad score I am still going to get it if i want because I may just end up liking that game. So to tell you the truth imo no one get a game or not get a game based on reviews if it gets lots of bad reviews atleast rent it if you want it.

I guess a lot of people are use to math classes where if you have the right answer, but don't show any of the steps in the middle leading up to that answer they would lose points...

On a related note though: It is hard for me to think that 7.0 isn't 'average' though despite how much people think this whole 5 thing should be. I mean really, how much time gets invested into review games that will fall below the 5.0 mark anyhow?

I really think the current scale is 5.0-10.0. 5.0 = you better be very interested in the subject material to stand this game. to 10.0 = This game got us a ton of advertising $$$ or we had to give it this score to save face with the rest of the industry or we would have lost 'credibility'. But that explains what I think a 10 is now doesn't it.

TBH though, I'm amazed people even look at the scores anymore seeming the text is where the reviews really are. Which GS has improved dramatically over the last little bit. There is very little of this 'I've played games forever and I'm going to spread my opinions all in my review' Jeff crap anymore. So at least keep up the good work, I like it more now than I use to.

lol all the teachers at my school give you an A at the beggining of the year, BAAAAAMM i just poked a huge hole in ur logic lol =p

reviews dont matter that much anyway, it is only an opinion

Picture begs to differ

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i212/Faltzer_Black/Reviewtactics101.jpg

Actually, at my school. We do start at an A and lose points...

yeah that exactly wath make me angry!!!!!!!!!!!!!