simpleFeb 13, 2025

Avowed | Review Thread

https://lemm.ee/post/55431707

Avowed | Review Thread - lemm.ee

cross-posted from: https://beehaw.org/post/18450106 [https://beehaw.org/post/18450106] > Game Information > -------------------- > > Game Title: Avowed > > Platforms: > > - Xbox Series X/S (Feb 18, 2025) > - PC (Feb 18, 2025) > > Trailers: > > - Avowed Story Trailer [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AYvTNAaXMUA] > - Avowed - Official Gameplay Trailer [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULsF7B6bFuU] > > > Developer: Obsidian Entertainment > > Publisher: Xbox Game Studios > > Review Aggregator: > > OpenCritic - 82 average - 85% recommended - 67 reviews [https://opencritic.com/game/17747/avowed] > > Critic Reviews > ------------- > > > 4News.it [https://opencritic.com/outlet/917/4news-it] - Danilo Di Gennaro [https://opencritic.com/critic/10821/danilo-di-gennaro] - Italian - 8.8 / 10 [https://4news.it/recensione-avowed-benvenuti-nelle-terre-viventi/] > > ------------- > > ACG [https://opencritic.com/outlet/310/acg] - Jeremy Penter [https://opencritic.com/critic/1355/jeremy-penter] - Wait for Sale [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbDmNLF3tmc] > > ------------- > > AltChar [https://opencritic.com/outlet/820/altchar] - Semir Omerovic [https://opencritic.com/critic/8557/semir-omerovic] - 85 / 100 [https://www.altchar.com/reviews/avowed-review-vibrant-visceral-and-undeniably-fun-action-rpg-aTgRh5u2OORA] > > ------------- > > Andrenoob [https://opencritic.com/outlet/911/andrenoob] - Andres Perdomo [https://opencritic.com/critic/10753/andres-perdomo] - Spanish - 9 / 10 [https://andrenoob.com/2025/02/13/avowed-analisis-review/] > > ------------- > > Atarita [https://opencritic.com/outlet/885/atarita] - Atakan Gümrükçüoğlu [https://opencritic.com/critic/10246/atakan-g-mr-k-o-lu] - Turkish - 90 / 100 [https://www.atarita.com/avowed-inceleme/] > > ------------- > > But Why Tho? [https://opencritic.com/outlet/722/but-why-tho-] - Charles Hartford [https://opencritic.com/critic/6624/charles-hartford] - 9.5 / 10 [https://butwhytho.net/2025/02/avowed-game-review-obsidian/] > > ------------- > > CGMagazine [https://opencritic.com/outlet/82/cgmagazine] - Dayna Eileen [https://opencritic.com/critic/8194/dayna-eileen] - 8 / 10 [https://www.cgmagonline.com/review/game/avowed-xbox-series-x-review/] > > ------------- > > Cerealkillerz [https://opencritic.com/outlet/465/cerealkillerz] - Steve Brieller [https://opencritic.com/critic/9606/steve-brieller] - German - 8.3 / 10 [https://cerealkillerz.org/review-avowed-kann-das-pillars-of-eternity-spin-off-ueberzeugen/] > > ------------- > > Checkpoint Gaming [https://opencritic.com/outlet/563/checkpoint-gaming] - Luke Mitchell [https://opencritic.com/critic/4403/luke-mitchell] - 9.5 / 10 [https://checkpointgaming.net/reviews/2025/02/avowed-review-divine-fantasy/] > > ------------- > > Console-Tribe [https://opencritic.com/outlet/918/console-tribe] - Francesco Pellizzari [https://opencritic.com/critic/10864/francesco-pellizzari] - Italian - 88 / 100 [https://console-tribe.com/recensioni/avowed-304622/] > > ------------- > > Daily Mirror [https://opencritic.com/outlet/561/daily-mirror] - Aaron Potter [https://opencritic.com/critic/2776/aaron-potter] - 3 / 5 [https://www.mirror.co.uk/gaming/avowed-review-fun-frivolous-rpg-34664490] > > ------------- > > Dexerto [https://opencritic.com/outlet/863/dexerto] - Jessica Filby [https://opencritic.com/critic/9424/jessica-filby] - 4 / 5 [https://www.dexerto.com/gaming/avowed-review-sublime-rpg-blends-masterful-choices-and-magical-combat-3062697/] > > ------------- > > Digital Spy [https://opencritic.com/outlet/24/digital-spy] - Joe Draper [https://opencritic.com/critic/9856/joe-draper] - 4 / 5 [http://www.digitalspy.com/tech/a63756832/avowed-review/] > > ------------- > > Digitale Anime [https://opencritic.com/outlet/944/digitale-anime] - Raouf Belhamra [https://opencritic.com/critic/11073/raouf-belhamra] - Arabic - 8.5 / 10 [https://ar.digitaleanime.dz/archives/62142] > > ------------- > > Echo Boomer [https://opencritic.com/outlet/702/echo-boomer] - David Fialho [https://opencritic.com/critic/6219/david-fialho] - Portuguese - No Recommendation [https://echoboomer.pt/avowed-xbox-series-x-pc-review/] > > ------------- > > Enternity.gr [https://opencritic.com/outlet/783/enternity-gr] - Christos Chatzisavvas [https://opencritic.com/critic/7759/christos-chatzisavvas] - Greek - 9 / 10 [https://www.enternity.gr/Article/Games/Reviews/avowed-review/93230.html] > > ------------- > > Eurogamer.pt [https://opencritic.com/outlet/832/eurogamer-pt] - Bruno Galvão [https://opencritic.com/critic/6156/bruno-galv-o] - Portuguese - 3 / 5 [https://www.eurogamer.pt/avowed-review-action-rpg-pouco-epico-mas-divertido] > > ------------- > > EvelonGames [https://opencritic.com/outlet/929/evelongames] - Joel Isern Rodríguez - Kaym [https://opencritic.com/critic/10930/joel-isern-rodr-guez-kaym] - Spanish - 7.8 / 10 [https://evelongames.com/analisis-de-avowed] > > ------------- > > Expansive [https://opencritic.com/outlet/402/expansive] - Laurie Jones [https://opencritic.com/critic/2632/laurie-jones] - 4 / 5 [https://expansivedlc.com/avowed-is-a-scaled-back-successor-to-skyrim-enriched-with-gripping-story-lively-environments-and-compelling-combat/] > > ------------- > > Explosion Network [https://opencritic.com/outlet/654/explosion-network] - Dylan Blight [https://opencritic.com/critic/5629/dylan-blight] - 9 / 10 [https://explosionnetwork.com/avowed-review/] > > ------------- > > GAMES.CH [https://opencritic.com/outlet/762/games-ch] - Benjamin Braun [https://opencritic.com/critic/4867/benjamin-braun] - German - 79% [https://www.games.ch/avowed/test/review-ljjgf/] > > ------------- > > GRYOnline.pl [https://opencritic.com/outlet/559/gryonline-pl] - Przemysław Dygas [https://opencritic.com/critic/10208/przemys-aw-dygas] - Polish - Unscored [https://www.gry-online.pl/recenzje/avowed-recenzja-gry-kapitalne-rpg-dzieki-ktoremu-odzyskalem-zaufa/zf46da] > > ------------- > > GameOnly [https://opencritic.com/outlet/912/gameonly] - Daniel Kucner [https://opencritic.com/critic/10765/daniel-kucner] - Polish - 8 / 10 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFWGNhig2h8] > > ------------- > > GameSpot [https://opencritic.com/outlet/32/gamespot] - Alessandro Barbosa [https://opencritic.com/critic/1228/alessandro-barbosa] - 6 / 10 [https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/avowed-review-too-close-to-the-sun/1900-6418335/] > > ------------- > > Gamer Guides [https://opencritic.com/outlet/733/gamer-guides] - Patrick Dane [https://opencritic.com/critic/3941/patrick-dane] - 84 / 100 [https://www.gamerguides.com/avowed/review] > > ------------- > > Gamers Heroes [https://opencritic.com/outlet/467/gamers-heroes] - Blaine Smith [https://opencritic.com/critic/5094/blaine-smith] - 85 / 100 [https://www.gamersheroes.com/honest-game-reviews/avowed-review/] > > ------------- > > Gamersky [https://opencritic.com/outlet/597/gamersky] - 心灵奇兵 [https://opencritic.com/critic/8660/-] - Chinese - 8.5 / 10 [https://www.gamersky.com/news/202502/1884361.shtml] > > ------------- > > GamesFinest [https://opencritic.com/outlet/683/gamesfinest] - Luca Pernecker [https://opencritic.com/critic/10581/luca-pernecker] - German - 8 / 10 [https://gamesfinest.de/tests/test-avowed/] > > ------------- > > Gaming Nexus [https://opencritic.com/outlet/104/gaming-nexus] - Eric Hauter [https://opencritic.com/critic/4786/eric-hauter] - 8 / 10 [https://gamingnexus.com/Article/14173/Avowed/] > > ------------- > > Geeks & Com [https://opencritic.com/outlet/802/geeks-com] - Anthony Gravel [https://opencritic.com/critic/8061/anthony-gravel] - French - 9 / 10 [https://www.geeksandcom.com/test-avowed/] > > ------------- > > Glitched Africa [https://opencritic.com/outlet/687/glitched-africa] - Marco Cocomello [https://opencritic.com/critic/2466/marco-cocomello] - 9 / 10 [https://www.glitched.africa/avowed-review/] > > ------------- > > Hinsusta [https://opencritic.com/outlet/928/hinsusta] - Pascal Kaap [https://opencritic.com/critic/10925/pascal-kaap] - German - 9 / 10 [https://hinsusta.de/avowed] > > ------------- > > IGN Deutschland [https://opencritic.com/outlet/921/ign-deutschland] - Elena Schulz [https://opencritic.com/critic/3634/elena-schulz] - German - 9 / 10 [https://de.ign.com/avowed/145524/review/avowed-im-test-eines-der-besten-rollenspiele-kommt-fruh-im-jahr] > > ------------- > > INVEN [https://opencritic.com/outlet/805/inven] - Jaihoon Jeong [https://opencritic.com/critic/8141/jaihoon-jeong] - Korean - 8.3 / 10 [https://www.inven.co.kr/webzine/news/?news=303018] > > ------------- > > Just Play it [https://opencritic.com/outlet/936/just-play-it] - Yacine Tebaibia [https://opencritic.com/critic/11130/yacine-tebaibia] - Arabic - 8 / 10 [https://justplayit.info/reviews/avowed-review/] > > ------------- > > Le Bêta-Testeur [https://opencritic.com/outlet/943/le-b-ta-testeur] - Patrick Tremblay [https://opencritic.com/critic/9708/patrick-tremblay] - French - 10 / 10 [https://www.lebetatesteur.ca/test-avowed/] > > ------------- > > Loot Level Chill [https://opencritic.com/outlet/948/loot-level-chill] - Mick Fraser [https://opencritic.com/critic/572/mick-fraser] - 8.5 / 10 [https://lootlevelchill.com/reviews/avowed-review/] > > ------------- > > Lords Of Gaming [https://opencritic.com/outlet/792/lords-of-gaming-] - Mahmood Ghaffar [https://opencritic.com/critic/9312/mahmood-ghaffar] - 8.5 / 10 [https://lordsofgaming.net/2025/02/avowed-review-a-streamlined-high-fantasy-adventure/] > > ------------- > > Manual dos Games [https://opencritic.com/outlet/910/manual-dos-games] - Joao Victor [https://opencritic.com/critic/10745/joao-victor] - Portuguese - 8 / 10 [https://manualdosgames.com.br/review-avowed-pc-xbox-2025/] > > ------------- > > MondoXbox [https://opencritic.com/outlet/794/mondoxbox] - Giuseppe Genga [https://opencritic.com/critic/7638/giuseppe-genga] - Italian - 9.3 / 10 [https://www.mondoxbox.com/recensione/3728/avowed.html] > > ------------- > > MonsterVine [https://opencritic.com/outlet/334/monstervine] - Luis Joshua Gutierrez [https://opencritic.com/critic/10369/luis-joshua-gutierrez] - 4.5 / 5 [https://monstervine.com/2025/02/avowed-review-obsidian-rpg/] > > ------------- > > NextPlay [https://opencritic.com/outlet/897/nextplay] - Brad Goodwin [https://opencritic.com/critic/10643/brad-goodwin] - 7.5 / 10 [https://next-play.com.au/avowed-review-semi-awowed/] > > ------------- > > Nexus Hub [https://opencritic.com/outlet/528/nexus-hub] - Andrew Logue [https://opencritic.com/critic/3996/andrew-logue] - 8 / 10 [https://nexushub.co.za/nexus/review-avowed.html] > > ------------- > > PPE.pl [https://opencritic.com/outlet/642/ppe-pl] - Maciej Zabłocki [https://opencritic.com/critic/8240/maciej-zab-ocki] - Polish - 8.5 / 10 [https://www.ppe.pl/recenzje/363453/avowed-recenzja-gry-obsidian-znow-nie-zawodzi-to-jeden-z-lepszych-rpg-na-rynku-ale-ma-swoje-wady.html] > > ------------- > > Pizza Fria [https://opencritic.com/outlet/915/pizza-fria] - Matheus Feldmann da Rosa [https://opencritic.com/critic/10802/matheus-feldmann-da-rosa] - Portuguese - 7.4 / 10 [https://pizzafria.ig.com.br/analises/avowed-review/] > > ------------- > > PowerUp! [https://opencritic.com/outlet/577/powerup-] - Leo Stevenson [https://opencritic.com/critic/3173/leo-stevenson] - 9 / 10 [https://powerup-gaming.com/2025/02/14/avowed-review-xbox-series-x-eora-worlds/] > > ------------- > > Press Start [https://opencritic.com/outlet/491/press-start] - 8.5 / 10 [https://press-start.com.au/reviews/xbox-series-x-reviews/2025/02/14/avowed-review/] > > ------------- > > Restart.run [https://opencritic.com/outlet/940/restart-run] - John Carson [https://opencritic.com/critic/8373/john-carson] - Recommended [https://www.restart.run/articles/avowed-review?amp%3Butm_medium=backlink&amp%3Butm_campaign=Aggregators] > > ------------- > > Rock, Paper, Shotgun [https://opencritic.com/outlet/270/rock-paper-shotgun] - Unscored [https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/avowed-review] > > ------------- > > SECTOR.sk [https://opencritic.com/outlet/615/sector-sk] - Táňa Matúšová [https://opencritic.com/critic/5199/t-a-mat-ov-] - Slovak - 8.5 / 10 [https://www.sector.sk/recenzia/39843/avowed.htm] > > ------------- > > SIFTER [https://opencritic.com/outlet/857/sifter] - Gianni Di Giovanni [https://opencritic.com/critic/9150/gianni-di-giovanni] - Worth your time [https://www.sifter.com.au/post/avowed-obsidian-entertainment-xbox-series-x-s-review-console] > > ------------- > > Seasoned Gaming [https://opencritic.com/outlet/451/seasoned-gaming] - Don Lionheart - 8.5 / 10 [https://seasonedgaming.com/2025/02/13/review-avowed-awowed/] > > ------------- > > Shacknews [https://opencritic.com/outlet/62/shacknews] - Donovan Erskine [https://opencritic.com/critic/4485/donovan-erskine] - 9 / 10 [https://www.shacknews.com/article/143074/avowed-review-score] > > ------------- > > Spaziogames [https://opencritic.com/outlet/502/spaziogames] - Italian - 8.3 / 10 [https://www.spaziogames.it/articoli/avowed-recensione] > > ------------- > > Stevivor [https://opencritic.com/outlet/424/stevivor] - Jam Walker [https://opencritic.com/critic/9597/jam-walker] - 7.5 / 10 [https://stevivor.com/reviews/avowed-review-a-game-pass-original/] > > ------------- > > TechRaptor [https://opencritic.com/outlet/329/techraptor] - Austin Suther [https://opencritic.com/critic/5669/austin-suther] - 9 / 10 [https://techraptor.net/gaming/reviews/avowed-review-pillars-of-excellence] > > ------------- > > The Beta Network [https://opencritic.com/outlet/844/the-beta-network] - Anthony Culinas [https://opencritic.com/critic/8928/anthony-culinas] - 8 / 10 [https://thebetanetwork.net/articles/avowed-review/] > > ------------- > > The Outerhaven Productions [https://opencritic.com/outlet/335/the-outerhaven-productions] - Jordan Andow [https://opencritic.com/critic/8998/jordan-andow] - 4 / 5 [https://www.theouterhaven.net/avowed-review/] > > ------------- > > TheSixthAxis [https://opencritic.com/outlet/68/thesixthaxis] - Dominic Leighton [https://opencritic.com/critic/307/dominic-leighton] - 9 / 10 [https://www.thesixthaxis.com/2025/02/13/avowed-review/] > > ------------- > > Tom’s Hardware Italia [https://opencritic.com/outlet/861/toms-hardware-italia] - Andrea Riviera [https://opencritic.com/critic/9207/andrea-riviera] - Italian - 8.5 / 10 [https://www.tomshw.it/videogioco/avowed-recensione-obsidian-sa-come-si-fanno-i-gdr] > > ------------- > > VGC [https://opencritic.com/outlet/821/vgc] - Chris Scullion [https://opencritic.com/critic/4391/chris-scullion] - 4 / 5 [https://www.videogameschronicle.com/review/avowed-review/] > > ------------- > > WellPlayed [https://opencritic.com/outlet/382/wellplayed] - James Wood [https://opencritic.com/critic/5294/james-wood] - 6 / 10 [https://www.well-played.com.au/avowed-review/] > > ------------- > > Worth Playing [https://opencritic.com/outlet/64/worth-playing] - Chris “Atom” DeAngelus [https://opencritic.com/critic/289/chris-atom-deangelus] - 7.8 / 10 [https://worthplaying.com/article/2025/2/13/reviews/145073-xbox-series-x-review-avowed/] > > ------------- > > XGN.nl [https://opencritic.com/outlet/810/xgn-nl] - Ralph Beentjes [https://opencritic.com/critic/8344/ralph-beentjes] - Dutch - 9.2 / 10 [https://www.xgn.nl/review/avowed-review/] > > ------------- > > XboxEra [https://opencritic.com/outlet/758/xboxera] - Jesse Norris [https://opencritic.com/critic/7583/jesse-norris] - 8.8 / 10 [https://xboxera.com/2025/02/13/avowed-review/] > > ------------- > > ZTGD [https://opencritic.com/outlet/97/ztgd] - Ken McKown [https://opencritic.com/critic/1136/ken-mckown] - 8 / 10 [https://ztgd.com/reviews/avowed-xsx/] > > ------------- > > ZdobywcyGier.eu [https://opencritic.com/outlet/869/zdobywcygier-eu] - Paweł Bortkiewicz [https://opencritic.com/critic/9940/pawe-bortkiewicz] - Polish - 8 / 10 [https://zdobywcygier.eu/wp/2025/02/13/avowed-recenzja/] > > -------------

Show threadampersandrewFeb 13, 2025

From Jeff Grubb:

And also, to be kind of a shit, I think the complaints about being underleveled and not having the right gear, mostly come from games like these being streamlined to the point where they usually have no friction. The obstacles in this game aren’t just tolerable, they’re the main reason I love it.

I definitely read a review where the reviewer was frustrated that he was underleveled and annoyed that his companions kept yelling at him to upgrade his gear, lol. But seriously, this sanding down of any sort of friction is something that has gotten to me with plenty of games in the past decade, so I appreciate someone laying it out plainly.

Show threadNuXCOM_90PercentFeb 13, 2025

The thing to understand is that reviews are inherently subjective. Decade(…s?) ago, Kieron Gillen wrote a pretty famous manifesto where he basically compared game reviewing to travel writing.

When you are booking a holiday, you don’t care how many grains of sand are on the beach. You probably don’t care too much about the average flow rate of cars on the highway during rush hour. What you care about is whether you will enjoy it.

For some? That means there being plenty of museums. For others it is beaches with accessible parking so that you can leave your crap in a rental car. For others still it is nightlife.

And that applies to “friction” as well. Because let’s take a different example. Many people (myself included) criticized Elden Ring for having a grace outside of basically every single boss room. We half joke that people would lose their god damned minds if they had to play Dark Souls 2 where one of the hardest bosses in the game involves fighting your way through a solid wall of Black Knight level enemies every single time. Others think we are fucking stupid for liking Dark Souls 2 (… they are probably right) and that this lets you focus solely on the boss and not memorizing what a weeb in armor is going to do… before you fight the other weeb in armor. And others still will point out that having to run past those enemies or fight one or two helps to “reset” the mind between attempts and avoids being on tilt against a boss.

Just like some people want a beach where everyone is in a bikini and dehydrated like Hugh Jackman on a film set. And others still want somewhere they can relax and maybe surf for a bit.

Which… mostly speaks to Grubb’s problems as a reviewer. As a “game leaks” guy, he is amazing. I think he lacks the drive to be a full on game journo but that is also a function of him working for the company that steals the work of the rest of games media on the regular (Fandom). But he has a VERY long history of giving “spicy takes” where he has a rudimentary understanding of a topic but still feels the need to shit on others unnecessarily. He isn’t the only one but I am increasingly at the point where I can’t tell if that is engagement farming or “Just Jeff Grubb”.

Show threadmohabFeb 14, 2025

Hmm… sure, but I feel like "reviews are subjective" gets used as an excuse to give low-effort reviews a pass too often.

Like, I understand if a Steam reviewer writes whatever because they're just a user, but I cannot justify using the same scale to judge a professional reviewer.

I understand a game may not be a reviewer's cup of tea, but if this stops them from engaging with the game's systems and attempting to provide insight through their review then I think it's fair to judge they haven't done their job well.

Like, if someone hires me to do a job, and I accept, I cannot go "Oh, I'm gonna do half of it because the rest isn't my cup of tea. Sorry." No, I'll do the job and maybe complain about it afterwards, which IMO, is exactly what reviewers should do—example: "I beat the boss, but the fight sucked because X, Y, and Z."

I think there should be standards, otherwise you get reviewers unfairly judging games they barely played like in the infamous God Hand review.

Show threadNuXCOM_90Percent

Like, if someone hires me to do a job, and I accept, I cannot go “Oh, I’m gonna do half of it because the rest isn’t my cup of tea. Sorry.” No, I’ll do the job and maybe complain about it afterwards, which IMO, is exactly what reviewers should do—example: “I beat the boss, but the fight sucked because X, Y, and Z.”

How about we have ANY job security before we start playing the “I am paying you sub minimum wage to run that kroger. HOW FUCKING DARE YOU DO RESTOCKING AT EIGHT AM!!! YOU ARE PAID TO DO THIS OVERNIGHT!!” shittery? Hmm

Which is something a lot of old hat games media have actually talked about. It is a lot easier to run a 36 hour day to finish up that JRPG review when you know you’ll be able to rest next week. And when you know you’ll get something other than “Fucking woke reviewers don’t understand how to play a game” feedback from the “fans” who only ever see your review when their favorite hatemonger youtuber talks about it while making sure EVERYONE knows your social media accounts.

I think there should be standards, otherwise you get reviewers unfairly judging games they barely played like in the infamous God Hand review.

Define “standards”.

Is it “You must finish a game before reviewing it”? Because Jeff Gerstmann kind of infamously made it a point to finish Metal Gear Survive prior to reviewing it (I think it might have been his final print review at Giant Bomb?). EVERYONE, colleague and fan alike, told him he was stupid. And his consensus was basically that he felt the same way after 30 hours of misery that he did after 2.

Is it “You must be good at a game to review it?”. Because, funny enough, Remap Radio kind of talked about this last summer on one of their ridiculously long podcasts in the context of “games media suck and aren’t good enough to play Shadows of the Erdtree” in that short window before basically everyone said “So… this DLC is fucking hard, huh?”. And they pointed out that this is not at all a new experience for them. They are regularly playing much less polished and MUCH harder versions of these games under a strict time crunch where the only “guide” they have is what their buddy who is paid to write a game guide can experimentally figure out.

And how that translates to a review?

like in the infamous God Hand review.

You mean the game which, throughout every re-release, the vast majority of players either nope out after they get their asses beat by random grunts in the first stage? And most of the rest leave when they get to the shop and realize they need to buy and build their own combos blind?

I have no idea what “infamous God Hand review” you are referring to. But the majority I read when I heard about this cool ass PS2 game? It was “Hey, this is a really freaking cool concept and I personally had a blast. But it is not for everyone and a lot of the fundamental gameplay concepts are outright bad. OPM or whatever the hell has a demo of it and we strongly encourage you to get that if it is still on news stands because you are either going to love or hate this”. And, because this was still the era of print (like the VERY tail end), there was money to have one main review and like two “impressions” reviews at most of the major outlets. And, like almost all games, they would make it a point to have at least one sicko persona give it a high score while the rest bounced off. Which kind of represented how players respond to it to this day.

I think there should be standards, otherwise you get reviewers unfairly judging games they barely played like in the infamous God Hand review.

Or is it just “you must agree with me?”. Because, speaking as someone who has loved flight sims and tactics games his entire life (I was the kid in elementary school who liked xcom. The old xcom…)… most gamers don’t have my tastes in gaming. So having someone who dreams of Silent Storm reviewing Fire Emblem isn’t a particularly useful metric for most people.

That said? I learned from an early age to actually look at the by line on a review. I learned which guys/personas at EGM or PC Gamer I vibed with and which I didn’t. And that continued on into the online age and to this day.

Sometimes it is really annoying. Like… I like WW2 RTSes a lot. I fully understand why I need to vet every single youtuber who likes the games I like…

But also? Sometimes it is a really awesome realization that the weirdo audiophile on a podcast is the same guy who wrote some of my favorite reviews over the past decade (Rob Zacny is a treasure). And that the reason I am vibing with his thoughts on Valkyria Chronicles is that I have been vibing with his thoughts on other games for a significant part of our adult lives.

Feb 14, 2025 at 3:10pmWeb