The commentary on the Edge review of Killzone 2 seemed to be dead on when it described the duty that game journalists have to their audience- the potential consumers of games. What they say has a direct effect on the game market, and therefore deliberate attempts to inject ego or stir up fanboy battles has no place in the industry. Although the Edge review may have revealed some potential downsides of the game, issuing such a bludgeoning review in the manner they did seemed unnecessary, and it appeared that its only purpose was to cause trouble. If they wanted to present what they felt to be the game's flaws in a clear and honest manner, it would have been better to issue a separate critique of the game instead of a consumer-oriented review that might repel people from even trying the game.
As far as the fervent Youtuber that claimed Killzone 2 will render the Xbox 360 obsolete, I had a difficult time telling whether the video was a joke, or if he was being comically serious. If he was kidding, he at least did a fantastic job at making everyone laugh and has a pretty good sense of humor. If he was serious, it only shows a case of total fanboy-ism at its worst. Fanboys (and girls) will always exist in both subtle and not-so-subtle ways, so it's ultimately up to the audience to decide how to react. In my opinion, I found this guy hilarious and wouldn't in any way take him seriously. I may have even made a similar video about the Half Life anthology.
The largest problem is when fervent fans and detractors of games are put in positions to write high-profile reviews. This has a massively negative effect on consumers' views of the games, as they're written from a totally biased perspective that could leave the purchaser either disappointed with an overhyped game, or deterred from a potentially excellent game. Reviews should be balanced and concise, focusing only on the largest elements of the game- be they positive or negative. The fine details should be left to the observation of the potential player. Another way reviewers can cause problems- as seen with the Edge's Killzone 2 review- is by giving a rating that clashes with the general opinion simply for the purpose of causing arguments. Although honesty is always a good thing, when it's presented in an abrasive manner it can easily cause more harm than good.
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I agree that Edge's Killzone 2 review was uncalled for, but if they would've had more solid reasons for why they gave the game a low score, it would be alright. They barely touched on the multiplayer of the game, which should be taken into account when giving a rating. After reading the review I still don't understand what was so bad that the game deserved a 7 out of 10, which is why I think they intended to cause arguments.
ReplyDeleteHeavy bias, whether on the part of reviewers or fans/purchasers of video games, can be a problem, as you highlight regarding the Killzone 2 debacle. Like you, I also wonder if certain high-profile reviews have such scores to cause little more than attention and flamewars. If nothing else, video-game fanatics are great for upping page views on a website. I'm curious as to Edge's numbers during that time.
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