So it’s June and we’re starting to see some advance reviews of the PS3’s flagship title Metal Gear Solid 4 trickle in now. Unsurprisingly it’s garnered some pretty high review scores, and this got me thinking about objectivity.
The difficulty with reviewing a game such as MGS4 is that it’s such a heavily plot-centric title that previous experience is necessary, but this in turn means that if the reviewer has played and enjoyed previous titles in a series then it will be difficult for them to provide an unbiased opinion.
Take as an example the IGN UK review of MGS4 that resulted in the horribly pretentious score of 9.9. While I can’t argue with the score, I do question how useful this review would be to an MGS virgin. Talk of tying up loose ends, reprisals of previous characters and locations, being evocative of previous titles, reiterating themes, fan service and Hideo Kojima moments are all meaningless to someone who is pickup up an MGS game for the first time.
Clearly at the end of the day a review is just one person’s opinion, but it also serves the purpose of helping a consumer decide whether a game is worth buying. MGS4 is not really being reviewed as a standalone game in this instance; it’s simply being viewed as a part of the whole series.
But what is the solution to this conundrum?
I would suggest that reviews for games such as this should include a ‘second opinion’ review and score from someone who has never played a title in the series before, although I understand there would be difficulties associated with this approach.
So does that mean I think the review scores of all sequels are skewed by the reviewer’s experience of the franchise? No. But MGS is pretty much the vision of one man and the finale of a series with more twists than a pigs tail.
To give a few comparisons - GTA4 requires no prior knowledge, in Halo 3 the plot is very much secondary to the gameplay and can be largely ignored and Mario Galaxy is pick-up-and-play. The enjoyment of these games is largely unaffected by whether you’ve played previous titles.
Would MGS4 get a 9.9 score from an MGS virgin? I can’t say for sure but I’d imagine it’s about as likely as a Kaz Hirai & Shane Kim love-in.
P.S. There are many more important issues regarding review scores in the gaming industry that I may touch upon in future blogs, but reading IGN’s unobjective MGS4 review really kicked off this train of thought.
Rob
June 2nd, 2008
I agree with you there, though never thought about this problem beforehand. Now the issue is raised, perhaps reviewers should always be someone new to the series, with comments being placed in from fans of the series too. One reviewer alone will not give the full picture as you.
Nice blog
steve
June 2nd, 2008
who do you think you are small fish? coming in here and expecting everyone to change how reviews are done?
TWAT, how about you do 2 reviews from now on, and we can see how ‘perfect’ you are.
Seth
June 2nd, 2008
Cheers Rob. It’s always good to have a second opinion and this is something IGN actually do on some of their reviews (strangely it usually agrees with the main review though and strangely no 2nd opinion on MGS4.)
Or you could just read the reviews on DarkZero where we always stay unbiased
bloody - You are a troll and not worth replying to.
Sean
June 2nd, 2008
It’s a funny one, for sure. Having a second reviewer add a comment can be helpful, but if the two reviewers disagree considerably, the reader can be left having no idea what to think.
It seems the only real way forward is to have the readers spend enough time with a certain magazine or website and learn all the staff’s likes and dislikes, so they know which writers they identify with the most.
Sean
June 2nd, 2008
bloody, stop embarassing yourself.
Seth
June 2nd, 2008
I dont think it should confuse the reader as long as the reviewers give detailed reasons why they like/dislike the game, (which they should be doing anyway.)
That way the reader can tell which reviewer has tastes closer to theirs.
Tmac
June 2nd, 2008
As opposed to some one who may not like the series or who knows nothing about the series? I rather have a veteran.
It really seems like your angry about MGS4’s score by IGN.
lenHart
June 2nd, 2008
woww
GAYLO3 got 10/10 from websites and its OK
MGS4’s got perfect scores and it is not OK
It is not OK to give a Japanese game 10/10 since it is not made by racists BRITISH /Americans
Matt
June 2nd, 2008
Hahahah, oh man… If you weren’t being serious that would have been hilarious IenHart. As it is, you’re a muppet.
Interesting post, something i’ve often pondered myself.
Seth
June 2nd, 2008
Not really angry. As I said I feel it’s just unhelpful for anyone who hasn’t played an MGS game before. I can’t say they overrated it, because I havent played it. Plus I’m something of an MGS fanboy myself having completed and (for the most part) enjoyed MGS1-3.
I just felt the tone of the review was very one-sided and the obvious flaws were glossed over and didnt seem to affect the score at all.
I mean he takes literally a couple of lines in a 3 page review to mention that the cutscenes are too long and frequent, the dialouge can be leaden and many of the cutscenes just leave you craving action… These cutscenes that take up half the game..
Manuel
June 2nd, 2008
i agree with your blog seth, but they are other options in the meantime, anyone can check in the internet all the websites for the reviews of the game and make a ponderation with the goods and the bads, so you have a crearly idea of what to expect, that´s what i do, i checked, darkzero, 1up, ign, gamepro, gamespot, projectcoe, gamespy, etc, joystiq, kotaku, etc and then i decide if i give it a shot or not.
cell989
June 2nd, 2008
if IGN is biased for giving Metal Gear 9.9, then you are biased for agreeing with a 10 for HALO 3. Halo 3 has no story, not the best graphics(GEAROFWAR had better graphics and its a year older), very short campaign,like really short, and the ending sucks, so why give it a 10??? well because it had massive hype behind it, so let that same hype propel MGS4 too. I sense you have yet to play the game to even make a judgment your self. If anything read EG review, you will be more happy with that.
PS:Where is your review?????
cell989
June 2nd, 2008
oh and KOJIMA said it himself, this game is for the fans, and fans alone, any casual player that wants to play it, go ahead you will enjoy it, but for the fans first and for most.
Another point you have to understand is that this game shines not just as “game” its an example of what games should be like: Artistic, epic, and rewarding. This is Hollywood material your talking about, this is the type of games that closes the gap between the VideoGame industry and the film industry.
PS: why is it that no one is taking into account that this game comes with a deep multi-player component?
Nexus
June 3rd, 2008
I’m really hoping that the ‘fan boys’ in the comments here are some kind of a joke being played amongst you guys.
I haven’t come across such ridiculous stupidity online in many a sit down. Gaylo 3? Gaylo fucking 3? Come the revolution i’m going to be the one aiming the rifle that cleanses these reprobates.
Nexus
June 3rd, 2008
oh and cell989, you do realise your post is massively ironic given the title of this blog.
Hilarious.
Pete
June 3rd, 2008
Nicely put Seth. Definitely a weird subject. I guess all you can ever hope for is a intelligent fan, thats objective enough to chart the highs and lows, and not sidestep away from pointing out the underlying scum.
Major
June 3rd, 2008
Where have all these idiots come from? Don’t bother posting here in future.
Having not really played the MGS games all the way through, I also thought the same thing when reading IGN’s review. It really was like reading a review of the final part in a trilogy of films and wondered if I would rate the game as highly. I think that MGS is a special case as it’s not really a stand-alone game and therefore, like you say, there should have been a second opinion.
I have decided to play through the first 3 anyway, but doubt I will enjoy as much without that ‘nostalgia’ factor.
Manuel
June 3rd, 2008
Guys, i think the main reason for this post is an unbiased review, for that i agree with it becuase the person who wrote the review from IGN obiously is a fan of MGS, and this influence him a lot making the review, i think if you make a sequel of a great game you should ( at least), make the game accesible for new comers, so they can play the game without previous knowlage of the game, and still enjoy it, understand it, and then buying it, but that will be another blog dont you think
And for the Halo 3 comment, i believe the 10 given by this site it is well placed, and is not unbiased, because the graphics were great not the best but great, the gameplay i will not comment that speaks for itself, the ending was great, also great online, and innovetes a lot of things like bubbleshields, etc that improves the strategy, and the best thing it was one hell of a ride and closure for a game, in the fun factor it deserves a 10, if GT4 deserve it a ten obiously this one too.
Seth
June 3rd, 2008
Cell989 said “oh and KOJIMA said it himself, this game is for the fans”.
But does this mean that you are required to have completed all previous Metal Gear Solid games to fully enjoy MGS4? If that is the case then considered as a standalone title it would have to be rated lower.
MGS4 is a game that has been touted as a system-seller for the PS3, and at the moment it seems to be the most important exclusive PS3 title. Sony and Konami can’t really afford for MGS4 to only appeal to hardcore Metal Gear fans, otherwise it’ll sell less than Metal Gear Solid 3, which managed a (comparatively) small 3.7 million sales. And that was on a system with a HUGE installed base compared to PS3.
I’m worried that MGS4 won’t sell anywhere near as well as expected and will fail to compete financially with titles like Halo 3 and Gears of War. This would be a bad thing for everyone.
Ben
June 3rd, 2008
I agree that a second opinion can be useful, if someone on the staff is in a position to offer a fair viewpoint, but really the review should cover both perspectives.
There are really two issues here, the review and the game.
A review should say who the game is suitable for and should not be written from a single perspective. However I’d never like to see a brilliant game scored lower because it’s not easy for someone unfamiliar with the series to pick up. Take TV for example, a show like Lost should be reviewed on the assumption you’ve followed it from the start, not on the basis on whether it’s good for newcomers. In this case all that is needed is the review to make it clear that MGS4 is a story driven game and if you don’t have experience with the series you may not fully understand what is going on.
With so many games having almost no story we need to be careful with this kind of criticism. Not every game can be made to suit the first time gamer, nor should they if it means compromising on quality and depth. Konami aren’t misrepresenting the game and have ‘4′ in the title, it’s obviously part of a series.
Comparing it to Halo is difficult as that’s only got a token story, not the in-depth experience I enjoyed so much in MGS2 without playing the original. Sequels often come under fire for being more of the same so the background to the series is often one of the key aspects and should be encouraged.
Seth
June 3rd, 2008
Good points Ben. The unobjectivity I talked about in the blog certainly is not unavoidable. As long as the reviewer is aware that they have to give someone who is unfamiliar with the franchise some mention of how accessible the game may be to them. This just isn’t something that was done in that IGN UK review.
Lloytron
June 3rd, 2008
Many moons ago I used to edit a few games magazines, and we used to do things exactly as you describe.
The structure of the reviews were pretty solid - the main desciprtive text was informative and descriptive, not opinionated. Towards the end of the review the writer gave their personal opinions on the game and then ended up with an entirely personal score. In a seperate pull out box a second reviewer would also comment.
This worked very well. Even if they disagreed strongly with each other (which happened quite a lot!) it helped the consumer get a rounded view of a title - and that is what reviewing is all about.
However how you handle sequels is a more complicated beast. It doesn’t do a game/film/book justice to review it by someone that is not familiar with the series, so it can be challenging for them to consider newcomers. Although having said that, it doesn’t take too much effort to add a line saying that knowledge of the previous titles is essential to getting the most out of the game/film/book/whatever.
Manuel
June 3rd, 2008
Yes, ben i agree, but to some extent, i know the background is key and specially on a game like this, but like seth said before MGS4 shouldnt aim to the hardcore gamer only, they have to make sure this game is understandable, telling the final story without previous background they can implement tricks in the game to do this, they are designers and they had to figure it out, instead they did not thought about, and it is a shame becuase you are not counting the newcomers with the problems indicated in the seth previous comments.
imagine some people that needs to buy all the previous games in order to understand it, there´s no excuse for that, they had to tought in a solution to solve this, in order to be friendly to newcomers.
PsoBloke
June 3rd, 2008
I’m a massive fan of MGS and completely agree, if you haven’t been following the series, you’re not going to know what on earth is going on! To be fair, I played the orginal (and the original metal gear games) to death, and *still* didn’t know what was going on in metal gear soild 2..
Lloytron
June 3rd, 2008
Yeah I never worked out what was going on in MGS2 either.
I hope MGS4 sorts out the biggest problem I had with MGS1 and 2.
Snake has spent weeks researching his plan to attack the enemy base. With skill he sneaks past all the security, disables a sentry, locates the nuclear warhead and set out to disable it. Does he cut the blue wire or the red? Its the red, its always the red. Lets cut the red. Aha but those sneaky bad guys, it must be the blue, so lets cut that….
Oh wait its my phone. Its Sally from HQ. Hi Sally, how are you doing? Yeah not bad Snake, not bad. its a lovely day isn’t it? Kind of reminds me of that quiet Sunday morning we spent together. You know the one, where we had a picnic underneath the cherry blossom. Ahhh, remember how beautiful it was? I remember that look in your eyes….
JUST CUT THE FUCKING WIRE!
Vivek
June 7th, 2008
OPS2 Mag gave MGS4 10/10, which is rare, but they did also dedicate that issue (June08) to MGS as a whole, back logging and telling readers about the series.
Not being a huge MGS player I picked up MGS and MGS2 on and off. The mag helped me update on certain characters. But if loose ends are going to be tighed, i think the game is going to have to have alot of flash backs to help MGS virgins.
Vivek
June 7th, 2008
I meant OPM UK not OPSM2