| |
Site Navigation
Main
News
Forums
Games
Games Database
Top 100
Release List
Support Files
Features
Reviews
Previews
Interviews
Editorials
Diaries
Misc
Download
Gallery
Music
Screenshots
Videos
Miscellaneous
Staff Members
Privacy Statement
|
|
|
|
dagoo7
Guest
|
| Comment on reviews/complaints |
|
Please do not respond to this post by calling me a fanboy. I am merely an old pc rpger (from the days of Wiz1) who is very intereseted in the continuing evolvement of the genre.
I do not take issue with discussion of certain aspects of the game. For example, I would like a better journal feature, and a more balanced skill system. However, I believe that the games should be reviewed from a holistic perspective and on the basis of what it adds to the gaming world both in general and genre-specific. There is no such thing as a perfect game and to review with the idea that a game starts at a perfect 10 and then you subtract points for a list of faults is flawed.
Also imperfections in the game need to be viewed in terms of what the game does provide. For example, I think someone's earlier comments about the cost/reward of creating a day/night cycle for npcs were right on. Instead one should ask how immersive is the game in terms of environment even w/o day/night cycle. Also, when discussing the imperfections in the skill system, you need to consider the benefits provided by this unique and distinctive system in the context of the incredible difficulties of implementing it in a huge game, while retaining some balance. In response to this, I am significanlty happier playing a game with a unique and cool skill system than I am bothered by imperfections resulting from the difficulties in implementing it.
Once again, I agree the game is not perfect. However, it is revolutionary and does so many things that I never though could be realized in a pc game. After playing this game, my understanding of what gaming can provide has broadened and hopefully other developers will take note. DId I "enjoy" playing WIZ 8 more at times, perhaps yes. But that doesn't change what MW brings to the gaming world. For that reason, I would give it a higher review than Wiz8.
This game is very complex and requires a lot from the player, and players need to give it time and imagination to work completerly. I think we should focus on the experience the game provides as a whole rather than obsessing about a list of things which could have been better. That being said, I don't thinks its wrong to make note of these points for future evolvement of gaming worlds.
Conclusion: Does the game have certain imperfections? Yes. Is the game as whole friggin amazing. Yes. Does the gaming world seem much brighter and poseess more potential for me after MW. Very Much Yes |
Mon May 13, 2002 2:18 pm |
|
|
Danicek
The Old One
Joined: 15 Dec 2001
Posts: 5922
Location: Czech Republic |
Good points.
Every reviewer has difficult task to
a] let people know how much he/she enjoyed certain game
b] let people know about all mistakes and faults in certain game (because fault that is minor for someone is biiiiig for someone else and people use reviews to decide if they will or will not buy that game).
If we will talk f. e. about Gamespot MW review, I think they did great work. Maybe we do not agree with final mark, but when you read that review, you will notice truthful informations about faults and bugs, but in every paragraph this reviewer reminds us how much he enjoyed it. |
|
Mon May 13, 2002 3:56 pm |
|
|
dagoo7
Guest
|
I agree with you to certain degree Danicek. As I mentioned that I do not have a problem with the recognition of imperfections or things that can be improved, as long as they are dealt within the context of the whole game. After reading this review, you walk away with a list of faults not an impression of what the game does right, or the impact of the revolutinary changes it tries to bring to the genre and gaming in general. I don't care how many times you punctuate a list of flaws with "but I really enjoyed it", you do not get an accurate impression of the game.
I am more conecerned with readers of reviews who have'nt played the game. You and I know what the game offers and can talk about faults reasonably. However, gamers who have not played can get a flawed impression from this. IMHO everyone should play this game and see how what it does right can be translated/built upon in other games and how its faults can be improved to evolve the genre even further. |
|
Mon May 13, 2002 4:56 pm |
|
|
Danicek
The Old One
Joined: 15 Dec 2001
Posts: 5922
Location: Czech Republic |
Ok, again good points.
Gamespots reviews are very often like that. I mean very good source of "technological" or "descriptive" informations about games.
But i can not say much about it, I do not have MW yet :-[. |
|
Mon May 13, 2002 5:00 pm |
|
|
TheMadGamer
High Emperor
Joined: 03 May 2002
Posts: 487
Location: Southern California |
| Gamers cynism should have a new term coined after it |
|
Like many of you, I have seen this same series of events play out, time and again, since my Compuserve message board days.
A developer announces a game. The gamers yap about it on message boards during its development. The developer releases the game. The gamers b!tch about it... and this happens regardless if the game is a true gem or a piece of garbage... it just doesn't matter.
Unfortunatley, this pattern continues to hold true for Morrowind. In this day and age where people are born and raised to engage in behaviors of entitlement and then scream b!tch and moan like a starving baby when they don't get what they want how they want when they want is too hard to battle... try swimming against the current of Niagra Falls, you'll have a better chance.
Most of the people b!tching about Morrowind out there lack any kind of perspecitve or point of reference. They simply exist in a realm of holier than thou entitlement - give me it now, or else!
A game like Morrowind comes out maybe once every 10. Sure, it's not perfect. Yes, it has bugs. But the way so many people come off is really embarrasing to all gamers. It sort of bottles us all up as a very immature group of people. But the real tragedy is how sooo many people fail to recognize the fact that a game like Morrowind only comes around once a decade... so sad and so pathetic.
_________________
The Poster Previously Known As NeptiOfPovar |
|
Mon May 13, 2002 6:13 pm |
|
|
Rendelius
Critical Error
Joined: 06 Jul 2001
Posts: 16
Location: Austria |
I am working on a MW review dor RPGDot for several days now. Believe me, there has never been a harder task than this one 
_________________
Rendelius
former Senior Editor RPGDot
now at http://www.theastronomers.com |
|
Mon May 13, 2002 6:19 pm |
|
|
Hyperion
Keeper of the Gates
Joined: 07 May 2002
Posts: 122
|
I don't think this has anything to do with a "holier than thou attitude" or the inclinations of people today. There are some people who are simply disappointed by the game. This will happen regardless of what game. Some people are disappointed and so they voice their opinions to that effect. It's not being selfish, it's being pissed off that you either spent so much money, or so much time in a game that you do not enjoy. These folks are not getting a return on their investment, and that tends to be rather disappointing.
I, like most of you, love this game. But, there are great many things I would like to see changed, so I can empathize with those who's experience with MW has not been as rewarding as your's or mine. |
|
Mon May 13, 2002 7:18 pm |
|
|
Mephisto
Leader of the Senate
Joined: 05 May 2002
Posts: 300
Location: Holland |
Rendelius, you beter give MW at least 9.5/10, or I will pay you a visit...  |
|
Mon May 13, 2002 7:27 pm |
|
|
Rendelius
Critical Error
Joined: 06 Jul 2001
Posts: 16
Location: Austria |
Hehe, Mephisto - I haven't decided on the final score yet. There are so many things to consider for that. First of all, I try to avoid to rate Morrowind just on my personal liking of the game. And then there is the question: Yes, there are some flaws, but how bad are they? Do they harm gameplay enough to be significant? And if so - for which type of gamer?
One thing I found out during testing various approaches towards Morrowind: This game allows you so many exploits that you can ruin your experience completely. If you power-level (meaning that you optimize your leveling not for the role you play, but to get your stats as high as possible as fast as possible), the game gets boring soon. But is this a flaw in the game or just a flaw in the approach towards the game?
See, this is waht I mean by the Morrowind review being the hardest I worked on so far...
_________________
Rendelius
former Senior Editor RPGDot
now at http://www.theastronomers.com |
|
Mon May 13, 2002 7:40 pm |
|
|
TheMadGamer
High Emperor
Joined: 03 May 2002
Posts: 487
Location: Southern California |
| You got me all wrong Hyperion... |
|
Hyperion wrote:
"I don't think this has anything to do with a "holier than thou attitude" or the inclinations of people today. There are some people who are simply disappointed by the game. This will happen regardless of what game. Some people are disappointed and so they voice their opinions to that effect. It's not being selfish, it's being pissed off that you either spent so much money, or so much time in a game that you do not enjoy. These folks are not getting a return on their investment, and that tends to be rather disappointing."
I agree with you 100%. But that's not exactly what I'm talking about. I'm talking about scathing rants that are sometimes baseless, or based on just a few hours of play. And no matter how 'ripped off' someone might feel about something they've purchased, I can't say that I hold any respect for the kind of person that loses self control and flies off the handle - which is how I percieve a lot of people on the official Morrowind forums.
It's one thing to have a valid complaint. It's another thing to slander and just plain go off the deep end. I can't draw a line in the sand between what is acceptable ranting and what is not, but I can certainly spot bad, rotten, and spoiled behavior from miles away.
_________________
The Poster Previously Known As NeptiOfPovar |
|
Mon May 13, 2002 8:06 pm |
|
|
Mephisto
Leader of the Senate
Joined: 05 May 2002
Posts: 300
Location: Holland |
Rendelius: Not trying to sound like a smartarse, but why not forget about the score completely? Just dont give it a score! I know the major sites cant/wont do it (a review with no score? BOOO), but it might be fitting for a game like MW. Its just not possible to do the game justice without ignoring the bad points.
Just a small idea. Have fun and good luck. Rest assured we will flame you fof this boards if we aint like your review. After all, the GS review, for example, was excellent, but the score is just pathetic. People will compare the score with Wiz8 etc, and decide it aint worth the hype. Which is, IMHO ofcourse, anything but true.
Ah well, the live of a reviewer is tough
Cheers |
|
Mon May 13, 2002 8:18 pm |
|
|
Hyperion
Keeper of the Gates
Joined: 07 May 2002
Posts: 122
|
quote:
Originally posted by Mephisto
Its just not possible to do the game justice without ignoring the bad points.
Everything gets a perfect score when you ignore all the bad points. |
|
Mon May 13, 2002 8:24 pm |
|
|
dagoo7
Guest
|
What were your impressions of the Zengamer review, irregardless of the score (I have always found scores to be problematic, and MW has made this even more apparent)? I think this was a very good review which emphasizes the revolutionary nature of the game and what it brings to the gaming world while at the same time being honest about problems. It seems pretty balanced, talking about the very real merits of what the game does right and then addressing the problems/imperfections that resulted from trying to implement them. It is clear from this review that the game is not for everyone, requires a lot from the player and is often frustrating but it also makes clear that the game has a lot to offer to most gamers and to the gaming community as a whole.
On a side note, as I was playing MW last night and thinking about the issues that have been brought up. I have to admit I was someone bored with the low level quests I was trying to clean up on some of the factions I had been ignoring. The enemies I was encountering were too easy for my lvl 35 character, and I just wanted to get through these quests. That being said, I still find a sufficient challenge with higher end quests (although I might like them slightly harder).
When thinking about this lack of challenge, I compared it to other games. Most other RPGs, console RPGs in particular, closely control difficulty by mandating a greater or lesser degree of linearity. Any game which attempts to give you complete freedom (even those with more traditional lvling, skill/attribute systems) would encounter the same difficulties. Imagine Diablo 2 if you could go to different game areas as you pleased. I think MW tried to deal with this by scaling difficulty based on lvl but this seems hard to do effectively and consistently. |
|
Tue May 14, 2002 12:11 pm |
|
|
Mephisto
Leader of the Senate
Joined: 05 May 2002
Posts: 300
Location: Holland |
Indeed. I can clear dragonsands in mm6 in 1 minute with my lvl120+ party. I can kill Mephisto on hell diff in d2 in 25 seconds with my lvl84 assasin. Give the player freedom, no matter how much, and the balance is hard to maintain. |
|
Tue May 14, 2002 2:46 pm |
|
|
|
All times are GMT. The time now is Tue Apr 16, 2019 8:36 pm
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
