Halo 4: Review Thread

Karl2177 said:
Is it necessarily a review if the reviewer suggests changes to the base game and the objective review of the game is affected by the suggestions? I hate to bring up the whole "gaming journalism" here, but it irks me that a person's objective review is marred by the personal desires for a game.
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What is an objective review? Shouldn't most reviews be almost entirely subjective?
 
Karl2177 said:
Is it necessarily a review if the reviewer suggests changes to the base game and the objective review of the game is affected by the suggestions? I hate to bring up the whole "gaming journalism" here, but it irks me that a person's objective review is marred by the personal desires for a game.
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I'm not sure if it's even possible to write a helpful review that accurately tells the reader about the experience of playing the game if it doesn't relate to their personal experience and desires. A review that's completely objective would be nothing more than a fact sheet.

I think the EGM review is pretty bad, but I could imagine a useful review that suggests changes to the base game. For that to work, the game's flaws would have to be properly displayed, and the reviewer would need to make a convincing argument for how the changes would address these flaws without turning the game into something completely different.
 
Amusing tweet by Arthur Gies:

NvtDH.png


I'll give you a hint, it starts with an E and ends with an M.
 
HiredN00bs said:
People were "bent out of shape" about your "iron sights" comment because it demonstrated a basic ignorance of the different shooting mechanics in Call of Duty and Halo--an ignorance that someone who reviews video games for a living shouldn't have. But, none of us are perfect, and some of these things may slip by someone who only casually plays the games (and at that point I would blame the editor for the poor decision of assigning such a person to review such a game).

The Aim-Down Sights (ADS) mechanic in Call of Duty isn't unique to the series, but it factors heavily into its gameplay. ADS grants greater precision, at the trade-off of lesser movement speed. It is worth noting that you can get a headshot in Call of Duty with just about any of the guns.

The Zoom mechanic in Halo is almost exclusively a feature of the headshot-capable weapons (although some other weapons may have it...Rockets come to mind, and in Halo 4, some headshot-capable weapons don't have it, such as the Promethean Pistol). This is because the other weapons trade precision for some other quality, like the close-range devastation of the Shotgun or Energy Sword, or the close to mid-range high rate-of-fire domination of the Assault Rifle.

Zooming in Halo does not restrict movement speed. There is an entirely different set of rules, carefully planned out to ensure balance between the various distinct kinds of weaponry. And they are VERY distinct. The weapons in Call of Duty have far less variation, and are built around the ADS mechanic--this is a crucial point. ADS is not an objective evolution in game design, but rather a tool used to craft a certain TYPE of game.

The Fishstick control scheme was built to make the game more accessible to Call of Duty players who are more accustomed to that button layout. I don't play Call of Duty very often, but I did finish the campaigns in Modern Warfare 1 & 2 on Veteran, and I bet I could switch from my Recon configuration to Fishstick without skipping a beat, just as it is when I jump between playing Halo and Call of Duty.

You didn't make some brave step in journalism, nor did you stir some designer at 343 Industries to wake from his traditional Halo slumber. It's not even about our bias towards Halo games. Halo 4 could very well suck, and takes many, MANY cues from CoD that gives the average fan pause, to say the least. What you did was make a huge leap in logic by assuming that because Call of Duty is most popular, it is an objectively better design. Here's hoping you learn from this experience.
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Perfect, now that's the type of knowledge a reviewer is supposed to have, if not, what's the point of writing one? You are getting paid to give an informed opinion that other people will use to make their purchasing decision, calling HALO 4 outdated because it doesn’t have the iron sight view is FALSE INFORMATION. Jackswastedlife YOU NEED TO READ THIS UNTIL YOU GET IT.
 
HocusPocus said:
I hope BLOPS 2 does. Best version on the 360 for BLOPS 2 and you got Halo 4 as well. Sounds like another holiday win for the 360 ;).
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I don't think there's any doubt the 360 is going to stomp on the PS3 and whatever Nintendo's selling *this* holiday season. Mainly because Nintendo won't be able to stock enough Wii Us to put up much of a fight.
 
A game with that many perfect reviews is almost alarming, especially when it's just a sequel to a blockbuster IP rather than a new idea. It reeks of Microsoft moneyhatting to me. I'll just wait for forum impressions because I really can't imagine Halo being that much more spectacular when it's been roughly the same for the past few iterations and those haven't really impressed me (mostly because I'm bored of sci-fi shooters). I'm ready to eat crow if it actually is that amazing however, and once my roommates bring it home for me to try out.
 
I think what makes me upset or angry about the review is just the fact that when they call him out for content it's chalked up to "Oh wow, well look at these gamers, I have a different opinion and give their favorite franchise a 7 and now they're all mad."

At least that's the attitude that bothered me, since clearly the uproar was due to the reviewer's own ignorance.
 
eznark said:
His opinions are wrong!!!!!!
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No...

Baconsammy said:
The Packers would be a better team if they implemented more alley-oop plays.
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This is what the discussion has been centered around. In the review thread, to discuss reviews.

If people are literally getting PISSED about the review, I agree that they need to calm down. Halo will be fine. One review, even from a "prominent" outlet, won't turn it's fortunes.

But some extra bits of saltiness don't take away from the fact that it has been a valid topic to have an (overwhelmingly) reasonable discussion about.
 
I suppose it is a credit to 343 Studios that the miniseries and the behind the scenes videos they have released have pretty much eliminated any influence these reviews have had on my purchase decision or excitement.
 
The Lamp said:
A game with that many perfect reviews is almost alarming, especially when it's just a sequel to a blockbuster IP rather than a new idea. It reeks of Microsoft moneyhatting to me. I'll just wait for forum impressions because I really can't imagine Halo being that much more spectacular when it's been roughly the same for the past few iterations and those haven't really impressed me (mostly because I'm bored of sci-fi shooters). I'm ready to eat crow if it actually is that amazing however, and once my roommates bring it home for me to try out.
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Um, what? Is this the first Halo game's scores you've paid attention to? Because if you think all of these "perfect reviews" is Microsoft "moneyhatting" reviewers, then Microsoft has been doing that since the first game.

Ridiculous post.
 
Dax01 said:
Um, what? Is this the first Halo game's scores you've paid attention to? Because if you think all of these "perfect reviews" is Microsoft "moneyhatting" reviewers, then Microsoft has been doing that since the first game.

Ridiculous post.
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They seem better than previous Halo scores, but I might be inaccurate in that statement. I don't follow Halo very much at launch, I just play it when I get around to it.

So yeah I probably just have no idea what I'm talking about then.

EDIT: You're right, in hindsight it is more bizarre than it all sounded in my head. Never mind.
 
The Lamp said:
A game with that many perfect reviews is almost alarming, especially when it's just a sequel to a blockbuster IP rather than a new idea. It reeks of Microsoft moneyhatting to me. I'll just wait for forum impressions because I really can't imagine Halo being that much more spectacular when it's been roughly the same for the past few iterations and those haven't really impressed me (mostly because I'm bored of sci-fi shooters). I'm ready to eat crow if it actually is that amazing however, and once my roommates bring it home for me to try out.
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Wut
 
The Lamp said:
A game with that many perfect reviews is almost alarming, especially when it's just a sequel to a blockbuster IP rather than a new idea. It reeks of Microsoft moneyhatting to me. I'll just wait for forum impressions because I really can't imagine Halo being that much more spectacular when it's been roughly the same for the past few iterations and those haven't really impressed me (mostly because I'm bored of sci-fi shooters). I'm ready to eat crow if it actually is that amazing however, and once my roommates bring it home for me to try out.
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Bizarre post.
 
The Lamp said:
A game with that many perfect reviews is almost alarming, especially when it's just a sequel to a blockbuster IP rather than a new idea. It reeks of Microsoft moneyhatting to me. I'll just wait for forum impressions because I really can't imagine Halo being that much more spectacular when it's been roughly the same for the past few iterations and those haven't really impressed me (mostly because I'm bored of sci-fi shooters). I'm ready to eat crow if it actually is that amazing however, and once my roommates bring it home for me to try out.
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Something tells me you did not spend much time with Reach.
 
The Lamp said:
A game with that many perfect reviews is almost alarming, especially when it's just a sequel to a blockbuster IP rather than a new idea. It reeks of Microsoft moneyhatting to me. I'll just wait for forum impressions because I really can't imagine Halo being that much more spectacular when it's been roughly the same for the past few iterations and those haven't really impressed me (mostly because I'm bored of sci-fi shooters). I'm ready to eat crow if it actually is that amazing however, and once my roommates bring it home for me to try out.
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What you're implying by saying that MS has been moneyhatting people into awarding Halo a higher score is that Halo doesn't deserve the high scores and they're not representative of the actual game. Now if that would be the case, Halo wouldn't get as much praise from the gamers themselves. What is it worth to Microsoft to moneyhat reviewers and have the gamers have a game that is unrepresentative of the review score? The gamers make a franchise big, not the reviewers.

Halo is MS's greatest franchise. The only way they can moneyhat people is by creating a great game.
 
The Lamp said:
A game with that many perfect reviews is almost alarming, especially when it's just a sequel to a blockbuster IP rather than a new idea. It reeks of Microsoft moneyhatting to me. I'll just wait for forum impressions because I really can't imagine Halo being that much more spectacular when it's been roughly the same for the past few iterations and those haven't really impressed me (mostly because I'm bored of sci-fi shooters). I'm ready to eat crow if it actually is that amazing however, and once my roommates bring it home for me to try out.
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A game can't possibly be very well made without reinventing the wheel? I mean, if Halo 3 came out today I'd still give it a glowing review.

If the design is really strong, it doesn't really matter if it's been seen before. I'm not having any less fun with Dishonored just because I think Deus Ex: HR was better.
 
The Wizard said:
What is an objective review? Shouldn't most reviews be almost entirely subjective?
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What I mean by objective is the score. Maybe I'm a little weird here, but I separate my critiques from what I score. I'm not a professional journalist or anything, but when I review a movie, I say what I liked, what I disliked, and what I think I would have done differently. Then I go on to give a score or a simple "go see it" or "don't see it" based on what I felt it did right and wrong, not on what I felt should have been different.
 
The Lamp said:
A game with that many perfect reviews is almost alarming, especially when it's just a sequel to a blockbuster IP rather than a new idea. It reeks of Microsoft moneyhatting to me. I'll just wait for forum impressions because I really can't imagine Halo being that much more spectacular when it's been roughly the same for the past few iterations and those haven't really impressed me (mostly because I'm bored of sci-fi shooters). I'm ready to eat crow if it actually is that amazing however, and once my roommates bring it home for me to try out.
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What the fuck are you talking about? Halo 4 has a metacritic of 89, if MS moneyhatted, it's by far the most pitiful example I could imagine.
 
Shurs said:
I think the review was bad -- as I'm a proponent of reviewing based on authorial intent rather than on what you'd rather see in the game -- but what I find fascinating is that people are mad about it.
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This is pretty much what I hate most in reviews. How close the developer comes close to achieving their intent is what all games should be judged by.

Though, I'm sure you'd see plenty of people complain that the game's intent itself is flawed, thus the comparisons with CoD come in.
 
Chinner said:
so should I see skyfall or play halo 4?
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Skyfall is sorely lacking in modern entertainment innovations, with draconian levels of linear storytelling and ZERO player agency.

The fact that I could never once control James Bond shows that the production was clearly unwilling to take risks and far too happy to rest on the tickets of those who have watched and enjoyed Bond movies previously. 7/10
 
minasodaboy said:
Skyfall is sorely lacking in modern entertainment innovations, with draconian levels of linear storytelling and ZERO player agency.

The fact that I could never once control James Bond shows that the production was clearly unwilling to take risks and far too happy to rest on the tickets of those who have watched and enjoyed Bond movies previously. 7/10
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"Needs more shaky cam."
 
GlamFM said:
Review threads continue to be aweful I see.
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Eh, this seems a lot more tame that certain other review topics, the focal point of this topic has been the egm review which isn't because of the score, but rather what the reviewer wrote.

Haven't seen anyone in here go nuts because of something like an 8/10 so far.
 
Jim Sterling can give a shity note to a good game just because he want to and everybody think its ok but because its an untouchable game like halo with a shit load of frustrated fanboys, its another story?

The dude from EGM just said what he doesnt like about the game, like it or not... I dont see the drama about it even for the iron sights.
 
JimFear said:
Jim Sterling can give a shity note to a good game just because he want to and everybody think its ok but because its an untouchable game like halo with a shit load of frustrated fanboys, its another story?

The dude from EGM just said what he doesnt like about the game, like it or not... I dont see the drama about it even for the iron sights.
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That's fine. It's been discussed multiple times in this thread already. You don't understand why drama started in the first place.
 
GlamFM said:
Review threads continue to be aweful I see.
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This thread would be half the size if not for Brandon Justice's garbage analysis. I, for one, am happy to see his review getting as much negative attention as it deserves.
 
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