Has the negative coverage ever killed your interest in a game?

Spyxos

Spyxos

Member
When there was only negative news about Diablo 3 like, the item store that interrupts the flow of the game and is far too expensive and Inferno difficulty level is almost impossible to complete and the game is offline again (404 Error).

I played it at release then only a little bit and because of all the criticism only really played years later and immediately noticed, the game is not as bad as half the gaming world wanted to tell me.

Has something similar ever happened to you?

404 GIF
 
Played trash games that were 10's and 7's that were amazing.

Learned media is very influenced when it comes to reviewing.
 
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I think it depends what type of criticisms we're talking about. Most times it actually piques my interest if a game is getting ripped for anything other than gameplay.
 
I hate to tug on the albatross hanging from every one of these topics necks, but I *do* wonder how much of a role the leaks had in my initial opinion of The Last of Us, Part II. There's really no debate that, despite being as telegraphed as it was, the early twist being delivered outside the context of the story it's within, alters the way the information was supposed to be relayed to the player.

Now, that said, I have some issues with contrivances and pacing and narrative framework that, honestly, became more solidified the longer I spent with the game, but for that ONE plot point, I can't help but feel that there was an important disconnect between me and the game that probably wouldn't have been there if not for the leaks. It turned the story from "you're purposefully angry at this character," and made it unintentionally meta, where the lines between Druckman and Abby, etc got irrevocably blurred.
 
No.

What kills my interest is when I see gameplay or walkthrough of the game and it's not like what I was hoping for. RDR2 was a clear example of that.
 
Yes. TLoU2 backlash was so bad I avoided at launch and bought it recently at a discount but can't get myself to play it knowing how the story went +



And this:



I mean at a good discount so I had to grab it at least for the graphics as it is the highlight but can't bring myself to play it.
 
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It and even online forum negativity initially killed my interest in Forspoken...but it seems up my alley regardless of the hate, if anything I'm more intrigued to try it out one day.
 
No. I may, may not or just partially agree with the overall criticism, in general it doesn't move my bias one way or another.
 
They praised Callisto Protocol so much and I couldn't resist and pre-ordered it(price can change after release in here-regional pricing stuff). After reading all the reviews, I didn't even download it and asked for a refund. In short, I am greatly influenced by reviews, good and bad.
 
Hmm, can't think of an example. I know my own tastes pretty well, so I'm fairly certain about the stuff I like. I don't really care what other people think about it.
 
Another example is Diablo Immortal or I should say Immoral. The backlash was so justifiably big that got me to avoid the game and glad I did.
 
In my case, it's actually the opposite.
More often than not, when people say a game is good and the I play it, it turns out to be shit and viceversa. People saying Deus Ex: Mankind Divided was bad when it's my favorite game of 2016 is the best example I can think of right now.

There are exceptions, of course. But they're rare.
 
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I have been pretty bummed out by negative impressions of some games, such as the downgrade controversy of Watch Dogs and Dark Souls 2, the major dev hell of Final Fantasy 15 and The Last Guardian or the infamous leak of The Last of Us 2, but in the end I went ahead and formed my own opinion on them and they turned out to be games I loved very much.

Another thing that bums me out is if developers and publishers starts to talk about DLC and road maps and exclusive bonus content, before the game even releases. It just feels like they rip parts of the game out so they can charge extra after you paid full price. Recent example being the Callisto Protocol, where they talked about season pass which included new death animations, new game modes and different skins. It rubs me the wrong way and makes me just wait until the damn game gets a complete edition with all content and is marked down 50%.
 
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No, my own opinion whats matter the most to me, I either liked the game or I dont, simple as that.
 
Not really. I usually know what I want and what I don't. The closest I've gotten is that I see some footage from a game and I go "eh, I don't need this one straight away" and usually get it when the price drops.
 
Depends if the negative coverage is factual or just someone not liking a particular game or genre, if it's about gameplay or technical issues then yes, but if it's just personal bias then no.
 
I used to care about "news, journos opinions and reviews" but then Mad Max and plenty other games released where the scores were average, but the "reviews" were way more harsher, so it was kind of a disconnect

Then I started to pay less attention to their opinions but Cyberpunk 2077 8th gen versions released and that was it, they're not reliable at all and can range from complete shills to douchebags that pose as "jaded" to crap on games for the sake of it

And lastly to reaffirm that my decision was correct, Hogwarts Legacy released showing how this opinionated people don't care about the industry and are just NPC spewing socio-political takes that have f*ck all to do with games
 
hemo memo said:
Yes. TLoU2 backlash was so bad I avoided at launch and bought it recently at a discount but can't get myself to play it knowing how the story went +



And this:



I mean at a good discount so I had to grab it at least for the graphics as it is the highlight but can't bring myself to play it.
Click to expand...


Go enjoy the game.
 
Just like with reviews, what matters is what the negative buzz is about, not the fact that there is some sort of negative buzz.

If the negative coverage is mostly about technical issues then yeah I'll probably skip the game because in 6 months it will be half price and it's likely many of the technical issues will be resolved.
But if, for example, I see negative coverage about the story in a game where I don't give a crap about the story (like Bayonetta or Fire Emblem) than it doesn't affect me, or some Jason Schreier hitpiece about his anonymous blue haired "current and ex employees" talking about "problematic" stuff or crunch... I don't care.
 
Spyxos said:
the game is not as bad as half the gaming world wanted to tell me
Click to expand...
Killed my interest? No, I don't think so.

I think the trick to this is to understand exactly why people think a certain aspect of a game is bad.
I really don't think there will ever be a way to be 100% certain you will enjoy a game apart from playing it for a while though.
 
I don't follow the drama or most issues because I'm not a day one buyer.

Once I'm interested in something and the price is right - then I look into it.
 
Well I cancelled my preorder of Forspoken. If the negative critiques are somewhere in the 60's I probably don't buy the game, if it's around 80ish I don't really care and buy it regardless.
 
No. I find that it's usually bs and I like these usually. Maybe because my expectations are lowered by that time.
tlou2, forspoken, dark souls2. All widely hated games and I love them all. ds2 is even my fav souls
 
I have a few reviewers that I've found to have very similar tastes to mine over the years. If those start talking negatively about a game I usually don't bother checking it out myself anymore.
 
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TLOU2 wasn't a hated game. Podcasters and Youtubers were just trying to make a buck from it's resonance and riling up it's fanbase.

By a wide margin, it's the best game I've ever experienced.
 
TLOU2 was certainly divisive but no game that stays on Amazon's top ten or PS4 top download this long is universally hated. The hate just made me want to play it more.

That being said I am scared to play GOW Ragnorok with the mixed reaction.
 
As a coverage that kills my interest in certain game I consider pointing out uninspiringly copied ideas from other games as core gameplay. For example Ghost of Tsushima being basically a classic Assassin's Creed in Japanese variant with a few gimmicks, or Spiderman being sort of a reskinned Batman, or - a latest discovery - that fights in FF XVI will resemble that from DMC 5.

For me if game designers need to copy outstanding systems from other games, the whole thing must leave much to be desired. There is always an alternative in sticking to the very basics regarding systems and shining in the other areas ( like in Spec Ops: the Line or Bioshock)
 
I can be swayed by a general consensus - I haven't got the time, nor the money, to waste on okay games. However, I won't be swayed by melodramatic, childish opinions, like not buying a game because of a story beat, etc.,
 
hemo memo said:
Yes. TLoU2 backlash was so bad I avoided at launch and bought it recently at a discount but can't get myself to play it knowing how the story went +



And this:



I mean at a good discount so I had to grab it at least for the graphics as it is the highlight but can't bring myself to play it.
Click to expand...


Save yourself the 25 hours of sheer boredom and shitty writing. It isn't worth the time of day.

Instead buy and play something fun.
 
That's why demos need to be an industry standard.

I noticed Steam has gotten a lot better with having demos for upcoming games. A pretty good way to make up my own opinion (if I'm curious enough).
 
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Spyxos said:
When there was only negative news about Diablo 3 like, the item store that interrupts the flow of the game and is far too expensive and Inferno difficulty level is almost impossible to complete and the game is offline again (404 Error).

I played it at release then only a little bit and because of all the criticism only really played years later and immediately noticed, the game is not as bad as half the gaming world wanted to tell me.

Has something similar ever happened to you?

404 GIF
Click to expand...
Only thing it did for me is to avoid Day 1 purchases.
 
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