Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

Angrist · 11-18-2011, 06:10 PM

Doesn't it also depend on the interscale it uses? I know Eurogamer only gives full numbers. So it was either a 9 or a 10.
IGN could have given a 9.9 and I think nobody would have complained. Unless they also gave Twilight Princess a 9.9 (which would have been stupid), then people would compared the scores...

KillerGremlin · 11-18-2011, 06:17 PM

Which is why the number system is silly.

What's the difference between a 9 and a 10, really? The 10 is more polished, maybe pushes the envelope of originality, etc.

So maybe Skyward Sword is that proverbial 9 with some issues regarding hardware, or originality.

But then, even a 7 or an 8 is a really good score. It means the game is very solid.

It makes much more sense to read the actual review. I would like to see some reviews that are more condensed and have a simpler format. Again, another reason I like Yahtzee. He keeps things short and on point. For what it is worth, this could be the Skyward Sword review:

"Classic Zelda refined, Skyward Sword is a mesh of the art design that made Wind Waker great and the game design that made Twilight Princess great. Skyward Sword flows smoothly from start to finish with gameplay that feels more integrated than previous Zelda titles. Taking a page from Metroid Prime, Skyward Sword has a more unified world with Temples blended into the over world. Although Skyward Sword features wonderful gameplay, the controls can be frustrating at times. This may just be a limitation due to the Wii's hardware, but having to recalibrate your controller in the middle of a high-energy fight does occasionally hinder the flow. Control issues aside, this is another stellar entry in the Zelda series."

See? That takes two minutes to read, is sharp and to the point. And it says a lot more than a stupid number score can. Video game reviewing is big business. If people were less concerned with numbers, IGN and Gamespot would go away. The minute people stop fighting over 7.5 vs. 10 is the day that IGN and Gamespot see a decline of visitors on their website, lose their ad-revenue, and cease to exist. People visit these sites primarily for reviews. So it works in Gamespot or IGN's favor to push the number system. In effect, it creates a very strange game culture.

Blix · 11-19-2011, 01:21 AM

KG

Yahtzee is a great reviewer, I have seen everything he has posted on the escapists website. But even then I some times feel he's nitpicking unimportant stuff. He even poked fun at himself in the Mass Effect (the first one) review by saying something along the lines of "if that's actually what you like in a game then take this review for the ignorant opinion that it is." Reviews are opinions in the very end.

I do agree with you that the scores system is messed up. And the gamers get upset over stupid things. The game is good, definitely worth the money from the general consensus. That's enough. We don't need it to beat OOT's metacritic score or whatever. If you want to take the game out after five years or so and replay it again, then it has achieved its goal.

Oh! And I'll call this out right now because this is the perfect time to do it. Yahtzee will try to highlight all the negatives of Zelda he can just because of his hatred towards long standing series. It won't be necessary stuff that needs to be pointed out but more of a sport. Just like he did with Mario Galaxy, having to agree that the game is fun but making a statement that it's been running for too long and needs to be ended to give way to a new ip. He's done it with other games as well but Mario Galaxy stood out the most to me since he rarely had negative stuff to say and still ended the review with a negative remark. As much as I like his reviews he has stressed that opinion for too long and more than necessary. He has yet to realize that... people don't give a damn how old a series is if it is still great. I'll actually be amazed if he doesn't do this.

KillerGremlin · 11-19-2011, 02:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blix

KG

Yahtzee is a great reviewer, I have seen everything he has posted on the escapists website. But even then I some times feel he's nitpicking unimportant stuff. He even poked fun at himself in the Mass Effect (the first one) review by saying something along the lines of "if that's actually what you like in a game then take this review for the ignorant opinion that it is." Reviews are opinions in the very end.

I do agree with you that the scores system is messed up. And the gamers get upset over stupid things. The game is good, definitely worth the money from the general consensus. That's enough. We don't need it to beat OOT's metacritic score or whatever. If you want to take the game out after five years or so and replay it again, then it has achieved its goal.

Oh! And I'll call this out right now because this is the perfect time to do it. Yahtzee will try to highlight all the negatives of Zelda he can just because of his hatred towards long standing series. It won't be necessary stuff that needs to be pointed out but more of a sport. Just like he did with Mario Galaxy, having to agree that the game is fun but making a statement that it's been running for too long and needs to be ended to give way to a new ip. He's done it with other games as well but Mario Galaxy stood out the most to me since he rarely had negative stuff to say and still ended the review with a negative remark. As much as I like his reviews he has stressed that opinion for too long and more than necessary. He has yet to realize that... people don't give a damn how old a series is if it is still great. I'll actually be amazed if he doesn't do this.

That's the point.

Yahtzee nitpicks and complains, and he does it in an insulting and funny manner. You need to read between the lines. I know the guy hates sequels....so what I got from his Mario Galaxy 2 review is that it is more of the same...then funny complaints.

I still find this much more effective than reading through 2 or 3 pages of IGN blah blah and then finding an appended number score.

Blix · 11-19-2011, 05:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KillerGremlin

That's the point.

Yahtzee nitpicks and complains, and he does it in an insulting and funny manner. You need to read between the lines. I know the guy hates sequels....so what I got from his Mario Galaxy 2 review is that it is more of the same...then funny complaints.

I still find this much more effective than reading through 2 or 3 pages of IGN blah blah and then finding an appended number score.

I find it works out better when you actually have a legitimate reason to be upset. There's a moment when it just becomes absurd. There are some things in the industry that need to be said so it's all good when someone with voice points them out. But when the problem is one of personal preference and you decide to point it out your rant no longer has a point.

And the series paradigm will always stay. I found it really funny when some people began to say that Okami was better than Zelda when all Okami did was try to be like Zelda (for the most part). Okami was actually a tribute to Zelda. I supose if you replace Link with Amaterasu in and viceversa then Twilight Princess would be the better game of the two for those very same people. In the very end the audience wants the same thing but not the same thing. It's like when a band gets popular and has come a long way... if they change they become crap. But if they don't, then it's the same thing and there's no reason to like them as much anymore. There's just no way to keep people happy regardless of how hard you try and how good you deliver. From what I've read, they have taken a lot of things out and reinvented them. Still, one reviewer just said it was the same thing and some forum users (who haven't played the game) say the same thing too.

Still, we both agree that this rating thing is BS. Specially how people are reacting about it. The fans just want it to get a better metacritic than OOT to prove it is the best zelda ever. I'm just happy it seems it'll be adicting to play.

BreakABone · 11-19-2011, 06:38 PM

According to the game clock, I've already put 5 1/2 hours into the game, and just completed the first dungeon.

The first thing, I guess is the art style. It really does look like a painting come to life... at a distance. Up close, it makes a lot of the textures seem kind of blurry. It can be a bit jarring at times. other than that, I really dig the character designs.

Second, motion. So far I've had no issues with it, only had to manually re-calibrate once and it wasn't because the game was freaking out, just my aiming was off-center for my beetle. Then again, the game seems to hide calibrating well since it seems to be the same way you communicate with Fi and how you call your Loftwing.

The characters, so far this is where the game has shined. Much like Wind Waker, they put the character of Link and Zelda at the forefront of the story. You pretty much spend the first 2 hours getting to know them and various members of Skyloft. It seems like there will be some colorful characters in the game.