Metacritic - Let's Write Some User Reviews While We Wait for The Professionals

I tried, but Metacritic hates me.  Won't even let me try and log in, if I even try, it gives and error and I can't even go to Metacritic anymore and have to delete my internet history.  

The exact same thing happened to me. 

Very, very strange! I had no problems whatsoever.

I don't like metacritic bombing, one way or another. This forum is biased towards the game (obviously), and if we have to dislike haters ruining a metacritic score by nuking the score, I don't think the opposite is any better.

Not calling for a bomb, asking the quiet to speak up if they are so inclined. I see nothing wrong with that.

See this is where the positive reviews of the game keep coming from, an insulated bubble of about two dozen diehard fans.

This game deserves mediocre reviews, not overly negative ones but certainly not glowingly positive reviews. It falls short of it's potential in pretty much every way, even the diplomacy is still crap and the text on the diplomacy screen has no opaque background and is hard to read. Seriously everything, just everything, stops a tenth of the way to where Stardock said War of Magic would be before they launched it.

This is a solid 6.0 out of 10, any higher than that is not judging this game with any sort of context and letting your investment, fanboyishness, and faith in/appreciation to Stardock cloud your judgement.

I disagree. I believe you bulit up some expectations and now that FE is not living up to them you are disappointed. The question is - did that expectations have the foundation in reality or were you really expecting something else?

I bought and played E:WOM and I also had a close look on FE developement - I knew what to expect and I'm quite satisfied with delivered. I'm not a diehard fan and I see the possibilities of improvement for FE.

As for every computer game, you cannot rate it 100% objectively because you have to compare it to something - and if that something is better FOR YOU, it doesn't mean it's better for someone else. For me, FE is an almost perfect blend of RPG and strategy.With mods, already existing ones and those that we'll see in the future, it gets even better.

If it had tactical battles at the level of complexity of AOW:SM (sieges, blockable terrain for archers, line of sight), I'd give it a straight 10/10.

Same thing happens to me when I try to log in on my old account. Website just refuses any replies after that.

Exactly. I also don't like the original poster telling people what mark should they give. These manipulations defeat the purpose of such rating systems. I could not rate the game 9 by any means - 9 IMO should be given to nearly perfect games where you have only several minor gripes. Wesnoth is 9 in my book. So far, I could not rate FE higher than 7 (nice gfx and engine, but problematic game design, poor component synergy and weak story/lore/gameworld), and considering all the present bugs, more likely 6. Which I don't want to give, so I won't rate/review the game officially anywhere. 

I told people what score to give? Bologna. Reread what I wrote. I gave you my score. Manipulation? Really?

It's not like I'm asking people to make bullshit accounts and spam user reviews. What the hell is wrong with asking people, if they are so inclined, to express their opinions outside this forum? If you want to personally bash the game on there, go for it. If you don't want to provide one, fine. Anyone who is providing an honest review is providing a REAL data point for prospective buyers.

I already reviewed this game with a 9 as its score.

I think it is fair for those who like this game to provide their insights and scores, just as we can't forbid those who hate this game to provide their opinions and score of 1s or 2s. What I think unfair is : spamming low score, even before the game was launched.

Granted, this game is not perfect. I still think that Fall from Heaven is better game than this. But, this game is good, and I appreciate Stardock's attention and support to this game. Bugs are minimal, and Stardock already working for patch 1.1. Can you say the same about, oh, Heroes VI? After several patches, the game is still buggy as hell, and even I (a Heroes fanboy since Heroes II) am no longer playing it. I appreciate Stardock's support, and my appreciation is reflected in my score for the game. Without this kind of support, I'd give 7 or 8. But the support is excellent, and I gave 9.

I think it would be more fair to wait on reviewing until the patch hits.  If I had to review the game as it exists right now the problems are too serious to give the high mark it deserves.

All too true.

Besides, we see threads on other forums bragging about bombing the metacritic score because of [whatever] but for some reason it's not allowed that real fans give their earnest votes? No, fuck that lack of logic. If haters can hate, then fans can fan. You know what I mean.

Metacritic won't let me do anything, but I'd rate it a 7.5 - 8 in it's current state. After a few patches it will probably become a lot better with performance issues fixed and balancing done. Then I'd say 9 or so.

I recheck metacritic daily too.

aslo posted mini review, gave it max, since it is 90% what I wanted, a bit more, and some bits less, but huge potential to get there.

I don't see anything bad by getting users to post their thoughts and grades.

Especially since some of the low graded users posted their scores at time when they didn't really play the game...

so, yes, please post a few reviews more.

I respect your opinion you don't like the game. I get it. But to label anyone who likes the game a fanboy with clouded judgment? Come on. You're the pot calling the kettle black here. It would be like labeling anyone who legitimately criticizes the game a troll. Neither your opinion or mine are absolute truths here - all we can do is provide data points and others make up their own minds.

I've posted literally hundreds of CTD's, OOM's, bugs, etc. over the past 2 years. Take a look at my posting history. At times it was quite frustrating. But through all of that I love the game (and the developer) and I sure as hell won't be told to shut up because I'm an alleged fanboy. Ridiculous.

The gamespy review made me think that it is someone with little experience in the TBS genre. He said the early game is too hard. Maybe it's jsut because I have played a lot, but I find the early game a challenge but not hard - not even nearing difficult.

Stardock built up peoples expectations about WoM like Peter Molyneux and delivered in the same way. If my expectations were too high it's because the game I bought is not the game Stardock told me they were making, and falls short of MoM, HOMM, AoW2, and AoWSM, all of which this game keeps getting compared to disfavorably.

You mean calling anyone writing glowing reviews of the game a fanboy. Like I said, judging this game in context you can like it but you can't say it's an 8 out of 10 honestly, giving it a 7 is generous when it falls short of decades old titles in nearly everything it sets out to do, is still buggy, still has a suicidal AI, the global spells do even less now than they did in WoM, it still has pitiful diplomacy, and all the factions are nearly identical to their kingdom or empire counterparts (modders have proven that you can do far more than Stardock has done to make the factions interesting).

Look man you like the game I get it, enjoy playing it, but if you write a review giving this game a high score you're just being dishonest, ignoring everything wrong with the game and ignoring all the context of how it stacks against other 4X Fantasy games.

That is not true. How can he be dishonest if he calls it as he sees it? If he writes a review that you can play fire-breathing dragons that shoots lightening from its eyes in the game, then that is being dishonest. But if he calls the game a fantasy game that he finds fun to play and he has hours of enjoyment, he then is honestly giving the game what he feels it deserves.

I'm a liar, eh? I see your position as opinion, you see your position as absolute fact. I see my position as opinion, you see it as the delusional ranting of someone who drank the SD kool-aid. We'll never agree to disagree on the game because you can't imagine someone would have a different opinion than you.

Jesus, you weren't kidding...it does hate you.

If there's something bad I have to say about the game it's this.  Start in a bad location, and you're in for a game where you permanently have your back to the wall.  I had a game where Gilden were sending guys in Light Plate with Sledges and although I could handle them, my hands were pretty much tied as to how I could handle them.  Then they decide to change tactics, so I have to juggle my units around and adapt, fight some more, basically neither of us gaining any ground.

On the other hand, if you start in a good location and have great luck with low-level quests, and you don't meet another player for quite some time, and you clear out some particularly tricky monster nests, you are in for a life of luxury and woe betide anyone who tries to take it from you.

In that respect, it is a bit like GalCiv 2, a good starting planet and access to habitable planets early on can make a massive difference to your fortunes.  And you know, it isn't so bad playing through those crap starts to get to the ones that turn into glorious games that you play for hours and really enjoy.

But sometimes you know, I wish there was an advanced start, get you out of your own personal Midgar and into that big bad world (or galaxy as the case may be) without having to painstakingly place all those cities or set up those colonies.  You want to fight the bad guys, but you feel a bit silly doing it with harsh language and wooden spears.

Isn't that the spirit of a strategy game though? I have this really terrible starting area, let's see if I can build an empire. Let's see what strategies I can modify so I can take over the world. That is just my opinion, and I know other people think differently. I like that it's random. I don't want a place that makes it a walk in the park every time I settle. Maybe I am roleplaying a faction of nomads who decide to settle in a desert like environment or I am a mountain dwelling people settling their first city at the foot of a range. 

We did write USER reviews and FE got around a 73 why do you want more?