Game Spot Jade Empire Review

[Baley]

What bothers me is the fact that it's not on the PC

Reviews don't matter.

One should be able to make his own mind about the game's quality

[Monte Carlo]

From rare fillet steak and a bottle of claret to Big Macs and milkshakes in, what, three titles? Go Bio, go!!

 

Cheers

MC

[Baley]

I like milkshakes :">

[Sermon]

Volourn said:

 

"Not contradictory?"

 

"He says the combat is easy, simple, and repetitive. Hhen he says it's fun."

 

No he doesn't. He says:

 

However, Jade Empire's combat system isn't that great. It can be pretty fun, especially if you go out of your way to introduce more variety than you really need to survive.

 

He says you can basically beat every foe with the same tactics, and if you play that way the combat is repetitive and simple. However, if you don't do that and put a little more variety into your fighting it can be fun. That's how I interpret his statement.

 

"84% on its own is a good score, imo; but not when the review itself is overall negative. And, yeah, he mentions some things he likes; but he glosses over them."

 

I thought this review was very well balanced, pointed out the pros as well as the cons of the game and was IMO quite objective. After reading this review I actually got quite interested in JE and if I would own an X-Box I'd seriously consider buying this game ... because of reading this review.

 

"He also says the combat is simple and epepetive then waste over a page of the three page reveiw explaining the combat and explaining that there's a lot to do in combat."

 

He merely does what is every reviewers' duty - describing the game and all the options you have in the game in detail. Just because combat is dull doesn't mean I shouldn't go into detail on how it works and what options there are.

[DemonKing]

Ign exclusive, early review: 9.9 OMFG!!!! 9.9 is too low a score!!!

 

Gamespot review a few days later: 8.4. Good but with some problems holding it back from "classic" (9+) status.

 

Who's score would you trust more? I'd go with the GS one myself.

[Volourn]

I love the following gem:

 

"Bad: Reading is fundamental. Perhaps a bit too fundamental"

 

 

Nothing more needs to be written.

 

P.S. Demon, like I said before, there is no doubt in my mind that IGN overrated the game. There is no way a 9.9 is worthy. I have played ZERO games that good. Zero.

[Baley]

P.S. Demon, like I said before, there is no doubt in my mind that IGN overrated the game. There is no way a 9.9 is worthy. I have played ZERO games that good. Zero.

How about Pong when it was first relised?

[Darth Jebus]

Man, I've gotta say that that 1up.com review was very simply, the most uneven and pretentious review I think I've ever read. It was like reading one long run-on sentence.

 

Almost like it was written by someone from here. :D

 

I usually don't read reviews before I play a game or even see a movie because I want to go in with an unbiased view. So, as I said over at the BioWare forums, I'll reserve my judgement until I play the game.

[DemonKing]

P.S. Demon, like I said before, there is no doubt in my mind that IGN overrated the game. There is no way a 9.9 is worthy. I have played ZERO games that good. Zero.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

The funny thing is the Bio staff at the official Jade Empire boards are taking the GS review rather philosophically: "we welcome all criiticism", "don't flame the reviewer" etc...which is rather long step from the orgy of back-slapping when the ign review came out.

 

Last time I checked a 8.4 score on GameSpot = "Great", yet for Bio it seems anything less than 9.9+++++uber-scores are a letdown. Frankly I'd be more happy to get an 8.4 "Great" score in a genuine review than a 9.9 from a clearly biased source...but that's just me, I guess.

[Sermon]

Last time I checked a 8.4 score on GameSpot = "Great", yet for Bio it seems anything less than 9.9+++++uber-scores are a letdown. Frankly I'd be more happy to get an 8.4 "Great" score in a genuine review than a 9.9 from a clearly biased source...but that's just me, I guess. 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Exactly my opinion. I still think that games magazines are giving away scores that are way too high anyway. If you look at a rating from a scale from 0 to 10 an 8.4 is definitely very good and nothing one should complain about, especially when this review seems to be, like you said, genuine and not biased like a few others have been accused of.

[Antagonist]

Hey, stop the criticism of Jade Empire or Volourn will have to work overtime for days to rebut all those filthy infidels across the internet

[Drakron]

Hey, stop the criticism of Jade Empire or Volourn will have to work overtime for days to rebut all those filthy infidels across the internet 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

He just needs to copy/paste from gameFAQs forums ...

[Volourn]

"He just needs to copy/paste from gameFAQs forums ..."

 

? Never been there.

[Drakron]

GameFAQs have forums.

 

Right now the Jade Empire forum posts are more about bashing the GameSpot review (and its autor) that anything else ... the amount of fanboyish there can be amusing.

 

You know ... what scares me the most is the degree of fanatism going on in gaming, people that defend a game they have yet to even play just because its made/published by some company or is the next in a series.

 

After all GameSpot review is a 8.4 ... when did a 8 out of 10 became a bad score?

[Meshugger]

GameFAQs have forums.

 

Right now the Jade Empire forum posts are more about bashing the GameSpot review (and its autor) that anything else ... the amount of fanboyish there can be amusing.

 

You know ... what scares me the most is the degree of fanatism going on in gaming, people that defend a game they have yet to even play just because its made/published by some company or is the next in a series.

 

After all GameSpot review is a 8.4 ... when did a 8 out of 10 became a bad score?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

In the year 2001 i presume. I remember reading the PC Format magazines a decade ago, when System Shock 2 scored 92%(1999), it was something like the 12th game that scored above 90% since 1992.

[Volourn]

"when did a 8 out of 10 became a bad score?"

 

Heh. When people have called JE a 'flop' because it got a 8.4. LOL

 

Seriosuly, the score is fine itself. Afterall, there are only like 10 or so games that I have played that I would rate over 8.5 and only 4 at 9+.

 

My problem with the GS review is the inconsistency within itself.

 

Afterall, 1up gave the game an 85% yet hardly a peep. Yeha, i know that 1up is not as big a site as Gamespot; but its still pretty good sized in its own right. However, its review seems to be pretty consistent throughout.

 

There's no the game is too easy yet it's too hard stuff going on. Or the combat is simple yet there's a lot to the combat type style you rea din the GS review.

 

I'd be surprised if I rate JE anymore than 85% and that's if I like it.

 

On line reviewers including IGN and GS's review systems are so skewed. That's the problem.

[Gromnir]

You know ... what scares me the most is the degree of fanatism going on in gaming, people that defend a game they have yet to even play just because its made/published by some company or is the next in a series.

 

After all GameSpot review is a 8.4 ... when did a 8 out of 10 became a bad score?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

works the other way too. some people is complaining 'bout a game they ain't never played. "how could ign possibly rate it 9.9? no doubt they were paid off..." or some such similar nonsense.

 

 

we almost always ignore the numbers. w/o context the numbers is worse than meaningless ... and most of the times they is still meaningless.

 

we recall a desslock review of a bis d&d game... complained 'bout how bis folks invented spells and critters n' such rather than sticking with established stuff. this got one bis developer hopping mad. the developer pointed out that pretty much every noteworthy d&d adventure module had introduced new monsters and spells and magic items. regardless, desslock identified an aspect of game and discussed why he thought it were a weakness... he were thorough. Just

[jaguars4ever]

"NWN is overrated. Kotor rocks."

 

That explains why KOTOR was rated 9.1 (and 8.8 for xobox) while NWN was rated 9.2 by your precious GS good. LOL

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Eh? Don't be a Bio Fanboy Volo. Neverwinter Nights is, I repeat, is *OVERATED*. This explains why Leferd's precious Gamespot rates superior games such as Fallout, Fallout 2, and Planescape: Torment at 8.7, 8.8, and 9.0 respectively - whilst *your* precious Neverwinter Nights is inflated to a comparitively ludicrous 9.3. ^_^

[Volourn]

"Eh? Don't be a Bio Fanboy Volo. Neverwinter Nights is, I repeat, is *OVERATED*. "

 

No. KOTOR is overrated. NWN is not. Don't be a BIS fanboy. And, I'll say that even though I love both FOs and PST is good in its own right.

 

NWN deserves its score. Any game that is still playable 3 years after release, and is fact my most played game still is definitely not overrated.

 

Then again, you are a KOTOR fanboy. That game did not deserve 90%. Of course, it's sad how I;m a fnaboy when I'm making fun of a BIO game in this thread. LOL

[Gromnir]

vol can be a bit of a maniac sometimes... fingers get to typing ahead o' the old synaptic responses, but we does feel for the guy in one respect:

 

vol has stated 'least a thousand times that he woulda' given nwn a 75% or some such. is always his contention that nwn were an ambitious project that had many flaws... but weren't near as bad as some folks pretended. he also noted that unlike so many other games he had played, nwn had considerable longevity.

 

regardless, how vol gets tagged as town fool 'cause of his nwn fanboism seems manifestly unfair to Gromnir. he makes himself such an easy target that we not know why folks would continually harp on his mindless nwn support... considering he ain't never revealed such a flaw.

 

HA! Good Fun!

[Volourn]

"regardless, how vol gets tagged as town fool 'cause of his nwn fanboism seems manifestly unfair to Gromnir. he makes himself such an easy target that we not know why folks would continually harp on his mindless nwn support... considering he ain't never revealed such a flaw."

 

Because, it's easier to label. Makes it easier to ignore another's view.

 

Afterall, not to get political; but it happens in politics all the time. No different here.

 

People tend to gloss over my many complaints about NWN... It would spin their heads to grasp the fact that I don't think NWN is perfect.

[Drakron]

works the other way too.

 

Yes, those are known as "the haters" but the only diference of the fanboys is how they dont like something because it was made by a company or its part of a series.

 

some people is complaining 'bout a game they ain't never played.  "how could ign possibly rate it 9.9?  no doubt they were paid off..." or some such similar nonsense.

 

All reviews are at some area biased, its impossible to not be biased since a lot goes down to the reviewer opinion.

 

We almost always ignore the numbers. w/o context the numbers is worse than meaningless ... and most of the times they is still meaningless. 

 

I prefere the context as well, in fact I always go read the review that gives the lowest score since it will either be brutal honest about the game weakness and the problems it have or it will be a "I hate this game" rant that I can skip and read another review.

 

 

we recall a desslock review of a bis d&d game...  after all, knowing that there were original stuff in the bis game were a selling point for Gromnir as

[jaguars4ever]

Because, it's easier to label. Makes it easier to ignore another's view.

On the contrary my friend, it's the absolute oppostite of ignoring your view that's taking place. 'Tis quite easy in fact to be somewhat bemused as to what exactly is your view on NWN:

 

vol has stated 'least a thousand times that he woulda' given nwn a 75% or some such.

NWN deserves its score.

 

Huh? I for one respect your opinions freind, but God damn - talk about inconsistency! I know it can be hard to suppress your NWN Bio fanboyism sometimes, but don't let it cloud your obviously adept critiquing abilites.

[Gromnir]

talking 'bout Gromnir or vol?

 

as we said, vol brain and his fingers not seem to work in synch. occasionally he starts arguing a point w/o thinking... but folks like yourself, who has been around these boards, is already well aware o' that. find inconsistencies with vol posts is not hard.

 

however, when vol is asked his opinion o' nwn, what score he would award, he is consistent: 75%. he notes many flaws. he complains 'bout many nwn shortcomings.

 

catch vol in a seeming contradiction is somewhat meaningless. people argue with him more to see him say silly stuff than they does to actually make a point or discover his opinion. folks know what vol means, but they focus on what he says just to see him dissolve into apoplexy.

 

 

*shrug*

 

still think it is unfair.

 

HA! Good Fun!

[jaguars4ever]

talking 'bout Gromnir or vol?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Of course not you Grom - if anything, you're the antithesis of inconsistency.