E201: The "No Scores" Thread - now with formerly prohibited scores!

[ItsThere]

Viewtiful Joe Time Extend - I'll be picking that issue up then - wonder if they now realise that they ****ed up with their 8/10 review score...

Ha ha - congrats to spags for slipping in the first score!

[Dirty Sanchez]

I'm not sure I agree with your assessment. While scores can and do provoke a quick reaction, part of the problem here is that there is only a small paragraph taken out of context to talk about. A score is a conclusion. The paragraphs may or may not be but it's hard to tell. So, on their own, they offer less to talk about. There's no bottom line.

If leading to less discussion is the aim of this experiment, consider it a success.

My thoughts too.

[spagmasterswift]

While we on the subject of scores I'm gonna give this thread 1/10 - it mentions VJ so it gets a point for that, it lost 9 points for being about Edge Magazine!

[Lebowski]

Little King's Story and plants vs zombies have got a cracking write up and all that that means, both are now on my must buy list.

Because of the pedigree of talent behind Little Kings Story I've been following it for a while, glad to see its worked out well. As for plants vs zombies where did this game come form I'd not heard a thing about it before picking up the latest edge. it looks like a real time eater 4 o'clock in the morning type game.

[egparadigm]

I'm not sure I agree with your assessment. While scores can and do provoke a quick reaction, part of the problem here is that there is only a small paragraph taken out of context to talk about. A score is a conclusion. The paragraphs may or may not be but it's hard to tell. So, on their own, they offer less to talk about. There's no bottom line.

The truth is that some of the conclusions are quite – for want of a better phrase – conclusive, whilst some do seem to have been taken genuinely out of context. But that's the nature of the task; short of quoting the entire review, such a thing is not possible. I could have boiled down each review, but that would have been both immensely time-consuming and subjective.

Review scores may offer a bottom line, but they are also a gross simplification. Furthermore, using a review score for shorthand is lazy journalism – the reviewer essentially abdicating responsibility, letting numbers do his job for him.

The lack of discussion may be purely coincidental; maybe the scores would be equally uncontroversial? Perhaps discussions based on one simple figure show how desperately short the attention span of man has become. They can happily rant about numbers, but can't be bothered to read a single paragraph or have a reasoned debate on something more complex. Incidentally, I wouldn't lodge that complaint at you, DoggThang, because I know you're very thoughtful.

I must reassert that this was not some kind of authoritarian project – I was simply interested to run this experiment. Maybe it failed, maybe it succeeded, but if we never tried things out, we'd never learn anything, would we? Don't be impatient – normal service will be resumed next month!

[spagmasterswift]

Just read the Vj Time Extendz piece and it was a flowery piece of love let down by not covering the incredible amount of imagination and personality that Clover poured into its Bosses. Instead it talks of a punishing Boss run, which I understand could have been problematic to players who some how bought there way through these confrontations, but seemed a missed opportunity to sing the praises of one of the best things about this wonderful game that I fear we will never experience again in this casual industry.
To not include the shootemup section is forgivable I guess as they are a little weak compared to the deep fighting system that Edge do rightly highlight, but the references within imo are worth examination at least. I'm a proper fan boy of Viewtiful Joe and glad that they finally gave it more space than their original half page half arsed review!

[teddymeow]

Picked up my copy yesterday and from what I've read to far it seems like a pretty good issue.

FFXIII looks a-ma-zing!! Hopefully Play Asia won't let me down with the Advent Children First Print Blu-ray I ordered months ago so I can see with my own eyes what Sqeenix are up to.

God of War III and inFamous both look super sweet!! PS3 gamers are going to be truly spoilt this year.

Nice mix of reviews and (without mentioning them) I agree with a lot of the scores.

[DANGEROUS-3]

****, gotta pick up 200 before it disappears from shelves...

[Ady]

T
The lack of discussion may be purely coincidental; maybe the scores would be equally uncontroversial? Perhaps discussions based on one simple figure show how desperately short the attention span of man has become. They can happily rant about numbers, but can't be bothered to read a single paragraph or have a reasoned debate on something more complex.

Well put. I think the move is refreshing myself. It's nice to read an Edge thread that's actually about the magazine's content rather than a 5 page bicker-fest about numbers.

[egparadigm]

I meant to do this after a week, but only just got round to it! Here are the scores:

GTA: Chinatown Wars -

->Open Spoiler<-

9

Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena -

->Open Spoiler<-

8

Little King's Story -

->Open Spoiler<-

9

Godfather II -

->Open Spoiler<-

6

Wanted: Weapons of Fate -

->Open Spoiler<-

4

Madworld -

->Open Spoiler<-

6

Plants Vs Zombies -

->Open Spoiler<-

9

Wheelman -

->Open Spoiler<-

4

Battleforge -

->Open Spoiler<-

7

Final Fanatasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time -

->Open Spoiler<-

6

Sonic and the Black Knight -

->Open Spoiler<-

3

Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume -

->Open Spoiler<-

7

[Spatial]

That's it!!! I'm cancelling m... oh wait, I've already done that one.

Zombies vs Plants got a nine? They should give it a three just for it infecting your brain with that bloody song which goes around and around and around and around...

[abigsmurf]

9/10 for a tower defence game?

[NW2013]

What do they say about Star Trek Online?

[MattyD]

I think 6 for Madworld is entirely fair. It's a pretty average game enlivened by some fun content.