EGM won't score MGS4 because of Konami restrictions
Category: PlayStation 3, Posted: 06/03/2008 at 10:02AM CDT by Demetri Kouvalis, Features Editor
Big name franchises like to be hush hush before they release a new finshed product, whether that be movie or videogame franchises. The recent Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull kept Harrison Ford from showing any footage when he went on different talk shows to promote the film.
Why? Well it's kind of obvious when a studio doesn't want any of the story revealed for many different purposes. Metal Gear Solid 4 seems to be having the same kind of treatment as well.
Konami doesn't want reviewers to talk about the game's lengthy cutscenes, major story plot points and install times. Even though many other pubilcations will have their review up in the next couple of days, EGM will not.
Due to "limitations Konami wanted to impose on our comments," the whole editorial team decided to not go the traditional way and write a review with a solid score in the end. Instead they settled with a lengthy roundtable discussion highlighting the points they could actually talk about.
Now I understand how some major TV shows, movies, and even games at this point very much rely on the plot to sell, but should it render the reviewers and critics helpless and limited because of such restrictions?
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I've heard the cutscenes in MGS4 are going to be longer than long. Like, super-long. This could be of particular interest to gamers, specifically if the cini's are skippable or not. (Assassin's Creed anyone?)
Sans plot points, I believe that any good reviewer can and should talk about anything from gameplay to tech issues in great detail.
Good for them. A video game is just like any other form of media or product: it should be subject to review and criticism based on a reviewer opinion. Who really gives a crap if plot points are spoiled or if negative aspects of the product are revealed? Isn't that the whole point of a review, to let consumers know what they are buying and whether or not it's worth their money?
Isnt almost every PS3 owner going to get MGS4 though? Isnt every action adventure enthusiast gonna watch Indiana Jones no matter if they read a review or not?
I am not going to get MGS4, I loved the other games but hated the long cut scenes, you could skip them but then you would miss major plot points. IN the new game people are saying that there will be MULTIPLE cut scenes over the 90 minute mark. That is longer than many movies. When I sit down to play a game that is what I want to do PLAY a game, not WATCH a game, if I wanted that I would just put in a movie.
Lets say I have a few hours to kill and want to play a game, in MGS4 I play for 15 minutes then watch a movie. hmmm, that doesn't sound like a lot of fun. So no Metal Gear for me. Not even if it gets 10 out of 10 because look at GTA 4, it was a 10 but I would not have scored it that high, a 9 sure but no way a 10.
I think I will just for the Metal Gear movie
i am looking at the egm right now and it does not say they will not review the game. all it says is that they will wait until next month to give it a true review that has no restrictions or limitations...
specifically it says "we weren't happy with the limitations konami wanted to impose on our comments, and rather than publish compromised reviews in the interest of being the first to rate the game, we'd rather wait until next issue, where we can be completely open and thorough with our thoughts."
i don't see this as big news because there are plenty of games that don't get reviewed until after they are released.
If it is a game you are interested in, you will get it anyway. All I really need to know from a reviewer is if it is broken. No game with large problems (17 fps, broken controls, collision detection, infuriating pop up, super weak AI) will score an 8 out of 10. If it gets above an 8 on average, it is a green light for me to buy it. However, that is still a d*ck move on Konami's part. Trust the reviewer not to let spoilers go. They know we gamers don't want to know major plot twists. And you should know your trusted reviewers. It is nice to know the little things about a game especially if you are on the fence about it. And I have always said, if you have nothing to hide, what is the problem. This would have been a great way to get the myth of the 90 minute cut scene debunked. Between this and the limited edition MGS PS3, Konami really has to work on it's customer relations. Maybe that crap will fly in Japan, I don't know. But here in the states, it is a great way to lose customers.
"Maybe that crap will fly in Japan"
It can, and does. In Japan, there is no such saying of "the customer is always right", which is why most JRPG's are all rehashes of rehashes.
sounds like a good idea 2 me
vincian lulz
so wow I dont know what the big deal is anyway it is just one reviewer whining an not for the first time so who cares I think EGM has lost alot of there rep. for firing that one guy over a bad review so who cares who believes these people anymore. so I say ignore these stupid side things and move on. MGS4 might be a good game anyways. I hope. we all need a reliable rating system but most are biased so who do we need to believe anyways? LEAVE IT TO OURSELVES TO MAKE THE OPINON. okay rent judge buy or not buy who cares. just make your own judgement okay it may cost a little more but it cheaper than buying it and hating it.
OKAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!
cowboynwo: Wait, when did they fire one of their reviewers? I get EGM, and I haven't heard anything of this. Which reviewer was it anyway?
cowboynwo, what happens when a game is universally panned by critics? Maybe it's easier when your parents are footing the bill, but when it's my hard-earned cash, I'd rather do my research online from multiple sources instead of driving to the nearest video game rental place, and renting a questionable game.
Not saying MGS4 is going to be good or bad, and quite frankly, me being PS3less means that I really don't care; but the principle of the matter remains the same.
I can't state how much I want to know about how Metal Gear Solid will end.I have no problem what so ever with the cut-scenes being 90 minutes or longer.How else do you expect to find out what happends to those interesting characters.I want to know more about or what happends to all the characters,from the first Metal Gear Solid to the last.For me this has been the only game where I want tp know everything about all the cast.But of course I must know how it ends for Snake.
my bad it was gamespot over a review for kane and lynch not egm but I heard they are not really showing to many bad reviews on the magazine.
Wow vincian I spend my own money and not rely on my parents money. do what ever you prefer to do. I really don't care.