Sea of thieves deserved it's score, it was a pretty bare-bones and average game on release, even if it's premise was relatively unique.

But you are right, a games score should be reflected against games releasing around the same time as well... But I don't recall any big AAA releases in this current release window that would drag down Gears of War 5.

Gears 5 is certainly a superior title over Gears of War 4 in every regard, so it still baffles the mind that it's score doesn't reflect that.

Xbox One exclusives hardly ever reach the 9s....in the case of Halo I have seen degradation in quality (single player) since Bungie left. However I am surprised Gears 5 didn't at least reach that threshold. It matters even if people want to do downplay Metacritcs influence. BotW is an example of a game that scored plenty of 10s every where and we saw what it did for the Switch at Launch. That said I have immensely enjoyed games rated in the 8 range for years, but Microsoft needs a huge Critical hit when they Launch their next gen system next year...since we all Know Sony's Last of Us 2 will get in the mid 90s range once it is out.

Well it isn't just in the same timeframe but they also compare to the best games that released within the same gen.

We have seem many great games score within 85-90 even though we personally though it deserved 95, and usually it have to do with reviewers not evaluating what the game is and have, but what they wanted to be, what it doesn't have (even if the dev didn't want to put it and fans don't care) and details or mechanics other games have used.

If you force your memory to the start of the generation you'll see cases of games that were much better than last gen counterparts but received lower scores.

Anyway at least 85 is a pretty good score, but I'll trust you on that it should have been higher based on your impressions of the game.

The issue for me isn't that Gears 5 isn't sitting in the 90s for a total score and as mentioned before, it doesn't have to sit in the 90s to be a great game. The issue is that Gears 5 is sitting similar to Gears 4's score which doesn't sound right at all. Gears 4 was a solid title but a game that I and many others weren't a huge fan of, come Gears 5 and its a different story. 

USER reviews on Metacritic show Gears 4 sits on a 6.9 while Gears 5 sits on a 8.8. That's a pretty big difference between USER review scores and something that actually tells a more realistic story here. And its funny because I barely look at USER review scores as its full of troll reviews good and bad and can be extremely inconsistent but in this case I think the USER reviews are more accurate here than the actual critics. Gamers are loving Gears 5 across the board and the game shows it quite clearly however the scoring doesn't, and that will be misleading to many.

First, Mass Effect is an action adventure game with RPG mechanics. In no way compare it to Gears, even though Mass Effect 2 and onward were very inspired by the series. Gears is a shooter, thorough and thorough. It has a winning formula that carved a way of play that does not need to be reinvented or changed too much.

I know you're not dissing active reload, the thing is a game on its own, a staple and a perfect metronome for a competitive shooter. That's what immersion looks like in a game that takes multiplayer seriously. 
 

Gears is a Microsoft game, with heavy roots on basing the game around gameplay, instead of putting other elements first like presentation. 

I understand. Game Informer one of the more popular review sources gave Gears 5 an 8.5 even though the reviewer clearly states that "Gears has never been better" yet the same publication gave Gears 4 a whooping 9.25. I don't know, it is possible many of these reviewers are being pressured into stricter scoring by their bosses.  

This is going to be very interesting to watch over the next couple of years - big games coming to Gamepass day one drives subscriptions, probably a whole lot.  But, will those people continue to subscribe after they're finished with Gears, or will they lapse and re-up when Halo hits next year?  That's really the big question mark and challenge for all subscription services that offer short terms options.  

For my part, I took advangage of the $1 upgrade deal.  My XBL sub ran out in July.  So, I purchased 3 more years of XBL for about $160, then upgraded to Ultimate for $1.  So, I'm at about $4.50 per month for Gamepass for the next three years.  That made it a no-brainer.  I did this in anticipation of games like Halo and Forza Horizon that I'll want to play going forward.  The back catalog helps, of course.  But, really, that wasn't a big factor for me.  It was the future value proposition.  At $4.50 month, the math is clear.  At $10-$15, it would be a much harder call.  

The only way the business model can work is basically with people signing for one game and seeing the price not being high and keep sub or even forget to cancel.If people just sign for the month the big game they want releases and basically have the sig 1-3 months a year they would be making much less money than the direct sales.

Time will tell what balance they may find.

Well, Gears of War 4 released in the same generation as Gears of War 5, so Gears of War 5's score should be reflected against that... It doesn't need to be a 95, it just needs a score higher than Gears of War 4.
If we were comparing it against a 7th gen Gears of War title, then that is another issue entirely.

Either way, it doesn't really matter, anyone who enjoys Gears will pick this game up, those who don't, probably won't grab a copy, irrespective of a couple of irrelevant metacritic points.

My issue is just the consistency of review scores, irrespective of platform or game.

Thats why games like Gears and Halo offer massive multiplayer options because multiplayer games tend to hang around alot longer and increases the games life spans.

So i wouldnt say Gears, Halo and lets add Forza in there as well as short term options. They have huge MP features where gamers will stick around for.

Its why i prefer games with these options because once i finish the campaigns i tend to try out MP modes with my friends.