Requirements for game to be considered AAA

[DragonLord]

As I've said in the other thread, I completely disagree with the definition of a AAA game being a "score" over 90. I'll copy some of what I said there:

To me, AAA means more than just a score. I feel the term is massively abused now days (lol, a guy tried to call Conan AAA on here not too long ago)....Many "A" & "AA" games are termed "AAA" and many people use PERSONAL PREFERENCE to determine AAA. A system of standards is definitely needed--just like Greatest Hits have...maybe a cumalative score involving reviews, history, sales, etc.

Maybe This:

Average Score of over 8.75 = ONE "A"

History...must be 2nd Title or more in series = ONE "A"

SALES/HYPE...Over a certain sales amount (1,000,000) or attach rate (15%), etc. = ONE "A"

So, 2 out of the 3 would equal a "AA" Title....3 out of the 3 would = "AAA", etc.

1. Reviews/Scores--Why should only a REVIEWER with bias (all do in honesty) have the final say in a games status as AAA...what if JUST ONE gives a game a 7.00 and it's enough to drop its score to 89.9%. Is that game not AAA because ONE guy gave it a poor score? WE, THE CONSUMERS SHOULD HAVE A SAY IN AAA STATUS...REVIEWERS SHOULD BE A PART OF THAT DETERMINATION.

2. History/Tradition....not a one hit wonder (Can White Knight Story, Little Big Planet, Halo Wars, Alan Wake, or Too Human really qualify when they are brand new IP's with NO proven history) IMO a "AA" should be the MAX CONSIDERATION for a new IP.

3. Sales/Attach Rate...a game can be wonderful and score a 9.0, but if it only sells 250,000 copies can you really call it AAA? (All the NGS have sold relatively unwell; however, that doesn't mean this one will.)

4. Hype/Cult followings....this has to be considered because hype is a huge part of the gaming industry.  If people want it so bad that they are willing to camp out all night...then that has to be taken into consideration.   Halo is a master of the hype train...so is Mario....so is Final Fantasy.

 

In my opinion, the only currently existing AAA franchises:

Final Fantasy, Zelda, Mario, Halo, Gears of War, Metal Gear Solid, Grand Theft Auto, Gran Turismo, Metroid Prime, Kingdom Hearts, Dragon Quest...might be missing a FEW...but those games all have a past history, great scores (as a franchise--maybe one or two games missed out or a spinoff, etc.), lots of hype and cult followings, and great sales....that is what a AAA franchise is to me.