I know that Metacritic and GameRankings are respected websites for game references and such. I use it all the time to see how games are reviewed and what sites think about the game. Its good and sometimes reliable, but I have one problem with them.

There are games that get low average review scores that should be higher. Like a game can get a 9.0 from IGN, which is to me a reliable review site, and then get like a 6.0 or even a 5.5 on other crap review sites and lower the average. Like when GameCritics gave Mass Effect 2 a 7.5, thats low for a game that had over 30 perfect scores. Or like Alan Wake. Its a great game although im not done with it yet, but i think it deserves more than a 83 avg score. That to me is a AAA game for sure. Look at Mod Nation Racers. It got a 9.0 on IGN but its a 81 avg score.

Well, thats my beef with metacritic and Gamerankings type of score. I still tend to use the site when a game gets a avg score it deserves like Uncharted 2 and Mass Effect 2, but dont like it when an avg score gets dropped cause of crap undeserved reviews. Anyone out there feel the same way as me?

Isn't game critics one of the most trusted review websites ._.?

Well, they gave Mass Effect 2 the lowest score on Metacritic, so I dont know

well the way I see it is all the overly high scores will be cancelled by the overly low scores to (usually) make a near perfect score of what the game should be.

And yet I would refer to IGN as a 'crap review site' So metacritic should stop taking reviews from them also. Personal opinion is what reviews, and thus metacritic is all about

We already know that IGN is paid by Sony...their first party PS reviews are ALWAYS above the average metascore.

Um, so review sites should all have consensus all the time?

If anything games reviewers aren't harsh enough, especially when compared with other critics in other mediums. Whats the point of having an aggregate system if everyone has the same opinion all the time? Why not just read one site and save yourself the trouble?

One of the things about games reviewers that annoys me is the mob mentality when it comes to ultra hyped releases. Compare that to movies, if tranformers 2 (which rightfully got horrid reviews) was a game it'd probably have 96% on meta critic.

didn't the game get really bad reviews too? :P

JK i know that's not your point.

And your point?

Edge gives games low scores doesnt mean they are not one of the most trusted review sites

I dunno, I think... no systems perfect and they shouldn't change it.

However, if people put an abnormally low score... it generates hits... because people get pissed, now it's sometimes hard to prove that this is infact the case. And it's hard to differentiate whether the review was to get hits... or he really disliked the game, or he wanted attention.