I have a different perspective on review score creep. Let's imagine I'm a videogame developer (I'm not, but lets pretend). I'm fully aware that high review scores correlate with higher sales. If I was clever, I'd perform a deep and thorough anlysis of what kind of qualities in a game lead to a high review score, then I'd do my damnest to ensure that I imbue my game with those qualities to the greatest extend possible given my budget. I'd learn lessons from each game I produce, and apply those lessons to future projects.
My point is this - perhaps we should consider the possibility that the top tier of game developers are getting better at their craft. Is Bungie of today a smarter developer than the Bungie of 2000, back when Halo was in development? I should damn well hope so, or they've not been very clever about running their business.
Reviews are an integral part of the videogame business, and it makes sense that a smart developer will 'game' the system over time, producing games that are subjectively 'better' according to the mostly static criteria of the average review.
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Back on topic, sure GTA4 has many flaws, but compare the number of flaws to the number of things it does right, and the 10/10's start to make more sense. The real joy of the game is in how many things it attempts, and the suprisingly high number of those things are done really, really well. Given the sheer volume of well implemented features, a few minor niggles seem forgivable.
5
My point is this - perhaps we should consider the possibility that the top tier of game developers are getting better at their craft. Is Bungie of today a smarter developer than the Bungie of 2000, back when Halo was in development? I should damn well hope so, or they've not been very clever about running their business.
Reviews are an integral part of the videogame business, and it makes sense that a smart developer will 'game' the system over time, producing games that are subjectively 'better' according to the mostly static criteria of the average review.
</ramble>
Back on topic, sure GTA4 has many flaws, but compare the number of flaws to the number of things it does right, and the 10/10's start to make more sense. The real joy of the game is in how many things it attempts, and the suprisingly high number of those things are done really, really well. Given the sheer volume of well implemented features, a few minor niggles seem forgivable.