Starfield

[Nag]

Release times for the standard and deluxe edition...

 

[DisturbedSwan]

Bit weird this 🤔

 

 

Quote

Access to the game appears to have been heavily restricted in the UK, where Bethesda has also not provided copies of Starfield to other websites and YouTube channels owned by Eurogamer parent company Reedpop. Meanwhile, some other UK outlets have been provided access through Bethesda's US arm.

 

A second quote regarding Digital Foundry (a part of Eurogamer):

 

Quote

Lastly, a note on Digital Foundry. You should expect to see relatively prompt coverage of the game by Rich and his team after a separate delivery of Starfield code was provided to them. However, this was provided alongside instruction to me by Bethesda that no other parts of Eurogamer were granted access. This was an unprecedented request, but one I ultimately felt compelled to honour to ensure the access granted to Digital Foundry was not subsequently impacted by any other mandate.

 

[one-armed dwarf]

This makes me think that reviews of this game should be disregarded entirely tbh. Sounds like they are trying to pump the release metascore

 

edit Jason thinks it's because Eurogamer does 5 star system, which drops the metacritic average down a lot. 

 

 

Metacritic obsession is such stupid shit tbh

[DisturbedSwan]

 

EDGE denied too, the plot thickens...

[mfnick]

Haven’t Bethesda been funny with review codes for years now? I’m not overly confident/bothered about Starfield but I wouldn’t read too much into this. 

Edit - here we go - https://www.eurogamer.net/bethesdas-anti-consumer-review-policy-comes-as-no-surprise#:~:text=In a short statement on,publications a day before release.

 

& just saw some comments on how they didn’t give reviews out for loads of other games prior to that such as DOOM 2016.

[one-armed dwarf]

Given that Dishonored 2 ended up being something of a modern classic in its genre, and the faff about with DOOM 2016, it sort of underlines why it's a bad idea cause it sours the discourse before the game even releases

 

Like, this is Eurogamer's review of Dishonored 2. The game would go onto underwhelming sales. Maybe should have given them that code for embargo day!

 

https://www.eurogamer.net/dishonored-2-review

[Nag]

This games fucked either way... if it doesn't get 10's across the board it'll be a failure and Xbox will be doomed and if it does score highly it'll be paid for shenanigans.

 

I'll never understand the way folk actively root for a game to be shit and fail.

[one-armed dwarf]

Dunno if that's specifically aimed at ppl on here or not, but I do think SF has being getting weird amounts of flak and feels like some console warrior ammo right now. That and Forspoken this year have been a product of weird online arguments

 

A few days back people were getting angsty around the way the game still uses boundaries and cells for its exploration gameplay, but stuff like that kind of has to be seen in its context before rushing to any judgement imo

[Nag]

1 minute ago, one-armed dwarf said:

Dunno if that's specifically aimed at ppl on here or not

 

It isn't.👍

[shinymcshine]

Maybe the approach is more along the lines of:

 

Hey guys it's a big new release on Gamepass Day One, so just go out and play it - you don't need someone else to tell you it's 10/10 in order to do that, and many of you won't actually need to part with any extra cash in order to give it a try.

 

I'm sort of done with VG reviews in many ways, and how they can make or break a new iP where there's a preconception of some gamers where it's like:

 

"Oh man, someone scored it a 7/10 on metacritic - must avoid this clanger".

[Nag]

There's been a load of headlines over the weekend because Microsoft stopped the £1 Game Pass offer just before this dropped and now they're the big baddies because they aren't acting like a gaming charity shop... like buying a month for 8 or 9 quid is so terrible.😄

[DANGERMAN]

I think you need to take a break from wherever you've been spending internet time tbh Nag, I'm sure Microsoft are going to be fine

 

Agree with Bethesda's approach to reviews being detrimental. Doom was outstanding, but after the troubled development, not sending review code out just gave the impression that it really was a dud. Some surprisingly positive reviews would have done loads for early sales I think. This, I know there's issues around some of the technical stuff (and it is a Bethesda game), but there's so much hype and expectation for it, it's going to review well unless it's absolutely fucked, and it's going to sell well regardless. I just don't see any benefit in introducing negative talk about it because you won't give code to certain sites

[Nag]

I'll be fine too... don't you worry.😊

[Maryokutai]

I wonder if reviews really matter that much for this game. Sure, if it ends up being a 60-ish game that'll have some consequences on its sales, but it'll be around the 80s guaranteed and I think like most Bethesda games it will be more a word-of-mouth thing, particularly in this day and age of streaming. Skyrim was successful because everyone was talking about it in a positive way and doing the arrow-knee-meme, Fallout 76 initially failed because the contrary happened.

 

Whatever happens on twitter about its title screen or the explorable size of a planet that is generated upon landing can be instantly ignored anyway, that's just a very minor echo chamber that has no impact on a game's success.

[mmmark]

It’s so weird to look forward to a game and worry what other people will make of it. 

[DANGERMAN]

10 hours ago, Nag said:

I'll be fine too... don't you worry.😊

 

 

[Nag]

Lol.😂

[DisturbedSwan]

13 hours ago, DANGERMAN said:

This, I know there's issues around some of the technical stuff (and it is a Bethesda game), but there's so much hype and expectation for it, it's going to review well unless it's absolutely fucked, and it's going to sell well regardless. I just don't see any benefit in introducing negative talk about it because you won't give code to certain sites

 

This is pretty much where I am on the whole situation, I just don't understand why you'd invite negative PR on the eve of the games launch in a situation that can be largely avoided. Apparently there's some beef between EuroGamer owner ReedPop and Bethesda that goes back years, but that pettiness worth all the negativity that has now overshadowed the games launch slightly? No.

 

As for the wider issue of negative coverage, I think every game pretty much gets that these days, there was 'controversy' over Spidey 1's puddles before release ffs lol, it's just outlets trying to hang their hat on anything they can to get a story out of it. It's every game, they're not targeting any one Console Manufacturer or Publisher, but pretty much all of them, if they smell blood they'll bite at the end of the day.

 

From someone who is looking forward to Starfield but not as much as a Fallout or TES release it has all gone over my head really, has it made me more negative on the game overall or impacted my thoughts on it? No, but then after Fallout 4 and 76 I was never going to be as excited for it as I would've once been back in the day.

 

Also, an hour after that article went up EuroGamer did get a review code, it seems other Publications like Metro, EDGE, The Guardian etc. still don't have a code though.

 

[one-armed dwarf]

16 hours ago, shinymcshine said:

Hey guys it's a big new release on Gamepass Day One, so just go out and play it - you don't need someone else to tell you it's 10/10 in order to do that, and many of you won't actually need to part with any extra cash in order to give it a try.

Doubt they are truly that altruistic when they are also charging people 100 euro to play it a week 'early'

 

yes I am the hypocrite for pointing that out, but still

[Nag]

You're paying for the expansion and some other gubbins, playing early is a perk.

 

And if you say that many many times you might even believe it!