Games you restricted yourself from due to negative criticism

[step1999]

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According to the OP, the post is supposed to be about games you restricted yourself from due to criticism before eventually buying them and finding out they're actually good. Not games you're never buying because of the criticism. (I know I'm basically playing thread police here, just think the original topic was more interesting and don't want the thread to derail.)

Anyway, I was put off playing Arkham Knight for a long time due to the PC launch and criticisms about the open world and overuse of the Batmobile, but eventually I played it and liked it a lot, not as good as City but better than Asylum. The sidequests are mostly pretty good, the Batmobile combat is more fun than it looks (although it is still overused), and the normal combat feels amazing, better than in any of the other games IMO (I especially like the removal of the Freeflow Focus slowmo and making Power Gadgets use the same meter as your takedown moves, also the changes to Explosive Gel make it actually useful in combat now).

Also happened with Life is Strange, I'd heard a few spoilers out of context before I played that game that made it sound really bad but it's actually pretty good (although I get why some people hate it, if you don't get attached to some of the characters it would probably just drive you nuts due to certain plot holes). I was especially surprised that the dialogue wasn't as cringy as everyone was saying (apart from a few moments in episode 1).

 

[Trunkage]

Elder Scrolls Online. I heard it was bad, and I don't really like MMOs at all. I've never played beyond a month.

My friends decided they wanted to play and asked me to join. Now I'm a year in, playing the same game. I'd never thought I'd get caught up in any MMO

 

[pookie101]

my biggest one would be dragon age 2.

i loved origins but really didnt like the new art style in 2 and when the bad reviews came out i avoided it. anywho years later i picked it up for $5 in a bargain bin and played it.. yeah visiting the same dungeon 50 times got annoying but i did grow to like it and the characters and the 2 story dlc were really good quality as well.

gone home would be another. id heard people calling it dull, a walking sim, etc so i avoided it for a long time until it was really cheap on sale and i picked it up.. im still confused why people call it a walking sim its pretty standard adventure game stuff and i loved the exploration and story it told that one night

 

[BrawlMan]

According to the OP, the post is supposed to be about games you restricted yourself from due to criticism before eventually buying them and finding out they're actually good. Not games you're never buying because of the criticism. (I know I'm basically playing thread police here, just think the original topic was more interesting and don't want the thread to derail.)

If that's the case, then Asura's Wrath. While reception was mixed, I was put off from buying it, because QTEs were a minor turn off, and I was not sure about the challenge. The last section of the story being DLC was the last straw. I did not get it until it dropped in price for about $17.99, and realized I missed out on a great story, and just fun gameplay that knows how to mix it up. The QTEs are the best that has ever been done in a video game, because if feels like you're actually doing something, and most failures are minor. With all that in mind, it still does not excuse Capcom's shady practices. I bet if they made the game digital first (each month brings in a couple of episodes), and then a physical copy; similar to the Tell Tale's Walking Dead, then Asura's Wrath might have done better.

 

[Zhukov]

Closest I can think of is Arkham Knight.

Delayed buying it until long after release. Partly due to hearing vaguely bad things. Apparently the PC port was released in a bad state or something.

Eventually got it on a Steam sale and, yeah, it was alright. More Arkham, better than Asylum, not as tightly designed as City, few too many drone tank fights. Generally a good time though. Didn't encounter any PC port issues.

 

[JUMBO PALACE]

I'm going to echo Arkham Knight as well. I saw so many outlets reporting that it's an uninspired sequel that is fine and the batmobile sucks. I found Knight to be a ton of fun to play and by the time I got it the PC issues had been largely fixed.

I think the price we are getting these games for after the fact though plays a large role. When you snag something on sale you don't hold it to as high a standard as a full priced game. For example I got Arkham Knight for $6.00. The game could have been pretty mediocre and I'd still have felt like I got my money's worth.

Another example is Warhammer: Space Marine. Sure it's not revolutionary but I had a lot of fun stomping around in power armor and mowing down orcs. The combat in that game is satisfyingly chunky. Alan Wake was another semi-surprise considering a lot of people have negative things to say about it.

 

[Jamcie Kerbizz]

Greetings weird sentient mounds of opinions and potential sustenance! Have ye postponed acquiring any games that you actually enjoyed due to listening or reading bad criticisms? Maybe during a sale that you thought 'fuck it, no-one's looking enough to judge and I'm pretty bored' that turned out much more fun than anticipated?

I would be obliged to add 'Song of the Deep' to this. Probably due to Yahtzee's clip that gave a completely different impression than I eventually received. I have far more rambly opinions on that, but it seriously ain't worth it. However, it did highlight an issue that I find quite intriguing; the effect of criticism on the public who may not be be able to formulate their own opinion from experience, and their willingness to believe more in negativity than anything else.
Though it could be a logical symptom of a society being fed a barrage of marketing intent on highlighting positivity in whatever needs to be sold. However, that matters not...have you been pleasantly surprised by a game that you assumed to be shit due to a less-than-positive critical reception?

Honestly I bought way more games than I have time playing. As an adult at least. It use to be the opposite when I was younger.
So to answer the question from the subject, zero.
On contrary I bought at least 2 games, only due to ie. John Bain's positive review, which I didn't enjoy in the end. Don't blame him though he always speaks openly about all issues of the game, just got cought up in him visibly liking the game and projected that it will be my experience too.

As to negativity, it's natural and with higher probability genuine (unlike with 'marketing department' sponsored 'hype trains'). All you need to do is try to understand it.
Once you're done looking at gameplay and rethinking points someone made in their critique (they should have them, otherwise it's just venting frustration over money spent poorly or feeling scammed). You are set to make correct decision. If you buy games because they are 'popular' or not buy them because they are 'unpopular' than unless you are a 'console peasant' or a mmo drone there's no hope for you

Rephrasing a bit the subject to enjoying game, that majority hated viciously and critics declared utter garbage, to me it would be:
Star Wars Galaxies.

 

[Dalisclock]

Assasins Creed III. For a while I avoided it because people kept saying how bad it was, but after IV brought me back to the series, I decided to try it out, and I rather liked it. It had flaws, to be sure, but not nearly as bad as some people would have had me believe.

 

[Squilookle]

Not really. Once I decide not to get something that's usually the end of it, given how many games I genuinely do want to play that I don't have the time for. A possible exception may be Assassins Creed 2. I boycotted that only because of its atrocious DRM on launch. I may still get around to it at some stage...

 

[sageoftruth]

Cosmic Star Heroine for me. The game looked awesome, and many reviews said it was, but there were complaints about serious bug issues that had me on guard. I definitely intend to get it eventually, but I'm giving the developers time to take care of bug issues. Once I get through Nioh and Persona 5 (and possibly Nier Automata as well), I'll probably give it a shot

 

[Xerosch]

Nope, never happened. If I'm interested in a game, I'm buying it. If I had listened to all the whiny entitled players, I'd have missed out on a lot of cool stuff that surprised me with a different art style or gameplay.
When in doubt I always remember this one reviewer I was working with: He refused to play 'Okami' because of the art style. That's an attitude I consider unacceptable for a professional critic.

I bought Mass Effect Andromeda at launch, but shelved it after only a few hours. Bioware announced they were rolling a bunch of patches to address a lot of the criticism, so I figure I'll wait and play it this summer.

Don't you hate it when that happens? I had a situation like yours with 'Final Fantasy 15'. I got it shortly after launch - and have not played it beyond the first hour. First, Squareenix announced that they would rework some chapters. Then they decided to make playable side missions for the main characters. Then an additional chapter that fleshes out the bad guy. Normally I wouldn't care about the DLC, but as the game shipped basically unfinished and I play RPGs for the story, I'Ll probably have to wait for yet another six months before I start for real.

God, I just hope there won't be a reworking of 'Persona 5' like 'P3Portable' or 'P4 Golden'. I simply don't have the time to invest yet another 100 hours into replaying a game.

 

[Bob_McMillan]

Mass Effect 3. Self explanatory.

I finally got around to it a month ago and really enjoyed it. Just goes to show buying a game on launch is a bad idea.

 

[CaitSeith]

Resident Evil 5 & 6. I'm still not convinced it's what I look for in a Resident Evil game; and there are now several other survival horror games to play instead.

Besides of that, I rarely restrict myself from games that I'm interested in solely because of negative criticism. I delay the purchase, waiting for the patches to come along or the GOTY edition, but otherwise no.

 

[CaitSeith]

Mass Effect 3. Self explanatory.

Not really. There was the day-one DLC controversy and the ending controversy. And the only reason I played the whole trilogy was because the ME3 ending complains were still been heard 3 years afterwards.

 

[Xprimentyl]

To the original question: I?ve never let criticism of a game keep me from playing it; if I did, I?d never play anything. So few games ever catch my attention, when one actually does, mine is the only opinion that matters to me.

Conversely, I have allowed negative criticism to persuade me to play a poorly received game. Duke Nukem Forever was famously panned as the worst thing since the Holocaust, so when I saw it go on sale digitally for $5, I just knew it was too bad to pass up. I played it through on the hardest setting and can honestly say, I think 90% of the rancor it merited was likely due to nostalgia-laced heightened expectations. I was never a Nukem fan, so this was my first foray into the franchise, thus I had no expectations. Objectively, at worst, DNF (which I just realized is ironically the same acronym for ?Did Not Finish? used in auto racing) was a poor showing when compared to then current gen FPS standards; it felt very generic, dated and crude. At best, DNF (lol) was a competent, mechanically-sound FPS by then last gen standards with a few LOL moments and boobs. Nowhere in between those two extremes was NEAR the broken mess of an 11-years delayed game that folks made it out to be. I can honestly say I enjoyed it more than I hated it; it was just another rush job like so many I?d become accustom to.

 

[meiam]

Dragon dogma is probably the closest for me, most reviewer compared it to dragon age for obvious reason, and as such blasted it for not having a bioware style story but barely spent anytime on the gameplay which is stellar. The game does so many things well, with very fun class, interesting climbing mechanic, epic fight against giant enemy, best representation of magic in an A-RPG (your not just throwing around fireball that might as well just be re-skin arrow), actually dark night/dungeon and the ability to set yourself on fire to damage enemy around you cause why the hell not. The game is far from perfect, but I eagerly await a sequel... plz

 

[Qoajo]

Mass Effect Andromeda. I'll probably get it when the patches roll out though.

 

[Dreiko_v1legacy]

Dragon dogma is probably the closest for me, most reviewer compared it to dragon age for obvious reason, and as such blasted it for not having a bioware style story but barely spent anytime on the gameplay which is stellar. The game does so many things well, with very fun class, interesting climbing mechanic, epic fight against giant enemy, best representation of magic in an A-RPG (your not just throwing around fireball that might as well just be re-skin arrow), actually dark night/dungeon and the ability to set yourself on fire to damage enemy around you cause why the hell not. The game is far from perfect, but I eagerly await a sequel... plz

And it has berserk cosplay armor within the main game, too.

 

[Zetatrain]

Mass effect Andromeda
-the reviews certainly turned me off on picking up the game anytime soon but recent news about the franchise being put on hold indefinitely might have turned me off of ever getting the game.

Final Fantasy XV
-Actually I did buy this, but around the time I got to the boat I heard that SE was planning on patching up the story. As a result I'm holding off on continuing until everything is released.

Alpha Protocol
-A lot of reviews painted it as a broken mess so I stayed away from it. Then I saw Yahtzee's video on it and decided to rent it. While it is very very unpolished, the game's dialogue and cause and effect systems kept me hooked and the gameplay was good enough that I played through the game twice.

Alien: Colonial Marines
-I think this one is self explanatory

 

[gyrobot_v1legacy]

Neptunia: Patient Zero of the supposed decline of JRPGs and Japanese gaming since 2011. Neptunia is like that unfunny comedian who is backed by a bunch of groupies who laughs only because it pisses off that pretentious critic cum heckler everytime he performs. I used to follow the Neptunia series but never bothered to play it.