Backbreaker Review

[ChaseB]

Quote: Originally Posted by swaldo

Absolutely no mention of the greatest advance in football gaming in a long, long time (tackling/physics)?! Oh wait, at the very bottom of the review in the summary it does state "+ Tackling Animations." Wow, that's all the love you can give to this groundbreaking technology? And how every play is unique, calculated on the fly with absolutely no cheap AI cheating involved? Also, to slam and penalize the game because online players use cheese is not right. My online experiences have been great, with no lag or cheesers. What game doesn't have money plays which users can exploit? If you're frustrated with the AI shortcomings then online is a great alternative and they should be rewarded for making this is a solid experience. BB has... One of the best mini-games ever One of the best customization features ever The greatest tackling/physics ever So you'd think it would get a higher rating than a 5. I predicted mass media reviews would come in around 6-7, and if NM puts out a decent patch it could easily elevate it to a 7-8.

Friendly editor of said review popping in here for a moment. Two of those things in bold are mentioned in the review and everyone knew about the physics from the start -- the game was pushed forward because people were going crazy about the tech demo. However, if the reviewer thinks the gameplay is suspect, how can he rationally rate it much above a 5 when -- and I think everyone would agree here -- gameplay is the most important aspect. I think he gushes about the customization but that can only take a game so far.

Either way, as with any review, I do think people get too worked up about it. There are demos, previews, videos, screens, and a whole bunch of other ways to see/play games before you buy them. If you want to know what to buy, a review really isn't the best method for video games anymore. Really, reviews should be more about creating a discussion then worrying about the score or being considered a "troll" or something else like that.

[coolbreez35]

this is a bad review dude. for the simple you said blitz . are you crazy. plus how can somebody review a game fair if you cant play it?

[Jimixiii]

Quote: Originally Posted by Exonerated

I completed 1/21 passes in my first game. There's nothing much misleading about the review. It unnecessarily scathing but that his opinion.

Maybe as Charles Barkley would say, you're just "turrible". It isn't that hard to pass. there's a huge learning curve, maybe it's a bit too easy to throw picks but I don't no what you could have been doing wrong to get that bad of stats.

The review was even more turrible though. This guy had a few gripes that just seemed to be b/c the game has a huge learning curve from other games, if he actually took the time to learn the new mechanics the review would of been a lot better.

[Dogslax41]

Like I said before, I don't think many people would have an issue with the number grade given to the game. I wouldn't give number grades a second thought as they are completly subjective.

My issue is with the details (or lack thereof) supporting that grade. I have no stake in the game so I am not worked up so much as kind of shocked given that I usually trust OS for its opinion on sports games. However, this one was shocking because it really didn't review the game.

The review fails to call out some of the most glaring issues in the game (no mention of the cpu ai, especially the issues that I noted previously as well as the lack of opposition provided by the cpu based on poor ai). It seems to harp on the reviewer's inability to pass or run. And makes the allusion that every game is full of turnovers and that is most certainly not the case. Are there more than there should be, yes, are there on average 20, no. And that is my problem. 20 would be gamebreaking in my opinion. Were I to accept that there were 20 turnovers a game I would not purchase the game based on my own personal judgment that I would not have fun with a game that produces 20 tunrovers on average. I haven't seen 20 turnovers in a game in almost 100 played. In my opinion, that is misleading because I would not have purchased a game based on something that really wasnt true.

In a day in age where financial considerations limit gamer's ability to purchase games at will they rely on reviewers to provide some insight. I understand there are other media available to judge a game, but right or wrong people look to and trust those "reviewers" to provide details of a game when they may not have time to dive into all of them. I don't normally comment on reviews just based on the subjectivity of a review, but I commented now because I feel like this review fails on both accounts, it fails to highlight the items that the game does well and could prove fun for quite a few people and it fails to highlight the negatives in detail to help those that may be put off by those issues decide not to purchase. Instead it seems to have not spent enough time with the game to provide a decent "review" instead of an opinion.

[tybud]

the thing about backbreaker is that you get back what you put in meaning if you take time to learn the game and study it then you will get back all the beatiful parts of the game, but if you just pick it up and say im going to just chuck the ball around like its no tomorrow and not have a understanding of what your trying to do on the field the game will feel and look messy. its like a rookie things just seem hectic and out of control but once things slow down and you start playing the sport like it should be played, notice i didnt say video game i said sport. backbreaker has to be played in away that no other sports video game is played. for instance when i play my games it sometimes just feel and look horrible but when my son plays the game is a treat to watch because he is better player. this game really idenifys with the player on the sticks unlike some other games where anybody can pick up and play without knowing much about the sport or a understanding of the game.

[ABR173rd]

Everyone is waiting for the great football game messiah and it definitely is not backbreaker,I don't agree with the way the review was written but I definitely agree that this game doesn't deserve anything higher than a 5 rating. You cant give a game a 7 just because its not a Madden title or because the graphics are pretty.

[swaldo]

Quote: Originally Posted by ChaseB

Friendly editor of said review popping in here for a moment. Two of those things in bold are mentioned in the review and everyone knew about the physics from the start -- the game was pushed forward because people were going crazy about the tech demo. However, if the reviewer thinks the gameplay is suspect, how can he rationally rate it much above a 5 when -- and I think everyone would agree here -- gameplay is the most important aspect. I think he gushes about the customization but that can only take a game so far. Either way, as with any review, I do think people get too worked up about it. There are demos, previews, videos, screens, and a whole bunch of other ways to see/play games before you buy them. If you want to know what to buy, a review really isn't the best method for video games anymore. Really, reviews should be more about creating a discussion then worrying about the score or being considered a "troll" or something else like that.

Most of us here on OS have been following the Backbreaker updates over the last couple years. However, alot of casual gamers will stumble across it in a videogame store or wherever and want to seek more info about it. So I think it should be stated how revolutionary the tackling animations and physics are. I mean that's what BB is all about and that's how they got started so I don't see why a reviewer would totally exclude it. At this point everyone knows there is an interception issue so maybe that should be excluded in the review as well?

And I'm not sure if gameplay has consistently been rated as "The most important aspect" in OS reviews. We're not supposed to mention other games in the BB forum so I won't even go there.

And I'm not worked up, there are far better things in life to worry about. Just adding my input is all, and I'm out. Peace!

[ChaseB]

Quote: Originally Posted by Dogslax41

Like I said before, I don't think many people would have an issue with the number grade given to the game. My issue is with the details (or lack thereof) supporting that grade. I have no stake in the game so I am not worked up so much as kind of shocked given that I usually trust OS for its opinion on sports games. However, this one was shocking because it really didn't review the game. The review fails to call out some of the most glaring issues in the game (no mention of the cpu ai, especially the issues that I noted previously as well as the lack of opposition provided by the cpu based on poor ai). It seems to harp on the reviewer's inability to pass or run. And makes the allusion that every game is full of turnovers and that is most certainly not the case. Are there more than there should be, yes, are there on average 20, no. And that is my problem. 20 would be gamebreaking in my opinion. Were I to accept that there were 20 turnovers a game I would not purchase the game based on my own personal judgment that I would not have fun with a game that produces 20 tunrovers on average. I haven't seen 20 turnovers in a game in almost 100 played. In my opinion, that is misleading because I would not have purchased a game based on something that really wasnt true. In a day in age where financial considerations limit gamer's ability to purchase games at will they rely on reviewers to provide some insight. I understand there are other media available to judge a game, but right or wrong people look to and trust those "reviewers" to provide details of a game when they may not have time to dive into all of them. I don't normally comment on reviews just based on the subjectivity of a review, but I commented now because I feel like this review fails on both accounts, it fails to highlight the items that the game does well and could prove fun for quite a few people and it fails to highlight the negatives in detail to help those that may be put off by those issues decide not to purchase.

There is a free demo out there, which is the only problem I have with the cost argument. Plus, I'm just not sure if you should be basing a purchase on one outlet's review in either case. I mean I do get the argument, I really do, but I just was pointing out there are other ways.

Beyond that, I'm not in the reviewer's head so I can't tell you what is important to him or not. I do know not every reviewer likes to write 10,000 word reviews, so he chose to focus on a couple things and move on from there.

I don't mind the criticism of the review though, I will say that. I think it's fine to critique the review and even the outlet in a constructive way because it's not going to hurt anything -- probably can only help it.