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User Ratings on Metacritic (*SPOILERS*)

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  • jjstraka34jjstraka34 Member Posts: 9,850
    None of us longtime posters have any interest in your crusade against PC culture. This is and has always been a civil forum, and I personally stopped posting in the politics thread in the Off-Topic section because it could get too acrimonious.

    That said, I'm not going to debate and have a civil discussion with a bunch of gate-crashers on whether the moon is made of green cheese. Siege is not generating massively disproportionate amounts of negative reviews because of it's "bad writing". It may be because of the writing, but only because most of the invaders are convinced the writing was done by a outspoken, uppity woman who needs to be put back in her place. And I'll keep hitting back at it until they go back to their holes on Reddit and 4chan and various other cesspools of the internet....
    DemonocratKilivitzKrotos
  • XzarXzar Member Posts: 215
    edited April 2016
    joluv said:

    Xzar said:

    Regardless of which attitudes towards the issues of gender exist in educated circles of Canada and USA, there is a big world outside these circles. This world will strike, if allowed. And Beamdog is not EA or Apple to proudly wear rainbow flag, Beamdog is vulnerable. By brazenly waving rainbow flag they invite all those who would like to hurt EA and Apple in a broader sense, but cannot. And its a massive force. And it wont go away if you dont agree on some kind of cease-fire with them. You cant defeat them by doubling down on your beliefs, because theyre consciously against them and they want represenation (not demonization) in art too.

    I know you're using the third person here, but I hope you can understand that this comes across as a threat, in much the same way that part of RedKnight's magnum opus did.
    I understand that you are threatening me here, and convicting me of thought crime. Exercising the right to twist my words according to the needs of your collective agenda. I said what I said, I know these people and their attitude, but I'm not responsible for their strategy or actions, even if I share their sentiment on some points. I already proposed to be a mediator to devs, they havent responded yet. Not interested I guess.
    GodKaiserHellValchrist
  • Diogenes42Diogenes42 Member Posts: 597
    iasson said:

    @mzachary its not about censorship. Its about taking the right to write away from a bully. Cause the statement *if some people dont like it, well, too bad* is a direct assault.

    My friend perhaps you could consider "too bad" less of an assault and instead simply as a statement meaning "there is nothing to be done about it"
  • jjstraka34jjstraka34 Member Posts: 9,850
    Xzar said:

    joluv said:

    Xzar said:

    Regardless of which attitudes towards the issues of gender exist in educated circles of Canada and USA, there is a big world outside these circles. This world will strike, if allowed. And Beamdog is not EA or Apple to proudly wear rainbow flag, Beamdog is vulnerable. By brazenly waving rainbow flag they invite all those who would like to hurt EA and Apple in a broader sense, but cannot. And its a massive force. And it wont go away if you dont agree on some kind of cease-fire with them. You cant defeat them by doubling down on your beliefs, because theyre consciously against them and they want represenation (not demonization) in art too.

    I know you're using the third person here, but I hope you can understand that this comes across as a threat, in much the same way that part of RedKnight's magnum opus did.
    I understand that you are threating me here, and convicting me of thought crime. Exercising the right to twist my words according to the needs of your collective agenda. I said what I said, I know these people and their attitude, but I'm not responsible for their strategy or actions, even if I share their sentiment on some points. I already proposed to be a mediator to devs, they havent responded yet. Not interested I guess.
    A mediator to the devs about what?? Beamdog isn't changing their game and getting on bended knee to appease a bunch of bullies who are pissed they no longer own 100% of the toys in the video game world.
    Moradin
  • iassoniasson Member Posts: 101
    @dee goodbye. thanks for not locking this thread. Exploring the community as I was here I know why you think bg went the right way. But dont forget that there are more bg fans out there and they cant even express their thoughts in this forum cause every response is a wall of text with little relevance to the statement they typed. I will be looking forward for your twitter announcements, cause bg3 was my goal from the day 1 I supported this project. But I wanted a true bg successor, funny, heroic, cheerful and passionate. SoD gave me a lesson in today's ethics. Please hire real trans and bisexual people in the future to do the writing or at least try to find someone unbiased. That's my honest review and I will proceed to change my review on meta, Gog and steam as well. Boo will miss you
    GodKaiserHellBaeloth_Jnr
  • FardragonFardragon Member Posts: 4,511
    Xzar said:

    Rawgrim said:

    Xzar said:

    So, 32 pages into discussion we still see that most of people havent moved an inch from their initial positions. Doesnt look good for perspectives of peace. Concessions need to be made by both sides, soon.

    One side is handwaving all criticism away by calling it "bigotry". On the other side all criticism is being handwaved away because it is a "SJW agenda". And in the middle we find some genuine criticism\feedback\praise that gets attacked by both parts.

    Have I assessed the situation correctly?
    Almost. Big part of issue is that developers unanimously on "bigotry" side, not willing to take into account even smallest bit from "Anti-SJW" side. This bring into question devs supposed diversity, since so far it seems there is either not a single non-liberal developer in Beamdog,
    I don't really find that surprising, by your definition of "liberal" there probably isn't a non-liberal developer outside of the USA.

  • killerrabbitkillerrabbit Member Posts: 402
    edited April 2016


    You don't think there's anyone in the middle?

    If the posters were offended by Dynaheir portrait because they think medieval European fantasy should only include white folk would we be looking for a middle ground? If this attack was coming from stormfront and not GG would we consider giving into their demands?

    So what makes the one decision -- to make one of the NPCs a black woman -- different from the decision to make one of the NPCs a woman who was born as a man?

    Remember the 'concerns' about the Thor movie -- Heimdal can't be played by a black actor? This reminds that 'controversy'.

    The bias that the answer is always in the middle is a type of bias that kind hearted people carry but it can be used to tolerate and even promote hatred. Captain serious says google "critique of pure tolerance"

    To answer your question -- no, there is no middle ground. Just like there is no middle ground in the eugenics 'debate'. One side is wrong.
    FardragonSamy
  • jjstraka34jjstraka34 Member Posts: 9,850


    You don't think there's anyone in the middle?

    If the posters were offended by Dynaheir portrait because they think medieval European fantasy should only include white folk would we be looking for a middle ground? If this attack was coming from stormfront and not GG would we consider giving into their demands?

    So what makes the one decision -- to make one of the NPCs a black woman -- different from the decision to make one of the NPCs a woman who was born as a man?

    Remember the 'concerns' about the Thor movie -- Heimdal can't be played by a black actor? This reminds that 'controversy'.

    The bias that the answer is always in the middle is a type of bias that kind hearted people carry but it can be used to tolerate and even promote hatred. Captain serious says google "critique of pure tolerance"

    To answer your question -- no, there is no middle ground. Just like there is no middle ground in the eugenics 'debate'. One side is wrong.
    Exactly....in the same way the modern media is always trying to be "objective" instead of getting to the truth. Not every issue has two equally valid sides. This is one of them....
    killerrabbitFardragonskeptik_59Krotos
  • MalbethMalbeth Member Posts: 27
    edited April 2016
    Dee said:

    Rawgrim said:

    Rawgrim said:

    Xzar said:

    So, 32 pages into discussion we still see that most of people havent moved an inch from their initial positions. Doesnt look good for perspectives of peace. Concessions need to be made by both sides, soon.

    One side is handwaving all criticism away by calling it "bigotry". On the other side all criticism is being handwaved away because it is a "SJW agenda". And in the middle we find some genuine criticism\feedback\praise that gets attacked by both parts.

    Have I assessed the situation correctly?
    Yes! This is it completely! There are more than 2 bloody sides here. If people in the middle disagree, they're accused of being on the 'other side'.
    I know. Beamdog should actually address this. So far they have just blamed all negative feedback on " a wave of bigots hating the trans". That simply isn't the whole truth at all.
    I don't know about anyone else, but I know I've said at least a few times that there's legitimate criticism to be had, if it weren't being overshadowed by the more uncivil discourse that's happening right now.
    Some of the vitriol coming out is due to the legitimate criticism either being underestimated or latching on to other criticism.

    And, many people here forget that the forum posters are a minority. I did not even know that beamdog existed (despite having bought the games in February) until the 2.0 update. I had been talking with friends about how we played BG in high school, looked to see if Steam had it then bought the game. After enjoying the nostalgia, I then bought it for two friends of mine.

    I am ~80 hours into the replay of the series (Chapter 5 of BG2) when the update kicks in. No warning for those of us outside the forums; simply an update that made significant changes to BG2EE.

    How have I reacted to it?

    1 - I left a number of very, very negative reviews online, because I was incensed that BG2EE was now unable to handle multiplayer, with a vexing character sheet and broken journal. And, quite frankly, they were deserved. I have reviewed BG1EE post-update and it looks good (from 5 minutes of pushing it around), however BG2EE is an unfinished product. I am surprised any developer would want their name associated with the release.

    2 - I also bought the $130 (plus $35 shipping!) collector's edition, although I am fearful of what product I will receive. I am undecided if I will return it if the BG2EE CD has the same product currently on Steam, as I find it to be unplayable.

    I have not played SoD for two reasons: first, I have not received a product key yet (sent e-mail two days ago); and two, I am going to finish BG2 before starting a new character in BG1 to play through again.

    As an adult gamer, I do not care a whit for some line buried in other dialogue with an irrelevant character. What does leave me perturbed is when a developer releases an update that results in loss of functionality. From reading these forums, I now understand that beamdog is low budget and having an active beta (in the form of the new release) will help result in a better product over the coming months. However, my opinion is that this should have been done internally (or as an option), not a forced update.

    Summary: An acknowledgement by beamdog (and as Trent hints at in the quote to this post) that there are issues with the update that speak to issues with the UI and coding, would be appreciated. Partly as mollification; and partly as a guarantee that beamdog is cognizant of the issues and will address them. Some people appear to be criticizing the game for frivolous reasons. That does not reduce the legitimacy of other complaints, and these ought to be addressed.

    I apologize for the long post, I made this account after days of browsing the forums and so had a fair bit on my mind.
    [Deleted User]
  • joluvjoluv Member Posts: 2,137
    Xzar said:

    joluv said:

    Xzar said:

    Regardless of which attitudes towards the issues of gender exist in educated circles of Canada and USA, there is a big world outside these circles. This world will strike, if allowed. And Beamdog is not EA or Apple to proudly wear rainbow flag, Beamdog is vulnerable. By brazenly waving rainbow flag they invite all those who would like to hurt EA and Apple in a broader sense, but cannot. And its a massive force. And it wont go away if you dont agree on some kind of cease-fire with them. You cant defeat them by doubling down on your beliefs, because theyre consciously against them and they want represenation (not demonization) in art too.

    I know you're using the third person here, but I hope you can understand that this comes across as a threat, in much the same way that part of RedKnight's magnum opus did.
    I understand that you are threatening me here, and convicting me of thought crime. Exercising the right to twist my words according to the needs of your collective agenda. I said what I said, I know these people and their attitude, but I'm not responsible for their strategy or actions, even if I share their sentiment on some points. I already proposed to be a mediator to devs, they havent responded yet. Not interested I guess.
    I... what? What do you think I'm threatening you with? I don't claim to have a "massive force" waiting to "strike." There is literally nothing I could or would do to you. And convicting? Thought crime? What?
  • skeptik_59skeptik_59 Member Posts: 38
    Well the Metacritic score is up to 3.8, all of the BD people working there last week appear to be working there still, the Trans Cleric 45 seconds of [possible] interaction remains and Minsc still comments on Ethics via a [rare sound] random comment.

    So all in all, good stuff BD.

    Don't kowtow to the demands of any single-issue special interest group, don't knuckle under when confronted by pushback, just continue to make YOUR games, with YOUR chosen content and let the chips fall where they may.

    Employ who you want to employ and don't apologize for that choice. Include whatever you want to in a game and don't apologize for those choices either.

    People's feelings can be hurt by any number of things, people can feel antagonized or disrespected by virtually anything; if you try to create something that no one will object to, then you will create something that no one will care about, either.

    Attend to comments about bugs and graphics/interface/etc issues, fix same and move on.

    And if there are past or potential customers who won't be along for the ride, due to whatever their objections may be, well, such is life in the world of free market commerce. You can't sell a product to everyone, so don't try to. Trying to satisfy the wants/desires/demands of some niche market of gamers just won't be doing yourself any favours, IMO... You design the games you want to design, people can play the games they want to play and other people can NOT play the games they do NOT want to play. :)
    [Deleted User]NomphosumusKrotos
  • killerrabbitkillerrabbit Member Posts: 402
    Dee said:

    I think you're misunderstanding @typo_tilly 's remark, which to me is less about taking sides in the controversy, and more about pointing out that there are more than two opinions than just "The writing is bad" and "the writing is perfect". There's a wealth of gray area between those two ends of the spectrum, but right now the debate seems to be teeter-tottering between those two extremes--not because of the merits or lack thereof in the writing of the game, but because of what's happening outside of the game (which is what this thread is discussing, #StayOnTopic ).

    There's a lot of heated rhetoric going on in this thread (and elsewhere on the internet...), so I'll say this again: Do your best to be civil, and understand that even if you disagree with someone, it's important to respect them--even if you don't think they're respecting you. Everyone is entitled to like or not like the game, and to take issue or not take issue with any part of the game. They're even entitled to voice that opinion respectfully on these forums, as long as that expression doesn't antagonize members of the community. (Yes, moderators and developers are members of the community too.)

    Criticism is welcome. Disagreement is inevitable. What you do with those two things once they enter your mind, is your own responsibility.

    Carry on.

    I think @typo_tilly knows that she is one of my favorite people on this forum. I really don't why she has been so nice to me.

    I don't there would *any* controversy about the quality of this writing the NPC weren't trans. Indeed Typo Tilly and I had the same response before 'the controversy' -- a brief smile.

    And @dee I do indeed respect you -- but I won't be coy: I have the same respect for people who dislike trans people for being trans that I do for people who dislike black folk for being black.
    skeptik_59PurudayaKrotos
  • The user and all related content has been deleted.
  • FinnTheHumanFinnTheHuman Member Posts: 404
    Hey guys, we're almost there. Whoever posts the 1000th comment wins!!!
    [Deleted User]
  • The user and all related content has been deleted.
    FinnTheHuman
  • FinnTheHumanFinnTheHuman Member Posts: 404

    XD

    ~why can't we be friends?~
    ~why can't we be friends?~

    I thought we were. <3
    [Deleted User]
  • The user and all related content has been deleted.
    FinnTheHuman
  • RawgrimRawgrim Member Posts: 621
    Purudaya said:

    Rawgrim said:

    Purudaya said:

    Rawgrim said:

    Purudaya said:

    Rawgrim said:

    Dee said:

    Rawgrim said:

    Rawgrim said:

    Xzar said:

    So, 32 pages into discussion we still see that most of people havent moved an inch from their initial positions. Doesnt look good for perspectives of peace. Concessions need to be made by both sides, soon.

    One side is handwaving all criticism away by calling it "bigotry". On the other side all criticism is being handwaved away because it is a "SJW agenda". And in the middle we find some genuine criticism\feedback\praise that gets attacked by both parts.

    Have I assessed the situation correctly?
    Yes! This is it completely! There are more than 2 bloody sides here. If people in the middle disagree, they're accused of being on the 'other side'.
    I know. Beamdog should actually address this. So far they have just blamed all negative feedback on " a wave of bigots hating the trans". That simply isn't the whole truth at all.
    I don't know about anyone else, but I know I've said at least a few times that there's legitimate criticism to be had, if it weren't being overshadowed by the more uncivil discourse that's happening right now.
    I know. It is hard to spot it in the wave of inane hatred from both sides.
    I'm sorry, but this is a false equivalency. I haven't been using words like "tranny" or "libtard." I can be pretty terse, but both sides are not equally guilty of "hatred."
    I know. I wasn't talking about you. I was generalizing. But I see venom and insults getting spewed out from both sides. Who spits the most isn't the point. It is there and it isn't helping.

    I wasn't having a go at anyone specific.
    I know you weren't. I'm just resistant to calls for both sides to "compromise" (not saying you said this) because they both have allegedly equal points.

    My stance:

    1. A game developer has a right to put whatever they want into a game.
    2. Gamergate has a right to be offended and to criticize and complain.
    3. Review bombing a title to hurt a developer because they included something you don't like is unacceptable no matter who the developer is or what the developer has created.

    That IS a middleground stance.
    I agree 100 percent with all of your points.
    I can get pretty heated, but there is no way I would be this invested in fighting back against these people if it weren't for the review bombing. I look a the manipulated scores and think of all the hard work and soul Beamdog staff put into this for over YEAR. How crushing it must feel to see all of that sh*t on because a group of easily offended people has decided that simply offering criticism isn't harsh and painful enough.

    They are calling for people to be fired. Imagine how Amber Scott must feel - whether you agree with her views or not, being called a c*nt for what you believe (I've seen it) and having people try to censor you and HATE you isn't something anyone deserves.

    This has gone too far. That's why I'm here, and I'll be gone as soon as the review bombing ends.
    Making personal attacks against Scott or anyone else involved is just wrong. Disagreeing with her views is ok, and allowed. Just bashing her and going on a crusade to have her fired is just nuts. It should be allowed to point out that this bit and that bit in her work could have been done better or differently, though. But that is criticism towards a product, not her.
    [Deleted User]
  • XzarXzar Member Posts: 215
    joluv said:

    Xzar said:

    joluv said:

    Xzar said:

    Regardless of which attitudes towards the issues of gender exist in educated circles of Canada and USA, there is a big world outside these circles. This world will strike, if allowed. And Beamdog is not EA or Apple to proudly wear rainbow flag, Beamdog is vulnerable. By brazenly waving rainbow flag they invite all those who would like to hurt EA and Apple in a broader sense, but cannot. And its a massive force. And it wont go away if you dont agree on some kind of cease-fire with them. You cant defeat them by doubling down on your beliefs, because theyre consciously against them and they want represenation (not demonization) in art too.

    I know you're using the third person here, but I hope you can understand that this comes across as a threat, in much the same way that part of RedKnight's magnum opus did.
    I understand that you are threatening me here, and convicting me of thought crime. Exercising the right to twist my words according to the needs of your collective agenda. I said what I said, I know these people and their attitude, but I'm not responsible for their strategy or actions, even if I share their sentiment on some points. I already proposed to be a mediator to devs, they havent responded yet. Not interested I guess.
    I... what? What do you think I'm threatening you with? I don't claim to have a "massive force" waiting to "strike." There is literally nothing I could or would do to you. And convicting? Thought crime? What?
    I dont claim either. I never said that I HAVE this force like wizard owns a wand. I said it exists. Its a fact. We can influence it, if we're wise enough, or we can confront it like Don Quixote confronted windmills. Brave action, but ultimately pointless.

    In order to influence it however, we'd have to drink a bit of its blood, however tainted for some it may be. Complete outsiders cannot influence matter which is completely foreign to them.

    Your threat was in letting me know that I hang on the edge of ban here just for speaking my mind in the most respective manner possible, just because your word here weights 5x times more than mine. Which I know, thank you, friend.
  • mzacharymzachary Member Posts: 106
    iasson said:

    @mzachary its not about censorship. Its about taking the right to write away from a bully.

    Really..... just really..... So it is not about censorship..... Just about: "taking the right to write away" from someone who made statements you disagree with.... yes that is not censorship at all.
    iasson said:

    Cause the statement *if some people dont like it, well, too bad* is a direct assault.

    Obviously... have you by chance already notified law enforcement?
    skeptik_59joluv[Deleted User]Krotos
  • PurudayaPurudaya Member Posts: 816
    edited April 2016
    @Dee is right to say that this 'debate' is drowning out valuable criticism. There are several review/feedback threads that frequently get pushed back to page 2 or beyond so this and isolated bug questions/thank yous are all people get to see. I think this thread is helpful in that it consolidates some of the venom, but if you want to take a break, find a few of those page 2+ threads and leave a review – it would be helpful for those who are interested in playing or who have had a hand in making SoD. As far as I've seen, thoughtful negative reviews that actually review the whole game have been welcomed. I just sincerely thanked a guy for his 1 star review yesterday.

    One of the best things about Beamdog is that they actually take fans' technical criticisms to heart and use that information to make a better game. They know our opinions on Mizhena – let's try and make an effort to keep providing them with useful feedback on the other 99.999% of the game as well.

    Not renouncing the thread, not saying the discussion should end, etc. But if you have something more to offer and haven't yet, make sure you do :)

    Edit: it looks like there's one on the bottom of page 1 as well, but it's drifting. Might be a good time to add your two cents.
  • vanilla_BG_puristvanilla_BG_purist Member Posts: 4
    Well its pretty obvious by now that the game devs did a mistake and hired a self declared SJW to write the script of SoD (who also didn't remotely care about the fans opinion when she wrote the script).

    People in this forum claim that a *radical* *minority* review bombed the game.
    I can only but wonder how is that possible? Statistically a minority can't downvote the majority.
    However the negative reviews outnumber the positive ones. That means that the majority after all of the BG community doesn't approve of the way this expansion was written.

    Next time try to hire a script writer who isn't biased and doesn't look for chances to forward his agenda whenever he can.
    If u want a transexual in your game, which i think is a good thing, try to find a person who knows about them and feels empathy for them and frankly knows how to portray and picture them. Don't get a clueless SJW who will use them as a token and diminish them to empty shells of persons only to serve *diversity*.

    Those are my 2 cents about what happened here,
    awaiting the typical forum members to come now, take everything i said out of context, alter the meaning of my words, spam me with block of useless text and treat me in their typical *friendly* *passive-aggressive* way as always.
  • Diogenes42Diogenes42 Member Posts: 597

    Well its pretty obvious by now that the game devs did a mistake and hired a self declared SJW to write the script of SoD (who also didn't remotely care about the fans opinion when she wrote the script).

    People in this forum claim that a *radical* *minority* review bombed the game.
    I can only but wonder how is that possible? Statistically a minority can't downvote the majority.
    However the negative reviews outnumber the positive ones. That means that the majority after all of the BG community doesn't approve of the way this expansion was written.

    Next time try to hire a script writer who isn't biased and doesn't look for chances to forward his agenda whenever he can.
    If u want a transexual in your game, which i think is a good thing, try to find a person who knows about them and feels empathy for them and frankly knows how to portray and picture them. Don't get a clueless SJW who will use them as a token and diminish them to empty shells of persons only to serve *diversity*.

    Those are my 2 cents about what happened here,
    awaiting the typical forum members to come now, take everything i said out of context, alter the meaning of my words, spam me with block of useless text and treat me in their typical *friendly* *passive-aggressive* way as always.

    Thank you for your thoughts friend. I think in this instance the minority refers to the "vocal minority" phenomenon where those who are upset make their thoughts heard loudly, while those who are happy or neutral may not feel the need to comment or make a review because they don't feel challenged. Do you know what I mean?

    I also think you would be hard pressed to find a single writer in the world who can write without bias at all.
    vanilla_BG_puristDetectiveMittensKrotos
  • FardragonFardragon Member Posts: 4,511
    Given that I have been unable to register my vote, I would say that Metacritic has been hacked.
  • vanilla_BG_puristvanilla_BG_purist Member Posts: 4
    @Diogenes42 i agree with what you said. however i think u can control what happens at some extent by bringing someone who is mostly neutral and doesnt declare that he takes sides in political wars. at least thats the way i see it..
  • mzacharymzachary Member Posts: 106


    People in this forum claim that a *radical* *minority* review bombed the game.
    I can only but wonder how is that possible? Statistically a minority can't downvote the majority.

    On the contrary you see dear, what you are conveniently forgetting is that 1. to vote you don't have to own the game and 2. an angry mob is far more motivated to en mass downvote something than individual reasonable people who are not outraged

    However the negative reviews outnumber the positive ones.

    Actually that is untrue on steam where only people who own the game can post a review, there the positive reviews are outnumbering the negative ones by a large margin. However what we can see there is that positive reviews are being downvoted and negative reviews are being upvoted. Hence it is a clear indication of review bombing.

    That means that the majority after all of the BG community doesn't approve of the way this expansion was written.

    '

    Actually no, that means that a large angry mob is signal boosting to each other to downvote this game and post negative reviews.
    [Deleted User]Krotos
  • FardragonFardragon Member Posts: 4,511
    edited April 2016

    @Diogenes42 i agree with what you said. however i think u can control what happens at some extent by bringing someone who is mostly neutral and doesnt declare that he takes sides in political wars. at least thats the way i see it..

    I really don't see what is "political" about not being a bigot. It's just a matter of being well educated, which is pretty much essential for any game developer.

    Knowing how to use punctuation is required, for a start.
This discussion has been closed.