PoE is total SHIT, therefore BUY IT NOW - Steam Curator Page X Review

[Eyestabber]

I'm sorry if this has been posted before, I could not find the thread (if there is one), but here it goes:

I was browsing the RPG Codex's Steam curator page today and noticed that Pillars of Eternity is there. Now, this isn't yet another thread to discuss how good/bad the game is, but rather to point out an inconsistency. Almost every game on the Steam Curator's page has a direct link to its related Codex Review. Almost every game, but not PoE. We all know why: because the Codex review is completely negative. It goes as far as saying "This is literally the worst Obsidian game I’ve played to date. That’s right, I even had more fun with Dungeon Siege 3 - at least it was a fun beat ‘em up, as opposed to this lifeless, uninspired husk. Disappointment, thy name is Pillars of Eternity".

So, yeah, someone please explain to the newfag here wtf is going on. Because it seems pretty obvious that whoever updates the Curator Page and the person responsible for the RPG Codex's Official Review on PoE are on completely different pages about the game.

And PLEASE, don't give a generic "It's different opinons, bro, people have the right to disagree", because Curator pages exist for the sole purpose of telling people "BUY THIS GAME" and, therefore, should be taken seriously.

 

[Shevek]

Because the real review isnt out yet.

 

[Angthoron]

So, yeah, someone please explain to the newfag here wtf is going on. Because it seems pretty obvious that whoever updates the Curator Page and the person responsible for the RPG Codex's Official Review on PoE are on completely different pages about the game.

There's actually a slightly late second Codex review by VD and Grunker which is probably going to be a bunch less crushing.

Because the real review isnt out yet.

Real review is out. Second real review isn't.

Something you don't agree with isn't any less real. Shocking, I know.

 

[Shevek]

I dont think VD & Grunker's review will be glowing. I am actually pretty sure than many of Roxor's points make it in their review as well. Still, the points will be logically laid out, the points will be made in a balanced manner (that fully acknowledges strengths and weaknesses) and it wont read like a 13 year old's angry forum rant.

 

[Kz3r0]

How about removing PoE from Codex curator page?

 

[Angthoron]

I dont think VD & Grunker's review will be glowing.

Yep. Also, I agree that the uber-edgy tone that Roxor picks for his reviews isn't necessarily a good thing and I'd personally pick a different tone as well. However, note how his previous reviews are in pretty much the exact same tone, yet for some reason they're all "real".

I get the fact that a lot of people like Obsidian a lot more than, say, Piranha Bytes, but the whole "this review isn't real" thing is pretty much on par with defense mechanisms of the BSN community, and you know how good BSN looks to the casual observer.

 

[Xorazm]

How about removing PoE from Codex curator page?

The detractors of this game have descended to a point of sheer gibbering emotional meltdown if the argument is seriously being presented that Pillars of Eternity can't be included among the esteemed ranks for EYE: Divine Cybermancy, Frayed Knights, Unrest and Eliminage Gothic.

Yep. Also, I agree that the uber-edgy tone that Roxor picks for his reviews isn't necessarily a good thing and I'd personally pick a different tone as well. However, note how his previous reviews are in pretty much the exact same tone, yet for some reason they're all "real".

I get the fact that a lot of people like Obsidian a lot more than, say, Piranha Bytes, but the whole "this review isn't real" thing is pretty much on par with defense mechanisms of the BSN community, and you know how good BSN looks to the casual observer.

The question really becomes why you guys let him review anything at all. I mean, it's your website, it's obviously at your discretion, but it only takes just a cursory glance over his posting history to realize that the guy lives for little more than to stir things up and generate as much attention directed his way as possible. He's basically the Rush Limbaugh or Andrea Dworkin of the community - loud, and amusing in their flights of wild rhetorical excess, but one who inevitably makes every debate stupider and more simple-minded. You might as well hand over reviewing duties to hiver or one of the other gibbering loonies - you know what you're going to get, which is more a frothing rant than on on-balance review.

Like I said, it's your site and yours to steer how you see fit, it just seems odd to me that one which dedicates itself to an ongoing cry for higher standards would fail to apply that call to itself. If the Codex self-consciously stands for anything, it's against piffle that is entertaining on a brain-stem level but ultimately shallow and simple-minded, and yet when presented with the Dragon Age: Inquisition of reviews you hoist it right up to your homepage and pin in with your own credibility. I don't get how you can point fingers in all directions and say Try Harder! and yet when faced with the biggest, most complex and controversial RPG release in a decade you hand off reviewing responsibilities, even partially, to the site's smirking, in-house troll.

If a lost Kubrick film was unearthed I wouldn't give the final verdict to Armond White, if an unfinished Wittgenstein manuscript turned up the last person I'd turn to would be Slavoj Zizek, and if I was sitting in front of the biggest RPG release in years I sure as hell wouldn't put it in the hands of Darth Roxor.

But like I said, your site.

 

[roshan]

If there's a place on this site for fanboy gushing (see Wasteland 2 review) and long winded pathetic apologeticism (see Dragon Age Inquisition review) then there should certainly be place for actual and truthful criticism of RPGs. It's also a shame that even in the List of Incline thread, Roxor's review hasn't been linked. Possibly several of those running this site must be hardcore POE/Obsidian fans and they would like to pretend that Roxor's review, the fairly large portion of the forum population that dislikes the game, and the threads about it which are almost universally negative don't exist.

 

[Kane]

If a lost Kubrick film was unearthed I wouldn't give the final verdict to Armond White, if an unfinished Wittgenstein manuscript turned up the last person I'd turn to would be Slavoj Zizek, and if I was sitting in front of the biggest RPG release in years I sure as hell wouldn't put it in the hands of Darth Roxor.

I would.

 

[AwesomeButton]

So Grunker and VD's will not be the "real" review either?

 

[Sensuki]

lol @ Darth Roxor qq

grow up faggots

 

[Haba]

If a lost Kubrick film was unearthed I wouldn't give the final verdict to Armond White, if an unfinished Wittgenstein manuscript turned up the last person I'd turn to would be Slavoj Zizek, and if I was sitting in front of the biggest RPG release in years I sure as hell wouldn't put it in the hands of Darth Roxor.

PoE is so bad that the only person willing to waste time writing a review for it is Roxor. Kinda telling.

 

[mastroego]

The detractors of this game have descended to a point of sheer gibbering emotional meltdown

We've just witnessed one of the game supporters melt and "self-eject", after a 2 weeks long flurry of OCD posts labeling Sawyer enlightened and each of his critics an idiot.
But feel free to remember the Codex's history as you best see fit...

 

[Clockwork Knight]

And PLEASE, don't give a generic "It's different opinons, bro, people have the right to disagree", because Curator pages exist for the sole purpose of telling people "BUY THIS GAME" and, therefore, should be taken seriously.

That's the only answer you'll get. Roxor doesn't maintain the curator list and his opinion isn't shared by everyone so the discrepancy is not a glitch in the hivemind Matrix. His review should be linked for honesty's sake, but I expect that to happen once the remaining reviews come out.

Also, curator pages don't exist for the sole purpose of doling out 10/10s, where did you get that from? They're more like "follow this reviewer". Some of them even put a disclosure saying they got review copies.

 

[made]

If a lost Kubrick film was unearthed I wouldn't give the final verdict to Armond White, if an unfinished Wittgenstein manuscript turned up the last person I'd turn to would be Slavoj Zizek, and if I was sitting in front of the biggest RPG release in years I sure as hell wouldn't put it in the hands of Darth Roxor.

PoE is so bad that the only person willing to waste time writing a review for it is Roxor. Kinda telling.

He's developed a high tolerance to shit games by playing Arcania et al so he was the natural (and only) choice to tackle POE.

 

[thesoup]

How about removing PoE from Codex curator page?

The detractors of this game have descended to a point of sheer gibbering emotional meltdown if the argument is seriously being presented that Pillars of Eternity can't be included among the esteemed ranks for EYE: Divine Cybermancy, Frayed Knights, Unrest and Eliminage Gothic.

But that is true. PoE can't hold a candle to those.

 

[Night Goat]

Why would anyone expect the Codex Curator page to not be retarded? It's run by people who use Steam.

 

[Darth Roxor]

The Rush Limbaugh of RPG Codex. That sounds majestic.

 

[FeelTheRads]

I dont think VD & Grunker's review will be glowing. I am actually pretty sure than many of Roxor's points make it in their review as well. Still, the points will be logically laid out, the points will be made in a balanced manner (that fully acknowledges strengths and weaknesses) and it wont read like a 13 year old's angry forum rant.

So much butthurt. Waaaaah although he made good points he didn't have to be a meanie waaaah pooor obsidian waaaah

 

[thesoup]

Why would anyone expect the Codex Curator page to not be retarded? It's run by people who use Steam Codex staff.

fixd

Let's make a CDS curator page.
Ed123 Bruticis raw LundB Menckenstein evdk and everyone else. I ain't got time to tag everyone

 

[A horse of course]

Does the Codex disclose on the curator page that it gave several thousand dollars to the CuckStarter and is actually featured in the game itself?

#gamergate

 

[A horse of course]

Why would anyone expect the Codex Curator page to not be retarded? It's run by people who use Steam Codex staff.

fixd

Let's make a CDS curator page.
Ed123 Bruticis raw LundB Menckenstein evdk and everyone else. I ain't got time to tag everyone

Most of the games I'd be willing to write a lengthy review of are banned from steam anyway

 

[LundB]

Why would anyone expect the Codex Curator page to not be retarded? It's run by people who use Steam Codex staff.

fixd

Let's make a CDS curator page.
Ed123 Bruticis raw LundB Menckenstein evdk and everyone else. I ain't got time to tag everyone

We have one but evdk keeps adding borderlands and I added Winnie the Pooh. Or maybe Abe did, I forget.

It would take some serious reworking to make it non-retarded.

 

[thesoup]

Why would anyone expect the Codex Curator page to not be retarded? It's run by people who use Steam Codex staff.

fixd

Let's make a CDS curator page.
Ed123 Bruticis raw LundB Menckenstein evdk and everyone else. I ain't got time to tag everyone

We have one but evdk keeps adding borderlands and I added Winnie the Pooh. Or maybe Abe did, I forget.

It would take some serious reworking to make it non-retarded.

You know it can't be non-retarded. Look at our userbase and the games we play.

 

[Zorba the Hutt]

On the Steam curator page it proudly states that "Its values are uncensored discussion with minimal moderation, a critical approach towards the games industry (and, well, everything else) and a belief that the RPG genre, and gaming in general, has seen a decline in quality since the early 2000s.... But remember - odds are, something you like very much sucks. Why? Because this is the RPG Codex."

DU's introduction to the review mentions that all opinions are welcome on the Codex and that another review will be coming out in due course. The fact that the review links to a discussion with over 2200 comments implies that the review is controversial, reading a few pages of the comments will confirm that many people liked the game and disagreed with Roxor. And the review itself emphasises that he had very high expectations to start with. A review can still be useful if it describes the game in detail, even if one doesn't disagree with the conclusions or have the same attachment to issues like "hard counters" etc. And Roxor's review goes into far more detail than most of the pointless "gud old school game" clueless reviews out there.

So if someone is looking for a recently-released fantasy RPG the fact that the Codex recommends PoE and not shit like DAI is useful information - even the biggest haters would probably agree with that. The fact that it is controversial, split the community and didn't live up to the high expectations of (some) Codexers is also useful information imo. And it provides some insight into the Codex itself, where even the all-time great RPGs have plenty of critics.

But no, the site that boasts on its Twitter page "'The site that makes developers shiver' - Brian Fargo" isn't linking to its own review because it's not positive enough. Leaving anyone following the recommendations to search for a review and either end up here anyway or read mainstream reviews which barely discuss the game systems. And some people seem unable to grasp that in a community where people like to argue about games, comprised of opinionated individuals and not a homogenous hivemind, it's entirely possible for a game to be both recommended and criticised by factions of the membership. Like every other fucking game including classics like Fallout and PST.