We Will Now Score Our games….

Almost a year ago now when I first published the Red Sector, it was done with a few ideas in mind. I never wrote these down in stone, but they were the core tenants of what I had in mind on day one. Among them, was that I would not use or require review scores for a review to be on this site. However, as explained after the break, this is now changing.

I held staunchly to this for my own reviews, though if others (like my co-writer who handles the 360 side of gaming) wanted to score their games, I wouldn’t hold it against them. And then I saw something that made me think about my views. Specifically, I took interest in this exact quote from the video:

“Personally, I like reading reviews by looking at the score first, then reading the review to see how the reviewer arrived there. I find that process interesting.” – Jim Sterling

I was simply being short-sighted in how these are used, and seeing a reviewer who I always read the review alone and never looked at the scores he gave use them in such a way opened my eyes a bit. After speaking with Joes Xbox Name, we have decided to implement a standard score system to this site. It is below as follows:

A 10 out of 10 as this shows, is for the games of the highest caliber. Literally, we reserve this for games so good, it would take one of the most OCDed perfectionists on the planet to not call it perfect. We do not gives these out lightly and if a game earns this, we do not care if you hate the type of game or not. You will like this. As I write this, I do not believe I have found a game yet that earns this level of respect.

A 9 out of 10 means you are about to play a game that is absolutely exceptional in every way. While not perfect, this game is so good that you have to look close to see any real flaws, and chances are even if you do not like the type of game it is, you will have fun with it.

An 8 out of 10 is a really good game. It may have a noticeable flaw here and there, but they are all minor and won’t effect your experience of the game. If you are a fan of the type of game or enjoy the occasional one, you will absolutely love it. If you could care less, you will still have fun, but if you do not like the game type, you will likely have no interest in playing.

A 7 out of 10 is a good game. It will likely have a few issues you will see and might even annoy you, but you will have a great time with the game over all. If you are a fan of the game type, this is still a game you should be considering. If not, you might want to pass this one up or wait for it to drop in price. You might still have fun, but it’s not really a sure thing. If don’t like this kind of game, you should probably avoid it, as those minor issues will probably bother you much more then other gamers.

A 6 out of 10 is a very average game. There is nothing exceptional about it to pull the gamer in and is likely just the standard fair of the genre. If you are a fan, you probably have better choices available, but you will still likely find something to enjoy in this title. If you are not, you are probably better looking elsewhere.

A 5 out of 10 is a game that has some major issues, preventing it from being at the standard level of the genre it’s a part of. Fans of the kind of game are likely to look at this game as very “meh” at best. It is probably not worth your money outside of the bargain bin. To anyone else, it is probably not worth your money at all.

A 4 out of 10 is a pretty flawed game and quickly reaching into the just plain bad category. For whatever reason, this game should be destined for the bargain bin if it’s to get any sales at all.

A 3 out of 10 is a bad game. Plain and simple. To get this low, the game has to be a terrible experience, be it because of bugs, controls, or just plain a bad idea that was never going to be good. If a game gets this score, it’s probably for the best to avoid it.

A 2 out of 10 is a REALLY bad game. This is where we begin to wonder how in god’s name the game was ever let out of beta or the design room. There is NOTHING redeeming about this game, and anything that stands out about it is in a bad way. Avoid this game at all costs.

A 1 out of 10 is about as bad as a game can get. Basically at this point, the only things we can say about the game positively are that it’s actually a game and it has no game-ending bugs that are assured to stop you from finishing. If you are buying this game, either may God have Mercy on your soul, or may this be a stunt for a charity like Extra Life where you are intentionally tormenting yourself on behalf of sick children. And then may God Bless you for your selflessness.

There is only one reason a game can ever get a 0 out of 10, and that is it doesn’t work. Be it the game never starts up, crashes way too often to play, or even has a game-ending bug that you can NOT avoid, even if you know about it, that is how a game gets this low.

In case you did not notice, the review to use this new model is our review of Borderlands 2 for the PC, launched early today. Feel free to have a read, and let us know what you think of these standards.

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