Should game reviews be affected by the current world?

Started by the-pi-guy, Mar 24, 2020, 02:56 AM

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the-pi-guy

In one of the Half Life: Alyx reviews, the game got scored down for releasing during the pandemic.

On the one hand, games can be commentary on the world and it doesn't make sense to ignore some context.

On the other hand, it doesn't feel right to to score a game based off current events. Like why would the game be better released 3 weeks earlier before this all went up?  

In this particular instance, I don't think a game being relatable should be a point against it.

Legend

Yes they should be. A review can include whatever the reviewer wants. One issue with metacritic and the like is that it pushes every reviewer towards the same formula.


That said, no HLA shouldn't be docked imo. A game that will sell 99.9% of its copies online is a good thing during a time like this.