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BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger Review

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  • X360

While there's certainly substance to Arc's 2D fighter, you have to dig through so many layers of loud music and flashy visuals that the whole experience becomes a bit exhausting.


   The story mode wants you to play through a series of poorly written tales for each character. 
The story mode wants you to play through a series of poorly written tales for each character. 
If we could post some kind of chart that would track my interest level in BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger, it would start out pretty high. Going in as someone who played a fair amount of Arc System Works' Battle Fantasia and at least enjoyed the early games in the Guilty Gear line, I was definitely interested in seeing what they could do in another new, non-Guilty-Gear sort of game. Upon actually playing it, I was pretty disappointed by a lot of the character design and basics of how it played. Over time, I figured out what's what with the various systems of BlazBlue, but it felt like the more I learned about how to play the game well, the less I enjoyed it. While there's nothing broken about the gameplay in BlazBlue, the fighting genre's recently revitalized and re-popularized state gives players plenty of recent options to choose from. So it's pretty tough for me to imagine anyone willingly choosing BlazBlue given the other games that are out there.

BlazBlue has been described as a spiritual successor to Arc's Guilty Gear series, and it shows. The game makes use of large, well-animated fighters and colorful backgrounds. It also seems to constantly pump screaming guitar rock out of the speakers at every possible moment. It even plays fast and loose with the English language, referring to rounds as "rebels" for reasons I'll probably never quite understand. While the games certainly aren't identical, it definitely feels like a game made for fans of Guilty Gear to play when they aren't playing Guilty Gear.

Not that Guilty Gear or BlazBlue are so esoteric that they're unrecognizable to outsiders. BlazBlue's most interesting element is that one of the game's four buttons--the drive button--does something entirely different depending on which character you play. For more standard characters like Ragna or Jin, they have drive-based attacks that have extra effects, such as the ability to steal life from an opponent or freeze a foe solid for a few seconds. But then there's Rachel, who can control the wind by pressing drive along with a direction, momentarily impacting projectiles and jumps for both players. Or Carl, a young boy who rolls around with a robot doll named Nirvana. When you hold drive while using Carl, you get direct control of Nirvana. This makes all of the characters feel pretty different, though it had the side effect of making me want to stick to one or two characters, rather than experiment with the entire roster. I'm sure Rachel's wind control is good for something, but I was left with zero desire to find out what.

 In combat you can double jump, cancel out of just about anything, and generally freak out and bounce around the screen. 
In combat you can double jump, cancel out of just about anything, and generally freak out and bounce around the screen. 
The rest of the game's systems are a bit easier to wrap your mind around. You've got a super meter that fills as you fight, allowing you to execute super attacks ("distortion drives") or, in the final round of a fight against an opponent with low health, you can attempt an astral heat, which instantly kills your foe with a flashy attack. The catch is that most of the players start out with their AHs locked, forcing you to complete arcade mode with each character to unlock all of the moves.

In addition to that standard arcade mode, there's also a standard training mode and a story mode that takes you through a ton of incredibly tedious dialogue about a story that I found to be absolutely indecipherable. Apparently there's some robot girl who has the face of some other girl? And she wants to merge with Ragna by killing him because he has some kind of beast inside of him? That's as close as I can get to describing what's happening here. Obviously, having a quality story isn't a necessity for a fighting game, but when you're devoting an entire separate mode to making your way through more dialogue than fights... with each character... you'd be right to expect something that resembles coherence. While it's certainly possible that it all makes sense when you clear every character's story, the nonsense you'd have to subject yourself to in order to see that moment is substantial and frightening.

The high point of BlazBlue is the way that its online is set up. In ranked matches, you see cards for each player as you're connecting that show off a win/loss record, player level, and the two characters that player chooses the most. In unranked games, up to six players can connect and rotate through fights as the other players spectate. However, you can't join an unranked match once a fight is happening, so finding rooms that are already running yet still joinable can be something of a pain unless you're coordinating with friends. In unranked games, you can alter the way players rotate in and out of a battle, disable the Easy-Operation-style controls that allow you to perform specials and supers using only the right analog stick, allow or disallow pumped-up "unlimited" versions of some characters, and so on. But the best part is that most of the online fights I've gotten into have been very smooth.

In addition to the game's aggressive soundtrack, there's a lot to BlazBlue's audio. Or, at least, it's very noisy. The characters are constantly shouting as you perform moves--moreso than in most other fighting games. There's also an announcer voice that calls out every counter by saying "counter." Considering that you can counter almost anything in this game, it seems like the announcer is calling out counters every couple of seconds. All of the audio just becomes exhausting over time. Graphically, the game certainly has its technical chops, but it's at least as busy as the audio. The art style is probably a matter of taste, though. I found a lot of the character designs to be uninteresting. Sure, they animate well, but other than Iron Tager attempting to use a teensy cell phone in his win pose, I didn't really find a lot of charm with the way it all looks.

BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger is probably a game best suited for people who have been playing fighting games for a long time, but even then, its style seems to be deliberately divisive. It's certainly worth trying out if you're a fan of the genre, but it's entirely possible that you'll find the whole thing to be a big, loud mess.
Jeff Gerstmann on Google+

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SethPhotopoulos

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Edited By SethPhotopoulos
@Napalm: Fanboy much?
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Luke

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Edited By Luke
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Milkman

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Edited By Milkman
@Luke:  That is single handily one of the dumbest things I have ever had the misfortune of reading on the internet. I say that with no exaggeration or sarcasm. You should be ashamed that you put your fingers to your keyboard and typed out those words. 
 
You clearly love BlazBlue. Is that sufficient to say? You seem to have a great reverence to this game and hey, that's great. It's great that you love this game and I hope you have fun with its sequel. Jeff clearly didn't love BlazBlue. One might say he was "meh" towards the game. These are two different opinions as any idiot can see. So, WHY is this review a disappointment? Because it didn't get 5 stars? Because Jeff didn't love the game as much as you do? Because it messed up BlazBlue's Metacritic score? Why did you need Jeff to validate your love for BlazBlue? Why does it matter? Did this review stop you from enjoying BlazBlue or hamper your enjoyment in any way? If it did, seek mental help. But as I read your post, it just keeps getting worse.
 
After you express your disappointment for Jeff not compiling with your enjoyment of the game, you try to prove him wrong by saying "Hey, look! IGN liked it! So, why can't you like it?" Spoiler: reviewers don't call each other up before they publish their reviews and ask each other what they're going to give the game.  Jeff never called up whoever the fuck writes for IGN and say "Hey, dude. Is it okay if I give this game 3 stars? I mean, I know you liked it but is that allowed?"
 
BUT IT JUST KEEPS GETTING WORSE! Then you IMPLORE Jeff to give BlazBlue's sequel a "fair" review. You even go as far as you suggest that Jeff state in his review "I don't like this game but I'm going to give it a high score because it deserves it." Do you really as COMPLETELY asinine that is? Just think about for a couple minutes. Just REALLY think about it. Should Jeff really give this game a high score even if he doesn't like it? Should he really do that?
 
And then you close out this paragraph of insanity by saying Jeff that you forgive him. That it is okay if he messed up this one time and YOU personally forgive him for this obviously horrible review. I mean, doesn't he know that IGN named BlazBlue the best PS3 fighting game of 2009? Or that Luke listed it as #2 on his top 10 games of 2009 Giant Bomb list? Is he completely thick? 
 
Jeff doesn't need validate your purchasing decisions. You like BlazBlue and that should be enough. You don't need Jeff to come out and give the game 5 stars for you to continue to enjoy BlazBlue. Nothing will change after Jeff tells you that it's okay to like BlazBlue. The only thing that will change is that your sick little mind you will feel validated for enjoying the same game that Jeff Gerstmann enjoys. Stop using Metacritic scores and top 10 lists to make yourself feel more secure. It's not healthy. My only hope is that you can look past the fact that BlazBlue is not Jeff's cup of tea and that you can move on and enjoy the damn game you seem to love so dearly. Life is too short to be worried if other people will love what you love. Life is too short for me to write out this ridiculous long response to you. Just go on and enjoy what you enjoy. And if you can't do that, well, then may God have mercy of your soul.
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napalm

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Edited By napalm
@Lethkhar said:
" Yeah, the last fighting game I ever played regularly was Street Fight 2. I am not a fan of fighting games, and Blazblue totally turned me back onto them. I find the gameplay far more enjoyable than Street Fighter, Tekken, Mortal Kombat, and all that stuff. It can be as deep or as shallow as you make it. The visuals are beautiful, and the audio is no busier than any other fighting game. I also like the fact that all the character are different-Rather than the cut-and-past crap Street Fight pulls with Ryu, Ken, and Dan. Not to mention it's way more accessible. "
lol. What's Street Fight? I'm pretty sure that's not an actual fighting game.
 
Also, Street Fighter IV is the "simplest" you can go with a fighting game without making the game pander to retards. This also why I probably won't buy MvC3 since it uses the same three-button system.
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Lethkhar

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Edited By Lethkhar

Yeah, the last fighting game I ever played regularly was Street Fight 2. I am not a fan of fighting games, and Blazblue totally turned me back onto them. I find the gameplay far more enjoyable than Street Fighter, Tekken, Mortal Kombat, and all that stuff. It can be as deep or as shallow as you make it. The visuals are beautiful, and the audio is no busier than any other fighting game. I also like the fact that all the character are different-Rather than the cut-and-past crap Street Fight pulls with Ryu, Ken, and Dan. Not to mention it's way more accessible.

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xboxaddict187

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Edited By xboxaddict187

What happened Jeff? when you were on gamespot you were one of the best reviewers, proberly my favourite then because you didnt happen to like Kane and Lynch they sacked you because they were sponsors to gamespot or something like that (I happen to agree with you on that one! The game was average at best). 
 
On here you come across as a complete novice along the fellow you do your reviews with. The tony hawk review and the resi evil DLC 360 reviews suck!!
 
Just to set the record straight BLAZBLUE ROCKS!!! awesome graphics, solid fighting engine. If you enjoyed guilty gear BUY THIS as i think its better. I love fighting games but after the half finished King of fighters this is the real deal

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Kou_Leifoh

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Edited By Kou_Leifoh
"He's a dumbass, he doesn't like it when people disagree with him."
 
Yeah you're right, maybe I should react the same way when people disagree with your views - like a whining little bitch.
@Jeffsekai said:
" I dont know why you reviwed this, you clearly dont like it, because its bad..you just don't understand it same with Soul caliber 4 ...both of them are better than 3\5 but o well. KOF 12 will certainly get a 5/5 now...I feel as tho I cant trust this site for fighting games o well. "


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Spongetwan

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Edited By Spongetwan

its sad to hear that Sega may own the characters of guilty Gear but I am happy that the company still made another game. I will have to pick this one up and master it in place of my guilty gear which i have on my xbox.

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Luke

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Edited By Luke
@Jeff:  I first of all just want to say this.  I think you're a great guy, I love your site, and I respect your opinion greatly.  
 
But with that, I just want to say that this is my #1 biggest disappointment Review of 2009, on the whole internet.  
 
BlazBlue is not a game that can just be played for 25 hours, beaten, and reviewed... it takes somewhere within hundreds of hours to see through the "mess" and to see that this is really a 5 Star game, beating-out even the likes of Street Fighter IV as far as gameplay is concerned, if just by a hair.  
 
The 3 Star Review here, is completely unwarranted.  It's just unfathomable for me to see why this game would get such a low score (a 60 Metacritic, which was very damaging to this game).  From your review text, I really couldn't understand why this deserved a 3 Star Score? 
 
Also, IGN just named it the best PS3 Fighting Game of 2009, reinforcing how I feel:  http://bestof.ign.com/2009/ps3/best-fighting-game.html 
 
I love BlazBlue and rightfully put it #2 on my Top 10 Best of 2009 List.  It really is that good.  I mean, I guess I may be a little biased because I still go to the arcade to play this game and also played it in arcades before it even came-out on consoles, but still. 
 
Jeff, please, when BlazBlue: Continuum Shift is released later this year, in 2010... please, do score it fairly, even if you put that you don't like it all that much within your review text.  Or better yet, have Vinny or Brad review it. 
 
I guess it's OK to be human every once in a while and make mistakes.  So, I'll forgive you this once :p   Maybe the only reason I'm so disappointed in the first place is because I hold your opinion so high. 
 
Anyway, here's to another great year for Giant Bomb in 2010 and to more careful reviews! :) 
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FalloutDude

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Edited By FalloutDude

I like the character designs in Blazblue. It is very well designed. I found myself to be able to like all the characters in there.
Compare to Street Fighter 4, I only like the old favorite such as Ryu, Ken, Sakura, etc. The rest I could careless, especially the cheap boss Seth in arcade mode. Come on...  A complete naked bold dude with a hole in the stomach? The animation in story mode was aweful too, it feels like anime from the 80's. Don't get me wrong, the in-game graphic and opening movie in SF4 is great, but the overall art style is not consistent at all. I don't see Jeff complaining about that on SF4 at all... I think this really is personal preference...

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LightGaia

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Edited By LightGaia
@The_Decemberist said:
" Just a quick note.  I am pretty sure "rebel" is simply the fault of a heavy accented voice actress attempting to say "level." The English 'L' pronounced with the Japanese 'R', and 'V' replaced with the closest Katakana syllable, 'B.' "
It's spelled "Rebel" in the actual game -_-
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the_decemberist

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Edited By the_decemberist

Just a quick note.  I am pretty sure "rebel" is simply the fault of a heavy accented voice actress attempting to say "level." The English 'L' pronounced with the Japanese 'R', and 'V' replaced with the closest Katakana syllable, 'B.'

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RVonE

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Edited By RVonE
@LightGaia said:
"This isn't really a review, it's Jeff's opnion. I respect it but, I don't think it's accurate."
And when, exactly, is a review not an opinion? Of course, the better reviews distinguish themselves by being well thought out opinions. Opinions that try to find a certain rationale, if you will; but still, they are opinions. It's like Jeff once said in one of the Bombcasts: reviewers can tell you about their experience with the game and their informed perspective on that experience. 
There is no such thing as an accurate review. At least not in the sense that it is somehow factual or objective. A game is to be experienced. As such, a review has to deal with this experience.
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KinjiroSSD

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Edited By KinjiroSSD

Can't people disagree without being called a fanboy?

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Afroman269

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Edited By Afroman269
@daivd said:
" The hype is deserved? Say that to the millons of people who are out there trolling and bashing on Gears of War 2 and Halo 3. Both Gears of War 2 and Halo were phenomenal games, and yet people out there still bash the two games like they expected 10000x more content than what the game has. I think that's completely improper and delusional to the gamers who are looking to buy games like that. It should be expected that a game like Blazblue should get some negative hype once in a while; it's justified. To those of you who bitch out the review, a review is a review, no matter what the rating is. Take it as what you think, and move on. "
I completely agree. Some people here act like children and support Jeff until his opinion doesn't match yours and then you throw a tantrum. If you like the game so much then write your own review.......problem solved.
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daivd

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Edited By daivd

The hype is deserved? Say that to the millons of people who are out there trolling and bashing on Gears of War 2 and Halo 3. Both Gears of War 2 and Halo were phenomenal games, and yet people out there still bash the two games like they expected 10000x more content than what the game has. I think that's completely improper and delusional to the gamers who are looking to buy games like that. It should be expected that a game like Blazblue should get some negative hype once in a while; it's justified.
 
To those of you who bitch out the review, a review is a review, no matter what the rating is. Take it as what you think, and move on.

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deactivated-5b4a957513e44

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Maybe because the hype is deserved! Don't get me wrong, the nonsensical story creates problems, but it at least tries to do something different that the fighting genre definitely needs. The most important aspect of this game is the gameplay mechanics, and if looking objectively, how could you give it anything lower than a 4 at least? The graphics are spectacular; no one has ever seen a game with this unique style in the HD era. All the characters are balanced and unique, making every fight online that much more special. I put unfathomable hours into the Capcom fighting games, and never played any Guilty Gear before. This may be why I am so impressed with it. However, if Jeff gives KOF XII( with far less features, special extras, and online functionality), you better give Blazblue a higher rating. This is his most subpar review yet.

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daivd

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Edited By daivd
@LightGaia:  Thank you! Finally someone who understands what is going on here. You just summed up this entire thread in a single post.
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LightGaia

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Edited By LightGaia

Eh. This review seemed a little too personal. Objectively, BlazBlue is a pretty good game. This isn't really a review, it's Jeff's opnion. I respect it but, I don't think it's accurate. However, it's becoming more and more obvious that BlazBlue is being hyped to the point of being overrated. It's a great game but, Guilty Gear was good too and that doesn't cost $60. Both the BlazBlue bashers and BlazBlue fanboys need to simmer down. As long as it's fun to play, that's what matters.
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Edited By TriangleHard
@daivd: 
 
Well I think I am a human being capable of thinking and see the other perspective, and I have enough experience with games to know what the game is trying to accomplish when I play it. 
 
I play Half Life 2, and I can tell what the game is trying to accomplish. What kind of atmosphere it is trying to create and what kind of experience it wants to give it to the player. 
 
Does the game accomplish that goal? Half Life 2 accomplishes that goal extremely well, meaning it is high quality game. 
 
However, did I enjoy it? No because that is not that experience I wanted. That's not the type of world I want to get into, and that's just simply matter of personal taste. 
 
Now, if I just review it on the matter of personal enjoyment of the game the rating would be way low since I didn't enjoy it at all. Would that be fair to the game? I say no. 
 
It's like this. Have you ever seen a beautiful girl, but she just isn't your type and you aren't interested? Now should she be considered ugly just because you aren't interested? Don't you think a person is capable of saying "She's not my type, so subjectively she doesn't seem attractive, but objectively I can see why she is considered attractive." 
 
For example, I do not find Megan Fox attractive at all. I can honestly say if I had the chance to get it on with her, I'd pass. But I can see why she is considered beautiful by many others, and say she is a beautiful woman.
 
We are humans. We are capable of thinking. You don't have to make all the judgment based on your feelings.
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daivd

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Edited By daivd
@TriangleHard: If you didn't enjoy the game, what justification would you make to rate the game higher than what you view as? Say that if you thought the game would get a 6-7, depending on your enjoyment value, but since it's a high quality game, you're going to give it a 9-10?
 
That makes no sense.
 
If a game doesn't suit to a reviewer's taste, that reviewer has complete right to give it a lower score than expected. A review is an opinion of something, not a fact. Please don't bash this review for what it is.
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Edited By Arjuna

I don't understand Jeff's dislike of 80s guitar music and "flashy"(exciting) visuals.  These things are great!  Fighting games are supposed to be loud, violent and messy.  The fights only last for moments, so if you think you're gonna have a seizure than take a break(unless you have a review deadline).  You wouldn't play a fighting game like you would an RPG.  Fighting games are designed to be played frequently, but for short amounts of time.


I felt Street Fighter IV to be bland and more of the same.  SFIV sports that artificial, 3D aesthetic which I don't like nearly as much as the human, hand drawn sprites of Blazblue.  King of Fighters I won't bother purchasing since I want to be able to play online, so I won't speak on that game.

Jeff's review is the only review I found to be less than a near-perfect fighting game.
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Ghostiet

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Edited By Ghostiet

It's kinda funny how people followed Gertsmann here and used him as a symbole of credibility in video game journalism and now they call him biased and not credible after one review.

I don't agree with what he wrote here, it's obviously not his best work, I loved Street Fighter IV, I liked BlazBlue, I'm cool with that, I agree with most people's points. But damn, get a lil' break, they are only human beings, if they'd considered their opinions dogmatic, they would disable comments in their reviews. It's kinda weird to speak about objective writing when speaking of a review - a piece of work that is meant to be completely subjective.

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Nettacki

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Edited By Nettacki
@TriangleHard said:
" @thehuntsmen5434: I have no problem that Jeff reviewed it. I just have problem HOW Jeff reviewed it. None of his complaints are valid. All his complaints are just matter of different style and taste that just doesn't suit him. Is that a negative thing? Heck no.If he managed to find some legitimate complaints, I wouldn't mind. Complaints like controls, balance, depth, etc. Lacking in those department is legit complaint and definite negative no matter how you look at it. Also each character being unique was actually a target of complaint? WTF? I thought that's what we WANTED. How is that negative thing?The entire review was written in a way to try to put a negative spin on neutral or positive aspects of the game. People should admit. This was just horribly written review. If Jeff himself reads this review now, I'm sure he himself would think "That's not my best work" The score is less of problem here. What he wrote is the big problem here. "
Pretty much what I was thinking.
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Zlatko

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Edited By Zlatko

I knew from the quicklook Jeff did for BlazBlue he was going to say it sucks. Don't sugar coat this review with filler sentences of useless information....you knew you weren't ever going to give this game a real chance.

You boast saying there's plenty of other games to pick from that are better spending your fighting time with right? Name them and tell me which of those have better online. There isn't one game out there that has a better netcode so far this year.

This game comes with plenty of offline content. I clocked in about 30 hours total I believe doing things offline from story, to arcade, practice, and score attack.

This is the ONLY fighter I can ever think of that should be playable by both casual and hardcore people to have fun with. The simple mode to use the right stick for 4 different combo input moves is a great means to let non hard core fighting fans not only have fun, but stand toe to toe with the hardcore once they play the game for more than 5 minutes.

I'm fine with Jeff having a different opinion of this game, but the fact he's saying there's better things to spend your time on fighting game wise is 100% bull crap. We get it Jeff you only care about Street Fighter 4... you could just admit it and move on. If KoF12 gets a better score than Blazblue then you are delusional and your credibility is shot. Heck even an even review to Blazblue is 100% BS.

While the story isn't the best in a videogame it's the best attempt thus far for a fighting game up to this point in time. You want to sit here and defend SF4's storyline as better in any way shape or form?

In the end Jeff's review should entirely be thrown out the window to anyone looking at this game. I'm as non hardcore as it gets for Fighting and Racing games, but I fully recommend this game to casual players and hardcore vets. You'll find fun it and will be the best 60 bucks you could've spent this first half of the year in 2009.

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daivd

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Edited By daivd
@X360_boner:  are you trolling?

Jeff got fired because the guys who created Kane and Lynch bribed gamespot to give them a good review, even though that would cause Gamespot to probably be prosecuted for lying. Jeff made the best choice in that situation.
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X360_boner

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Edited By X360_boner

That review was pathetic, but pretty much what I'd expect from the website with the biggest Wii bias in town. I can see why you got fired from gamespot.

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ravensword

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Edited By ravensword

This game is great, Review is rather harsh.

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Edited By Skyr795
@CanuckEh said:
" Nah, pretty damn good review actually. If anything, I think the game's biggest failing is that it doesn't make itself inviting enough to non-fans. It just throws a bunch of complex characters at the player and leaves him or her to figure out how to do anything with them. "
Yeah well, if they didn't do that, then that would leave fans of games like the Guilty Gear series disappointed with lack of depth. Personally, I think the easy stick was one of the best methods they could have used to get more casual fighting game players to get accustomed to the game.
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Skyr795

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Edited By Skyr795
I too would have to disagree with this review :/. My only experience with fighting games has been SFII on the SNES and Tekken 3 on PS1, both of which i have little to no recollection of. Recently, I started playng SFIV and Tekken 5: DR on the PS3, both of which I am terrible at. However, BlazBlue has got to be one of my favorite fighting games ever. I will agree that the audio and character design is a matter of taste, both of which I happen to like very much. And while the story is a bit convoluted, if you try to figure out what's going on and play the true end mode, it makes a little more sense and becomes pretty awesome. Other then that though, I can't really complain about this review seeing as it IS a matter of taste.
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lspear76

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Edited By lspear76

Street Fighter IV: 2/5

BlazBlue: 4/5
KOF: 4/5

That's the truth.
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lspear76

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Edited By lspear76

You really overrated Street Fighter IV... you gave that game 5 stars and it only deserves 3. What about the lame story and music in that game? But you also underrate every other fighting game. I can just see your King of Fighters review.... 3 stars. Book it. 

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Oemenia

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Edited By Oemenia

When GB gives a fighter a mediocre review, you know its bad = P

Still shocking despite the great reviews.

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hazelnutman

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Edited By hazelnutman

Man, I love BlazBlue.

The over-the-top zaniness of the game is what drew me in, and the incredibly satisfying gameplay kept me hooked.

How about just playing the game guys? Time spent fruitlessly criticizing a critic can go towards learning more combos and practicing those cancels. Get to it!

:]

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monkie89

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Edited By monkie89

Pretty awful review. Hardly surprising though; everyone should know by now that there are very few people working in the mainstream press that know what they're talking about when it comes to fighting games (or any genre that has any depth or complexities). And Jeff sure isn't one of them.

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DanielJW

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@Cube said:
" Kind of ironic to see the people who followed Jeff to Giant Bomb's creation, chanting, "TAKE A STAND FOR REVIEWER CREDIBILITY!", belittle him for his opinion. The funny thing is, you all go after him like he's a blasphemer, but he wouldn't destroy your right to free speech and your opinion. I guess you're all selfish. You want want want from Jeff and co. but if what you get isn't what you expect, it's their heads! And the funny thing is, Jeff is the only one in this situation that still has his credibility, and this time he can't get fired.After all...wasn't that the point of Giant Bomb? To let them have their opinions and not be swayed by monstrous companies? To stand up for reviewer credibility and to create a community out of that? People who care about honesty?Some of us forget. Disappointing. "
This. For fuck sakes, this.
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EndrzGame

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Edited By EndrzGame

Once again Jerry Holkins, (aka Tycho Brahe), sums up what I think about a certain fighter.

 "You want to fight, because that's how you interact with these characters. Utterly ridiculous martial techniques are ladled over with renderings so beautiful they will rob you of speech. There is also (at least here, in the learning stage of our play) a zest of randomness that dusts the experience. We'll learn to control that over time, of course, that's the well-worn arc of these things. But it allows for those clutch wins that spur a person to greater heights."

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TriangleHard

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Edited By TriangleHard
@Derios said:
" big whatever on this game.ok this shit's getting out of hand. if you blazblue fans feel the need to post every few seconds saying how wrong jeff is and how great of a game it is then go fucking review the game. stop bitching on the review thread, go to the games page and give the game a review and a score you feel it deserves. "I would rate it high even if I don't enjoy it because it was matter of different taste."???????????????????? "
Isn't this comment feature made so we can talk about the review of this game?

Why are you complaining because people are using this feature exactly to do that?

Also your enjoyment doesn't always tell the story of the quality of the game. If FPS hater plays fine quality FPS games, that person will not enjoy it. Just because you don't enjoy it doesn't mean you can't tell the quality of the game. If you had half of a brain, you could tell the difference between quality and matter of taste and seperate the two.
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Derios

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Edited By Derios

big whatever on this game.

ok this shit's getting out of hand. if you blazblue fans feel the need to post every few seconds saying how wrong jeff is and how great of a game it is then go fucking review the game. stop bitching on the review thread, go to the games page and give the game a review and a score you feel it deserves.

"I would rate it high even if I don't enjoy it because it was matter of different taste."
????????????????????

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TriangleHard

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@daivd:

The problem comes when Jeff starts to pick things that aren't negative, but puts heavy negative spin to it. Basics of propaganda.

For example Jeff tries to put negative spin on character's being unique from each other. Characters feeling unique and different is usually considered positive thing. However on Jeff's last sentence describing that had unneccesary comment "I'm sure Rachel's wind control is good for something, but I was left with zero desire to find out what."

Immediately he adds a sense of negativity on an issue that isn't negative. That comment should've been left out and let the readers decide if that is positive thing or negative. The description of the different feel of each character would've been enough.

The entire review is written in a way where he twists his words to justify his rather low score, and he does this by maximizing his subjective view.

Yes reviews are mostly an individuals opinion, which I strongly believe it shouldn't be, and I think it should be analysis of the product (you know like doing some research instead of just playing the game and say I like it) by taking everything in account and trying to figure out the quality of the product. , but unfortunately reviewers goes by their opinion, and I accept it.

However, I still expect some sense of professionalism. Even if reviews are opinions of an individual, I want that individual to express his feelings for the game in objective tone, you know like how a professional journalist would do. Jeff's review was like reading an user review. I find that quite disappointing.
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AV_Gamer

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Edited By AV_Gamer

Guys while I haven't play either BlazBlue or MK VS. DC, something tells me I would enjoy BlazBlue more because of my like of the past Gulity Gear games. That and the fact I fell out of the Mortal Kombat fandom after MK3 Ultimate.

Still, Jeff is a human being not some computer programmed Robot. Personally, he didn't like BlazBlue. So what? If you disagree with this review and enjoy it, fine. Jeff not liking the game you like isn't going to end your world. And if it does, you're truly pathetic.  Reviewers are popular personalities people like, nothing more.  And that  goes around the board rather it's movies or games.  Adam Sessler didn't like Resident Evil 5. Did the world end? No.

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Forbiden

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Edited By Forbiden

I completely beg to differ with your review.  I seriously think that BlazBlue is quite a new-user friendly game, that welcomes players who are new to the fighting game genre more than other games such as Guilty Gear.  The simple fact that it allows you to perform easy combos using the right analogue stick makes it a lot easier for new players to execute moves that would otherwise require them hours of practice to perfect. 

I simply can't see how you are bashing this game so far, it seems like you were out to get it from the begining.  Instead of focusing on how accessible the game is to new players, you make it seem as if the game alienates players who are foreign to fighting games.  Instead of focusing on how several of the tracks of the game are really good pieces of music, you focus on nitpicking about the announcer saying "Couter" whenever you perform one, and I won't even go into the character design.  I've seen far worse fighting games get better reviews than these, and it's quite sad that a gem like BlazBlue is being bashed because the reviewer can't be unbiased and objective.

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apathylad

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Edited By apathylad
@Raven_Sword said:
" They were kinda hating on it from the beginning, so its not surprising. also, no Ryan, Jeffs opinon about the game isnt necessarily the right one.  We can all have our opinons on wether something si good or not. Anyway, I thought it was a good review, although I would have amybe rated it a bit higher. "
Yeah, I was surprised Ryan said that in the podcast...
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daivd

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Edited By daivd
@TriangleHard:
What?

What you're trying to say is that Jeff's review is flawed because it fails to cover the aesthetics of this game review. Really though, even though Jeff's review was short compared to other reviews, this review didn't bloat over ever positive thing that this game has while ignoring out the negatives in this game.

I think that Jeff did a good job in balancing the positives and negatives of this game, and I applaud him for that.

Also, complaining about controls and depth is about as legitimate as complaining about art style and that awful story mode, so it doesn't matter too much anyways.
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ravensword

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Edited By ravensword

They were kinda hating on it from the beginning, so its not surprising. also, no Ryan, Jeffs opinon about the game isnt necessarily the right one.  We can all have our opinons on wether something si good or not. Anyway, I thought it was a good review, although I would have amybe rated it a bit higher.

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slint

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Edited By slint
@Brendan:
Are you new?  He's very ingrained in what he likes in fighting games.  SF/MK/KoF tend to get free passes, no matter how good or disappointing they are.  Someone who has a more open appreciation and opinion of fighting games would do a better job of critiquing other games in the genre.  Soul Calibur IV and BlazBlue, are far and away better games than 3/5.  Yet that's what they get here.

Jeff on SFIV and MKvsDC: 5/5
Game Rankings: 93% and 75%

Jeff on SCIV and BB: 3/5
Game Rankings: 85% and 88%

Game Rankings aren't set in stone, but they give a better idea of what a wider swathe of reviewers think.

And yes I've played all 4 thanks.
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TriangleHard

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Edited By TriangleHard
@thehuntsmen5434:

I have no problem that Jeff reviewed it. I just have problem HOW Jeff reviewed it.

None of his complaints are valid. All his complaints are just matter of different style and taste that just doesn't suit him. Is that a negative thing? Heck no.

If he managed to find some legitimate complaints, I wouldn't mind. Complaints like controls, balance, depth, etc. Lacking in those department is legit complaint and definite negative no matter how you look at it.

Also each character being unique was actually a target of complaint? WTF? I thought that's what we WANTED. How is that negative thing?

The entire review was written in a way to try to put a negative spin on neutral or positive aspects of the game.

People should admit. This was just horribly written review. If Jeff himself reads this review now, I'm sure he himself would think "That's not my best work"

The score is less of problem here. What he wrote is the big problem here.
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GamerPaul

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Edited By GamerPaul

I think it is fine that Jeff was uninterested in BlazBlue from the start and he is entirely entitled to his opinion. Unfortunately, if your uninterested with a game you tend not to go in depth with the intracacy of the fighting system with the Barrier, Barrier Burst, tug and pull offensive mechanic or character specific abilities like the wind control with Rachel that was mentioned which is crucial to a 2-d fighting game. This is apparent in several parts of the review.

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LordAndrew

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Edited By LordAndrew

This comment section is exactly why I couldn't be bothered to even look at this review until now.

Jeff's not labeling it as a bad game. He gave it three stars, described in the FAQ thusly:

The halfway point. An inherent appreciation of this game's specific gameplay style, characters, subject matter, and so on may play as big a role in your enjoyment as the actual quality of the game.
That seems like a perfect description of this game.
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Gahzoo

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Edited By Gahzoo
@handlas said:
" never seen such a crappy game that has such a huge, rabid following so quickly.  Yikes.  "
You haven't played the game, have you?