" I've noticed this trend as well, can't say I'm very fond of it. I don't think Yahtzee is really a reviewer, though, and frequently warn my friends against considering anything he says while determining whether to buy a game. He's strictly going for entertainment value, not genuinely reviewing the games he plays. As for the users, the concept of hating popular things and liking unpopular things has always been around; look at people who bashed Avatar and Transformers simply for being large, pop-culture friendly movies, or those annoying "indie kids" who only listen to bands who have never been published. On a side note, though, at least one of those examples is accurate. In my own personal opinion, based on experience with the game and not just because it's the popular thing to say, Grand Theft Auto IV is not a very good game, especially when compared to the previous games in the series. As an example, apart from the storyline (which is gangsta cliché garbage), Saints Row 2 is better in every way. "Yahtzee's Zero Punctuation is definitely mostly for entertainment, he even admits it so.
And by the way, Transformers was terrible and that's true for a fanboy or a regular movie viewer.
And I recently played through GTA4 again, it's still quite excellent aside from the socializing aspects that can become tedious. I absolutely love the story from beginning to end, the ending is very anti-climactic (in a good way), which is actually very different from any game of this type.
I also enjoyed Saints Row 2 quite a lot. It reminds me a lot of GTA San Andreas for it's overall goofy nature. The pacing of getting upgrades and gaining respect or whatever gets pretty annoying at times. Story is serviceable, but nothing special. Combat is probably the strongest point of this game.
I'd argue that despite certain flaws GTA4 is the better game. From the excellent physics to the compelling story and social interactions, it's more ambitious in every way compared to the by the books ( a good one none the less) offering of Saints Row 2 . The only problem is that Saints Row 2 got unnecessary criticisms because of the existence of GTA4, it certainly wasn't ambitious or new, but the core experience was great fun.
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