Giving Games a Fair Shake

giving games a fair shake

I’ll admit that I’m pretty quick to judge a book by its cover, especially when that book happens to cost 60 dollars and might take up hours of my life. More often than not I’m prone to judge a multiplayer portion of a formerly single-player game because in the day and age of Internet connected consoles, everyone and their dog are throwing on a multiplayer mode for the heck of it.

Assassins’s Creed: Brotherhood, BioShock 2 and now Mass Effect 3 have all proved that just because a game’s wheelhouse is the single-player narrative, it doesn’t mean that you can’t also dip your toes into the online arena. When AC:B and BioShock 2 were about to launch, there was a lot of noise made about how their online modes would probably suck, but they proved us wrong.

Mass Effect 3 is much the same way. I didn’t want to lead in with it, but Eddy, Anthony and I all played the co-op for a couple of hours last night and we had a blast. I finally unlocked the Nova for my Vanguard and Eddy and Anthony’s classes (Soldier and Sentinel respectively) clicked for them so we were operating in concert as a deadly, efficient team of sci-fi bad-asses.

Given that people (me included) were so ready to write of ME3’s co-op, I’m surprised by how quickly it got its hooks into me. The booster pack unlock system really adds to the longevity; it’s kind of like buying a pack of Pokemon cards and hoping you get a shiny Charizard. Most of the time you get like, a Chancey or something, but it’s the hope you might get something cool that keeps you going.

My whole point with the article, aside from pumping up the ME3 co-op jam, was to ask you guys if you ever decided to give a game a fair shake and chastised yourself for hating on it unfairly. What games did this happen with? What are your thoughts on ME3’s multiplayer?

Written by

mitch@gamersushi.com Twitter: @mi7ch Gamertag: Lubeius PSN ID: Lubeius SteamID: Mister_L Origin/EA:Lube182 Currently Playing: PUBG, Rainbow 6: Siege, Assassin's Creed: Origins, Total War: Warhammer 2

7 thoughts on “Giving Games a Fair Shake”

  1. Minecraft. I just didn’t get it, but my friend got it for me and we played forever! Shit loads of fun. And the ME3 Multiplayer is actually really fun, I enjoy it very much.

  2. Heavy Rain probably. To me it seemed like Quick Time Event: The Game and I ragged on it a lot. It turned out to be one of my favorite games this gen and I’ve been thinking of replaying it soon. And the ME3 multiplayer? D’oh my God…

  3. Surprisingly cliche to go all for the bros, but Modern Warfare 3. I know so many people just shit on that game and I had my doubts early on, but the multiplayer is surprisingly enjoyable to me. I used to worry too much about killstreaks in MW2. It kind of stinted me as a CoD player, but I was kind of brought back to my roots in shooters with MW3. I only run specialist strike package now because I appreciate the more gun on gun approach. I know there are flaws and bugs, but that’s always happened. That doesn’t detract me from enjoying CoD. I grew up on it and loved it from the moment I started. I don’t let these minor stints base my opinion for me. People chase perfection too much these days not realizing there is no possible “perfect”. It just can’t happen. Why not be happy with improvement?

  4. @ Playersbro: As much as I abhor MW2 and MW22, I actually had fun with MW3 when my friends and I played splitscreen hardcore. Maybe I just missed playing Call of Duty after I gave up Xbox LIVE, but MW3 seems to be less messy than MW2.

    How does this “booster pack” unlock system work? It sounds intriguing. I’m waiting for the full version of Mass Effect 3 to release, but I’m glad that the co-op is fun. Now to decide if I should buy LIVE again…

  5. The booster pack works in the way that you buy a crate (recruit or veteran in the demo) and you get a random assortment of items. Sometimes it’s utility items (rockets, medigel) gun upgrades, one-time boosters (ammo types, shield boosts) or new races to play as.

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