Why everyone ignores the issues in TLOU?

not a single review nor DF's analysis even mentions how many more pop-in are in the Remaster compared to the PS3 version. Or what about when NPC companions make a lot of noise or walk in front of enemies unnoticed? I know that was something ND did deliberately but even then it still breaks the immersion, yet everyone just rates the game with 10/10 when there are obvious flaws. And this is not nitpicking, this stuff happens very often, both the pop-ins and the AI stuff.

Didn't you just make a thread on how the PS4 is 50% more powerful?

Wow that Sony lie and self ownage.

The ai stuff has been part of many reviews

Very true, The AI was made like that because of the limitations of the PS3 and my guess is, they didn't have enough time, or resources to sort out the AI in the remastered version, because it would mean that the whole AI would of had to be over hauled been made completely from scratch. still a great game tho so, not that fussed, never found that it took me out of the zone, and never really got into many position's where my partner walked infront of the enemy.

Because everyone's snout is firmly entrenched in the crotch of Naughty Dog? Seriously, I don't know. It sounds like something reviews should be mentioning.

On PS3 the AI NPC companions acting stupid around enemies did take me out of the immersion, but they never alerted the enemies. Sad to hear it's the same for the PS4 version.

Fallout 3 got a 9 and it had more bugs than any other game in existence.

I don't know where you've been but I've been extremely vocal about TLOU issues.

But Zealots are louder.

A lot of reviews mention it. It's the main complaint about the whole game.

It seems most don't consider it that big of a deal. I know I don't.

I have always questioned this about reviews. How did not a single reviewer mention the flaws of Uncharted 2 or, even though I like the game, how did every single reviewer that played Super Mario Galaxy 2 give it a score over a 90... I just have trouble seeing how praise could be so unanimous among so many individuals.

Yeah it is amazing, but it is outclassed IMHO. It wins so many points for creativity and variety, but the level design could be tighter and more focused. Retro studios and their Donkey Kong Country games are far more a work of art in my eyes. The level designs are absolutely immaculate and work perfectly on 3 different levels. Each level was designed for a precise platforming challenge, a world to explore in depth for the many secrets, and for some of the most impressive speed run design I have seen in a platformer.

Again that is just my opinion. It is just weird that not everybody likes the galaxy games and some people have some legitimate complaints about it, but you do not see them brought up professionally. Maybe the best examples of this are GTA4 and Assassins Creed 3. The reception from the general public is a far cry from the critical reception.

I've noticed the pop-in. Don't know if it's more prevalent than the PS3 (though I can't recall seeing it), but yea, it's there. More like "fade in" though. A more subtle way and not as jarring but still noticeable.

As for AI, reviews did mention it, at least for the PS3. It sucks and does break the immersion but I find that the majority of the time it gets the job done. It's very difficult to program good AI.

I guess we will just have to respectfully disagree here. I used to really love the old DKC games back on the SNES, but looking back, my enjoyment is mostly nostalgic now. There a number of questionable design choices in those older games. Retro with both of their DKC games just murdered what Rare did before them. Level design has more purpose, there is far more depth to each of them and the challenge is far more brutal as well as being more legitimate. there is also far more content to sink your teeth into to boot.

The game is greater than the sum of it's parts. It's not PERFECT just amazing.

@scottpsfan14:

TLOU is a solid 9-9.5/10

Uncharted 2 is a 5/10

Donkey Kong Country Triopical Freeze is a perfect 10

It's too hard to rate the DKC Rare games honestly with nostalgia factoring in, but I'd say they are in the 7-8 range

Super Mario Galaxy 1 would be around an 8-8.5

Super Mario Galaxy 2 would be like a 9.5

I guess... I'm not big on number rating. It's easier to express where games succeed and fail in my eyes.

For most reviewers these days, the scores they assign are not a reflection of the game's overall quality, but their mere enjoyment of it. One of the few places left that actually writes critically of a game's content (some of the time) and has a score reflective of that criticism is Eurogamer.

But even then it seems, they gave both versions of TLOU their usually unheard of 10/10 (I haven't read the reviews, and I haven't played the game, so I really can't pick them apart).

@scottpsfan14: It's hard to say. I loved the first Pikmin as my favourite game since it released in 2001. It has a lot of sentimental value attached to it, but when I look at it critically stacked up against Pikmin 3, it's clear Pikmin 3 is the far more evolved, complex, deep, and well designed experience.

The same goes for platformers. I've called Yoshi's Island the best platformer of all time for close to 20 years, but there's no way I could say it's better than what Retro has produced in their 2 platformers.

I love analysing game design a lot and figuring out why or why I don't like certain games. I love pinpointing these things as technically as I can, but how do you deny your feelings for the things you remember fondly? Then there's that whole factoring in how groundbreaking a game is when it first releases. Where does that factor in?

If pressed for the answer to this question, I'd probably default to the first Pikmin game. It was just so wildly unique when it came out and it had this atmosphere of risk and danger permeating throughout. It is an experience I will never forget. I can't tell you how many times I replayed it managing my pikmin numbers and efficiency better each time to beat the game in the fewest days possible.

Most games have pop-in, some games are just better and masking it than others, is it really that bad got any videos of the problem? I know the PS3 had quite a lot of pop-in in the inclosed areas, for example there was one door in the university building when you looked through it at a certain angle you could see most of the room was not rendered, more of an optimisation thing though.

Also they have not tried to hide the fact that the AI is a bit off, I do remember a while back them specifically mentioning that they did originally write Eliie to be detected by the AI but it got annoying when the AI was responsible for you getting spotted and killed when it was not your fault.

And if the reason for the AI being not good enough was because it was on the PS3, then the PS4 ain't gonna make it much better, the CPU isn't that much more powerful to have any effect. It's more likely that they are not good enough to write the necessary AI to solve the problem.

Because videogame critics are soft.

There is some suspension of disbelief a player needs to have when playing games. Often times this is due to technical limitations like AI. It's not to say that these aren't critiqued or shouldn't be critiqued because I've seen these critiques in various reviews before, but I do think the sum of the parts are much much greater than the tiny imperfections. I think it honestly deserves a 10/10.

I feel the same of Dark Souls. Yes it has its minor blemishes, but it's still as perfect of a game I've seen in my book.

Yeah there is tons of pop in present in the Remaster. The enemy A.I. is a much bigger deal though. I like how I'm crouched behind cover and my NPC ally goes running through the group of bad guys, bumping many of them on her way to cover by me. I know the bad guys are not alerted by this but it turns what is supposed to be a tense and stressful environment into a slapstick comedy scene.

The actual video game portions of The Last of Us get in the way of the story. And for that reason I can't praise this game as much as so many people do on this board. The improved resolution and framerate are very welcome changes though.

10/10 =/= perfect.

I would give it a 9.0. Again, its not perfect, but its easily one of the best games i played in a long time. Oh, and i havent seen any pop in, in my 5 or 6 hours of gameplay so far!

@Gue1: because graphics..... and little girl character progression.

Critics get carried away by hype and honestly releasing this game again so soon is a bit of a cash in. Pretty clear that Naughty Dog did wonders with the PS3 architecture and it may just be that they're not quite as familiar yet with the PS4. Hopefully a patch will fix the issues before I buy the game, but ND are still one of the premiere console developers and I look forward to seeing what the can do with a scratch built PS4 game.

I believe critics get caught in the hype of being able to play games before everyone else. I'll never forget I went to an advanced screening of VAN HELSING with Hugh Jackman. The audience cheered at the end. CHEERED. Now there's not a single person alive who enjoys that piece of junk. I think they get excited because they get to play it first and that affects their review scores.

Uncharted 4: Return of the shooting dudes in the face the same way we have been doing since like 2005.

Lets hope they can do something a bit more, believe!

Uncharted 4: here is the lame things we call puzzles, and this story about some lost treasure bullshit, just like the stuff we did in 2007. BELIEVE

Top 5 GOAT by the Naughty Gods.

lol well I've only played UC2 and did not care for it tbh ...

I can't imagine getting that much more, sure Last of Us was optimised for the PS3 hardware (mostly ram) but something already graphically optimised will be optimised to a certain extent no matter what hardware it runs on GPU wise. You might be able to do more things concurrently on the PS4 GPU perhaps either more post processing or more rendered objects or a combination of both... but the fact that the PS4 is hitting it's limit with the current game has to tell you something. Although I doubt they have even touched optimisations with unified ram yet, I still think a lot can be done with that.

What I want most which the PS3 had great trouble with is larger areas without loading zones of boundaries. Imagine something like the Last of US but more open where you get to chose the direction of the story and find out more about the world if you choose to. Multiple ways of completing objectives. More giraffes!!!

Yup, a game is a game. If its enjoyable, who cares?

But it was a well done fungus apocalypse game...

It's a lot more than that friend. The story doesn't focus that much on the infection compared to the people dealing with surviving a rough and desolate world.

you must be new here because those issues have been discussed quite extensively, yet in the end it's still the most awarded game of all time

This is a good point, but movie critics also get to see early screenings, and you don't see hype influence their reviews in the same way. The biggest problem as I see it is that you really need to have at least 10-15 hours to invest into most games to give them a fair review. Some games require upwards of 40 hours. I get the sense that a lot of games, especially open world games like Elder Scrolls or AC, only get played for 2-3 hours by most reviewers before they get scored. A lot of these games are incredibly fun for a few hours before they no longer feel new, and often they fail to stand on their own two feet for the entire amount of time required to actually beat them. You rarely see criticisms like that in professional reviews.

If this is true TC then your thread sucks.

@LJS9502_basic: it is indeed truth

Because game journalism isn't the same as it used to be , many years ago . Now it is full of corruption , casuals and fanboys . Remember how IGN criticized health pick ups in The New Order , because it was "ancient" .?

TLOU is great game , I enjoyed it alot . Story telling is pretty good , even though setting itself isn't original . Gameplay wise , it is nothing special , that's why no one praised its gameplay in any review . But it is good enough for an action game . Overall I'll rate it 8.5/10 . Definitely not a 10 game imo .