I read somewhere that the average age of a video gamer is approximately 30.  At 276, I’m still on the young side of life, but I can remember the days of 8-bit heroes and light guns.  (I kept all of mine, even the bad ones.)

In those carefree days of yore video games were weighed and measured exclusively by how much fun they were.  Then rankings ensued.  Because there was no internet I doubt any formal reviews exist for most games, but I once held an evening long debate over which game was better “Bart Simpson vs. the Space Mutants” or “Air Fortress.”  Sixteen years later, they are both primitive, but I can still play Bart.

 

Why isn’t anyone telling me if a game is fun to play?

 

I read a lot of free online reviews: IGN, GameSpot, 1Up, etc.  And after 500 to 1000 words they haven’t given me the only information I need to decide if I want to play the game: did you enjoy it.  Anymore the reviewer make playing games sound like work: such as the reviews for “Grand Theft Auto IV,” which made me feel like a life of crime was indeed a lot of hard work and networking, even if all you wanted to do was steal cars and run over the elderly.  The biggest and best games get flat uninteresting reviews.

 

Moreover, enthusiasm is saved for bad games, such as the reviews for “Golden Axe: Beast Rider.”  A game so awful I’ve seen people convulse from considering buying the game, but the review was fantastic.

 

I submit as evidence “Kung-Fu Panda.”  A fun game based on a fun movie, which I only played because it was free.

 

The game isn’t over simplified either.  It’s not simply running, jumping, and Kung-fu.  There are significant RPG qualities to the game in the upgrades screen.  If we’re being honest, that aspect is all that separates quite a few games from the slop pile, including “Star Wars: Force Unleashed” (an enjoyable game, which will hopefully see a more evolved sequel).

 

All I want from a game review is a single comment, if you weren’t paid to play this, would you have spent the time to finish it?

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