PS3 Poll Police: Is Lair still worth it or not?

by Nick Doerr { Aug 12th 2007 at 7:00PM }

The Poll Police have heard rumors that Lair isn't getting reviewed well in a magazine or two and have started a new investigation to see whether or not word-of-mouth from a handful of reviewers will bring substantial harm to a game's sales or not. The title, mixing dragons and death in what should be a heavy-metal-like winning combination, has been talked up over the past year and a half to be the first title to truly showcase the PS3's ability as well as new and original IPs to come. So, the Poll Police charge you with answering the following poll: despite reviews, would you still pick up Lair?

We'll still be getting the title so we can bring you our own review of the game, but the effect reviews have on game sales is always a popular debate. The only true way to decide if a game is right for you is to play it yourself, after all. In any case, feel free to check out the answers to last week's poll about Warhawk. The results may actually surprise you.

Obviously, we had a lot more votes this time around, which we're proud of, since it shows an overwhelming majority of people are going to pick up the retail version of Warhawk. We're not too surprised, because from a sales tactic standpoint, Sony probably wants us to pick up the retail copy anyway. Besides, if everyone tries to download the game from the PSN the day it comes out, not only will the servers probably crash, but your download speed will be much slower than our ability to drive to the store and pick up our pre-order. As always, thanks for voting and we'll see you next week!

Tags: pollpolice

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

hzGaming @ Aug 12th 2007 7:06PM

keep in mind play magazine gave it a 9.0 ... they cater more toward the crowd that would enjoy this type of game.

naruto007 @ Aug 12th 2007 7:07PM

yes is worth.

anyone that bases which games to buy on ther people reviews is dumb. not because X person likes X game means Y person will like X game.

linton @ Aug 12th 2007 7:10PM

I Dont give a rats arse on reviews, i was fooled 'back in the day' by so called reveiws in the ps1 days and missed out on some damn good games because of them, so just give us the game!

Darkdrium777 @ Aug 12th 2007 7:13PM

EGM always sucked, so I won't be depending on them or their review thanks.

CrashSharc @ Aug 12th 2007 7:16PM

I'm not usually one to object polls... but this poll is pretty bad. I mean, I get what you are trying to survey, but isn'e EVERYONE in the same soup? NO one knows which Review to beleive. I think this poll should have come out after more reviews from groups such as IGN or GT, Or maybe even after a Demo etc.

But that's my opinion... I voted that it's worth it ;)

this is PS3 fanboy right? lol

Cagalli @ Aug 12th 2007 7:17PM

I agree with Darkdrium777. EGM is known to have a funky rating criteria... I'd personally wait for IGN or Game Informer's judgement... but having said that, yes I am still getting the game day 1. Factor 5 seems to have real confidence in this game as evident in their interview with Insomniac in their podcast, so I will have faith in it as well.

hoffer @ Aug 12th 2007 7:31PM

Hearing 1up talk about the game sealed the deal for me not wanting it. They pretty much said it was Rogue Squadron on dragons. I stink at flying games and have never cared for games like Rogue Squadron. So, I never figured I'd play it and I'm even more sure now.

Darkdrium777 @ Aug 12th 2007 7:42PM

Reply to Cagalli:
Yep I listened to the podcast too and they seem pretty confident with it. The concept of Lair attracted me, and hearing this guy talk about it just confirmed what I thought about the game: it's going to rock!

ClarkyCat @ Aug 12th 2007 7:44PM

Uh, when has Lair EVER been worth it? From day one it's been uninspiring, just looked like a clumsier version of Panzer Dragoon with shinier graphics, and as the concept art petered off and the actual gameplay shots came into being, the graphics stopped looking so good. The only people that can fool themselves into thinking this game will be any good are indeed fanboys. This game, like Heavenly Sword, is going to be another damp squib for the PS3, which is unfortunate. And yes, EGM sucks.

ForceUnleashed @ Aug 12th 2007 7:44PM

The results do surprise me. Its kinda close. Its funny how hypocritical you sony fanboys are about EGM though and its reviews. They told the truth about the game and you guys can't accept it.

But w/e. I'm sure it will sell well among current ps3 users simply cuz theres nothing else to buy.

ndoerr @ Aug 12th 2007 7:45PM

I suppose for clarification purposes I should say this poll isn't in response to any EGM reviews, rather if a negative review for a hyped game in general would affect purchase behavior, regardless of the source or sources. I never said anything about EGM in the post =)

Cagalli @ Aug 12th 2007 7:48PM

ForceUnleashed, please go troll elsewhere. If you actually owned the console you'd know that there are plenty of good games to buy right now, with more coming from the end of this month onward. Please do your research before jumping to the "no games" conclusion.

ForceUnleashed @ Aug 12th 2007 7:53PM

Cagali if i wanted to "troll" you'd know it so go freak out somewhere else.

And yes there are no good games on the ps3. The only noteworth games are Motorstorm and Resistance right now. And to me those aren't good games. Especially when comapred to the awesome games I've enjoyed on my Wii and 360.

As for Lair the reviews for it weren't that great. The fact remains that its just a really pretty looking game graphics wise. However its just a bunch of fugly rats with wings doing the same hack and slash stuff. And with no real plot. Add to the fact that the controls are horrible what exactly is there to be "excited" about.

So really get off your soapbox. This is just a pure analysis of the game as I've seen it so far.

And whether you like it or not the game will sell only because theres a defniitive lack of decent games on the ps3 right now.

ForceUnleashed @ Aug 12th 2007 7:57PM

Sorry about the spelling errors...although we all know this isn't English 300...

And Nick I wasn't saying that you specifically thought the EGM review was bad or anything. Just what sony fanboys in general are saying.

Silver R. Wolfe @ Aug 12th 2007 8:00PM

ForceUnleashed, if you had said that you were enjoying your awesome 360 games, I would've believed you. But you had to go and downright lie about the Wii's "awesome" games too. For shame.

you are awesome @ Aug 12th 2007 8:10PM

when i first heard about Lair i thought is was a full open Action RPG. not Star Wars with wings.

i have to agree with the 2/3 reviews for this game thus far. (PLAY seriously gives every game a great review...they review Anime for christsake!)

Dragon textures look great, but when someone says that it's tough to play, it just stops for me right there.

i realize i have to play it to belive but what the reviewers say has convinced me it plays like garbage.

Shori @ Aug 12th 2007 8:09PM

Pro-tip: Most people don't read reviews before buying a game.

ryano @ Aug 12th 2007 8:14PM

@shori

lol, my friend bought Sonic the Hedgehog for his 360 without reading reviews. boy was he dissapointed.

i believe EGM gave that game poor reviews also.

and lol, what's up with this crummy poll? of course most people want Lair it's a PS3fansite.

i say wait for more reviews then decide.

OSUJay @ Aug 12th 2007 8:16PM

I'm one of the people that do take reviews to heart but I won't base my decision on them alone. I need to play the game a bit before making a final decision but something that I think is overlooked by many is what the reviews actually say and instead people focus on the bottom line.

I could care less whether or not a game gets a perfect 10 or a 5 for a review, it doesn't matter. What does matter is the reasons behind the grade a game receives. If a review says that the single-player is bland, the controls are clunky, and the online modes are lacking that is going to weigh much more on my decision to purchase a game than the final number will.

This poll is bad as it only gives the audience two options. Add more choices if you want an actual representation of whether or not reviews affect game sales.

Shori @ Aug 12th 2007 8:21PM

ryano, yeah I work at a retail game store and you wouldn't believe how many people buy really bad games out of ignorance.

jitty @ Aug 12th 2007 8:22PM

IMO, no really credible reviews have come out. Most of them have been either too high, too low or done by reviewers of very little credibility. I'm buying this game no matter what. Infact, I'm going to play and beat the game before I see good review (like on gamespot or IGN) that might seriously influence my opinion. I want to have the most accurate personal opinion of the game as possible.

jitty @ Aug 12th 2007 8:25PM

@ Shori:

Yeah tell me about it. When I think of a bad game selling really well I think of games like 50 cent's. Ugh. Anyways. Many ps3 owners think lair will be good from what I've seen and heard. Lair should sell pretty well. At least 400k, hopefully more. Though what ever lair sells, heavenly sword and warhawk will probably sell better...

MYPS3KilledMy360 @ Aug 12th 2007 8:36PM

ill wait till its in the masses hands before i belive a reveiw of a game i cant buy at this exact moment.

Ben @ Aug 12th 2007 8:43PM

If it gets mediocre or bad reviews, I'll probably wait and try the demo.

Sometimes reviewers give a game bad score because the game is too much like another game. Well, I haven't played that other game, so that's not a factor for me.

Pasyx @ Aug 12th 2007 8:43PM

Personally, I'm gonna wait on the game to come out before I decide to get it or not. I really want the game to be great, but the negative hype surrounding it has me a little worried. I'll have to wait for more reviews to come out before I can make my final decision.

It's dard to make a choice like this when the game isn't final yet. I know they said they were taking more time to work on some of the community features, but I also hope they take a little extra time to take into account the criticism the game has received so far.

Pasyx @ Aug 12th 2007 8:45PM

*ahem*

Hard. Pardon the typo. Heh.

GRT @ Aug 12th 2007 8:59PM

Lair lost me when they started talking about the 'shake the controller' bs gameplay.

Motion sensitive controls... 5 years from now we'll look back and cringe the way we look back on FMV games like Night Trap today.

So the Poll has no option for me to pick. Add "I wasn't going to buy it anyway" and I'll pick that.

I might rent it from Gamefly just to screw around with it for a day or two, but no way I'd spend $60 on a controller shake-fest.

gorillaz5buf21 @ Aug 12th 2007 8:59PM

I just got my Gamepro Magazine and they gave it 3.75/5. The problem they had with the game was the only to control the dragon is using the sixaxis and there is no way to switch to analong. But note they did not get the complete and there was still time to make correction. That was said in the last paragraph.

Dahk @ Aug 12th 2007 9:26PM

CVG game a really awesome preview, so if its anything like they said, i'll definitely be picking this up.

... actually I'd pick this up even if they didn't =P.

Anyway, stop owning people when they give an honest opinion guys. I mean seriously, just because their going against some article doesn't mean that their 'trolling'. Have some respect for these folks. Jeez.

digitalddt @ Aug 12th 2007 9:33PM

I wait till it comes out and read more reviews, if the majority of the reviews are still sort of down on it, i will rent it from gamefly first. I am tired of paying out 50-60 bucks on a game that should be good.

Darkdrium777 @ Aug 12th 2007 10:23PM

Hah Monster Hunter for PS2 got approximately the same kind of review (mixed) when it came out as Lair did not too long ago. I didn't read the reviews, and I've got a great PS2 title. So I won't be counting on the reviews much, I'll still get Lair even if it gets a 5. Sixaxis isn't so hard for me, considering I like flOw a lot, and I play Super Rub a Dub from time to time.
Call me fanboy if you want, I just know I cannot count on reviews, especially EGM and their rather odd way of reviewing. I do read reviews, but I don't depend on them for buying a game or not, I will rather rent it and try it if I have doubts. For example, I was really excited about The Darkness, but after mixed reviews I decided to rent it instead and I am glad I did, because in my opinion it's not worth much more than a rent.

phattie @ Aug 12th 2007 10:32PM

The last 3D shooter that i played was StarFox 64... lol, that was a blast (as far as i remember)... anyways, not the type of game that i would buy. So, its a pass for me.

JKPierce @ Aug 12th 2007 10:59PM

"The game was given a numerical value after a few hours of gameplay. Obviously, this is the ultimate and final 'truth.' There is no argument. The game's entertainment value is null and void."

It's a decidedly interesting argument, certainly. And by interesting I mean retarded. Remember when the entertainment industry used to be about entertainment? Good times.

Entertainment, or 'fun,' is subjective and varies from person to person, game to game, given tastes and styles.

For example, we'll take Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. It's often trumpeted as the greatest of its kind. And it was pretty damn cool, enjoyed it myself thoroughly 'n still do. But personally, I find Okami a vastly superior game in every sense of the word. Does that mean one in my position should jump on Zelda forums and downplay those that enjoy it? No, one shouldn't. That's naughty. (Lair is Rogue Squadron is dragons, though? It's said like it's a bad thing; comparisons can be made elsewhere. Sonic is Mario with a hedgehog, American Dad is Family Guy with humor, et cetera.)

For all intents and purposes, the game looks damn fun. I've got mine prepaid in full.

Toby @ Aug 12th 2007 11:06PM

American Dad is Family Guy with humor

I believe you have that backwards =D

Anyways, im not going to pick this up, getting GRAW2 next week and Warhawk the week after. Those will hold me until Ubisoft kills my wallet again with Assassin's Creed, HAZE and BiA

Hatchetforce @ Aug 12th 2007 11:08PM

How could anyone in their right mind say "I'll skip this based on a single review of a beta build. Oh by the way, I believe reviews because I have no reasoning capability of my own."

Sheer stupidity. Just goes to show you how many PS3 haters read this blog.

Consolcwby @ Aug 13th 2007 12:00AM

Until a person can play the game for themselves and make up their OWN minds, a review should just be viewed as an opinion. Neither right or wrong. Just an opinion. Good reviews will talk about bugs in a game, unfinished features, and technical issues. Unfortunately, good reviews are few and far between lately. =S

So, I'll be picking this one up for myself - unless there's a review that says it's broken - and I can't wait! =D

Highlader @ Aug 12th 2007 11:16PM

Game reviews are extremely subjective. EGM for example typically has three people review a game, and there are times when the scores vary by nearly 50% from person to person. One thinks it's great and another thinks it's crap.

Hell look at the Crap-phoria awards that G4 puts on. Gears of War blew the competition away like an autumn wind working on a pile of fallen leaves. Does that mean it's the best game? No, it means that the people voting included a disproportionate number of Xbox 360 owners who are also disproportionately likely to like FPS games such as Gears of War. Gears is a good game, no doubt there, but the point it it's entirely subjective.

Look at the Xenosaga series of RPGs. Some love them, some absolutely loathe them. If you look at the reviews you can quickly see that many of the reviewers simply don't like story heavy RPGs. So the games get pretty poor reviews. Unfortunate really because many more RPG focused reviewers loved the game. Personally I loved the game, it may not be everyone's cup of tea. And that is why reviews are flawed. It's all subjective.

The polarized reporting of PS3/360/Wii doesn't help. There is a certain amount of fanboyism that creeps into reviews in supposedly cross platform gaming mags/sites. At the end of the day, if you want an accurate review of a games strengths and weaknesses you have to look at a review by a genre specific reviewer. Occasionally a more general review can be useful, sadly though reviewers that can maintain an objective focus on a game looking at it's strengths and weaknesses are rare. Too many reviewers feel the need to spice up their reviews, so a game that's really quite good, can be dogged by some minor flaw that the reviewer came up with a witty remark about that made it seem so much more than it is.

Lair is going to be dogged by the fact that it makes such use of the Sixaxis. It's very fashionable right now to piss on Sony and the Sixaxis. It doesn't matter that everyone fawns over the Wii's motion control. No, if it's Sony's motion control it must be bad, therefore reviewers will nitpick it to death if they can. So Lair will unfortunately receive more than it's fair share of bad press because of subjective reviews by closet fanboys who can't get past their own dislike of Sony.

JKPierce @ Aug 12th 2007 11:28PM

I especially liked that last part, Highlander. The negative press has shifted from Nintendo to Sony this generation, mostly on price and without the patience or frame of mind to give the system time to develop their library.

The drought that lead up to Gears of War was remarkable, but all impression was immediately lost and similarities of lifespans are entirely ignored.

WTangoFoxtrot @ Aug 12th 2007 11:41PM

Bioshock FTW !!!! :P
Enjoy Lair anyways....

RazielDune @ Aug 13th 2007 12:15AM

I Despize Reveiws if i believed all reviews i'd not of watched tons of movies that i LOVED.

Popfrogs @ Aug 13th 2007 12:15AM

Missing option #3:

"I take a healthy wait-and-see approach to game launches."

Joey_Numbers @ Aug 13th 2007 5:52PM

If a game receives outstanding reviews then I will usually try to get my hands on it as soon as possible.

A game with bad reviews, gets a wait and see approach. It'll probably be just a rental or I'll just wait until it hits the bargain bin.

I really hope Lair is a great game. Dragon crushing armies... what more can you want?

mccomber @ Aug 13th 2007 1:22AM

+1 to Highlader and Consolcwby.

I realized today when I was reading the Sunday ads, saw the box for Lair in the Best Buy and Circuit City ads and was instantly excited; I need to buy this game despite the couple (as in 2) poor early reviews and the wealth of other games coming out at the same time. It's going to be different, it's going to make use of the sixaxis in a good way, and it's going to be a polarizing title when it comes to gamers. I think this looks like the sort of game I'll enjoy, so I'm going to buy it. Opinions be damned.

Of course, this was followed by the letdown of realizing that it's still delayed until next month.

secret @ Aug 13th 2007 1:24AM

Please list below 9 games that'll make me buy an XBOX360. While you're at it, tell me again why I should buy an xbox360 in terms of all its wonderfully high quality features and matching - er..cheap price. And yes, I'm not a fan of Halo or Gears of War, so no need to mention them. Again, please list 9 games from the amazingly superbly exhaustively explosively high quality game selection on the xbox360, and I'll see if it's worth my time and effort to buy another system.

Right now, I have these games on the PS3, with most of them already on the xbox360 (which means that I pretty much own an xbox360 when I bought a PS3), and I can't complain:

1. Ninja Gaiden Sigma
2. Motorstorm
3. Resistance Fall of Man
4. Virtua Fighter 5
5. Fight Night 3
6. Marvel Ultimate Alliance
7. Call of Duty 3

I don't really see a need for any more games other than Ninja Gaiden Sigma and Motorstorm, but they're going to throw me Killzone 2, MGS4 (I have a connection with the Vice President of Konami America), Heavenly Sword, Call of Duty 4 (why should I get an xbox360?), and much more. I might get NBA home street. I'm alreay full, fat, and happy. My goodness...

XBOX360's 9 games from a massively wide selection of all star line-ups:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.

secret @ Aug 13th 2007 1:31AM

Thank you...and I forgot to mention Grand Turismo 5, is it? Or is it 6? I don't know, I'm not much of a gamer. But I can tell that the next Grand Turismo that they're throwing at me is something that I'm pretty sure even x's cannot complain about in terms of graphics - because if xer's do complain, we'll know for sure that they're dishonest, untrustworhty people.

el hazard @ Aug 13th 2007 1:33AM

so i own both consoles...(wii doesn't count sorry)

hmm, Lair or Bioshock? one has revolutionary gameplay wicked sharp AI and the best water physics i've ever seen, the other has old been there flight missions, exploding animals and weak controls.

seeing as how Lair got bunk reviews and Bioshock has already got a 10 and a 95%, i'll go with Bioshock FTW indefinitely.

AND the Bioshock Demo just finished downloading. it is phenomenal. where the hell's the Lair Demo?

just face it. Lair will bomb.

Broken Haiku @ Aug 13th 2007 1:34AM

I'm saving my opinion for when there's a demo. I'm not yearning for it, nor loathing it.

secret @ Aug 13th 2007 1:37AM

Yes, I know that I'm not discussing anything too relevant about the issue at hand, but I don't like the xbots mouthing junk in PS3 forums. I never have an urge to go into the xbox forums ever...go figure...

I don't hate Microsoft (I own shares in Microsoft), but these xbots are just wrong and tarnish Microsoft's american image to that of the Jerry Springer crowd, from my standpoint.

tomtom @ Aug 13th 2007 1:52AM

@secret

i shit you not, you deliver the worst argument of why not to own a 360. saying that you don't know video games doesn't help either.

with the exception of Resistance and Motor Storm, the games you mentioned are on 360 yes, but they are better built versions. yes Sigma is the bastard child that loads mid fights for some stupid reason
and Virtua fighter 5 will have improved AI and online play for 360.

the 360 is getting fool proofed soon with the legendary 65nm chip which will make the system less liable to break and cheaper to produce meaning a price cut.

sure HD-DVD sucks compared to Blu-Ray, but it's about the games right? with a console that is easier to develop for the 360 pumps out games quicker and better built (see EA sports and it's 60 FPS).

now i didn't bash the PS3 whatsoever, they got a few kinks they need to square out of the way and will definitely own next year. what i said was truth and solid reasons of why owning a 360 (this fall at least) aint so bad.