IGN UK reviews "Sevenly Sword"

by Andrew Yoon { Aug 23rd 2007 at 8:00PM }

The NeoGAF forums exploded in a fury of wild emotions at IGN UK's recent review of the much anticipated Heavenly Sword. The critics at IGN UK have much to praise about the game's visual presentation, noting its stellar graphics: "Everything from the beautifully designed, slickly animated characters to those magnificent, omnipresent sweeping vistas is a glory to behold."

But the review goes downhill from there. The combat system is called "tiresome and, to be blunt, incredibly boring." The story goes through a "hopelessly hackneyed, melodramatic script."

IGN UK is known for its highly critical reviews. However, PS3 fans must feel like Nariko (above) when one of the first reviews of such a heavily promoted game gets bashed so strongly. Hopefully, future reviews will show the game in a more favorable light, considering how crucial having a AAA title in the PS3 library is.

Tags: heavenlysword, ign, ignuk, neogaf, review

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Aysir @ Aug 23rd 2007 5:38PM

IGN UK are very harsh consistantly with PS3 titles. They also sound as though they go out of their way to find flaws with games. It's not being honest, it's just being as asshole. If there were no Archery chapter, any money the reveiwer would have labelled the game repetitive. There's no pleasing some people.
I can only assume that either the UK dept want to stir up trouble for attention, or they think that by being harsh they can make thier opinions count more (kinda like the whole it-scored-high-in-Edge-it-must-be-good syndrome)

Kattleox @ Aug 23rd 2007 8:10PM

I felt the same as I read this review as I did when I read PSM's 5.0 review of Lair and their 6.5 review of Warhawk; Pitiful.

I suppose Ratchet will get a 4.5 or so and Uncharted will squeeze out a close 6.0.

Xavier @ Aug 23rd 2007 8:14PM

is it even remotely possible that this game just isnt that good?

OTAM @ Aug 23rd 2007 8:18PM

If this game,Warhawk,and Lair all turn out to be mediocre games,we have a big problem.

Alex @ Aug 23rd 2007 8:29PM

we needed this game so bad...

this is a hyped supposed AAA title.
even one bad review is fodder to slam Sony for over-hyping. i'm really hoping the rest of the reviews dun turn out this bad.

sectionz @ Aug 23rd 2007 8:32PM

reviews are opinions not dogma ... if you played the demo and didnt like it there is nothing a better review would do for it .. vice versa .. get over it.

Strike Man @ Aug 23rd 2007 8:32PM

lolz obvisly their justa bunch of xbotfanb0iz mirite?!!1 *hrkhrkhrk*

Back to reality, I'll probably still play the finished product and form my own opinion on it. But if the review is even somewhat accurate, it should serve as a reminder that no amount of next-gen gloss (on any platform) will turn a mediocre game into anything more than that. Just because we now get to play them in HD on PS3 and 360 (or while shaking a controller on the Wii) doesn't inherently make a game any more fun or engaging.

I do disagree with Kattleox's predictions though. Naughty Dog has had a string of commercial AND critical successes with the Jak series, and I'm fairly confident that they'll be able to pull out a very decent outing with Uncharted. The same can easily be said of Insomniac too.

GRT @ Aug 23rd 2007 8:33PM

"is it even remotely possible that this game just isnt that good?"

Sure, it's possible. But in all honesty the review read to me like the guy was expecting it to be a different game.

He essentially complains that there's too much fighting... but I mean, isn't fighting the focus of the game?

It just really did read to me like he was being as hard as he could to stir up controversy. Why would he do that? Because controversy=page views. Page views = pats on the back for the writer.

kingofwale @ Aug 23rd 2007 8:46PM

Melodramatic storyline in a video game?? You don't say.

didn't one of the best selling games on Wii. the Mario Party 8 got a 6? well, didn't stop it from selling like a hot cake, now does it? Consumers don't really read reviews that much anyway.

wurider @ Aug 23rd 2007 8:49PM

The game simply isn't that good. i am basing my opinion on the demo. Why do you fanboys take everything so damn personal. CAn you honestly tell me that you were blown away by the demo. I had no idea the game was a damn slash and hack fest. The graphics are great but that was really it. You know that I am telling the truth you just don't want to admit it.

mccomber @ Aug 23rd 2007 8:51PM

After reading about the 6.5 for Warhawk, I don't know what to think. That game is great, and a day-one purchase for me. It's disappointing to read poor reviews for the games, but that game alone gives me a reason to just ignore the reviews and play the games I want to play.

DownwardMonkey @ Aug 23rd 2007 8:51PM

It really did seem like a dumb review and I say this as no fanboy. It's like moaning that all you do in Ninja Gaiden is fight.

DownwardMonkey @ Aug 23rd 2007 8:53PM

Just because you're not blown away by it Wurider, doesn't mean very much to me. I loved it.

mccomber @ Aug 23rd 2007 9:01PM

Oh yeah, and just how much can IGN's reviews vary?

Resistance: Fall of Man 9.1
Resistance: Fall of Man [UK] 8.0

FYI, Matt Wales is the UK reviewer on both...

Moe @ Aug 23rd 2007 9:02PM

I think the quotes should be around the word "review" and not Sevenly Sword.

luke @ Aug 23rd 2007 9:13PM

I really liked the demo for this game. I know for sure that I am going to get me my copy as soon as the game is released. I think Microsoft could be paying critics off to give sony games bad reviews and their games good ones. They even said something about how their games were getting good reviews at E3. If they paid off some wikipedia writers to change some stuff on windows articles, I would not put this past them.

Franchise03 @ Aug 23rd 2007 9:14PM

yea i agree with the other guy, this reviewer is expecting something different from the game..review the things the game has..not what it doesnt

ruibing @ Aug 23rd 2007 9:26PM

The review does appear biased in first taking some time to concede on a few points and then criticize the gameplay (the only thing people haven't gotten a real chance to try it so are relying on the review). They could be honest or just following the ever growing popular trend of bashing anything related to the PS3. I tried both the demos for Heavenly Sword and Ninja Sigma for PS3, and I really liked Heavenly Sword more for how cinematic the combat is. Yet they reviewed Ninja Sigma for 9.0 awhile ago. I, for one, intend to play this game for myself instead of relying on the words of someone from across the Atlantic.

Gareth Burleigh @ Aug 23rd 2007 9:28PM

I was hoping I was missing something after playing the demo, it felt like a very poor playing NGS but put it down to my hours playing NGS leading up to the demo and not being bothered learning the stances properly (Although looking at the move list there was plenty of apparent depth) .
A single review isnt enough to make me avoid any title, I will read a cross section and sometimes to hell with opinion I will buy it anyway if I really think it looks good. However the IGN review does compound every negative thought I had about the demo.
I wonder if HS was multi platform would this review be taken so badly (saying that the review isnt slating the game just pointing out problems of which some were clear at the demo point)

Gareth

RazielDune @ Aug 23rd 2007 9:37PM

Yeah like i said before i never ever pay attention to reveiws i test it out for myself by renting.

Sam @ Aug 23rd 2007 9:39PM

As always, PS3 fanboys fail to realise that just because a title is promoted and hyped as AAA, that it wont actually end up being good.

Its a classic flaw of fanboys and it always makes them look silly. Especially when its a new IP.

Personally the demo to heavenly sword felt boring and i agree with the reviewer (for as much of the 5 minutes that i saw...but i replayed it 5-6 times). The game is jaw droppingly beautiful, cinematic and really just looks amazing. The sound is great and the game just feels really solid.

That being said, the combo system WAS boring (Coming from a long time hack n slash fan here - DMC/GoW/DW/NG, mastered em all). It was really quite lackluster and i couldn't help thinking to myself..."Why is this game being hyped so much?".

Its a next gen, average, hack and slash. Shame because it could have been SOOO much more. But thats all it is. Just another shiny game with some average gameplay.

Dont get me wrong, i'll buy it to help along my ps3's game drought, but i have a feeling it will be going back the way of the trade-in within a week.

Disclaimer: PsWii60 Owner.

upz @ Aug 23rd 2007 10:03PM

What's interesting is that one of the reasons for the low score is that the puzzles aren't as complex or cerebral as God of War's. Yet the reviewer ignores the fact that the combat system, inarguably the core gameplay aspect of an action game, is actually notably deeper than God of War's.

Based on the demo, I know my personal opinion on how it plays - and I'm pretty much sold. What'll make it a buy or a rent for me is whether they've fixed the inconsistent framerate. Beautiful vistas that move like slideshows sort of dampen their impact, you know?

Jeff @ Aug 23rd 2007 10:28PM

DID YOU NOW THAT THE SAME PERSON WHO REVIEWED RED STEEL FOR WII, MATT WALES, REVIEWD THIS GAME? HE GAVE RED STEEL AN 8 OUT OF 10.

phattie @ Aug 23rd 2007 10:46PM

I didnt think the demo was that impressive. I hope they fixed the screen tearing from the demo.

Matt B @ Aug 23rd 2007 11:16PM

I loved the demo. I've played it dozens of times and each one is different. Trying to get combos and the overall feel of the combat system. You guys are discounting the game based on your 5 minute reviews. Play the demo 5 times straight and try a different approach each time. Then tell me how this game is the same old shit.

LAIR and HS are getting my time in September. The rest of you review junkies can continue to sit on your thumbs.

Metoo @ Aug 23rd 2007 11:48PM

A lot of the comments in the HS review could be applied to NGS.

LOL at the Nariko animation.

jitty @ Aug 24th 2007 1:04AM

Well, hopefully they're under-rating it :( At least compared to the normal IGN. Like with resistance, IGN gave a 9.1 but IGN UK gave resistance an 8.0!

sicklesdawg @ Aug 24th 2007 1:13AM

Matt Whales your famous now "good"! cost= never reviewing a Sony AAA title "bad"

Richard Comegys @ Aug 24th 2007 1:17AM

I quit my membership as an Insider on IGN a few years ago, and then came back to see that they have AU and UK scores listed under their ratings now -- and I can't figure out for the life of me WHY they do. Just create a separate .uk domain for the Brits and be done with it.

Get off my internets!

Richard Comegys @ Aug 24th 2007 1:19AM

Wow, half my comment got cut off -- I was just joking about the "get off my internets", but I seriously don't think that the cultures are that different that we need three reviews of the same game on one page. I do think, if they're going to split up the reviews, then you should split up the site into separate, country-based domains.

GanaeshD @ Aug 24th 2007 2:32AM

Call me a n00b or whatever it is you guys call a newbie here, but... how can IGN review a game that has not gone gold yet? I mean, from a business point of view, is that ethical? More importantly, is it even possible?

osman.430 @ Aug 24th 2007 8:08AM

HEAVENLY SWORD; REVIEWS SO FAR

Play Magazine 10/10
PSXtreme Magazine 9/10
Doupe.cz: 9/10
The Official Playstation Magazine 89%
PSW*Uk mag*8/10
IGN UK 7/10

sectionz @ Aug 24th 2007 10:33AM

so andrew what do YOU think?

Tonbo @ Aug 24th 2007 12:30PM

WTF is up with this article? Why are we promoting IGN UK?

I thought the people who come here are ps3 owners who want to get excited about their ps3 and the occasional Microsoft viral marketing shill.

This article was like a punch in the gut. I would have rather you waited until more reviews were out and could provide a balanced meta review rather than this killjoy baloney.

Andrew Yoon @ Aug 24th 2007 12:56PM

If any of you guys read my hands-on, you'll know that I thoroughly enjoyed Heavenly Sword. It's going to be great.

russ99 @ Aug 24th 2007 2:18PM

I played the demo as well, and found it quite fun, especially when you mix in the magic/power up system into that multi stance fighting.

If in fact, there is a level where Nariko doesn't have her sword, that could be a problem, but it's bad writing to rip a game when it throws the player a curve. Remember how great the Tomb Raider levels were when Lara lost her weapons?

Maybe the reviewer doesn't like the "rails" action sequences, but to rip a game on the story and melodrama is very silly to me. Maybe it's a symptom of PS3 reviews being adjusted from X360 ones, like Madden. IGN's losing a lot of cred with this kind of practice.

Don't know about you guys but I'm buying Sword, and Warhark & Lair (which I've also played and is outstanding) anyway, bad reviews or not.