As you may have heard, Destiny reviews are most likely not going to be available at launch. Activision has sent out review codes on the 5th of September but the videogame’s servers won’t go live for anyone until the 8th of September. So the likelihood of someone beating the game and trying out all the modes before the midnight launch is highly improbable. We at Game Idealist are going to take a look at why gamers should and shouldn’t worry about this latest development surrounding one of the biggest releases of 2014.
Why you shouldn’t worry: Overall positive beta impressions
Believe it or not, a lot of gamers weren’t sold on Destiny until they got some hands-on experience. It wasn’t until the closed and open beta tests that a lot of skeptics began to see the light. If you already played and liked the beta, then you should know what to expect from the most part. So the Destiny reviews will most likely not going to change your mind anyway.
Why you should worry: Potential issues
Conversely, the Destiny beta does have a few minor problems. Some gamers weren’t completely satisfied with the user interface and vehicle controls. Others are concerned about how much content in going to be in the final game after Bungie said that each planet only has one area. These types of lingering questions could have been answered with Destiny reviews. Alas, you may have to wait a little bit longer than usual to find out about any of your concerns with the videogame.
Why you shouldn’t worry: Destiny reviews should be more representative of the product
Destiny is required to be always-online. If journalists get to play a review copy early with other media members, he or she will most likely not have the same experience as a regular gamer playing the same game on launch day. Thus, things like lag and matchmaking wouldn’t have been tested correctly. By making the press and regular gamers play on the same servers, the reviews for the video game should be more representative of the experience.
You do not have to go back too far to find some controversies about media outlets having dramatically differing opinions than the end users when it comes to a multiplayer videogame. Battlefield 4 received a ton of praise as selected press members got to play it in a private event. When the game launched, however, gamers were experiencing a tons of errors that rendered it unplayable on the Playstation 4. The problems were not reported by media outlets in Battlefield 4 reviews.
Why you should worry: Activision could be hiding something
Normally, a company shows confidence in a videogame by letting the press put out reviews days or even weeks before launch. So there are some concerns anytime there is a soft or hard embargo being imposed to reviews until launch day or afterwards. It doesn’t really have to be about the overall quality of the product either. Instead, Activision may be trying to hide some micro-transaction purchases or the length of the campaign to prevent the product from being viewed in any sort of negative way, which could lead to some cancelled preorders.
Destiny is available starting on the 9th of September. It is releasing on the Playstation 4, Xbox One, Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. If you haven’t already, you can preorder the new game right now on Amazon.