View Full Version : Gradius II (Famicom)
digitalpress
11-16-2003, 03:19 PM
Critique the critique!
Rate this review on a scale of 1-10. Please explain your score. Was the review entertaining? Informative? Well-written? All of these things should go toward your critique.
http://www.digitpress.com/reviews/contest/gradius2.htm
digitalpress
11-16-2003, 03:19 PM
Critique the critique!
Rate this review on a scale of 1-10. Please explain your score. Was the review entertaining? Informative? Well-written? All of these things should go toward your critique.
http://www.digitpress.com/reviews/contest/gradius2.htm
Flack
11-16-2003, 10:20 PM
10.
Covered all the bases with flying colors, IMHO.
Flack
11-16-2003, 10:20 PM
10.
Covered all the bases with flying colors, IMHO.
o2william
11-16-2003, 10:38 PM
9/10
It does cover the basics well, but IMO it relies a little too much on the reader having prior familiarity with the Gradius series. And even though I do, I still have a couple questions (such as, is the entire game horizontal or does it have vertical sections like Life Force?). Good overall though.
o2william
11-16-2003, 10:38 PM
9/10
It does cover the basics well, but IMO it relies a little too much on the reader having prior familiarity with the Gradius series. And even though I do, I still have a couple questions (such as, is the entire game horizontal or does it have vertical sections like Life Force?). Good overall though.
maxlords
11-16-2003, 10:54 PM
9 here as well. MORE than enough info, covers everything, but yeah, it's more of a Gradius fan's review than a cold read review!
maxlords
11-16-2003, 10:54 PM
9 here as well. MORE than enough info, covers everything, but yeah, it's more of a Gradius fan's review than a cold read review!
Kid Fenris
11-17-2003, 01:30 AM
Nice one. It's detailed, informative, and interesting. It's a gamer's review and not really a newbie's guide, but I've found the former category far more relevant than the latter.
8 out of 10.
Kid Fenris
11-17-2003, 01:30 AM
Nice one. It's detailed, informative, and interesting. It's a gamer's review and not really a newbie's guide, but I've found the former category far more relevant than the latter.
8 out of 10.
zmweasel
11-22-2003, 06:09 PM
* Awkward opening paragraph (and a hookless opening sentence), although it's nice to receive the historical info.
* The reviewer's hypothesis about why the game wasn't brought to North America is succinct and well-reasoned. He could've strengthed his case by giving another example of a game left in Japan, or even relating the fact the Konami stripped a chip out of the U.S. version of Contra.
* The dreaded phrase "in my opinion" is used. We KNOW it's your opinion. Don't take the wind out of your own sails with this wimpy disclaimer that no self-respecting critic ever uses.
* Excellent gameplay description which notes the differences between this and earlier/later versions of Gradius.
* The Konami-code and sound-test blurbs in the final paragraph are out of nowhere.
* Decent grammar and very few typos, one of the cleanest reviews I've read thus far.
7/10.
Ed Oscuro
11-24-2003, 10:12 AM
Quite a nice review in brief. Factually it's nearly perfect, although it misses Gradius 2's release for the Sharp x68K line (as nearly everbody would). That said, the reviewer says Gradius 2 was released no fewer than six times, leaving a loophole of sorts (so I really can't complain). On the flip side, I hadn't heard of some of the ports listed, so in that sense the review was more than adequate.
Standard stuff as far as mentioning all the important items such as codes -- two of them -- and the standard "if you don't like series X this won't change your mind" disclaimer which was a bit more elegantly done than most as it was used to kick off the short "tough love" section of the review. Better yet, it ends with a specific tip on shields, so one doesn't feel as if the reviewer is loosing a pack of wolves on you. More strategy would've been welcome, but this is very nice for a review of this size.
The screenshots used are top notch, too -- though there's only two of them, they've obviously been very carefully selected to be representative of Gradius 2.
Nothing too special, but this is the kind of game review I like, and the kind of reviews that are needed at Digital Press. I give this review a 9/10, edging out the TNMT PS2 review in rank because I have faith in minimalism.
Jorpho
11-24-2003, 07:10 PM
A little too colloquial for my tastes. Having not really played any of the other games in the series, I also wish the review could have used some alternate frame of reference.
Still, aside from that, it is thorough and coherent.
8/10
Drexel923
11-29-2003, 05:04 PM
A good overall review with enough information. The only problems I had was the description about the story and the references to previous games. Not everyone has played Gradius.
9/10
Ascending Wordsmith
12-02-2003, 08:58 AM
Ah, good ole Gradius II. I think this review does it justice. It's very detailed, covers all the necessary aspects, reads great, and contains screen grabs plus boxart! Very good review.
9/10 :)
Captain Wrong
12-02-2003, 02:22 PM
A bit wobbly at first, but picks up steam. Assumes the reader knows more about the Gradius series than they may. Lots of good info, and if you're familiar with the Gradius series you'll know how this game compairs to the rest of the series. However I don't feel like the reviewer really tells why I should play this unless I already like Gradius. I feel this could have been stronger on reviewing the game play.
Score: 7
digitalpress
01-06-2004, 03:45 PM
I'll give this one a 6/10.
It probably seems like I'm selling this one short but honestly I found it kinda boring. Some very good reviews are technical in nature, and I have the hardest time actually READING these. It's too much like work! So 6 big points on technical skills: well-written, concise, descriptive. Just kinda low-keyed and lacking passion. Sorry, those are important pieces of any written article for me.