Tom McShea responds to Zelda review criticism

[KingVamp]

Your opinion of Skyward Sword's controls were very different than those of other reviewers. Why is that? What is your opinion of motion control in general?

As anyone who has followed me should know, controls are the single most important element of a game to me. If they aren't responsive all the time, I get frustrated, because it's a problem that could have been averted had the developers been more conscious of the experience they were creating. In the case of Skyward Sword, the controls function as they should most of the time, but that's not enough. When I swing and it doesn't register, or I point toward the screen but Link looks at the ground, I get angry. Nintendo usually sets the standard for controls, so I'm shocked they would release a game in this state.

Okay, I'm really not sure where to start here. He firstly says that the controls are mostly good, which goes against his earlier comments, and is just odd when he goes on to say they are appalling. Then he states that when he swings the game doesn't register it. In his initial review he claimed that he was waggling the remote, which explains why the controls aren't responding.
Furthermore, he says that when he points his remote at the screen, Link looks towards the ground. He says that's annoying, but doesn't realize what exactly is going on. As I have confirmed with our staff who played Skyward Sword for the review and walkthrough content, none of the controls require you to point the remote at the screen. Now, where Tom speaks of Link looking at the ground pertains to item usage.
Whenever Tom gets out an item, he points his remote at the screen. Take the bow and arrow as an example. What you are supposed to do is point the Wii remote upwards (towards the roof), and pull your hand back like you are drawing a bow. Using logic, you can determine that if you point the remote at the screen in these circumstances, of course Link will look towards the ground. GameSpot's reviewer is stuck in the days in Twilight Princess. He uses waggling and pointing, instead of one-to-one actions.

This interview does nothing but confirm that he is playing the game wrong. Of course Nintendo wouldn't release a game in such a poor state. If the controls were as poor as Tom was claiming Nintendo would not have used them. Tom doesn't comprehend the precision of Motion Plus, and instead resorts to waggling and pointing. No wonder he had a bad time with the game.

You made an error in your review regarding the game's controls (which has since been amended by the time of this writing). Do you think that an error like that might unintentionally affect your opinion (and therefore the review) of the game?

Not at all. In my original text, I said that aiming was handled by the infared sensor, when it's actually controlled by the gyroscopes. Ultimately, you point at the screen no matter which method the controller is using, so, for the player, the result is the same. My problem with the aiming is that you have to recenter your view often, and that's true no matter what the underlying technology is.

Firstly, he is denying that he's playing the game wrong, but then goes on to show no comprehension of Skyward Sword at all. As RawmeatCowboy of GoNintendo and our own staff can attest to, there is no need to point your remote at the screen. We really have no idea what he is on about. The only method of control is gyro controls, not pointer. No-one is at all able to make out what he is referring to by recentering his view. Perhaps he means recalibration, but that's just a simple button push. None of our staff, or other sites for that matter, have any of the issues that Mr. Mc Shea does, and its ridiculously obvious that he is pointing the remote when he should be drawing it like a bow.

Can you change the score?

Nope!

Please?

Sorry

Not only is such a mistake as playing the game incorrectly entirely appalling for a professional, but his unwillingness to admit that he was wrong and how it affected his review is sickening. I really have no problem with someone giving Skyward Sword a 7.5 if they point out the valid things wrong with the game. However, everything Tom says about the controls can only lead us to one conclusion - he has no idea what's going on. Any credibility he had as a reviewer is clearly dead due to this ordeal. The only thing I'm left wondering is how Mr Mc Shea managed to make it through the game - assuming that he did. Just be sure you don't make the same embarrassing mistakes as you play Skyward Sword.

Source

 

[DiscostewSM]

The typical man who prefers his own ways rather than asking for directions.

 

[Tom Bombadildo]

Sounds about right. Controls are fine for me, this game should have a 10/10 if it were me.

inb4Guild bitches about controls and Nintendo being bad.

 

[chyyran]

He shoulda' read the instruction manual.

Most of us here who have played it already didn't even need the manual to understand the controls though.

Did he even pay attention to the tutorial dialogues?

 

[Windaga]

I played it a little while ago - I didn't have any problem with the controls at all (and the file I was using had all of the weapons, so I had a chance to use them all.) Did he have a busted remote or something? Because the whole registering and looking at the floor thing- I've never had that happen to me. I like the fact that it doesn't rely on the sensor bar and that you can center the pointer - it'll make it a whole lot easier for me with my setup when I get the game.

But it's cool that he stands by his word. I don't care for reviews and reviewers, but I can get with him not changing his score because of pressure and what not.

 

[RupeeClock]

"Ultimately, you point at the screen no matter which method the controller is using"

That's STILL wrong. You don't need to point at the screen once it's calibrated.

 

[Ergo]

Normally I stay clear of these sorts of things (opinions being, well, opinions) but I'm actually inclined to say that he was, indeed, doing it wrong, which pretty much invalidates the entire review.

 

[KingVamp]

The typical man who prefers his own ways rather than asking for directions.

Yep and basically saying "I'm right and you are wrong."

[yt]QEge_2Vuft0[/yt]

 

[RupeeClock]

Apparently there's also been a controversy about the Star Wars: The Old Republic on Gamespot.
I've heard something like they issued a 5.5 review on the site, but later took it down leaving a placeholder 0.0 score (as evidence that a review was put online, then removed)

Seriously though, Gamespot can suck it, they're the worst of the worst these days. Nobody likes them.

 

[Xuphor]

Maybe I'm missing something, but the bold is the question the questioners asked, italics are supposedly the bad reviewer, and the regular text is commentary from Gamespot, right?

there is no need to point your remote at the screen

You HAVE to in order to aim the Bow, Slingshot, beetle, and a number of other items.

No-one is at all able to make out what he is referring to by recentering his view

Fi explains it clearly, you press the down D-Pad button to recenter the cursor once it goes off allignment. I need to recenter it a lot, but it's not a bad problem imo.

its ridiculously obvious that he is pointing the remote when he should be drawing it like a bow.

You aim by pointing the wii-mote at the screen, and pull the nunchuck back like a bowstring.
[quote="corrected" reviewer]aiming was handled by the infared sensor, when it's actually controlled by the gyroscopes[/quote]
What? Unplug the IR Sensor, aiming won't work at all. Same goes for item selection.



So, am I missing something? I must be.... The guy that's talking in regular text (not bold nor italics) is 100% wrong.

Someone help me, I'm so confused....

 

[Ergo]

The shrug in that video is comic genius.

 

[Valwin]

this proof tha gamespo is not good for reviews

 

[AceWarhead]

this proof tha gamespot is not good for reviews

Well, sometimes, they do.

Maybe I'm missing something, but the bold is the question the questioners asked, italics are supposedly the bad reviewer, and the regular text is commentary from Gamespot, right?

there is no need to point your remote at the screen

You HAVE to in order to aim the Bow, Slingshot, beetle, and a number of other items.

No-one is at all able to make out what he is referring to by recentering his view

Fi explains it clearly, you press the down D-Pad button to recenter the cursor once it goes off allignment. I need to recenter it a lot, but it's not a bad problem imo.

its ridiculously obvious that he is pointing the remote when he should be drawing it like a bow.

You aim by pointing the wii-mote at the screen, and pull the nunchuck back like a bowstring.
[quote="corrected" reviewer]aiming was handled by the infared sensor, when it's actually controlled by the gyroscopes

What? Unplug the IR Sensor, aiming won't work at all. Same goes for item selection.



So, am I missing something? I must be.... The guy that's talking in regular text (not bold nor italics) is 100% wrong.

Someone help me, I'm so confused....
[/quote]
He's an idiot.( not you.)

 

[smile72]

I don't trust gamespot for reviews in the first place. This just gives me more reasons to evade it in general.

 

[KingVamp]

*snip

Whether than point, hold the wiimote like a bow.

Pretty much like this.


Pointing at the screen, does the aim go exactly were you want it?

I read somewhere that all actions are done by motion not ir. Got to find it tho.

 

[Xuphor]

*snip

Whether than point, hold the wiimote like a bow.

Pointing at the screen, does the aim go exactly were you want it?

Holding the wimote like Robin does in that video doesn't work right when holding it like that for me, I need to hold point the IR part of the wiimote at the screen for it to work right.

So maybe, possibly, this Tom guy is having the same controller issues I am (First party wiimote with Wiimotion plus NOT built in, first party nunchuck), including the other stuff he mentioned that I found to be accurate that no one else does (aiming at the floor, I.E.).......
Even so, I wouldn't rate the game a 7.5, I'd still give it at least a 9/10.

 

[haflore]

I don't trust gamespot for reviews in the first place. This just gives me more reasons to evade it in general.

I agree completely, they used to be a reasonable source for reviews though.
I remember when they were my go-to guys for this sort of thing, now I wait for REAL critics to weigh in.

 

[Hyro-Sama]

Gamespot doesn't even deserve to mentioned on this site. They are pure shit.

 

[Bladexdsl]

In the case of Skyward Sword, the controls function as they should most of the time, but that's not enough. When I swing and it doesn't register, or I point toward the screen but Link looks at the ground, I get angry. Nintendo usually sets the standard for controls, so I'm shocked they would release a game in this state.

his remote must be fucked than cos i never once had a problem with the sword not swinging where i wanted it or link looking at the ground!!! and whats with this bow bs just point the remote an the screen and push A it works! what a fuck-tard

 

[Giga_Gaia]

Actually, he is a little right. The controls for Skyward Sword are just downright horrible. I have never seen anything so horribly done. There is no word mankind has or can even invent to describe this **** to be honest.

Nintendo shouldn't have used Motion Plus. Or they can do it, but they should have given us the option of Gamecube controller.

No offense, people says the game is harder than the others, but I doubt it actually is. Everytime I died, it was because of those terrible controls. Give me a gamecube controller and I'd have died like once.

Also, why make us center the damn camera all the time? This is actually another thing they did wrong. It could have easily been made to always stay centered.