"They care a lot about Metacritic" Suda51 thinks some games are made with ratings in mind and not creativity

For some video game companies, The Metacritic rating defines part of the success of a project and there are even cases where this determines whether or not there are additional bonuses that incentivize the work of the developers.However, this is not the case in all cases and there are companies that do not give as much weight to a rating, such as Grasshopper Manufacture, and proof of this are the statements of its director. Goichi Suda.

Suda51 doesn’t care about Metacritic ratings and criticizes some companies’ obsession with it

During an interview with Gamesindustry.bizthe famous Japanese creative Suda51, who is promoting the remastered version of Shadows of the Damned Together with Shinji Mikami, he spoke about the obsession that exists in some companies, and sectors of fans, with the rating that a game receives on the Metacritic review platform.

In this regard, Suda51 He noted that this has given way to a formula in pursuit of a certain rating and there are games that are created with this in mind, limiting creativity: “Everyone pays too much attention and cares too much about Metacritic scores. It’s gotten to a point where there’s almost a set formula; if you want to get a high score on Metacritic, that’s how you make the game. If you have a game that doesn’t fit that formula, that marketing scope, you lose points on Metacritic. Bigger companies might not want to deal with that kind of thing. That might not be the main reason, but it’s certainly one of the reasons. Everyone cares too much about numbers.”

Regarding his case with Grasshopper Manufacture, Goichi Suda assured that he is not interested in ratings because his goal is to develop and launch the video game that he imagined at the company, fulfilling his interests and creative motivations: “Personally, I don’t care too much about Metacritic numbers. I’m not really aware of them. What’s important to us is to release the games that we want to release and for people to play the games that we want them to be able to play.”

ARTICLE: Suda51, the director who is not afraid of being cancelled

What do you think about Metacritic ratings and the importance given to them by some sectors of the industry?

Tell us in the comments and follow us here at LEVEL UP.

Fountain