.DX.
Power Member
We compiled game review scores (collected from Metacritic) by genre to show you which console does each kind of game best, in the most unbiased way we can.
We've split the results into two kinds for each console. The first, in lighter colours, is the average score for all games in each genre. The bolder coloured bars represent the average scores from just the top 5 best-scoring games in each category.
The thinking here is that the average gamer is unlikely to buy more than 5 games in one genre on their machine, so this figure is a more accurate representation of how good each console is for each type of game to the average gamer. OK then, here we go:
If you then tot up these scores and find an average of those, you start to get a picture of which console has the best quality of games...
As you can see, 360 has the best overall score for its biggest games, while the general quality of PS3 and 360 titles are similar. However, Wii's 'shovelware' brings down that console's total average, even though its best titles' average is good.
But it's the individual genres we wanted to see, so let's finish up with the overall results for the 'Top 5' games categories. These are the games most people would choose, as they're rated most highly by concensus opinion.
You can probably tell which console has been winnning everything, but dishing out some trophies makes it clear. Did we say trophies? Maybe that should be Achievements. Yup - looks like Xbox 360 has trumped PS3 in almost every category.
That's the combined opinion of every critic worth their salt. So, even though what we're about to say is bound to be branded 'flamebait' on teh interwebz, the results are clear:
Xbox 360 has (currently) got the broadest and best selection of games. Or at least had the best results at review.
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If you'd like to know the boring nuances of the data here, read on. Or you could just go and look at our collection of Sexy Fan Art. The choice is yours...
Like any study, there are several potential problems with the data and we accept that. These are:
1) Metacritic collects review scores from everywhere. If a lads' mag reckon DOA Xtreme 2 is a 10/10 because the girls are hot, that has as much weight as EDGE's opinion in the Metacritic universe. So the scores have to be taken with a pinch of salt. Having said that, it is a great way to show concensus opinion, and we reckon the scores are mostly accurate.
2) While we applaud Metacritic's invaluable service, its genre-labelling is highly suspect. While we have left most games where they are, we could not stand idly by and let Geometry Wars go in as a first-person shooter. That's simply not true. So while we have made sure the highest profile games are where they should be, and tried to tidy up as best we could, the very idea of 'genre' is subjective and so, ultimately, fallible. In the data's defense, this relabelling task has been carried out by one person for this study, so even if the choices made may not be universally appeasing, they are at least consistent.
3) Some games have not been included. Metacritic won't include a score for games that haven't been reviewed by enough sources. So brand new releases are not present and neither are extremely low-profile titles.
4) The consoles have had different lengths of time on the shelves. Not only does that mean 360 has more games available than PS3, but also that the old games are just that - old. If something scored 85 on its release, it stays at 85 unless new reviews are added. If that exact same game were released today on PS3, it may look outdated already, so that has to be taken into consideration.
http://www.gamesradar.com/f/which-console-does-best-and-worst-in-each-genre/a-20080721122120562022
