Review aggregate sites like Metacritic and OpenCritic provide an opportunity for anyone, not just members of games media, to review a game. Occasionally, this open-door policy leads to people intentionally leaving negative scores before even playing the game. Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores DLC is now another title subjected to the malicious practice of review bombing. PlayStation first-party titles have a long history of being review bombed, and the Burning Shores DLC is the latest in a series of console exclusives being given poor user scores for reasons not pertaining to gameplay.
Sometimes these review-bombing campaigns have the negative impact of clouding the conversation surrounding a game, to the point where any discourse about the merits of the title is clouded by the polarizing effect it had on players. Whether continuations of popular franchises like The Last of Us 2 or brand-new titles that signal the beginning of a new IP, Sony's high-quality first-party exclusives are releases that garner a significant amount of attention upon their release. As a result, these high-profile games have a history of getting review-bombed.
Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores DLC - Representation and Exclusivity
Beginning with the most recent Sony-exclusive title to be review-bombed, Burning Shores is the long-awaited DLC expansion to the well-reviewed Horizon Forbidden West from Guerilla Games. One of the primary sticking points with players that are review-bombing the game seems to rest on the main character Aloy having the option to romance another female character in a gay relationship. This is not the first time that LGBTQIA+ representation in games has come under fire from fans, and not even the first time in a Sony first-party exclusive game.
The other cause for players to review bomb the new DLC for Forbidden West stems from the Burning Shores expansion's exclusivity to the PS5. Whereas the base game Horizon Forbidden West was cross-platform between PS4 and PS5, the new expansion is only available on Sony's current-gen hardware. Locking out a chunk of the player base who have yet to make the upgrade to the newest console generation has sat poorly with some fans, resulting in negative reviews.
The Last of Us 2 - Narrative and Representation
The controversial leak of key elements of The Last of Us 2's narrative shortly before the game's launch led to a massive review bombing campaign from fans who were upset over the death of a beloved character in the game's early moments. Additionally, the reveal of Ellie being gay led to fans taking issue with the game's representation of LGBTQIA+ characters, with some even incorrectly asserting that Abby was transgender. Instead of decrying the game for elements related to its gameplay, fans vented frustrations over narrative decisions made by director Neil Druckmann and the team at Naughty Dog.
Ghost of Tsushima Director's Cut - Pricing and Timing
In another case of a once well-received game being review-bombed over its remaster pricing, Sucker Punch's Ghost of TsushimaDirector's Cut received negative reception from fans over its $70 price tag mere months after the release of the original game. Despite garnering plenty of glowing reviews from critics, fans were again contentious toward the pricing of the game as well as its favoring of new hardware. Many of the more significant reasons to purchase the Director's Cut were enhanced by playing the game on PS5, and at its time of release the PlayStation 5 was still difficult to come by.
Marvel's Spider-Man - Console Exclusivity
As one of the most beloved characters in all of comic fandom, any game based on Spider-Man generates substantial hype and attention, and Marvel's Spider-Man 2's new trailer is no different. Perhaps the most anticipated console exclusive for the PS4, several fans took their disappointment over Marvel's Spider-Man not being cross-platform to review aggregate sites and review-bombed the game, also adding fuel to the infamous "Puddlegate" situation from the E3 demo. Along with the release of The Last of Us 2, the review bombing of Marvel's Spider-Man likely helped influence Metacritic to change its user review policies regarding allowing users to score a game prior to its release, even though this specific game wasn't hit as hard as others.
Returnal - Difficulty
Returnal was one of the first PS5 exclusives and was lauded by critics for its gameplay, graphics, audio, and captivating approach to the roguelike and bullet-hell shooter genres. Despite the praise from critics, the game was brutally difficult in its launch state and essentially required players to complete the game in one sitting due to it not featuring a save option. Many players took issue with the difficulty and the lack of a save option, and thus decided to review-bomb the game, even going as far as to praise the game for its other elements in the same breath.
Gran Turismo 7 - In-Game Economy and Microtransactions
The Gran Turismo franchise is one of the most-respected series in the racing genre and is also synonymous with the PlayStation brand as an exclusive title spanning each generation of Sony's hardware. As a result, the Gran Turismo games have a dedicated fanbase and an established pedigree of quality that these same fans have come to expect. Despite being one of the highest-rated titles in the series, Gran Turismo 7 was review bombed by fans thanks to its implementation of in-game microtransactions and intentionally slow progression toward earning in-game credits. The developers eventually re-balanced the in-game economy in response to fan complaints, but many still view the always-online requirement and real-money transactions as a blemish on the franchise.
Forspoken - Representation
Another Sony-exclusive title released this year that was also victim to malicious review bombing, Square Enix's Forspoken was bombarded with low-scoring reviews along with claims that the game's protagonist being African American was part of a supposed political agenda. While the gameplay of Forspoken was slightly underwhelming, it certainly wasn't as poor as what the review-bombers were claiming. The majority of player frustrations surrounding the title were apparently based on the game having a black female protagonist.
Unfortunately, the negative reviews and low sales of Forspoken led to a dismantling of the studio behind the game. Thankfully, for most of the titles on this list, fans looked past the review bombing and still were able to experience some great games whose qualities were not overshadowed by negative player feedback.
Horizon Forbidden West is available now for PS4 and PS5. Burning Shores is available exclusively for PS5.
