LogInMetacritic has stated its intention to implement "stricter moderation" in response to the spike in negative review bombing following the release of the DLC for Horizon Forbidden West.
Review aggregator Metacritic has pledged to enhance its moderation system following a surge of negative review bombing in response to the recent DLC release for Horizon Forbidden West, Horizon Forbidden West Burning Shores.
Although the adventure game received overwhelmingly positive reviews from critics for its storytelling and performance, user reviews tell a different tale as the game currently holds a rating of 4.1 out of 10 on the website.
As reported by Eurogamer, the score was even previously as low as 2.7 due to a review bombing campaign aimed at two key aspects of the game – the DLC's relatively brief length and late-game story events.
Warning: The following content includes spoilers for Burning Shores. If you wish to avoid any knowledge of the game's storyline, please refrain from reading ahead.
As part of a storyline, the game offers the choice of a same-gender kiss between protagonist Aloy and warrior queen Sekya. While this event is optional, it appears to have triggered a group of people to engage in the "review bombing" of the DLC.
Metacritic has rarely addressed issues such as this which, unfortunately, occur frequently. However, it seems that the magnitude of the controversy surrounding Burning Shores has compelled the aggregator to take action.
In a statement to Eurogamer, the review aggregator's parent company Fandom has acknowledged the presence of "abusive and disrespectful reviews" for the DLC and stated that it is currently developing its processes and tools to implement "stricter moderation in the coming months."
Fandom hasn't specified what exact changes will be introduced in Metacritic's updated moderation policy but noted that the website's team already "reviews each and every report of abuse (including but not limited to racist, sexist, homophobic, insults to other users, etc.) and if violations occur, the reviews are removed."
While it is unclear how Metacritic will improve its review system, the ongoing removal of abusive reviews for Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores indicates that the cleanup process is underway. It remains to be seen whether such incidents will be avoided in the future.
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