The action RPG Anthem currently stands at 60 points on Metacritic after initial tests and reviews. Analyst Michael Pachter has a bold explanation for this: According to him, Anthem was tested on PC but is simply not a PC game.
This is how Anthem performed in tests: Overall, Anthem currently has 60% on Metacritic in the PC test.
Reviewers praise the gameplay and acknowledge that it offers a lot of potential. However, they criticize the game’s story and point to a variety of bugs. The campaign lacks flow, the story lacks emotion, and the game is overall still not polished, according to the consensus of the press.
Early release for PC was the mistake
This is what the analyst says: Analyst Michael Pachter works for Wedbush Securities. In a conversation with the influential business site CNBC he explains his perspective and how Anthem could affect EA’s stock price.
According to him, EA made a mistake by allowing reviews of Anthem on PC that came out so early.
Because of Origin Access Prime, PC players were able to play a week before the actual release and write reviews, which were then already available at the console release on February 22.
Pachter says:
“In my personal evaluation, Anthem is simply not a PC game – There is flying in the game and when you control a flying hero, it’s like driving a car: the controls just don’t work well on PC, but they work perfectly on video game consoles.”
Michael Pachter to CNBC
Pachter estimates that the console version of Anthem will be rated about 10 points higher than the PC version.
According to Pachter, such a higher value would still be “bad, but not a disaster.”
That’s why Pachter’s thesis is bold: While the demo did indeed criticize the flying controls on PC. And flying is really a central element of Anthem.
However, most “mouse and keyboard” players agreed that the flying controls have improved significantly with the release version.
The press also explicitly praises the gameplay and flying through the world, but had other points of criticism that have nothing to do with the controls.
Pachter’s idea that Anthem is not a PC game, but rather made for consoles, is quite interesting and plausible. However, basing the thesis on flying seems problematic.
This is what other analysts say: Various analysts are mentioned on the business site CNBC who share their assessment of how Anthem could affect Electronic Arts’ stock price.
Guilherme Fernandes (Newzoo) believes that the negative reviews are not a cause for concern for investors. They should consider that not every new game will be a hit like Apex Legends. Most of EA’s revenue, after all, comes from the extremely popular annual releases of sports titles.
Piers Harding-Rolls (ISH Market) had already said before the release that introducing any new franchise represents a significant risk.
You can give your assessment of Anthem here:
