Untill I hear details of how the shooting was weak rather than just a vague few comments then ill continue failing to be concerned.

Stalker has hands down the best shooting in FPS I've ever played. Its the only game where each gun has a unique feel to it not between guns of differant classes but assault rifles with the same on paper stats. You don't make a conscious effort to learn but if you give yourself to the game you do.

It doesn't unlike most shooters Ie halo feel like your a weapons platform with gyro stabilisers shooting laser beams.

Stalker doesn't have crap shooting it has shooting where hitting an opponent isn't a given and where distance and travel time matters. Basically it has a differant approach to being a shooter.

Stalker doesn't have bad shooting it has players who fail to understand this.

Icant play JRPG's any more because of the grind that was involved, and FF12 is no differant they took out random encounters but have you noticed the encounter rate is twice to three times as high.

Basically I prefer WRPG's because the stories are often more understated even when your the son of the Lord of Murder.

Some WRPG's remembered for greatnessare Plnescape torment and Baldurs Gate 2. This is kind of unfair on Japanese RPG's because many of these RPG's have rich pre created source material.That said a lot of the subtlety in JRPG's is probably lost in the culture transition or even not put in Shin Megami Tensai comes to mind.

I really loved mass effect.

I loved it despite its problems and a developer did indeed ask us for our opinion on whether we wanted random worlds or a single extra planet in future such games so if your mature enough, lucid enough not to annoy then give a reasoned argument to bioware.

Portal is differant its part of a package with 2 to 4 other games depending on version.

Rock band is about more than the guitar

Your told about these faults, so why worry if a game is good its length shouldnt be a massive problem unless its single player is very short looking at you COD 4,

Im more worried about the trend to forgive tiny single player FPS camapigns when they have added multiplayer.

Games have got naturally shorter but anything less than 8 hours and ill agree their not worth it,

The issue you speak of isn't an all encompasing one its one that needs to be assessed in terms of importance on a game by game basis.

I think the General consensus among a lot of reviewers recently has been against western RPG's some even suggesting the western style RPG is starting to play itself out.

This is strane really when you consider the distinct lack of criticism of Japanese RPG's, I read an article in the escapist on how mario would fare if released today and I have to the say the same would be true of Japanese RPG's just look at reviewers unfavourable comments onn any game that extends the playtime with boring side missions like Windwaker and apply that to JRPG leveling

Everyone knows the Slack many RPG's get, the fact that Mass Effect hasnt recieved this is what seems unfair.The vast majority of console rpg's JRPG's have as Yahtzee said about Tabula Rasa, Grind up the bum, yet you never see them marked down for this except in extreme cases.

It seems that Biowware is being penalised for trying to bring the fun of fully interactive gameplay to the RPG genre.

And saying the review system wont allow a higher score for a flawed masterpiece is a broken review system. How can games progress into the form of artwhen theyre deducted points from problems which could be easily patched, something anyone whos played neverwinter nights would know Bioware are good at.

And before you say but it should be done on first pass, before its out the door look at the slack awarded to stalker which recieved the same dam score with far more serious bugs.