Let's agree to disagree

No one was surprised when Valve's Portal 2 (360, PS3, PC) -- one of the most anticipated releases of 2011 and the sequel to a highly original gem of a game -- received glowing reviews from game critics upon its release last month. What was shocking was the fan reaction.

As reported throughout the gaming press, all three versions of Portal 2 were excoriated in user comments on Metacritic, with gamers objecting to, among other things, being prompted to purchase DLC on day one (though that content was not necessary for gameplay). Whether or not it was an organized campaign against the game or just fan backlash against being promised an early release if they would only buy additional titles, the result was -- temporarily -- extremely low user scores at the same time Portal 2 was among the year's highest-scoring games among critics.

Justified or not, this is certainly not the first time Metacritic users have disagreed with professional critics, nor is it the first case of the public punishing a title loved by reviewers. Sometimes, the user reaction stems from a backlash against excessive hype, while other times business decisions like crippling DRM or an over-reliance on DLC are to blame. Users may also notice problems with online play that aren't present pre-release, or they may simply rebel against a never-ending stream of sequels that add little new to a franchise. On the other side, users will sometimes enjoy a game much more than critics did, perhaps a result of being able to spend additional gameplay time to uncover merits that aren't apparent at first blush.

The user scores for Portal 2 have actually rebounded significantly since the game's release, but there are plenty of other titles that still have a wide gulf between critic and user scores. We have analyzed all games in Metacritic's database (for current-generation platforms) that have at least 30 critic reviews and 50 user reviews. The games with the biggest score differentials between critics and users are listed below, along with representative user comments for each game.

Games that critics liked but users didn't

Games that users liked but critics didn't

Games that critics merely liked but users loved

Game Platform/Year Metascore User Score Difference 1 Multiwinia: Survival of the Flattest PC, 2008 76 9.3 17 "Quick, visceral, strategy which is hugely satisfying in short bursts. Not a game for epic gaming sessions, but rather one you can come back to regularly for months to come." -- TomM. 2 Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance PC, 2007 81 9.6 15 "A great upgrade to an already awesome game. Forged Alliance adds a new dimension to the game and streamlines Supreme Commander in many ways the fans have been waiting for." -- RyanM. 3 The Dark Eye: Drakensang PC, 2009 75 8.9 15 "Perhaps critics have become so jaded they will happily ding any game without a large marketing budget, and knock it hard for things like sub-par voice acting and actually having to read text. By and large though, RPG fans only care about gameplay and atmosphere, and this game has it in spades. This is the funnest Baldur's-Gate style game since.... well, Baldur's Gate really." -- [Anonymous] 4 Space Rangers 2: Rise of the Dominators PC, 2006 84 9.8 14 "A fantastic game from outside of the mainstream of software development. Only people that were more concerned with making a satisfying game than making money would have produced this sprawling, free-form masterpiece." -- WillF. 5 The House of the Dead: Overkill Wii, 2009 78 9.2 14 "I can't believe that this game doesn't rate higher! It's fabulous, and easily among the best and most entertaining FPS on the Wii. Yes, it's profane, but it's funny, isn't it?" -- DJH 6 Naruto: Rise of a Ninja 360, 2007 78 9.1 13 "Ubisoft have really made a great game that Naruto fans can be proud of, even somebody who doesnt watch naruto would love this game. The graphics are excellent, the fighting is fun and the mini-games are good too." -- EmoD 7 Dreamfall: The Longest Journey PC, 2006 75 8.7 13 "A bit like an interactive movie and quite linear (which I don't necessarily consider a con), the magnificent story kept me glued to the screen for over 24h. If you can cope with plot linearity, try this one out." -- M.Alex 8 The Witcher PC, 2007 81 93 12 "This is simply the most enjoyable RPG experience I've had since the golden era of Ultima. It makes some other RPGs released in the last few years almost seem shallow in comparison." -- PHE 9 Wii Sports Wii, 2006 76 8.7 11 "One of the best games I've ever played that came with a console. What is really amazing about this game is the range of people that can enjoy it." -- ChrisD. 10 Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn Wii, 2007 78 8.9 11 "Anyone who complains that this game doesn't use motion controls doesn't quite get the Wii. It's not all about the motion controls, it's also about playing fun games on a system that is still reasonably priced." -- DLippert

What do you think?

What are some of your biggest disagreements with the critical consensus ... or, for that matter, the general user response to a game? Let us know in the discussion section below.