The Difference Between Overrated and Bad · 9:59pm Apr 20th, 2016
A lot of people tend to say a movie or a game is "overrated" when it's really not that popular at all, and it's just plain bad. And in turn, a lot of people tend to say that a movie or a game is "bad" when it's not bad at all, just severely overrated. So what's the difference?
"Bad" is easy, it's just the opposite of good. But what does "overrated" mean? According to the first Google result you'll get, a dictionary definition in fact, the entry says "to have a higher opinion of (someone or something) than is deserved."
People are going around saying that Five Nights at Freddy's and Undertale are bad, but I've taken a look at them for myself, and to be honest, they aren't really that bad; in fact they are tremendously good. The problem is that, thanks to the internet being so readily accessible to adolescents and even children who will be extremely mystified by anything with a lot of atmosphere and creative premises, anything that unique and that good is going to have a rabid fanbase that's going to blow a few particularly obvious or unique good qualities it has way out of proportion while not only ignoring what few bad qualities there are, but also ignoring all the other good qualities besides the most obvious ones, thus not only praising the games beyond their actual quality, but also failing to appreciate them for their entire spectrum of positive traits, and also completely misunderstanding some of the points and backstory in those games. In fact, like I just implied, anything that is simultaneously particularly good and particularly unique is going to be somewhat overrated and overexposed on the internet.
Children and teenagers will really get sucked into an emotional, dark, and mysterious atmosphere, and will rejoice at exposure to media that successfully does this. This is why 1980s family movies and other atmospheric and emotional media have regained strong followings all over the internet, and you know what? That isn't bad at all, in fact most of them are very good, and it's great that things that these gems that would have been previously forgotten have now been rediscovered and gained cult followings, thanks to the internet. But sometimes, people focus too much on a scant few positive traits while ignoring all of the other positive traits of the media they are watching, playing, reading, or whatever, and will also ignore all of the negative traits as well. But that doesn't mean they are bad, just the opposite in fact. This is what I define as "overrated", a good thing that gets more praise and less criticism than it can benefit from, and is more over-exposed by people who don't even completely understand the thing, than said thing deserves.
And a bad thing is just bad. Plain and simple. Perhaps in the near future, I'll talk about how fans can react to bad media, but for now, I've told you what you needed to know!
i agree
FNAF maybe, but Undertale? I've heard nothing but constant praise for it :)
3884859 Trust me, on Steam there's a ton, and on the comment section of this one Youtuber I watch, when he stated that he didn't like the actual game but enjoyed the story and characters, fanboys and haters alike threw a shitstorm at him.
I don't really have any issues with this, other than that I'm not really convinced that the term "overrated" is particularly useful in subjective discussions. Now, I understand that developing games and films and what have you is as much a science as it is an art and that there are mechanics and techniques that are objectively broken or otherwise fundamentally bad, but when it comes down to content things get a bit less clear. Using games as an example, I tend to enjoy tactical games such as XCOM 2, Darkest Dungeon, and a variety of RPGs. Conversely, I tend not to have a ton of fun with shooters as I don't find the gameplay very engaging, and frankly I'm not very good at them.
There are a few exceptions, mind you, but for the most part I tend not to care for that particular genre. That said, I don't think there's anything wrong with shooters, even if I can't always determine why some people like them so much. I understand that shooters aren't supposed to appeal to me, they're supposed to appeal to that genre's audience. I also understand that the people who enjoy shooters might not enjoy the sorts of games I do; for instance, they might feel that those games demand players invest far too much time in them for the sake of learning mechanics, synergies, and strategy, and you know what? That's fair, and it may even be valid.
What I'm trying to say with this is that when it comes to subjective discussions, suggesting something is "overrated" is a bit arrogant. The term itself asserts that a work is considered better than it actually is. Essentially, using the term suggests that people like something too much, which seems kind of unreasonable. You can certainly say that these "fanboys" are too invested in these works, but that's another discussion altogether. More than that, it's not really an issue with the work itself so much as it is an issue with people who enjoy it.
3884859
It exists, aye. Given the circles I run in I'm not generally exposed to serious hatred of Undertale, but I've seen more than a few discussions where the game was harped on quite a bit for certain themes.
3885940
Yes. Quoted for absolute undeniable truth. I wish more people on the internet thought this way.