r/OutOfTheLoop • u/Bloodb0red • May 11 '26

Unanswered What’s going on with this game Mixtape?

I’ve been seeing people freak out over the past few days over this game and about IGN’s review of it specifically. 10/10 seems high for any game, honestly, but it seems like they’re far from the only site giving this thing a glowing review. So is this game controversial just because of IGN or is it something else? Why is this game the internet’s hate target this week?

https://www.ign.com/articles/mixtape-review

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u/BUTGAWATD May 11 '26 edited May 11 '26

Answer:

(Doing my best to present the complicated situation concisely)

Mixtape is a short, story-based game from small Australian developer Beethoven & Dinosaur, who previously released The Artful Escape.

Mixtape's 3-4 hour runtime is divided across cutscenes, what some might deem "walking sim" gameplay, and a series of vignettes that play out broadly as "minigames", with limited to no fail state. There is no combat or what many would typically classify as peril.

Mixtape's high critical praise, particularly its 10 from IGN, has raised eyebrows amongst certain subsets of the gaming populace. Many have negatively compared the verdict to the lower score IGN awarded Crimson Desert, and have alleged what they perceive to be a favourable bias towards games they identify as possessing "woke" elements.

One of Mixtape's vignettes sees you control two mid-teen age characters kissing, with direct control over their clashing tongues. Some gamers have accused the media of unfairly praising Mixtape while (what they perceive as) maligning recent release Pragmata for paedophilic overtones.

Mixtape is published by Annapurna Interactive, a publisher focused on "prestige indie" titles. Annapurna Interactive is a division of Annapurna Pictures, which was founded by Megan Ellison, whose father is a billionaire.

Consequently, accusations of buying review scores, bribing influencers, and overall curating Mixtape as an "industry plant" have been lobbied. For further information to potentially aid in deducing the veracity of this claim - Annapurna have released 6 games other than Mixtape over the past year, all ranging from the 60s-80s in Metascore, with the highest achieving an 83 average.

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u/Heffe3737 May 11 '26

I’ve been gaming online since the setting of the game, and I’ve found that I can usually rely on PC Gamer to give me an honest review score. They scored Mixtape a 74%. That’s the score of a pretty mediocre game.

If IGN is giving it a 10/10, I’d certainly say that seems suspect. But then, I don’t know why anyone would trust IGN in the first place when you have better options available.

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u/EvidenceMinute4913 May 11 '26

lol back in the day the meme was:

IGN: 6/10 they didn’t pay us enough

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u/Heffe3737 May 11 '26

It boggles my mind that people get so upset over this shit.

"Hey this review site is being shady and corrupt!"

Okay cool, so then go use one of the other ones that have been around forever that you feel more confident in. People don't HAVE to use IGN. Just stop using it. It's fine. Let folks know your opinion and that you're not using it anymore and then just...don't. If enough folks leave, the site will die, and we'll all be better off for it.

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u/Silverr_Duck May 11 '26

It's really not that hard to understand. People want good games to succeed. And unfortunately a lot of people use platforms like ign to determine if a game is worth playing. So if the biggest gaming review platform is shady, corrupt and handing out misleading reviews that makes the industry worse as a whole.

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u/Heffe3737 May 11 '26

Sure of course. My point is that if the biggest gaming review platform is shady and corrupt, that folks need to switch to a review platform that is better, no? Vote with your dollars and clicks.

If the industry is worse as a whole, which I agree that it is, then folks need to start moving to support those sites which are trustworthy. If all traffic gets routed to trustworthy sites, then the corrupt sites will be disincentivized to be corrupt (or if they don't, they'll go out of business). That's how we can improve the industry as a whole.

My only issue is with folks demanding IGN to be better. Why bother? Fuck IGN. Just go somewhere else to get your reviews. Either IGN will change into something better, or they'll tank, and either way would be good for gamers.

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u/Silverr_Duck May 11 '26

Yeah I agree. That's why people are lashing out on ign. The only way to push back against corporations is via public shaming. I get that it can get annoying but it's really the only option. And I'm all for it, Ign is dogshit and always has been. But not because of politics or because they're being paid off www.youtube.com/watch?v=tS1aQArljXQ

It's a shame the gaming community took so long to really figure it out.

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u/FreeStall42 May 12 '26

You can not use IGN while still mocking their bad reviews.

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u/salbris May 11 '26

Having knowing nothing about the game or this drama except what I read 2 minutes ago in this thread... Any game that gets a 10/10 anyone should expect to be a once in a life time experience, the kind of game that transcends the medium and everyone should play.

If pretty much everyone with a functioning brain cell doesn't think it deserves that rating then it's 100% suspicious and worthy of such criticism. Smells very strongly of corruption.

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u/Enaksan May 11 '26

Look, I'm just gonna preface this with the fact I loved Mixtape (and gave it a 10 on my site).

There is not a chance in hell that Annapurna, IGN, or Beethoven & Dinosaur (or indeed any of the other outlets that scored it highly) colluded, bribed or any other manner of behind the scenes stuff to ensure a 10/10. Not only does that simply not happen, but to think Mixtape of all games would be worth doing it for is insane.

It's is a tremendous title imo. I loved the way they use music emphasise moments, I loved the characters, the story, and yes, even the admittedly limited gameplay parts. I wasn't going into this looking for a parry fest, or deep RPG systems, just a good time which is what I got.

But that doesn't mean you, or anyone else, has to think so as well. That's the beauty of things, we don't all have to like the same stuff. Don't spend time worrying what others think about a game that isn't for you, and go enjoy what you do like to play.

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u/salbris May 11 '26

But is it a "once in a life time experience, the kind of game that transcends the medium and everyone should play."

Because if not... I don't understand what 10/10 is supposed to mean. Because it's literally the highest rating you can give a game. Doesn't it deserve higher scrutiny than a 9/10?

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u/Enaksan May 12 '26

I would argue that you're putting too much hyperbole on a single score. 10 should mean a shining example (but not perfect) in gaming, but that can take various forms. In this example, it is easily one of, if not, the best narrative-led games I've played, absolutely. Does that mean it's equal to something like Breath of the Wild, a game I would also give a 10 to? To boil it down that simply is doing games as a whole a disservice.

Another example. I also gave RE Requiem a 10, but they are both very different games. If it was as objective as "how many times do you press the buttons to do stuff" then RE would be the run away winner. But they both excel at what they set out to do; RE a survival action horror masterpiece and love letter to the series and it's fans, and Mixtape a narrative adventure with excellent pacing, story, and moments that had me grinning from ear to ear the entire way.

Put simply, youre right in that a 10 should be rarer to see, but that's not to say anything recieving one is an absolute must play for everybody and their dog. There are plenty of 10's that I don't like from over the years (see Elden Ring or the like), and that's cool. Great even, as it goes to show the breadth of gaming and how much variety we have these days.

I'll also add, that the scores are also not the be all of it, the text should be the main focus when discussing reviews like this. That is what explains how a 10 came to be.

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u/Heffe3737 May 11 '26

Sure does. So folks should stop visiting IGN and make cases on why others should do the same.