Barely getting passed the tutorial/ prologue/ opening stages - Chances are, your opinion isn't valid
Playing at least 50% of the game or generally an extended period of time - Opinion is possibly valid, but depends on the how long the game is.
For example, if you played Destiny for 10 hours, yeah, sorry, you have no clue. You can't look at me, someone with 2000+ hours of actual play time in that game, and think we're equal. Not even close.
So your opinion is more valid than those with less time spent in-game? Would it be fair to assume you enjoy Destiny a fair amount? Obviously if you like a game, you'll play it a lot, but do you think there is a Stockholm-syndrome esque effect that by sheer dedication and hours spent, your opinion might be considered invalid by less "influenced" players? Not that its a sin to enjoy Destiny, but it seems like there could be some sort of loop there, if that makes sense?
As a side note, the last paragraph comes off as very condescending and dismissive.
I thought my point was obvious, but I'll explain.
I'm assuming you're familiar with Destiny's general premise so I don't have to explain it. Anyway, who do think has extensive, deeper understanding of the game's mechanics and themes? The guy who hardly gave the game a chance, or the guy who's played literally every piece of content the game has to offer? I'm not saying, in this case, that one must do absolutely everything to have a valid opinion on Destiny. But to think that person can fairly and objectively assess what's good and bad about the game, with relatively little experience, is highly unlikely.
I'm not going to pretend I know anything about Overwatch after only playing it for an hour, versus the guy who plays it every day. That person clearly has a basis in which they can praise and criticize the game. I don't. I'll gladly defer to them since my lack of experience pales in comparison.
Just because I've played Destiny a helluva lot doesn't mean I automatically forgive all of its shortcomings. In fact, being such a dedicated player, I'm far more vocal and aware of what is wrong and what can improve because I understand the nitty gritty minutae and nuances of the game.
Call me old fashioned, but I'd say 10 hours is a pretty good amount of time to discern if a game is right for you or not, and for what reasons.
Depends. I had someone agreeing with the EDGE score on Xenoblade 2 one day after the game was out. Turns they had played for 8h. Yes, that invalidates their opinion whether the EDGE score is something I end up agreeing with or not down the line. Ultimately, it depends on genre and the specific game. I believe you can draw a lot of conclusions from a FIFA demo but generally, I think you need to see a substantial amount of the game to confidently state an opinion about it. Nothing wrong with quitting a game 5h in you didn't enjoy but be transparent about it.
I honestly think, given my example, I could write a fairly detailed review/recommendation on Final Fantasy XIII despite not finishing it.That's all fine and good. That's how you yourself think about the game. That's an opinion all right. But it's not something you could say/write/use in a review/recommendation for others.
You can form an opinion about a game within minutes usually, but you shouldn't use this kind of opinion to convince other people to/or deter them from playing a game. At least that's what I think. Also I can't seem to properly convey my thoughts into words on this topic. So, sorry if it's hard to understand what I'm trying to say.
Not really. I don't even need to play, for example, a shooter with controller and 30fps+vsync to know that the gameplay is mediocre, boring, etc.
Of course not. You need to play enough to get familiar with all the major game play systems and I'd say your opinion is valid by then.