There are so many terrible, unreadable reviews littering this forum it really begs the question why there isnt some sort of ratings system used. Im just throwing something out here, say 1-5 stars, and you need a certain number of posts in the forums, like ten or twenty, before you can add a rating? Otherwise, its not really worth the time to sift the junk to find worthwhile reviews.
This place desperately needs a ratings system
- Thread starter chronicdog
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I disagree. The community reviews voice people's opinions of a game, but oftentimes, we, the community, give back to the review with constructive (mostly) criticism so they can make better reviews in the future. The rating system would be way too bureaucratic, with only the best being showcased, and not everyone's.chronicdog said:
Exactly. How are you supposed to receive constructive criticism from a bunch of ten-sided polygons?Ultrajoe said:
Also, take notice that this is a forum. If you want unrestricted quality, then you should confine yourself to Guest and Official Reviews. Otherwise, it should be fairly clear that this is a forum, and that it's also largely about improvement. If we restrict those who can post, they obviously we can not help those who do not meet requirements improve.chronicdog said:
Elitism isn't the answer.
Rating systems are easy to abuse, and rarely reflect the actual talent of an individual. More often they are a way for forum cliques to punish people for being new to writing (or the site), or saying something unpopular.
You are not required to read/comment on reviews, especially from people who fall below your personal standards.
You are not required to read/comment on reviews, especially from people who fall below your personal standards.
No.chronicdog said:
Granted, not every review posted here is a sparkling diamond. However a system such as the one you suggest wouldn't help. It would just turn of newcomers to the field. We like to cultivate civil, constructive discussion here in User Reviews, and if someone's having a serious go at reviewing we won't have too hard a go at them.
In time, you'll see who are the reviewing heavyweights around here. And if that still isn't goo enough, you could look at the official reviews posted on the front page.
But there is a ratings system of sorts in place already. If a review is truly terrible, The Escapists are not afraid to let the reviewer know this. More often than not, the more talented individuals (not me, a writer I am not) will give advice as well. This is much, much better than a numerical ratings system because no criticism goes unjustified in this case. It's all too easy to slap a low number on the review of someone you don't like without giving reasons why they fail at writing. If, however, any and all rating is in words, it becomes that much more valuable.
"No, you suck" will not go un-questioned, whereas giving them a number is either done by staff (who are in a certain position that intimidates some who would otherwise challenge their low ranking) or by other members, which will almost certainly be done anonymously. End result: you get a "no, you suck" without the benefit of being able to ask "why?".
"No, you suck" will not go un-questioned, whereas giving them a number is either done by staff (who are in a certain position that intimidates some who would otherwise challenge their low ranking) or by other members, which will almost certainly be done anonymously. End result: you get a "no, you suck" without the benefit of being able to ask "why?".
Better people know what they did wrong from comments, rather than just that something is wrong as a numerical rating would say.
Somebody said that for youtube, once. LOOK WHAT HAPPENED!
Rating systems lead to people not adding intelligent thoughts and criticism, instead just giving a useless and annoying mark which discredits their opinion as they then lose respect for not offering sage advice, as they can't be bothered past the point of clicking a button.
Rating systems lead to people not adding intelligent thoughts and criticism, instead just giving a useless and annoying mark which discredits their opinion as they then lose respect for not offering sage advice, as they can't be bothered past the point of clicking a button.
Ratings systems never work out like that. I have views on Fable 2. Views that it and everyone who worked on it should be condemned to a newly created 10th level of hell. But a lot of people enjoyed it.chronicdog said:
If I wrote a review saying how bad I thought it was that would likely get marked down, no matter how well written.
All ratings systems do is make those with unpopular opinions or those more likely to buck the trend less likely to participate, and thus making one particular opinion the voice of the community, and stiffling different views. And for a healthy forum (civil) debate with people you disagree with is essential.
I agree with this 97%. The 3% of doubt is that some people do not learn.Ultrajoe said:
Also, if you have newclassic post on your review, you know you did wrong anyway!
I've never seen a site where ratings help. That's why there's not a list of friends either as it would be the slippery slope to Elitism.chronicdog said:
What! Juandonde! No!juandonde said:
What happened, man? What horrible news...
I swear, I turned into the unofficial hammer-weilding sociopath of the User Reviews section. I didn't even mean to. And, also, that's not true. Even when I'm posting in a review, it could still be a good review. If I have bold all over your review, and most of them are commas, periods, capitals, and several-paragraph footnotes, then you know you did something wrong.sirdanrhodes said:
I'll still red-pen writers I like, and think did/do a good job. I'm just trying to be constructive. Am I really that harsh?
Given the general majority of the locals, though, it's not like it will be abused in the same way YouTube is. We naturally have a response from the higher intelligence-graced individuals, so our ratings will be closer to accuracy than YouTubers.Jharry5 said:
Although I still disagree with the idea, it's for a different reason.
It's harsh, but it's the best way to learn, I try my hardest not to rush something out like that Review of a review of far cry 2, now, I try to identify errors, which is why it took so long too write up the review for Sega Rally. So, basically, we need you to be a "Grammar-Nazi".NewClassic said:
Oh, and sorry, but if you see "NewClassic" on the last post, I bet alot of people expect they have been corrected.
