ForumsGamesHow to rate a game correctly

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Soltis
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Soltis
29 posts
Nomad

I've spent a lot of time playing games on AG, and to put it bluntly, most games I encounter have ratings wildly out of proportion to their actual quality. In a few cases a game is rated too low, but usually it's the opposite: people appear to rate games based on what other people have rated them, nearly as much as their own opinion -- or they simply don't want to give any game a "bad" rating.

Here are some general thoughts and pointers:

1. A game author may not like getting a low rating, but it's important to rate games accurately -- for two reasons. First, so other players know what to expect; second, so the author knows if they need to try harder in order to produce a good game.

2. Other people's opinions are not yours. All a 9.5 rating means, is that the game has a 9.5 rating; don't be afraid to rate a game a 6 or 5 just because everyone else didn't.

3. Every rating number has its own meaning - the entire spectrum, from 1 to 10, should be used when appropriate.

4. Most games should get between 4 and 7 in ratings -- 1-3 should be reserved for spectacular failures, and 8-9 should be used sparingly.

5. You should never rate a game a 10 unless you've thought about it pretty hard, first - if the "10" rating is to have any meaning, it should be extremely uncommon; I don't think I've ever given a 10; I've given a couple 9.5s, but there are always flaws.

6. Once in a while, a game is simply so creative you want to give it credit for being so original; I suggest rating it like usual, and then adding no more than 1 to the resulting rating... even creativity needs to be balanced by discipline and skill.

Anyway, to help people give better ratings, I've provided a number-by-number breakdown of possible ratings and when they should be used:

1 - AWFUL: unplayable, impossible to enjoy, or even tolerate; games which are so buggy you can't even play a minute or two might qualify, too.

2 - Terrible: nobody in their right mind would enjoy it; comparable to watching paint dry for sheer entertainment value.

3 - Bad: boring, annoying, repetitive; terribly balanced; severely buggy, etc.

4 - Mediocre: amateurish, tedious, or suffers serious balance issues; you wouldn't say it's out right bad, but you wouldn't say it's anywhere near good.

5 - Average: no crushingly bad flaws, but nothing impressive - a good way to waste time, but nothing more.

6 - Above average: fun, but with flaws; there may be balance issues, bugs, or implementation issues of a good idea. This should be the highest rating a game gets if it has even one serious complaint.

7 - Good: no serious complaints or bugs; above-average enjoyability, or an unusually creative game concept.

8 - Great: a great idea, with good implementation; there may be minor issues, but nothing that would stop a reasonable player from having a great time.

9 - Amazing: not quite perfect, but a masterpiece. No real issues; the only problems should be extremely slight, or subjective (matters of opinion).

10 - Perfect: flawless; absolutely no complaints whatsoever, and game play slightly more addictive than crack.

  • 88 Replies
Dannydaninja
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Dannydaninja
948 posts
Nomad

Lol do you think i am going to think about rating a game THIS much?!
All i have inputed in my mind is:

1: I hate it to death, worst game ever
2: OMG so bad
3: very very bad
4: very Bad
5: bad
6: kinda bad
7: Average
8: Good
9: Very Good!
10: Awesome + Add to faves

Strop
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Strop
10,817 posts
Bard

After looking over the thread, I think the best thing to do would actually be to see if any further discussion here is cause for review of the original post, then perhaps repost that in the Newcomers' Forum.

6 - Above average: fun, but with flaws; there may be balance issues, bugs, or implementation issues of a good idea. This should be the highest rating a game gets if it has even one serious complaint.


This is why if there is a serious issue or many with a game, I don't rate it if I suspect the developer is going to change it (e.g. animation speed in Sonny, scoring issues in Raze etc.). You can only rate a game once.
Co1980
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Co1980
43 posts
Shepherd

I find these rules too strict: if a game is seriously flawed but makes me laugh and have a good time, I might rate it 7 anyway. Flash games are usually not made by game design professionals, so they tend to be flawed.

I think the abuse of the comment box should stop ("I love it", "hated it", "haha " etc.) and we should all start writing reviews; it's not that hard: just say what you think and WHY in a bit more detail ("I love the gameplay but hated the graphics. And it made me laugh: haha &quot. Once you have written a comment like this, you have approached the game rationally. By playing it, you have already approached it emotionally, so now you can combine the two into a fair rating for you.

I think this is much easier, don't you?

MC10
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MC10
21 posts
Nomad

I think this is a good guide. If a game sucks I think I'd rate it down without too much hesitation. If I really loved it and faved it I'd give it a 10 even though it might be too high. Most games I play are average so I give them like 7's.

madbullman
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madbullman
124 posts
Nomad

ya well maybe its helply for someone ...

Soltis
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Soltis
29 posts
Nomad

Strop:

Thanks for the input; I'll do exactly that.

Samuslover99
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Samuslover99
100 posts
Nomad

Soltis
ur an idiot
a total idiot
thats just unbelivable that society is coming to people restricting others personal opinions, im going out there right now and rating 5 games 10/10 just to show how much i despise u
ur insane u idiot

leo99rules
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leo99rules
2,765 posts
Nomad

Soltis
ur an idiot
a total idiot
thats just unbelivable that society is coming to people restricting others personal opinions, im going out there right now and rating 5 games 10/10 just to show how much i despise u
ur insane u idiot


Those trolls...

Oh and this has really helped me. I am one of those people that don't want to rate badly...but don't know how to rate really good. This helped a lot.
Haku1234567890
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Haku1234567890
1,720 posts
Nomad

Take a look at rating of hobo 3 one few minutes after it came out, lol
is it realy AWFUL: unplayable, impossible to enjoy, or even tolerate... like you said or poeple who where rating just didn't like it

http://i40.tinypic.com/2mcv8yf.jpg

Haku1234567890
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Haku1234567890
1,720 posts
Nomad

Those trolls...

Oh and this has really helped me. I am one of those people that don't want to rate badly...but don't know how to rate really good. This helped a lot.


He may be a troll, but he has a point, 10/10 and 1/10 are really common ratings and nobody can change that
Soltis
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Soltis
29 posts
Nomad

Tomekwro:

Maybe you should just stick to playing RPGs, then -- it seems unfair to make the very type of a game factor into its rating...

leo99rules:

That's the kind of thing I was aiming to do; if you're interested, keep your eyes out for an updated version of this on the Newcomers' forum.

Soltis
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Soltis
29 posts
Nomad

Co1980:

It's not too strict; if they're not professionals, they should understand that they're not going to get perfect ratings, unless they do professional-quality work.

As for what you just described, that's more-or-less exactly what I do; I just care more about accuracy than catering to my emotions of the moment.

iliketowearflanal
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iliketowearflanal
37 posts
Nomad

Well, thats basically the already, obvious idea of 1-10/10 ratings.

I figure its self explanatory that 10 is better then 9 or 4 is better then 3. I think this is rather useless.

2/10.

Soltis
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Soltis
29 posts
Nomad

iliketowearflanal:

That's unbelievably self centered of you. Even if you happen to find rating games to be a self evident process, a lot of people have trouble finding the right balance.

If I went around trashing every "How to" article that contained info I already understood, I'd never run out of things to make fun of... but that would be missing the point -- and so are you.

Iphone
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Iphone
455 posts
Nomad

I do see what your getting at, but maybe the MAJORITY of people playing a game love it, or hates it. But yes I do see how this is a great forum post, maybe should be stickied.

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