Are there any real life examples of merits that anyone wants to share? I've scoured the comments section of the games in search of merit examples for a ridiculously long amount of time, and only found page after page of spam.
One of the purposes of Merits is to set examples for other posters. This is a somewhat improbable idea, as personally, I've never even seen an actual Merit, and I'd rather not spend another half hour searching through comments filled with spam.
If you find a noteworthy Merit, or have previously earned a Merit, please feel free to post it.
where posts with high vote-ups generally mean that that post is credible
In a religious debate, which of the following sentences would be upvoted the most: "I believe God did create the world, but [...]" or "God doesn't exist, evolution has proven that [...]"
bully-ed
Bullied. As far as I know.
There have been problems with something similar in the past. People notified an account (merit-something, I think) about the merit worthy comments they had found, but in many cases it was actually either alts or friends of the person who notified about the comment, and even with the up vote button, there were cases of comments being upvoted without being actually well written or good in many aspects. Just like the referrals, it was simply too easy to create alts to boost your vote or your points in general.
we really don't need vote-downs to know what a spam/troll post is!
No, but the vote-down button could be used by more honest users to vote down the posts voted up by the dishonest users. That way, some really stupid and inappropriate joke comment wouldn't just get 10 votes up just because 10 people found it to be a great laugh.
Thus asking for one, you have to write on acting as if you don't want one. That is why I fail every time to get one. Ernie goes into it saying I better not get one and he does. Reverse psycolgity.
What's the point of plagiarizing a comment/review? Isn't it far more satisfing to write a review on a game and create it all from scratch (with you 'bare hands' if you like) and get credit for it? To me that is exactly what it is and should be!
I wasn't implying that I was considering plagiarism, I was responding to tommy5649946's accusation by discouraging the use of plagiarism.
There have been problems with something similar in the past. People notified... ...it was simply too easy to create alts to boost your vote or your points in general.
Well, that is what I meant with the possible miss-use of the vote-up or -down by people who don't care about the actual comment! They care about other things (don't EVEN want to start guessing what) and therefor the whole idea is trashed, which is a shame, but hey... :/
mods still give merits but they have raised the standards so getting merits is difficult. also because number of mods is very less, there is a very little chance that your comment would be seen by them
Don't worry ultimatetitan, they see all the reviews and they still give out merits! But like Carlie stated (in another thread) they have so many games -and with that a HUGE pile of comments and reviews- to sift through, that it sometimes takes a little time for them to "find" your review and give it (IF you deserve it) a merit. So sometimes, patience is the key-word here...
No, but the vote-down button could be used by more honest users to vote down the posts voted up by the dishonest users. That way, some really stupid and inappropriate joke comment wouldn't just get 10 votes up just because 10 people found it to be a great laugh.
How you state it... wouldn't that be something like allowing to have a certain feature installed, with which users can become occupied by voting-up and -down one single comment for eternity or untill one of both parties gets tyred? Either that or the threads get closed real quickly, leaving no more room for people to actually discuss matters and topics... hmmm... :S
I wasn't implying that I was considering plagiarism, I was responding to tommy5649946's accusation by discouraging the use of plagiarism.
Don't worry BeastMode10! It wasn't directed specifically at you, I simply wanted to make my personal view on this matter clear to the participating users on this thread... I simply stated how I think a review should be made and that doesn't involve plagiarizing a review, that's all...
Since I've just received my 10th merit I think it might be all right for me to give some advice.
Don't. Try.
I have not once written a comment with the intention of getting a merit. And to tell the truth I'm sick of all these merit whores who write these boring by-the-book comments just so they can get merits. There are times when I just have a lot to say about a game and so I say it. And that's usually when I find the game very inspiring or admirable. If I have a lot of bad stuff to say about a game, I usually just keep that to myself.
So there's another point: look for the good in a game. If everyone else is badmouthing a game, saying something positive will make your post stand out. And more often than not, game developers know the limits and shortcomings of their own games and don't need that reiterated to them. Of course there are times when they definitely want to know why people don't like their game, but that's usually not too hard for them to find out. Plenty of people are screaming it in their ear, you don't need to say it too, even if you're saying it more... eloquently. Yes I know that a review is generally incomplete without both the ups and the downs, but try to have some tact.
And just find things in general that you think other people haven't noticed or mentioned. Your comment will be worth so much more if you say something that nobody's said before. If I can't say something new, I just don't comment.
Don't say more than you have to say. If you have nothing to say, then posting a comment is spamming. If you have a little to say, then posting a lot is merit whoring.
I don't know where all my merits came from, but in case you're interested, some examples are in Ely, Closure, and the Tower.
So there's another point: look for the good in a game. If everyone else is badmouthing a game, saying something positive will make your post stand out. And more often than not, game developers know the limits and shortcomings of their own games and don't need that reiterated to them. Of course there are times when they definitely want to know why people don't like their game, but that's usually not too hard for them to find out. Plenty of people are screaming it in their ear, you don't need to say it too, even if you're saying it more... eloquently. Yes I know that a review is generally incomplete without both the ups and the downs, but try to have some tact.
I disagree with some of this, as with what I have written. If you've got something to say, then say it. Don't say something else or not say anything at all because everyone else is saying the same thing. That makes just as much sense as "I'm not going to vote for the next president because my vote won't count much." There's tact and then there's walking on eggshells. If you truly believe it to be a fault or exemplar, then say it. Sure, sometimes I wince when I realize everyone else says "such and such sucks" and I said the same thing, but then it's not like the entire comment is based around that single opinion. It's not as if it was so heavily trounced upon and hammered to an irremovable state so passionately as to be filled with hate that it became the sole point of your comment. Then again, I am frank and critical. The key is not to ignore the problems, but to present a level view that is neither verging nor thoroughly hateful and inflammatory (a line which I'm sure I've crossed a few times in reaction to some really WTF moments in games) and without fakery in praise.
And in the spirit of negation, if everyone is saying good stuff about the game, then what?
I agree with Gantic on the 'speak up'! If your write a review on a game, it SHOULD always give a clear view (your view in this) about the game, even if it means there are flaws in it or it is really bad!
Never leave out a 'bad' feature of the game, because you don't want to be disregarded for it and still get your desired merit... always tell the truth, even if it means you trash the game, but be sure you say it nicely and friendly without using swearwords or disrespectful sentencing in the review!
The developers/creators of the game are looking for feedback, not a feather in their hat?! Of course the latter is always nicer to receive, but when a game needs tweaking or upgrading and they won't know about it, they stay ignorant about it and can never improove their game...
And that's what's the desired aspect of the reviewing...
And in the spirit of negation, if everyone is saying good stuff about the game, then what?
Well I went on to say
just find things in general that you think other people haven't noticed or mentioned.
If you think a game is receiving ill-deserved praise, you can stand out by saying how the game is overrated.
but when a game needs tweaking or upgrading and they won't know about it, they stay ignorant about it and can never improove their game...
Believe me when I say it will never get to the point when everybody holds back on their criticism. And if it does, that's when you can be the one to stand out and criticize it, like I said. But in general, there's no shortage to the complaints players will dump onto a game. I see no reason to add to that.
And remember that game developers are people too, and they're letting you play their games for free. So be nice to them. It's like how so many Americans are enraged that the government might want to give them free health care. What are you so angry about?
I actually say bad things about games all the time. But the thing to remember is to say them tactfully, and in a constructive way. If you can do that, you'll stand out. After all, anyone can bash on a game.
Most people that 'bash on a game' as you say it, are more in the league of people writing those short comments that have no more (usually less) than 5 words a count and allmost certainly contain the words 'sucks', 'awful' or 'bad'...
It should be said (like you and I both stated) with tact, always! You're not out to annoy or harras the developers/creators, you're writing a review with honest and 'helpful' criticism on the game, nothing more, nothing less... =)
Here is a merit I just recently recieved (and I posted this in June :P)
Smiley Collapse Review
Baronduki, that was overkill... but in all honesty, it was a bad game, The graphics were fairly mediocre, everyone is already tired of smileys on the ads, why the heck would you put them in a game? the music was boring and repetitive, and incidentally, when the musics done, it does the all annoying 1)music fades 2)then pauses 3)then starts up again In all honesty I am tired of that scenario with music, it isn't that hard to find a free music editing software (be it torrent or trial, trial is more legal people!) and fix that and put into a loop-able song, also, try to add different music as the scenery changes. The earth shake effect is ridiculous and annoying, it is only worth slowing my already slow computer down even more... if you really want to make a good game, get some suggestions from serious programmers, or ask some of us, this goes out to all the programmers out there! anyway here is how the scoring went.
Graphics: 6, Mediocre, again the earth shake effect is annoying (reduce the shake a little it makes the smiley seem as dense as a dwarf star, also, the smiley thing... enough said...
Originality: 0, a game just like this came out last week or so, it was much better than this game, and it had replay value other than getting a higher score (like ninjas and pirates, making both sides happy...)
Audio: 4, Music is repetitive and doesn't do a true loop" or in other words it is constantly playing, also, there is no change in audio, fix that some time, or make a better sequel...
Gameplay: 6, Simple, boring, easy squeezy lemon cheesy.... um... anyway, it was unoriginal and boring, I have to say...
Overall(calculated with the almighty CALCULATAUR, half-man, half Graphing Calculator): 4
There... It's good to see that merits are given for honest 'bad' reviews to a game! Just prooves that someone's views and thoughts on a game (even if they are disliking it) are appreciated! I've written a few 'bad reviews' on some games too and they too were honest opinions on the games in question. And that's what's important, honest reviewing...
No, that does not prove they're appreciated. Merits are given by mods, not game developers. I actually think most merits are given to generally negative comments, by the way.
Look, I know lots of game developers welcome negative comments, and when they do, fire away. But also try to consider how you would feel if someone said to you what you're planning on saying to them. Would it inspire you to better yourself, or would it crush your spirit? No one benefits from hurting a game developer's self esteem.
