New Version 5 Scale w/POLL

[VIAN]

Took your posts into consideration and made Version 5. I also gave it a less boring name. Rate which one you like best. Thanks in advance.


Version 4 VS Version 5

 

[A5]

Voted for V4, but I'd change the '4' rating on the scale to be "Only buy if you're a fan of the genre/series - rent otherwise because it is still worth playing".

 

[Kev]

If you have to explain the rating system with a chart then I think it is not a good rating system. I like the letter system because we all know it.

 

[RandomFool]

I voted 4 but a scale of 6 seems like an odd way to rate things.

 

[R Nilla]

Why bother with the numbers? You already have a clear verbal rating structure which boils down to Buy Rent or Avoid. I would eliminate the numbers altogether and stick with Outstanding, Great, Good, Fair, Poor, Terrible; although I don't think Terrible is necessary. Then you have a nice system of 5.

 

[Queasy]

Originally posted by: R Nilla
Why bother with the numbers? You already have a clear verbal rating structure which boils down to Buy Rent or Avoid. I would eliminate the numbers altogether and stick with Outstanding, Great, Good, Fair, Poor, Terrible; although I don't think Terrible is necessary. Then you have a nice system of 5.

I'd go with the British scale of adjectives (hey, it works for Yahtzee)

Ghastly
Gormless
Wanker
Splendid
Fantastic
GOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAALLLLLL

 

[Modeps]

Are you specifically trying to be different with your rating scheme? Pro review places use 1-5, 1-10, or now even Letter grades. Both rating systems above have 1-6 and 1-9. While that may be fine if people understand it, if someone just stumbles upon your reviews... well... they'll be like "wtf? Why'd you rate mass effect a 7?"

 

[pennylane]

Maybe you could have a 0-5 scale instead of a 1-6 scale. That'll give the 5-star scale everybody seems to love, and you can give the occasional "0." I think giving a game a "0" would be pretty amusing.

 

[BladeVenom]

Either go with a traditional scale, or just label them avoid, rent, or buy. Or perhaps both.

 

[Xavier434]

Where is the "wait for your friend to buy it first" option?

 

[oznerol]

Originally posted by: Xavier434
Where is the "wait for your friend to buy it first" option?

You could borrow it from someone, but that?s like licking the bowl after someone?s finished the ice cream.

 

[VIAN]

Originally posted by: Modeps
Are you specifically trying to be different with your rating scheme? Pro review places use 1-5, 1-10, or now even Letter grades. Both rating systems above have 1-6 and 1-9. While that may be fine if people understand it, if someone just stumbles upon your reviews... well... they'll be like "wtf? Why'd you rate mass effect a 7?"

Ideally, the scale should be posted with the review. This will give you a better idea. I'm not trying purposefully to be different. I just think traditional scales have a lot of fat and very little meat to it. I'm just trying to create a nice piece of lean beef.

 

[AstroManLuca]

I'm still a fan of the three-tiered "buy it, rent it, avoid it" scheme, with the possible split of the "rent it" into "maybe buy but definitely rent" and "don't buy but maybe rent."

This is to encourage people to actually read your review.

 

[blurredvision]

So what are these rating scales for? Is this just personal use or are you starting a review website?

 

[VIAN]

I write game reviews for a university newspaper. But I'm probably not going to use the newer scale there. I'm probably not going to stay there long either. It's turning into a job to produce something every week and I don't get too much time to enjoy "just" playing games.

But mostly, the scales I develop are for me to use on this forum, where a majority of my reviews are published.

 

[nycxandy]

4 is better than 3, but it's still not great.

 

[BD2003]

Why reinvent the wheel?

The honest truth - no one actually reads the rating scale for each site. The 1-10 scale is ingrained in our psyches. If your 6 correlates to everyone else's 10, everyone is going to assume you thought the game was a 6 out of 10, which generally means "meh".

Either go with 1-100, 1-10, 1-5 or A-F. Theres no need to confuse people with a 6 or 9 point system just to be original.

Considering your writing for a university newspaper, and that its a scheme that anyone can naturally understand without having to consult a scale, I recommend A-F.

A- Excellent
B- Good
C- Passable
D- Scraping By
F- Fail

Theres virtually no other interpretation for those letters, unlike the 1-10 scales where 5 is "average", yet average review scores usually hover around 6-7.

Whether or not someone is going to buy new, buy used, rent etc has more to do with how much money they have, or how hardcore they are - leave that up to them.

 

[MmmSkyscraper]

A-F or Avoid/Rent/Buy. Screw numbers and charts. The review itself should be enough to inform the reader of any dodgy aspects, they can make their own mind up regarding the risk.

 

[VIAN]

rate new Version 5.

 

[BD2003]

Originally posted by: VIAN
rate new Version 5.

A-F is better, but I still dont see the point of avoid/rent/buy. I dont rent bad or mediocre games. I rent A-B games that have little replay value.

And am I the only one that finds rating a review scale just a tiny bit ironic?