Replace the 5-star Rating System

[BMO]

@Torgo

Personally I wish there was something more like a decimal system, or at least out of 10, or out of 100 (or even half-stars, like 3.5 stars or 4.5 stars). I often find myself rating games around the 7.5 or 7.0 rating and I feel weird about giving it 3 or 4 stars.

Although we cannot directly rate something 2.5, Grouvee averages all ratings to produce an overall picture that has more nuance. I know that is not exactly what you are looking for. However, as someone skeptical of rating systems in general, I think what Grouvee functions well. It is based on subjective interest in a game rather than functioning as an attempt to provide an objective measurement of game quality.

@Torgo

Perhaps a good system would be a bit like the Ludum Dare system. The reviewer can give a game a score for things like fun, graphics, audio, immersion, mood, etc. And then a final score is generated based on an average.

This is specifically the type of system I do not have interest in. I do not mean to disparage others for liking this system, I have no doubt it has its appeal. However, because I believe the experience of consuming media is highly subjective, and there is no way to measure the objective quality of a game I find systems like these difficult to accept. A friend of mine using something similar to rate films on Letterboxd, instead of the built in 5-star system because he specifically wants to prove the objective quality of films he deems good cinema versus those he deems bad cinema. I find that whole attempt both futile and misleading. Media experience is subjective, based on one’s experience or affectual relationship to the game, or movie, etc. I find I can pull very little from such a rating system because it requires I understand a person’s subjective position (biases, preferences, experiences, history) to understand why a game receives an 8/10 for sound/music or a 5/10 for mechanics.

I like Grouvee’s system (to a point) because it is based on enjoyment. I do not need to know anything about a person to understand that they liked, or did not like a game. That works for me. It also tells me a certain number of Grouvee members enjoyed a given game. Since more complex systems are just as subjective, a simple like to dislike scale tells me just as much information and delivers it in an uncomplicated way.

With all that said, I do not think your desire @Torgo is wrong, and if it were to be implemented I would not be against it. What I do enjoy is the discourse surrounding rating systems that is occurring in both academic and professional spheres, as many sites, journalists, critics and academics are currently debating the merits of various rating systems. As mentioned earlier by @Himuton, content delivery platforms such as Netflix are moving away from rating systems, or at lease discussing it, and I find it fascinating discourse.