Haven’t had the chance to write or play much during this year’s IFComp (because I’m visiting my LDR partner hehehe), but I did write a lot of reviews for last year’s.
My general rule when writing reviews is that they’re all “critical” (positive or negative) and strictly a personal exercise. I don’t like fluff (I dislike the sandwich structure where you have to find something positive to begin and end on), and I assume people are as busy as me (or worse, busier!). So, I just write what is taking the most attention for me and then end it there.
This might mean a review that’s just three sentences long (see my Bali B&B Review) or as long as some New York Review Books article. Whatever critical insight I get will be on the page. Any word printed must never be extraneous.
Because I’m unsure if there is a science or art to constructive criticism besides “don’t be a meanie”, I also like to make sure that what I wrote includes how I think and my historical, cultural, economical, and cultural backgrounds. I’m not aiming for so-called objective writing. I want someone who, blindfolded, realizes that “yep, that’s Kastel writing this review and not Mathbrush or whoever else.”
I think a review is a personal journey through a work. An exercise in contemplation alongside the work, if you will. If the author of the game or some reader finds any value in this exercise, that’s awesome. Otherwise, they can chuck it away as another personal rambling and move on with their life.
With a few exceptions like gentility and accurate characterizations of the work and creator, I don’t owe my duty to the author or readers but myself. I am trying to articulate what I find valuable, interesting, and meaningful in a work. Such a personal exploration cannot always be useful in all contexts.
But I hope that chronicling them provides some entertainment and insight, like any other craft, on a dreary cold day like this in the UK. I think most importantly, reviewing should be a fun journaling exercise for the reviewer/critic. While we may publish for the public to read our silly thoughts, it should still be as much a hobby as making a game is.
I’m glad the IntFiction community fosters such a vibrant reviewing culture to allow eclectic reviewers like me. Unfortunate I can’t participate as much as I would like, but I am looking forward to reading more critical reviews in this competition!
) and went around the Forum to hunt missed reviews (quite a few threads).
