Well, since Merk put his scoring system on here, maybe I should do the same…
The last few years, my scoring system has been way too technical, so I’ve toned it down quite a bit. It’s actually quite like Merk’s - I actually based it a bit on his for this year. :mrgreen:
Technical Implementation i[/i]
This measures the technical aspects of the game: are there bugs, missing commands, etc.
0 - A very buggy game showing no or almost no technical competence
1 - A buggy game, minor technical competence
2 - Some bugs, the game shows technical competence
3 - Very few bugs, excellent technical competence
4 - Excels at technical competence, no bugs found, responsive
System of Choice i[/i]
Yes, I do take away a few points for games using homebrew systems or other rare systems.
0 - Homebrew system or single-platform game
1 - A rare system, available for a few platforms only (eg. Alan and Adrift)
2 - A common system, available for multiple platforms (eg. Zcode, Tads)
Puzzles and Interactivity i[/i]
Measuring the easiness/hardness of the puzzles, how well they’re clued and how original they are. For games without puzzles, measures the level of interactivity.
0 - No puzzles; lacks any interactivity
1 - Unoriginal puzzles, puzzles very poorly clued, unfair or very easy puzzles; almost no interactivity
2 - Puzzles are somewhat original, occasionally unclued, hard or easy; some interactivity
3 - Quite original puzzles that are well-clued and of a suitable difficulty; good interactivity
4 - Very original puzzles, extremely well-clued and of a suitable difficulty; excellent interactivity
Story and Purpose i[/i]
This category measures the feel of the story, or for story-less games, the level of purpose felt during the game.
0 - No plot or discernable purpose
1 - A generic, throw-away plot; almost no purpose
2 - A non-generic but unoriginal story; some purpose
3 - An original story that doesn’t raise much interest; good level of purpose
4 - An original story that’s hard to stop reading/playing; excellent level of purpose
Writing i[/i]
Since IF is dependent upon language, it’s just right to try to measure the level of accomplishment in it.
0 - Poorly composed text, unintentionally choppy, grammatically error-ridden
1 - Successfull writing with little problems, but is uninspiring
2 - Immersive, vivid, expressive, entertaining, exciting - you find more superlatives
Length i[/i]
How well does the length of the game match with the story it tells?
0 - Way too short or long for its story
1 - Too short or long
2 - Game length fits the story to the mark
Subtotal i[/i]
SUB = ((TECH + SYS + PUZZ + STOR + WRI + LEN) / 3) + 1 (rounded to the nearest integer)
This formula gives a score between 1 and 7 for any game.
Reviewer’s Bonus i[/i]
Well, this tells how much I liked the game; nothing more, nothing less.
0 - I didn’t like this game
1 - Nice game, although I wouldn’t play it again
2 - I’ll be returning to this game, as it caught my interest
3 - Well, I just couldn’t stop playing this until it was finished
Final Score i[/i]
SCO = SUB + BON
Since the subtotal is between 1 and 7, inclusive, and the bonus between 0 and 3 (again inclusive), the final range is 1 to 10.
Example:
TECH:2, SYS:2, PUZZ:1, STOR:1, WRI:1, LEN:0, BON:1
SUB: 2 + 2 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 0 = 7; 7 / 3 + 1 = 3; SCO: 3 + 1 = 4
