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The rating system
Here at Boomtown we are not influenced by advertising stunts and media hype. We rate the product for what it is. We are proud of our economic independence and integrity, and you can rest assured that no one can pay us or convince us to rate a game higher than it deserves. We don't try to be the first with a review - we want give you reviews you can count on and rest assured that our reviews aren't based on two hours of playing and a monkey typing a review afterwards.
All games, programs and hardware are rated on a scale from 0 to 10 – regardless of their platform. But on what grounds do we rate? Gameplay plays a major role when we look at games. Is the game exciting, innovative and is it playable for weeks on end, without becoming dull and boring? If yes, the game is certainly on its way to scoring high, and if the sound and graphics are good and the technical possibilities of the platform are well used, you are looking at a real hit. And if not, we will tell you why.
But it goes without saying that it's not the score that matters most. In the article the reviewer covers the different factors that aren't possible to figure out by just looking at the final score. It's here that you find the important information which you can use for a buying decision. Always read the article and look at the scores afterwards. To give you more detailed information we have chosen to define what the reviewer thinks of the game's gameplay, durability, graphics and sound. Furthermore we still have the overall final score, which is an additional guide to the game's overall quality.
What does it all mean?
You need to buy a game for your gamefreak cousin. You have already read a couple of our articles, and might now be wondering how big of a difference there is between the scores 7 and 8. The following chart tells you a bit more about what each score means.
0: This score is given either because a product can't be reviewed in that category (for example graphics when reviewing a keyboard) or in the very, very rare case that the game is the worst cr** we've seen in many years.
1: This score is given to the horrible game. We’ve hardly ever seen, and hope to never again see, anything like it.
2: This product is very bad, and cannot be recommended at all. There’s nothing good about it to raise the score.
3: This score means the game can only really be recommended to real hardcore fans of the genre. We warn all others to stay away.
4: The game is below average, but worse cases exist. It’s a dissapointment, but still there are positive elements. Generally, products in this category are non-satisfactory.
5: This is an average game. It works well, and shares this quality with the broad range of average products. It’s a good product, but no special features are present to raise the level any further.
6: This is a good product that, while not containing any groundbreaking qualities, still exceeds the average game. There are still a few things that keep this product from competing with the quality titles, though.
7: The game is good and well above the average in this genre. There are no distinct weaknesses.
8: This game is really good, and is easily recommendable to persons that do not usually use similar products (an example: flight simulators). The product is above average on many points, and has no real weaknesses.
9: A superb game devoid of any major weaknesses. The only problem might be, that it’s not really innovative.
10: This game is a masterpiece. Everything works wonderfully and it’s quite hard to leave it once you get going. Not only is the game incredibly well made, it’s also both innovative and and original. It can’t be done any better, and no real irritations occur.
Remember that games and hardware are reviewed from the current standard of the period of its release. Things that were cool five years ago are not neccesarily cool today. And remember that people have different opinions and this is the case both in the reviews and in the comments.
Enjoy your continued reading.
All games, programs and hardware are rated on a scale from 0 to 10 – regardless of their platform. But on what grounds do we rate? Gameplay plays a major role when we look at games. Is the game exciting, innovative and is it playable for weeks on end, without becoming dull and boring? If yes, the game is certainly on its way to scoring high, and if the sound and graphics are good and the technical possibilities of the platform are well used, you are looking at a real hit. And if not, we will tell you why.
But it goes without saying that it's not the score that matters most. In the article the reviewer covers the different factors that aren't possible to figure out by just looking at the final score. It's here that you find the important information which you can use for a buying decision. Always read the article and look at the scores afterwards. To give you more detailed information we have chosen to define what the reviewer thinks of the game's gameplay, durability, graphics and sound. Furthermore we still have the overall final score, which is an additional guide to the game's overall quality.
What does it all mean?
You need to buy a game for your gamefreak cousin. You have already read a couple of our articles, and might now be wondering how big of a difference there is between the scores 7 and 8. The following chart tells you a bit more about what each score means.
0: This score is given either because a product can't be reviewed in that category (for example graphics when reviewing a keyboard) or in the very, very rare case that the game is the worst cr** we've seen in many years.
1: This score is given to the horrible game. We’ve hardly ever seen, and hope to never again see, anything like it.
2: This product is very bad, and cannot be recommended at all. There’s nothing good about it to raise the score.
3: This score means the game can only really be recommended to real hardcore fans of the genre. We warn all others to stay away.
4: The game is below average, but worse cases exist. It’s a dissapointment, but still there are positive elements. Generally, products in this category are non-satisfactory.
5: This is an average game. It works well, and shares this quality with the broad range of average products. It’s a good product, but no special features are present to raise the level any further.
6: This is a good product that, while not containing any groundbreaking qualities, still exceeds the average game. There are still a few things that keep this product from competing with the quality titles, though.
7: The game is good and well above the average in this genre. There are no distinct weaknesses.
8: This game is really good, and is easily recommendable to persons that do not usually use similar products (an example: flight simulators). The product is above average on many points, and has no real weaknesses.
9: A superb game devoid of any major weaknesses. The only problem might be, that it’s not really innovative.
10: This game is a masterpiece. Everything works wonderfully and it’s quite hard to leave it once you get going. Not only is the game incredibly well made, it’s also both innovative and and original. It can’t be done any better, and no real irritations occur.
Remember that games and hardware are reviewed from the current standard of the period of its release. Things that were cool five years ago are not neccesarily cool today. And remember that people have different opinions and this is the case both in the reviews and in the comments.
Enjoy your continued reading.
