The review flag - what can we do to make it better

[brytta.leofa]

I'm one of those that never took it off.  I want to know if I'm doing something wrong, or if you really like what I'm doing.

Yup, same here: I somehow took it as more of an "am open to all suggestions."

Suggest:
- Add "Roleplay Review" to the request tool.
- Keep the review flag to help staff keep track of in-progress review requests, but remove the review command for players.

[FantasyWriter]

I'm one of those that never took it off.  I want to know if I'm doing something wrong, or if you really like what I'm doing.

Yup, same here: I somehow took it as more of an "am open to all suggestions."

Me three.

[Synthesis]

I'm one of those that never took it off. I want to know if I'm doing something wrong, or if you really like what I'm doing.

In bed.

[flurry]

• Get rid of the review flag for non-newbies.
• Encourage clan staff to offer the occasional comment about characters they already monitor.
• Provide more resources on the web page about roleplay, improving emotes and descriptions, playing a leader, finding plots, initiating plots, and so on.
• Encourage kudos.

[Kevo]

I thought the idea had was pretty good, till Adhira explained how the review command worked, mostly that it flagged you. Considering the 150? players we have, that wouldn't really help. I had hoped the imms had a command similiar to who review: SMuz, Kevo, Fathi....etc, and thought it would be more effecient to have it organized by the date that someone turned there flag on, who review: Synthesis (1989), Flurry (12/4/1992), Medena (4/1/2002), etc. Once one imm who takes responsibility for reviewing the player searches out and finds the player, or not, they would turn of the player's flag, or not.

Now, after hearing some of these ideas, I've come to think that the review request option would be a good idea. That would mean a lot less review flagged players running around, in turn meaning those who wanted to be reviewed would recieve the attention they wanted.

We could do away with reviews, but would people feel happy about getting occassional off the cuff one liners such as "Spends a lot of time tucked away in apartments", "Some great emoting, seems to be really get the hang of things". Instead of an email that would perhaps go in to more depth on why getting out of the apartment is a good idea, what emotes were liked, and where they could add to their arsenal. I'd be fine with doing away with the review flag if commentary rather than review is what players are after.

If people do think that a review of sorts is more appropriate:  What about if we put the review flag request through the tool, allowing it to be selected only once every 6 months. Staff would then add the flag to the players in game. We as staff would have to actively work to make sure that we start watching those who need reviewing (likely clan staff would take their clan members to make it part of the normal work we do). For me as a staff member I'd be more likely to put the time in to doing reviews if I knew that the person really wanted it, and hadn't just set the flag a long time ago and forgotten it, and also if there were less of them in the game at any one time.

When I first turned on my flag, I wanted a review. I thought it'd be a formal, okay, here's your review thing. Since I never seen one of those come my way, I never turned my flag off. After that, I just kind of forgot it was on, till one day I came across it again in the help files. I do think the review is a great request option, since I for one would still like to have my roleplay reviewed occasionally (once a year, for me, would be good, but I think 6 months is a great option for time delay). Although, I'd still be open to commentary. Is commentary added only when the imm's see that the review flag is on?

Do away with the IG command, make it a request tool option, set it for 6 months, add commentary when necessary/desired/approriate to the player's permanent record, and I doubt there's much more that could be done to make it better.

[Clearsighted]

Howabout doing away with the review command, and everytime someone is going to be given a negative or positive account note, to have a small message shot to them about what they're doing right or wrong? Hearing what they're doing right isn't so important, but hearing what they're doing wrong is.

[Lizzie]

Actually I feel hearing what you're doing right is just as important as hearing what you're doing wrong. If all I ever heard about were the negatives, I would come to think very negatively about my own roleplay, and my own participation in the game. I would also start feeling negatively about the staff, since they never have anything good to say. So, not only would I feel that I am significantly lacking in roleplay, but I would also feel that the staff sucks.

Fortunately, that isn't how it works. If they have good things to say about you, eventually, you get to hear about it. We don't need cookies every time we use an emote in a funny way. But getting a pat on the back when they notice we're improving, or struggling with something complex, or do something really stellar, goes a LONG way to keep players involved and interested in staying put in Armageddon.

[Adhira]

Thanks for the commentary all. We'll be talking about this some more at the staff level so expect some changes upcoming here.

[FantasyWriter]

Thanks for the commentary all. We'll be talking about this some more at the staff level so expect some changes upcoming here.

WOOHOO!

[Malken]

What I really really really really would like is to please please please please SEND the bad note as an email, as a 'warning' before it makes it permanently on the player's file.

There's nothing that bums me out more than reading a note on my account 8 months later and never realizing in the past that what I was doing was seen as suspicious or
as twinkish behavior by an admin.

If you are my clan Staffer and you think that I'm spam casting too often, or not emoting my crafts enough, or mining obsidian too often, or over-hunting the grasslands, PLEASE
let me know via email and just don't add it to my account for me to read 8 months later and twenty characters later.. Chances are I'll just keep dragging that behavior from
character to character, thinking that what I'm doing is perfectly fine.

[Synthesis]

What I really really really really would like is to please please please please SEND the bad note as an email, as a 'warning' before it makes it permanently on the player's file.

There's nothing that bums me out more than reading a note on my account 8 months later and never realizing in the past that what I was doing was seen as suspicious or
as twinkish behavior by an admin.

If you are my clan Staffer and you think that I'm spam casting too often, or not emoting my crafts enough, or mining obsidian too often, or over-hunting the grasslands, PLEASE
let me know via email and just don't add it to my account for me to read 8 months later and twenty characters later.. Chances are I'll just keep dragging that behavior from
character to character, thinking that what I'm doing is perfectly fine.

This I can totally identify and agree with.

[FantasyWriter]

Agreed.... it IS possible for something to be done out of ignorance.

[SMuz]

Bah, I've decided to give in and turn this on. It's creeping me out, especially when I'm idling, but after a few days, I'll probably forget that it's on. I suppose it's better than if I kept asking around whether its fine to do certain things. There's only so much information that can be passed around from questions and the GDB.

[Zoltan]

Actually I feel hearing what you're doing right is just as important as hearing what you're doing wrong. If all I ever heard about were the negatives, I would come to think very negatively about my own roleplay, and my own participation in the game. I would also start feeling negatively about the staff, since they never have anything good to say. So, not only would I feel that I am significantly lacking in roleplay, but I would also feel that the staff sucks.

On my last character, I was just tooling about, unclanned, and got an encouraging email from a staffer after a little event. It made me feel all warm and fuzzy, and for the first time I was certain that I was "getting" the game. Criticism is good to become a better RPer and avoid douche-y behavior, but positive reinforcement is AWESOME. Now, I'd feel weird if I got this kind of attention frequently, so I've never touched my review flag (don't know if it's default on or off... maybe I did touch it, and just don't remember...)