Why don't you post reviews?

[Gilladian]

I write reviews professionally on occasion. I want to get away from real life, not do more work!

Gilladian

 

[Mouseferatu]

Psion,

Yeah well not like they actually review my reviews. But even so that plus I'm lazy about doing more S&SS reviews, along with my lack of funds. But maybe over the summer I'll start up again.

Please do. I appreciate your reviews. Heck, I appreciate all reviews.

Even if they're not "sterling." I expect a negative review of my work to give reasons, and I won't always agree with it, but if someone has something to say, I want to hear it (as long as they're polite about it). It may bruise the ego, but while I do believe I'm a pretty good writer, I'd never claim that I've got no room for improvement.

 

[eris404]

Over the past half year or so the amount of fan reviews has really decreased. Reviews are a great way to get your opinion heard and to tell people what your thoughts on a book are. So, I'm just wondering why people don't write reviews.

errr...I said "other." I would like to, but I don't know if I could write as well as other people do.

 

[Desdichado]

For me it's a combination of things. It takes a long time to write a review, for one thing, most things I would review are already reviewed, and I buy much less than I used to.

 

[francisca]

I wouldn't mind doing reviews, but I don't think they would be relevent by the time I got around to reviewing them. I just don't have the to get prepared for my regular game, let alone reading a product just to review it.

I do think I would be a good reviewer, in an "average Joe" kinda way. I'm not a walking encyclopedia of d20 rules, am not overly concerned with balance, and it's all about fun. I'm not out to push the state-of-the-art envelope, I'm just a guy who runs a weekly 3.5-ish game for fun. I sometimes read reviews and wonder why people are going on and on about some minor detail that is pretty irrelevent in all but very specific circumstances.

 

[Crothian]

I wouldn't mind doing reviews, but I don't think they would be relevent by the time I got around to reviewing them.

I think they would. People still use books from the beginning of d20, heck they use first and second edition sources as well. I know, I'm one of those peoples.

 

[Ghostwind]

I think there are two perceptions here that folks are confusing regarding the timeliness of reviews. If you plan to write reviews for a site as a staff member, such as EN World, GamingReport, my site, etc. then publishers have an expectation that a review of any given product will be written and posted within 30-45 days. However, if you are only writing reviews for your enjoyment and to give others the benefits of your experience with that product, then it doesn't matter how old it is. As Crothian points out, there are still people who buy older products and coudl stand to see reviews of those older products, especially as they compare to some of the newer products. For example, if Death in Freeport was released today, would it score as highly as it did when 3rd edition was first released? How about Creature Collection? Looking at those older products with more "experienced" eyes is certainly beneficial for those who are new or more inexperienced to the hobby. Even if you only write one review a month, time shouldn't be a concern if you are doing it for your enjoyment.

 

[Prest0]

Just in case the point hasn't hit home yet, we don't mind "late" reviews nor do we fear bad reviews. We just want you to be honest. As a small publisher, each review means a LOT to us. One of our adventures has been out since last November and despite fair sales still hasn't been reviewed here (and I'm sure this isn't unusual).

Unfortunately, we've also been burned on giving away review copies and either not receiving a review at all or getting a non-review. Although we've been reviewed elsewhere, to date we only have 2 reviews here on EN World and one of them is a "non-review".

That puts us in an awkward position because we WANT our stuff reviewed but we don't want to hand out free product for no result. And even though it's common practice in music/movies/publishing, there's still the ethical question of whether we're "buying" a good review by giving away product. (For the record, we like to think we have high production values and thus our good reviews are earned.) As a result of getting burned by freeloaders, we've pulled back to only distributing product to established gaming/review sites. I suppose if a "freelance" reviewer with an established track record approached us we'd gladly provide a review copy--but thus far that hasn't come up.

So what's the solution? What else can we (as publishers) do to encourage honest reviews, without giving up the farm?

 

[Samothdm]

I voted "Other".

I usually only buy books for certain specific elements to add to my campaign. I might not get around to reading the entire book for months after release, if ever. I don't want to do a book a disservice by only reviewing the portion(s) that I used.

 

[francisca]

Crothian, Ghostwind, Prest0:

OK! OK! OK! I'll write a review this month of an older product, from the the viewpoint of the the "average Joe" running 3.5