Steam weaponizing the review/recommendation system.

[FOXDUDE69]

If you acquired your game on Humble Bundle or through another steam key reseller, your Steam review will not count towards the overall rating.

It shouldn't matter where you purchased the game, a recommendation is a recommendation, as long as it's in your Steam library, your review should count.

Today, for example, was the release of Helldivers 2, a game that has been selling remarkably well on Humble Bundle... None of those reviews will count for the overall rating.

I don't need to explain why this is problematic.

Just another issue to add to the growing list of concerns regarding Steam's review/recommendation system.

[Spawn of Totoro]

... it has been that way for a very long time. Some developers were found to be using Steam Keys to gain positive reviews by either giving them away for the review or using alt accounts to add reviews.

In the bottom part of the store game, you can alter setting and include such reviews. It won't change what is displayed in the upper right of the store page, just for that lower review section.

In most cases I have seen, it didn't make a difference if if key reviews were included. It still had the same rating.

[Ryan]

Originally posted by Spawn of Totoro:

... it has been that way for a very long time. Some developers were found to be using Steam Keys to gain positive reviews by either giving them away for the review or using alt accounts to add reviews.

In the bottom part of the store game, you can alter setting and include such reviews. It won't change what is displayed in the upper right of the store page, just for that lower review section.

In most cases I have seen, it didn't make a difference if if key reviews were included. It still had the same rating.

This is a copy/paste answer. In short OP, steam has disenfranchised you in the hopes you buy from their store.

[BJWyler]

Originally posted by Spawn of Totoro:

... it has been that way for a very long time. Some developers were found to be using Steam Keys to gain positive reviews by either giving them away for the review or using alt accounts to add reviews.

In the bottom part of the store game, you can alter setting and include such reviews. It won't change what is displayed in the upper right of the store page, just for that lower review section.

Pretty much this. That's why sites like Metacritic aren't even worth a microslice of a grain of salt.

And at the end of the day, the review is still there, searchable and readable. I have a ton of games I got off of Humble Bundle, and how Steam handles it is A-OK with me.

[Nx Machina]

Originally posted by FOXDUDE69:

If you acquired your game on Humble Bundle or through another steam key reseller, your Steam review will not count towards the overall rating.

It shouldn't matter where you purchased the game, a recommendation is a recommendation, as long as it's in your Steam library, your review should count.

Today, for example, was the release of Helldivers 2, a game that has been selling remarkably well on Humble Bundle... None of those reviews will count for the overall rating.

I don't need to explain why this is problematic.

Just another issue to add to the growing list of concerns regarding Steam's review/recommendation system.

Because you did not get the game directly on Steam, therefore you are not a customer, you are someone who activated a key from another business to whom you gave money and in turn are a customer of their's and why the review does not count on Steam.

Can you write reviews on Amazon for products purchased elsewhere? No, you cannot therefore Valve like Amazon are not weaponising their review system.

Can you write a review on Epic Game Store for a game if you did not get it directly on their store? The answer again is no.

https://marketplacehelp.epicgames.com/s/article/How-do-I-post-a-Review?language=en_US

As a sidenote you can "review bomb" games on Metacritic, as having a game is not required and IS a weaponised review system.

[Aachen]

The great weapon Valve wrought: a review system into which only users who buy the game directly through Steam are factored.

[76561198407601200]

Originally posted by FOXDUDE69:

If you acquired your game on Humble Bundle or through another steam key reseller, your Steam review will not count towards the overall rating.

It shouldn't matter where you purchased the game, a recommendation is a recommendation, as long as it's in your Steam library, your review should count.

Purchase the game on steam if you wish to leave a review on the game's store page on steam. It's a rather simple and straight forward process.

[Spawn of Totoro]

Originally posted by The Living Tribunal:

Originally posted by FOXDUDE69:

If you acquired your game on Humble Bundle or through another steam key reseller, your Steam review will not count towards the overall rating.

It shouldn't matter where you purchased the game, a recommendation is a recommendation, as long as it's in your Steam library, your review should count.

Purchase the game on steam if you wish to leave a review on the game's store page on steam. It's a rather simple and straight forward process.

Humble Bundle sells keys. One can leave a review if they redeem the key on Steam, as well as have it on the game's store page. It just doesn't factor into the main score displayed for the game.

[Ryan]

Originally posted by Nx Machina:

Originally posted by FOXDUDE69:

If you acquired your game on Humble Bundle or through another steam key reseller, your Steam review will not count towards the overall rating.

It shouldn't matter where you purchased the game, a recommendation is a recommendation, as long as it's in your Steam library, your review should count.

Today, for example, was the release of Helldivers 2, a game that has been selling remarkably well on Humble Bundle... None of those reviews will count for the overall rating.

I don't need to explain why this is problematic.

Just another issue to add to the growing list of concerns regarding Steam's review/recommendation system.

Because you did not get the game directly on Steam, therefore you are not a customer, you are someone who activated a key from another business to whom you gave money and in turn are a customer of their's.

Secondly can you write reviews on Amazon for products purchased elsewhere? No, you cannot therefore Valve like Amazon are not weaponising their review system.

And finally can you write a review on Epic Game Store for a game if you did not get it directly on their store? The answer again is no.

https://marketplacehelp.epicgames.com/s/article/How-do-I-post-a-Review?language=en_US

As a sidenote you can "review bomb" games on Metacritic, as hav8ng a game is not required and IS a weaponised review system.

Akchually, it ain't so simple. I can purchase a physical game and still rate it on the Playstation network.

[Nx Machina]

Originally posted by Brenda:

Akchually, it ain't so simple. I can purchase a physical game and still rate it on the Playstation network.

Actually it is simple because on Steam, Epic and Amazon to write a review, an item has to be directly purchased from them.

Another example is you cannot write a review for PC parts on ebuyer if you purchased them on Scan Computers.

As for Playstation, Sony allows games to be rated (physical or digital) because it is their own eco system, after all there is zero differebce between Bloodborne physical or digital.

[derExperte]

Complain to those who abused the review system in the past. Every single measure Valve has implemented is those people's fault. We can't have nice things because of arseholes, it's just how it is.

[Mad Scientist]

Many online stores only allow you to review if you bought it on that store or otherwise only count it for the score if it's a verified purchase, this is nothing new. Hardly "weaponizing", it just prevents another form of abuse as per usual. If you want to review a game on Steam & have it count toward the total by default, buy it through Steam itself.

[Ryan]

Originally posted by Nx Machina:

Originally posted by Brenda:

Akchually, it ain't so simple. I can purchase a physical game and still rate it on the Playstation network.

Actually it is simple because on Steam, Epic and Amazon to write a review, an item has to be directly purchased from them.

Another example is you cannot write a review for PC parts on ebuyer if you purchased them on Scan Computers.

As for Playstation, Sony allows games to be rated (physical or digital) because it is their own eco system, after all there is zero differebce between Bloodborne physical or digital.

I can do this on Xbox too. Not so simple, whichever way you try to cut it.

[Boblin the Goblin]

Originally posted by Brenda:

Originally posted by Nx Machina:

Actually it is simple because on Steam, Epic and Amazon to write a review, an item has to be directly purchased from them.

Another example is you cannot write a review for PC parts on ebuyer if you purchased them on Scan Computers.

As for Playstation, Sony allows games to be rated (physical or digital) because it is their own eco system, after all there is zero differebce between Bloodborne physical or digital.

I can do this on Xbox too. Not so simple, whichever way you try to cut it.

Xbox is it's own ecosystem as well.

So the point about Sony applies as well.

[Nx Machina]

Originally posted by Brenda:

I can do this on Xbox too. Not so simple, whichever way you try to cut it.

Oh! But it is simple because it is Microsoft's eco system and i can review Forza, Gears Tactics, Persona 3 Reload via PC gamepass without needing an Xbox. Why? because i am a customer as i pay for PC Gamepass.

On Steam and Amazon i can write reviews of products i purchased because again i am a customer allowing me to review of those products.

As a sidenote: Games given away free by Epic, (correction paid for by Epic) cannot be reviewed.

As a secondary sidenote: the OP is not a Valve (Steam) customer because they are not directly purchasing on Steam. They are activating keys purchased on another site, and why those reviews do not count.

[FOXDUDE69]

Originally posted by eram:

probably to stop people giving away 1000s of free keys in exchange of a good review.
or botting the reviews with your own keys and bots

And the solution to this issue is to null the recommendations of tens or hundreds of thousands of purchasers of any given title?

The solution cannot be worse than the problem.

Originally posted by Brenda:

In short OP, steam has disenfranchised you in the hopes you buy from their store.

Pretty much.