Negative reviews on Steam can be very painful for the developer, but you should not ignore them. So says Joe Henson, one of the creators of the indie shooter Hypercharge: Unboxed. In an article for Game Developer, he explained why it is important to respond to such comments and how best to do it.
Hypercharge: Unboxed
We are all human
Henson begins his article with a reminder that both gamers and developers are people with emotions inherent in them. Not all developers can adequately respond to criticism, and not all gamers are able to calmly tell what did not suit them. Therefore, before communicating with the audience, it is important to answer two questions:
- Do you know how to take criticism? If a developer takes criticism of his game too much to heart (it doesn’t matter if it’s constructive or not), then, if possible, it’s worth delegating the dialogue with users to someone else in the studio.
- Is the gamer’s feedback constructive? According to Henson, not all negative reviews are really important to respond to. Some people in a fit of feelings may write toxic and offensive comments that are of no use. You can ignore such reviews, or complain about them to Valve.
Why do I need to respond to negative reviews at all
Communication with players is a sign that the developer cares about the game and appreciates the opinion of users. Now, when new games are released on Steam every day and old ones disappear from view, this is especially important, Henson believes.
By responding to a negative review, the developer can change the gamer’s opinion about the project. A friendly reaction to criticism can put both the game and its authors in a different light. To inspire trust. She can also convince a gamer to give a second chance to a game or studio — if he does not return to this title, he can at least just remember the developer and start following his other projects.
As an example, Henson cited a story from reviews of the game Hypercharge: Unboxed, developed by his studio Digital Cybercherries. One of the players did not like that bots were added to the shooter in the latest update. He gave a negative rating to the title and wrote on Steam: “The game is cool, but no one ever enters it, so I have to play with bots.”
Henson could have ignored the review, but decided to explain why the studio did so. He thanked the player for the feedback and said that Hypercharge: Unboxed is handled by a small team of five people who do not have a huge marketing budget. Therefore, sometimes there are not so many users in the game. In order for players not to be bored when there are few people on the server, Digital Cybercherries has introduced bots.
Then Henson invited the player to the official Discord of the shooter and at the same time added him to his friends on Steam.
This reaction of the developer impressed the player, so soon his comment went viral. He got on Reddit, where he collected 89.5 thousand upvotes and caused a lot of discussion among users.
How to respond to criticism
It should be understood that gamers do not look at the game the same way as developers, Henson emphasizes. The authors have spent many hours studying all the mechanics of the game and know it thoroughly. However, those who open the game for the first time do not understand it so well. Also, users can notice missed bugs with a fresh look or recommend something to change in the gameplay.
It is critically important not to engage in heated debates with users, advises Henson. It is not necessary to include passive aggression. We must remember that the answer will be seen not only by the one to whom it is addressed, but also by the rest of the players. In the end, it will affect the reputation. Therefore, it is best to put yourself in the user’s place and try to be polite.
At the same time, it is not necessary to fully agree with the concerns of gamers and take into account all their feedback. It is important to show that you are listening to them. You can also gently and very carefully explain through the dialogue that the gamer misunderstood something.
Henson has developed the following strategy. He breaks down large comments written in the style of a “wall of text” into semantic parts and responds to each specific point in it. This demonstrates that he really read the review, and did not give a general lengthy answer. Besides, it just makes it easier to read the text.
Henson gave three examples with negative comments and possible answers to them.
Example #1: The player left a constructive comment
Player’s comment:
The game is too complicated. I could not even pass the second level, mainly due to the fact that during the training they did not tell me that a double jump and a powerful blow can be performed simultaneously! I've spent so much time trying to figure it out myself. Also, giants don't take critical damage from my sword. It would be nice if the hero of the game could dodge enemy attacks — how about a dash? It really annoys me that the weapons in the game are just swinging. But maybe it's me. In addition, character management should be more responsive. Now it is somewhat slow. Oh, and if you're playing as a swordsman, then you can't block blows. It was necessary to choose another class. Make sure that the heroes of all classes have the opportunity to block blows. In general, the game is cool, but it would not hurt to tweak something a little in it.
A good answer from the developer:
“Hello, the player from the example! Thank you for buying the game and writing a review.”
During the training, they did not tell that a double jump and a powerful blow can be performed simultaneously.
“I checked the training, and you’re right — it doesn’t tell about it. I’m really sorry we missed it. We will try to fix everything in the next update.”
Giants don't take critical damage from my sword.
“All swords can deal critical damage to any enemy. We just need to make sure that the blow fell on their weak spot. It is highlighted after the first attack.”
It would be nice if the hero of the game could dodge enemy attacks — how about a dash?
“I like this idea! The team and I have already discussed it once and we hope that we will be able to implement it in the future.”
It really annoys me that the weapons in the game are just swinging.
“I’m sorry, but I didn’t quite understand what you were talking about. Can you explain a little more?”.
In addition, character management should be more responsive. It's a little slow right now.
“I agree, responsiveness can be improved. We are thinking about it and hope to find the right solution, taking into account the opinion of the players.”
Oh, and if you play as a swordsman, then you can't block blows. It was necessary to choose another class. Make sure that the heroes of all classes have the opportunity to block blows.
“I understand why you’re asking for this. Nevertheless, we believe that such a solution adds a zest to each class. If there are any other ideas on how to improve this system, we will be glad to hear them. In the meantime, you can join our server in Discord. There are a lot of players who will be happy to help defeat the giants. Thanks again for the feedback. I hope I answered all the questions. All the best, Joe.”
Bad developer response:
“On the first level, there was a tooltip in the lower right corner. It’s your own fault if you missed it. We didn’t include her in the training because it was unnecessary and obvious. Critical hits are automatically dealt by your weapon. It looks like you don’t know how to play these games. Anyway, thanks for playing.”
Example #2: The player left an uninformative comment
Player’s comment:
I didn't like the mechanics. The game is definitely not for me.
A good answer from the developer:
“Hello player from the example! I’m sorry you didn’t like the game, but I appreciate that you gave it a chance. Thanks for that. If you come back here again, I’d like to know what exactly you didn’t like. I’m sure we can find something that can be improved in the game. Sincerely, Joe.”
Example #3: The player left an aggressive and useless comment
Player’s comment:
This is a shit game. The characters are shit. Weapons are shit. Developers are shit. If you're playing this, then you're shit, too. TOTALLY CRAPPY GAME!
Henson advises not to respond to such comments. It is better to either ignore them or complain about them in support of the store.
Henson also believes that it is impossible to respond to every review. There may be too many of them corny. First of all, you should respond to comments from the “Most useful reviews” section, which is displayed on the main page of the game on Steam. This increases the likelihood that the developer’s response will be noticed.
In conclusion, Henson shared a few more tips for developers.
- Set aside an hour a week or so for answers. This will allow you not to go crazy from the volume of criticism.
- It is advisable to write responses in reviews through the “developer’s response” function. So the author of the review will receive a notification that you have responded to his comment. Also, the message will not be hidden in the comments thread, and other users will be able to notice it.
- If you have solved a problem that users have previously encountered, go back to the comments and tell the players about it.
- Do not forget to respond to non-positive reviews.
- Don’t get hung up on negative reviews. Remember that even the most popular games get them.
- Don’t copy your answers. The players will definitely notice it.
- From time to time, review your old answers and evaluate what could be improved in them.
- Don’t underestimate the number of Steam users who read reviews but don’t write their own.
- Marketing and PR are an important part of the game development process.
- Leave a call to action in your responses to comments. For example, invite players to Discord.