Improving Our Judgement

[Premin]

Right, so, kyrbi0 (my husband) talks a great deal about Warcraft and current happenings. The topic of late was how to make judging and polling easier and more fair. I have a thought about it.

What if we just judge in ranks instead of points? For example, instead of saying so-and-so got 8 out of 10 points (which may end up as a similar score to others), rank the person as better than 5 people but less than two others. If there are 12 contestants, everyone is ranked from 1 (best) to 12 (worst). This makes it clear who is winning and how well.

My next suggestion is to limit the polling to just the top 3 or 5 candidates. This will help prevent popularity contests and allow a smaller window of subjective judging. Polling is subjective. People like what they like, regardless of the rules. Whereas the ranked judging is more objective (hopefully).

I hope this idea might help in future contests. I know I'm just a voice but an idea is an idea right? I would love to hear your thoughts on this!

 

[Kyrbi0]

Thanks dear!

Just posting to say what I've said IRL: I think this (re: ranked Judging specifically) is a fascinating concept which could really revolutionize our Judging. I've been weighing the pros & cons on my mind & I haven't yet come up with a serious issue (though I'm open to discussion).

(Also note: the way I would suggest doing it would be in reverse, i.e. the higher the ranking, the better. That way the "points" can just directly be the ranking (e.g. with 3 contestants, for a given Criteria, 1st place gets 3 points, 2nd gets 2, 3rd gets 1).

 

[Wazzz]

I think polling has been a huge issue with some contests, particularly Techtree Contests - there is no conceivable way every single person voting has played every single entry, so, more often than not, they go with either the most popular choice, or which one has the most pleasing aesthetic - the two usually go hand-in-hand, as a lot of popularity and online traffic can be gained through the art sections.

So, I was a little confused with the ranked system, but I think I'm getting a bit of a hang for it - so, what we're looking at is something similar to, say, Crash Team Racing Cup points? Everybody is ranked from 1 to however many contests there are, and the first four places gain points for that area? Could be an interesting concept, although it may leave some people with 0 points in all areas (like they deserve). I'm definitely curious to see how it goes, and it does sound like it would actually help alleviate the polling issue a bit, if I'm interpreting this correctly.

I suppose I am a bit of stickler for the numeric system, as it gives a bit more versatility with how a contest can be judged and/or weighed, but I'm curious to see other people's thoughts on the idea. Definitely worth considering.

 

[Daffa]

Guys, this better be at Site Discussion

I agree we can use some shift for the way contest polling is run. I'll give any new option chance so we can see improvements.

 

[Kyrbi0]

My wife wasn't sure where to post it, so just move it as necessary.