Topic: Ideas for the site.

@antdickens thank you, I'll try and catch it next time I see it.

@DemonStar89 Ha. This is very random and niche, but it's the first time I've seen someone mention Boost Juice in the wild! The founder of that company was a contestant on two seasons of Australian Survivor (where I loved her), and I always wondered how successful her company is aside from her presenting her as this rich, self-made millionaire woman. I guess it's successful enough to harrass you with poorly placed ads on PushSquare! Go Janine!

@Tjuz lol that's not something I expected to learn today. What is TV like these days? I haven't watched broadcast for 25 years.

Are we allowed to ask about moderation here? I know it is some great taboo, but I want to do so with humour and an understanding so we can all learn, benefit and grow.

So... Push Square removed my comment that simply said "This article is a Major Disappointment" a jibe in reference to an article title and it's potential negative framing for engagement.

But i'm now left wondering is there no sense of humour and irony left?

Tell me, is that not as fair a critique as the title of the article? (*wink) If our expectations are that Push Square don't design articles for engagement based on perceived negativity, but then appear to (in our opinion), is that not the definition of a Major Disappointment to those that think that, too? Am I therefore not allowed to have this opinion and make a joke about being disappointed in it?

And if "Major Disappointment" is not, in itself, baiting - not inherently bad - then why has my comment been treated as if it is? They are exactly the same words with the same meaning, after all. Is it because they may appear to be negative and overly critical and thus drew a reaction? 🤔 (ironic if true)

Anyway, I'm just trying to shine a light on words being more about what they make people feel rather than their definition. And this kind of feels like censorship going too far, which is kind of... you guessed it... disappointing 😅 Especially considering the large number of people that do feel the article has some click-bait qualities designed to get those 250+ comments...some may not put it eloquently, but a lot of people actually have done, to be fair.

So, Push Square, I demand satisfaction. I fully expect that whole article to be removed for the same reasons, for it being 'unconstructive' (*winkyface) Again, this is satirical humour, I cannot stress this enough. So can we at least have a joke and discussion about the irony of it? Failing that, we can meet for the aforementioned satisfaction by way of a duel.

@Ravix so, it's best to use the contact form whenever comments are removed, and we're often happy to elaborate on why something was removed.

Sometimes comments are removed because of one line that is egregious, whereas the rest of the comment was fine. This can appear "heavy-handed" but usually it's a small thing that if we let slide other people would start doing it and things snowball from there.

As for the above, I wasn't involved in removing it, however, any jokey one-liners that aren't 100% clear what they mean are very easily misread and/or misunderstood. What we have learned over the past few decades is that not everyone understands sarcasm, and therefore, it can just be problematic. Therefore, anything that we think can (and is likely) to be misread is probably best to be removed.

So whilst I personally don't mind the jokey comments, I can totally see why they become problematic — hopefully that makes some sense!

@Ravix Hey, mod & community manager here! To be fair, I didn't quite click that it was in reference to the title, so that's my bad 😅

I'm sure you can imagine we get a lot of comments that aren't very constructive and are just bashing writers on a personal level. Sometimes it's easy to misread comments or not quite catch any humour or tone

We also try to keep comments live that are constructive, but we also really encourage users to use the contact form and give us feedback, rather than it overtake the entire comment section 😇

We are always open to constructive feedback. Nine times out of ten, just dropping us a message can resolve any miscommunication https://www.pushsquare.com/contact

@antdickens @DreamlandGem

It's all good. I just wanted to elaborate on it in a way I felt was still fun, mostly for my own sake 😅 I don't hold any grudges about it, and I suppose the duel is not necessary. Although, I am still open to it if you all are. Any more than 2 on one might be unfair though, so if any other Push Squarers want to join, please do draw straws and keep it at that ratio!

I know I can't actually change the trend of what generates clicks on the internet either. At this point we may just have to live with it. Although I do think sometimes there is a trend lately to perhaps lean more one way at the moment for clicks sake. It is a tough thing to balance though. I do know a few people have noticed a slight change in recent times that they aren't incredibly enthused about, though. But i've already referenced that so will let it lie.

I definitely prefer to be positive about Push Square, it always stood out as having a bit more of a personality than some other sites, and overall it has a pretty decent community too.

I suppose I might as well shoehorn in that i'd love to see more of the kind of articles that Sammy did lately, the studio tour one. He has had a few travel articles and things like that, and if you can get more dev interviews, tours, inside looks that would be cool. I know it will be hard, but I like to see your writers have something they can really get into, rather than just having to pick and mix from different takes that are already on the internet for those articles that pay the bills, so to speak. Sprinkle in some more 100% unique Push Square exclusives and I think it would keep people happy, for sure.

People have also mentioned the YouTube aspect before as well, you do have some talented presenters that are far better at speaking than a lot of the influencer types. It'd be interesting to see this utilised more 😄

@Ravix I appreciate feedback and light-hearted tone

I struggle with the "for clicks sake" thing, as I can assure you we have never encouraged our staff to write content "for clicks sake" in the way you've implied. We quite obviously want to write about things people are interested in reading, but there is no conversation behind the scenes that tells people to be, for example, controversial just to get some extra views. We've always tried to get a balance between writing about things WE want to write about (from a personal interest) and things that we think YOU (the audience) want us to write about. Personally, I think that is the most healthy approach; it needs to be a mix of those two, imo.

We have actively encouraged our writers (across all sites) to be more confident to include their own thoughts and opinions in articles more often than perhaps in the past. You could say this is the only recent change as AI Overviews hoover up all the factual reporting, meaning our writers' own thoughts/opinions are people is what can elevate them above an AI response.

Finally, I'm sure @get2sammyb will be doing as many studio visits and travel blogs as he can, but they don't always do huge numbers in views therefore we have to balance it out — everything in moderation!

@antdickens Jumping in here briefly. I wondered the same thing as Ravix, things like sarcasm do sometimes get lost in translation and there are quite a few international users among you who haven't had the benefit of a proper English education and even if they did things still get misconstrued or confused. It took me a while to learn Ravix-nese (sorry Ravix) but over time I have, mostly. He's kind of incorrigible in a good way. It's easy to understand why a comment in the articles has been removed when someone is being a hm, tool? I do appreciate humor, even if I don't always get it. At the same time I know that humans write those articles, they aren't machines, they need sleep and it's highly likely that some comments aren't even seen, if that's the case is reporting a comment a thing?

I'm asking because I do like to read those articles but there are people who drop by just to put something down (Marathon for example) they don't intend on playing it but they'll go out of their way to insult those that do and someone might be swayed out of a purchase when they see overwhelming negativity, even if that negativity originated from people who had no intention of ever playing it themselves. I put someone on ignore last week because they wouldn't stop tagging me about nonsense that I didn't want to know about, is it worth reporting a comment or is ignore the preferred option when people may already be busy/doing actual human things?

As a whole I don't understand internet censorship and other than this site I don't use any others, it's been very trial and error. I understand that the internet requires a tough skin, at the same time there have been a lot of people pushing the envelope when it comes games like Marathon, South of Midnight and others, it's hard to tell where acceptability starts and ends. I did quit the site for a couple of months to detox from that kind of thing but people like Ravix are why I returned. There were a couple of comments in the past that made me steer clear of the articles themselves and stick to the forums, I appreciate the articles themselves, many are food for thought, others just sometimes attract people who only jump in to sound off and they rarely have anything positive to say. I don't know where freedom of speech starts or ends either so that also figures heavily into everything I've just said and I'm a big believer in not rocking the boat if there's no reason to.

There's definitely a clear distinction between the comments section and the forum, reactive is the word I'd use. I understand that reactions push (I can't think of the word) engagement maybe, which is a good thing from a numbers perspective. It's just impossible to draw a line when it seems to be invisible and most of the time now I avoid those articles because some people do use them for nonconstructive cheap-shots at either the site or other people. The reviews are different and they have that Amazon link to pay it forward, which I do. I believe people need to enjoy the job they do, I wouldn't if I took the time to write an article only to have someone roll in five minutes later and and try to tear it down with like I said nonconstructive cheap-shots. Maybe it's part of the current gaming sphere, maybe it's always been there and writers/reviewers expect it. Seeing it as an observer, it leaves a bad taste in the mouth.

I mentioned some of the above to Ravix last night as he does seem to know his way around these parts. It's also entirely possible that I don't get the comments section full-stop so take everything I said with a pinch of salt. I tend to understand the forums more than previously but only because someone explained one on one outside of the site. And at length too. I don't think that's a fault of the site, more-so a lack of exposure to forums/internet to begin with and it could loop back into what I said about the comments section too. Hence the pinch of salt.

@GirlVersusGame it would be great if everyone were as measured and understanding as you two!

I also completely agree that there is a different "crowd" between forums and comments, and that's pretty understandable given all the context; the forum is far more casual.

In terms of users, I can completely understand ignoring someone if you don't really like their humour or takes on things. However, if you feel their comments are probably being disruptive to other users too, then that is where we'd prefer if you to report them. If we see that someone is systematically going against the grain, then it's grounds for a ban. And we do ban lots (100s if not 1000s) of users.

@antdickens yeah, I don't think I believe there is a real overlord commanding it, as such, it is proabably more that it is literally just the current trend of what gets the most clicks that a writer is naturally inclined and feels a pressure to want to also get those clicks. It'd be crazy to not wanting to succeed and appeal to that side of the fence when it seems the best way to get the engagement. But it is a delicate line to tread. Rumours or random opinions of people on social media being classed as industry news is one of those questionable trends, and people have definitely noticed that recently. Maybe it is just a trend, and will thus change again.

I think I was just mildly concerned that what may work in the short-term may actually wear out readers long term (that's just my own personal feeling towards the state of gaming news as it is today, on the whole though, as I myself feel I no longer have an interest in 90% of what is classed as gaming news now) But maybe it won't, and maybe there will still be enough people that want to keep arguing about the same things to drive bustling comments sections forever 😅 (cynical humour detected)

And yes, allowing personality is a good thing. Sammy will often have entertaining, but very tongue in cheek articles poking the bear, too. And sometimes they go over people's heads and create that tasty type of turmoil. I think the spirit in which something is written is important, though. I guess, but only the writers will truly know that. To me, as a Brit it is obvious when that is the case, and thus it is rather enjoyable 😅

Enough philosphising, though 🍻 keep up the good work. I do like a balanced open discussion where we can ponder the differing opinions and see things from all angles without resorting to actual anger or resentment.

I do think sometimes the British humour misses with some readers and it's something to further hone and work on. We don't want to completely remove it because it's an important part of the site's identity, but it's finding a way to incorporate those winks and nods that keep it as fun as possible for everyone.

Obviously we're not infallible and we will get things wrong from time to time, but the goal is to get it right as regularly as possible.

Appreciate all the feedback in here, and yes I wish I could do travel blogs every day but obviously that's just not realistic. (Although I will try to do as many as possible when the opportunities arise!)

@antdickens I'm never been called measured and understanding before so I'll definitely take that as a compliment, thank you.

@get2sammyb I do think sometimes the British humour misses with some readers and it's something to further hone and work on.

• It does but it's also one of the best forms of humor when you do get a feel for it. Which is probably why British comedy TV is so well known around the world. I see it everywhere I go. I think a lot of non-English people do get it, through streaming especially. I was watching a show about a farm in Yorkshire in the UAE, that was just regular broadcasting and they weren't ex-pats, British humor gets around, though a safe than sorry attitude does make sense too.

Obviously we're not infallible and we will get things wrong from time to time, but the goal is to get it right as regularly as possible.

• People have unrealistic expectations when it comes to video-game journalism. They forget that you guys aren't writing for the Financial Times and that you have actual passion/feelings and humanity for what you do, nor do I think they understand what it takes to run any kind of online or offline publication. I think it's a consequence of so much media/news being so automated now. Everything Tjuz said about modern/internet/news makes it sound instant and instant to me sounds lazy. It might also be easier for someone to take a person's time for granted (the writer of an article here) when they aren't valuing their own time, or simply aren't being productive. Wanting something to fail for example, I kept thinking of what Churchill said about not focusing on someone else's failure when he could spend his own time trying to succeed in his own en-devours.

A term I recently learned was terminally online and I think some of that affects certain comments, it's almost like there's a need to say something just to say it. An addiction almost. That's why I used the word reactive, and sometimes they use someone else's effort (the writer of the article) as some kind of chessboard when really they gain nothing from doing it except some kind of virtual win without any real loot or XP. Maybe it's the nature of the internet, I don't understand how it doesn't get to you or others. I can and have taken breaks but for you it's a job. For example the review for Marathon. I had no interest in playing it but saw the time that went into the review and did read it. I knew a person took the time out of their day to write it, as a job yes but I've seen other reviewers write a paragraph and call that a review. You can't tell me that that guy didn't feel something when he spent hours on the game, while taking notes, then turned it off and tried to vocalize what he felt while on that game, then hit publish and watched as people called everything he said into question.

By the same token I'm convinced that some people obviously didn't read it and jumped right on the hate train, not allowing that to get to you (as a writer) must be a learned skill. I've only seen the offline printed version of journalism, those writers weren't scrutinized by their readers. I've seen the site itself called out more times in the last month than I did in both the year I've spent being active and the previous year of only observing articles/the forum. I think you guys deserve more credit for getting it right, a few misses are expected when there are real people behind it all. My two cents as they say. I have a low tolerance for ungrateful/entitled people and I don't know if they are bots or drive by once off accounts but when I read this 'And we do ban lots (100s if not 1000s) of users' I think 'people need to find something more productive to do with their time while they have it'. Or perhaps they need to pick up a pen and try to write for themselves, then seen what effort actually is.

Too long kat didn't read - Keep doing what you do, some people are just natural born misérables and will be quicker to call out your misses than your hits.

Dear PushSquare

Can PushSquare provide more kids games on PS5 to be highlighted or reviewed as main article?
I played only kids games with very few rated Teen games.
There are A LOT of PS5 kids games, but PushSquare NEVER bring them oftenly and moreover still NEVER add them into game collection database.
I played kids games like BLUEY, BARBIE, PAW PATROL on PS5 but I cannot add into my games collection because those games didn't even exist on this website database.

And the reason I rarely hang out on this website PushSquare because of lack of kids games article that I can give comment.

I would be remiss not to just drop a quick comment that I really do appreciate Push Square filling a very specific place in the PlayStation video game enthusiast space. I like how it seems to bridge a nice gap between the bland news reporting sites (like VGC or GameSpot) and the Wild West of opinion (like Reddit, Resetera, Twitter). It’s a fine line to tread, but I value having the opinion pieces and not strictly just regurgitation of news and other content that can easily be churned out by an AI. My favorite reviews are usually John’s which are so thick with sarcasm and wit that they are fun to read even when I don’t care about the game being reviewed. The other soapbox and opinion pieces are also typically a joy to read. I know such humor and satire doesn’t always translate well online, and that people seem to misunderstand that Push Square has always been filling a specific niche of being a place for news and also opinion and fun. I think you all typically do a good job of meeting that hybrid approach and I wouldn’t want the site to back away from having that real human element to it.

Kudos also for being so approachable and responsive over the years to the users here. I don’t think there’s another site I’ve spent time with where the editors and writers are so accessible and interact in a meaningful way consistently like you all do. As the site’s grown I know you can’t do that as much as in years past, but you’ve been able to maintain that connection to your readers and for that I thank you. I remember the days when we would have fun engaging activities on the main site like the PlayStation Character tournament and other big polls which had everyone participating in good natured fun. Unfortunately the world today and the way people react online I suspect such content would be difficult to moderate.

Anyway, no reply needed and not really asking for anything specific, but felt the urge to comment.

@Th3solution thanks for the kind words, I will share with the team!

@get2sammyb definitely keep the tongue in cheek articles and humour as that is homegrown and feels genuine, and it is only ever an issue if there are misunderstandings. And misunderstandings are easily resolved, especially if people are willing to be kind, open, and honest with each other, which of course they w... oh 😬

I think the latest thing boils down to perception of words and meanings, which I tried to highlight with my humour. But to take it even more seriously if someone said to someone "you are a major disappointment" they won't think, "well if they thought higher of me, fair enough then" it will just feel like an insult in the moment to them. So having a title calling a game a major disappointment makes it feel far more negative, espeically when leading with the one overall negative review. That was all it was for most people. And it does feel like it is worth shining a light on whether the intention was to rile people up. But only Liam will know that. It kind of doesn't even matter about the game itself, it doesn't matter about perceived hype, it is literally just about the way it was written and framed because it should be obvious a lot of people would see 'Major Disappointment" and think "negative"

There's still people going round the site today saying things like "I think PushSquare scores it x number. Another meltdown incoming" does that not also seem like it is needlessly antagonistic and fishing for retort? A review score is someone's opinion, it should be as high or low as they see fit, hopefully from an objective standpoint, and debate can stem from that. But that is the kind of thing the article has given people the motive to do now, and it feels like we (site users) can't seem to step back and have a genuine debate about anything without people (other site users) wanting to brush over legitimate concerns people had, because it fits the narrative of one side vs another.

I guess my question would be 'do we not need to be fostering neutrality in these times to avoid this kind of thing?' A title of 'Review scores are in: X on metacritic Y on Opencritic' Tagline: 'is this a disappointing result?' Would probably have been enough. This would present a fact and pose a question, and that, at least, allows people to use their own brains. (Poll Incoming 👀)

So, my initial reaction was 'this is for clickbait' and because it cited the one outright negative review first, it kind of confirmed the inferred tone of the title. Maybe it was, maybe it wasn't... all I know is how it seemed to me. But people would have definitely engaged differently with a clearly neutral title for an article that was about aggregated review scores.

Worth a discussion. Also worth moving on from 🍻

@Ravix Hey, I just wanted to quickly jump in here to clarify that the intention with the headline was not to rile people up.

From my perspective, Crimson Desert was hyped up to be a genuine GOTY contender, to where a high Metacritic average was expected. While in isolation, a 78 on Metacritic means a game is good, I do believe it's a notable disappointment in the context of Crimson Desert and its release.

This is the context I went in with when writing the headline — the last thing I wanted to do was rile up and annoy people. I never want to do that in my writing. Thanks!

@LiamCroft "I do believe it's a notable disappointment in the context of Crimson Desert and its release" and that's how I genuinely read your article, clearly CD has become the lastest victim of the hype cycle. Like I said in the comments I think once scores start getting thrown around that's when people start taking things a little too personally as I'm sure you guys know what I mean.

As someone who’s been completely out of the loop with current gaming I’m somehow still not really aware of what crimson desert is nor have I seen much discussion of it in my circles, I can’t tell if this a bless or a curse, or something in between.