Rating the Changes – Introduction

As the year comes to an end, I have a new blogging series. This is called “Rating the Changes”, where I rate changes between two different versions of the same games or the sequels to the immediate entries before.

In video gaming, when a new game comes out, when we get a remake, or when an update comes out, you will see a couple changes. Some changes are actually good, as they explain why we should move onto the newer version. But some changes are bad, as they explain why we should stick to the current version. We also see the more inconsequential changes that would work either way, so we would accept the current version. And some changes have been neutralized by both good and bad aspects of it.

While there are changes to some of the features, there’s also many things that stayed the same. While most of the stuff should been left unchanged, there are also areas that should have been changed.

Since the first few entries from this point will be about changes between two Animal Crossing games and versions, the icons used are from Animal Crossing.

Here’s an example of a positive change rating:

And here’s an example of a negative change rating:

The Bell bag icons are used to replace stars. As you know, changes are rated on the 5-star system, but only this time, all star ratings can be good or bad. What the number of stars represents is my passion towards the change. The more bags of Bells there are, the stronger my opinion. I may use different icons for different games, but for Animal Crossing, a 5-Star change featuring normal Bell bags represents a change that I strongly agree with taking, while a 5-Star change featuring red Bell bags represents a change that I strongly disagree with.

When the star rating is lower, we approach a change that I call “neutral changes”. Changes that are truly neutral will have a rating like this:

At this point, I would have no opinion towards the change at all, and if I did, it would be 100% ambivalent.

As for why I chose Bell bags to represent the changes, it’s because in the Animal Crossing series, Bells are the main currency in the game. All transactions are a change in balance.

While I have Bell ratings for changes, I have fossil ratings for similarities. Positive similarities are areas where the game developers are right about not changing, negative similarities are areas that should’ve been changed, and neutral similarities are areas that I would been okay with either way.

Here’s an example of a positive similarity rating:

And here’s an example of a negative similarity rating:

Not like change ratings, similarity ratings are on a 3-star system, where the higher the rating, the more I am sure that they should leave it unchanged or should have changed it. If an Animal Crossing game consistently had 3-Star ratings with only gray fossils, then there are a lot of changes that should’ve been made, and I’m serious about it.

As for why I chose fossils to represent similarities, fossils don’t change over time. They stay the same for millions of years.

When the Switch 2 remake of Ocarina of Time comes out, I’ll be sure to have many ratings for each. I have played the game enough times to form an opinion on each part.

Changes:

Now that I shown what the ratings look like, here’s how I define positive changes, negative changes, and neutral changes. If a version of one game has more positive changes, then it would be best to move onto the new game. But if a version of a game has more negative changes, then it would be best to stick to the older game.

So let’s say that you’re at a Christmas lights festival. One house has single-colored light strings. Let’s also say that red lights and orange lights are bad lights (where orange is better than red), green lights and blue lights are good lights (where blue is better than green), and yellow lights and white lights are okay lights (where yellow and white are equal). It would also be better if the lights were brighter rather than dimmer.

Positive Changes:

Positive changes are areas where the latter version is better than the former version. That’s where the changes are actually good. Examples for video games include, but not limited to:

• New features or old and popular features returning
• Changes to pre-existing features that make the features better
• Removal or scaling back of frustrating mechanics
• New items or returning items
• Graphical improvements

These are the changes that we like. The more positive changes there are, the better the latter version is. However, some changes outweigh others. so if there’s more bad changes than good changes, but the good changes have more impact than the bad changes, then the latter version is the winner. But whether or not we should stick to the old version, the developers should keep them in mind, so that positive changes can be retained while negative changes should be reverted.

Of course, not all positive changes are good changes. Some of them are bad changes. But even if the changes are bad, the latter version is still better than the former version. For instance, let’s say that you hate mushrooms, but you don’t like onions either. A change in a stew recipe that removes the mushrooms, but replaces it with onions, would be a positive change because even though onions are now part of the stew, at least mushrooms are no longer included.

Going to the Christmas light example, these are all positive changes:

• Red lights are replaced with blue lights
  • This is an example of how changes make the latter version much better. For the lights, not only are the red lights gone, but we have blue lights instead.
• Red lights are replaced with orange lights
  • This is an example of how bad stuff are still kept, but they are improvements compared to the former. For the lights, sure that we don’t like either color of lights, but at least the orange lights are better than the red lights.
• Green lights are replaced with blue lights
  • This is the example of the opposite, where both versions are good, but the change made it better. for the lights, sure that we miss the green lights, but at least we have blue lights.

Negative Changes:

Now let’s take a look on the other side of the coin. Negative changes are areas where the latter version is worse than the former version. Examples for video games include, but not limited to:

• Popular features being removed or nerfed
• Changes to pre-existing features that make the features worse
• Adding new frustrating mechanics
• Removal of items
• Censorship

They could be big changes with little impact. They could be small changes with big impact. They could be minor. They could be major. But if there are more negative changes, or the negative changes outweigh the positive changes, then the former version wins over the latter version. If the video game series consistently follows the negative changes, then it’s time to abandon the series and focus on the old one.

Some changes are bad on the spot. They are bad from the very beginning. But some changes might be good or neutral changes, but other factors ultimately render the change to a negative one. For instance, let’s say that Chick-Fil-A introduces garlic parmesan chicken nuggets to the menu. It becomes a big hit that it results in Chick-Fil-A getting more crowded, customer service starts tanking, and in extreme cases, customers get into a fight over them. In this case, the addition of garlic parmesan chicken nuggets becomes a negative change, and it’s because of the impact, not because of the nature of the change.

Going to the Christmas light example, these are all negative changes:

• Blue lights are replaced with red lights
  • This is an example of how changes make the latter version worse in some ways. For the lights, not only are the blue lights gone, but we have the red lights instead.
• Light strings are taken down
  • This is an example of how changes make the latter version worse in other ways, which have more impact than other changes. For the light, now that there’s no Christmas lights on that house, the house is no longer interesting.
• Spotlights are added
  • This is an example of how changes become bad due to external factors. For the lights, the spotlights may add more light, but they would outshine the other lights, making them look dimmer than they did had the spotlights not been added.

Neutral Changes:

The other type of changes are neutral changes. Neutral changes are changes that don’t have much impact on whether the former version or latter version is better. Any changes with a 2-star rating or less on either side is a neutral change. Examples for video games include, but not limited to:

• Addition of useless mechanics that neither improve nor hinder the gameplay
• Minor design changes
• Changes that are popular/unpopular to many people that I don’t care about at all
• Addition of cool new features that are rather disappointing
• Nerfing of popular features while also buffing other features

These kinds of changes come in two different camps. One of them are changes that I don’t care about. If I had an opinion towards them, it would be a weak opinion. It would be a minor compliment, a minor complaint, or something that is completely inconsequential. I would roll with the changes, but if they reverted them, I would be okay as well.

The other camp are changes that are positive or negative on paper but are completely neutralized by other factors. For positive changes, they seem good, but if you considered the negative aspects about it, that completely ruins the change, thus rendering it a neutral change. For negative changes, while they aren’t good, they come with a silver lining. An example of this kind of change is a change in the milkshakes on the restaurant menu. The chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, and mint milkshakes are now taller, with more to drink. But, as the shakes are bigger, the toppings (whipped cream and sprinkles) have been removed in the process. The larger size seems more exciting, but the removal of toppings is a disappointment.

Going to the Christmas light example, these are all neutral changes:

• White lights are replaced with yellow lights
  • This is an example of a change that I would have no opinion. For the lights, the house would still look fine whether the lights are white or yellow. Such change doesn’t change anything.
• Bright red lights are replaced with dim blue lights
  • This is an example of a positive change that’s been neutralized by something bad. For the lights, it’s a good thing that the red lights are replaced with blue lights, but when they’re dimmer, that removes any excitement that I expect.
• Dim green lights are replaced with bright orange lights
  • This is an example of a negative change that’s been neutralized by something good. For the lights, it’s a bad thing that the green lights are replaced with orange lights, but at least the orange lights are brighter.

Star-Rating System:

All changes are rated on a 5-star scale. The higher the rating, the stronger my opinion is towards the change.

• A 5-star rating means that I have a very strong opinion towards the change, for that it has a significant impact on my opinion towards each game or each version of the game.
• A 4-star rating means that I have a strong opinion towards the change. While it’s not my greatest opinions, it’s still very good or very bad, depending on what side it goes.
• A 3-star rating means that I have a moderate opinion towards the change. Positive changes would make the latter game or version better, while negative changes would do otherwise, but it’s not a major change.
• A 2-star rating means that I have a weak opinion towards the change or a strong opinion that has been neutralized a little. I would go either way, but I prefer the positive changes.
• A 1-star rating means that I have a very weak opinion towards the change or a strong opinion that has been neutralized by a lot. I would go either way, even if I have to accept the negative change.
• A 0-star rating means that I have no opinion towards the change or a strong or weak opinion that’s been completely neutralized. This is where I would take either side.

Oh, and another thing. Bug patches and soundtrack changes do not qualify for change ratings. They only apply to the graphics, the gameplay, and sometimes, the story.

So here’s an example. Let’s say that a park has a Christmas lights festival every year. The first year they did this was to introduce the festival. The second one did the following:

• It introduced souvenir kiosks so you can buy merchandise on your way out.
• It raised the ticket price by $10.
• It added a Christmas village section, which wasn’t in the first year’s show.
• The multicolored lights on the gazebo near the lake were replaced with white lights.
• The single snowman frame at the front now has a snowman family.
• The Christmas tree near the skateboard half-pipe has an angel instead of a star.

Whether the changes are positive or negative, here’s what the ratings would look like:

• The addition of souvenir kiosks would be a 5-star positive change since would greatly improve the experience of the festival. Now that there’s gifts to be sold, it would make me or others want to go back the following year.
• The price hike of the tickets would be a 4-star negative change since that would affect whether I would attend the festival, but is not the main factor.
• The Christmas village addition would be a 3-star positive change since it’s a new exciting addition to the festival, but it doesn’t have an impact on whether I would go.
• The gazebo having white lights instead of multicolored lights would be a 2-star negative change since the lights on the best part of the park have become more boring, but for as long as the gazebo has lights, it’s good.
• The snowman family change would be a 1-star positive change since I think the new addition is rather cute, but it’s not a change I would care too much about.
• The skateboard section’s Christmas tree having an angel would be a 0-star change because that tree isn’t the main Christmas tree in the park, and it didn’t really change the topping at all.

And yes, I do like Christmas light walkthroughs. The lights have become my favorite part about Christmas, even more than the presents.

Similarities:

Similarities between both games and both version of the game are aspects that stayed the same. If there are more positive similarities, then I would be less supportive of changes outside the changes that have been made. If there are more negative similarities, then the latter game or version is not that good, for that it stayed the same when changes should’ve been made.

To keep up with the holiday spirit, let’s say that the Christmas lights festival in the park decorated the same areas as last year while also leaving other areas alone when they consider adding new sections. The lake and the gardens should be decorated with lights, while the playground and skateboard half-pipe should not have any lights. And remember, red lights and orange lights are bad, yellow lights and white lights are okay, and green lights and blue lights are good.

Stuff that should stay the same:

Positive similarities are features or aspects that I was happy to see in both versions of the game. Unless if it would benefit with a positive change, the developers are right about leaving that alone. Examples for video games include:

• Popular features being retained
• Bad mechanics that were previously removed not coming back
• The core purpose of the games was followed
• Good items not being removed or replaced
• Soundtrack staying the same

For as long as both games or both versions of the game has these features, I would be fine with either version. While changes may impact which ones I play, if I’m primarily going for some features that I liked or to avoid the features that I hated, both versions are great. It only goes down to which one did it better.

Now I’m not going to list everything that should be the same. The ones I would highlight are the ones that I would expect to see a change, judging by multiple factors, but there was no change, so I was glad. For example, let’s say that a restaurant is cutting out multiple items from the menu to make room for some new items. The least healthy, the most expensive, and the least popular items are all removed, but they kept the mozzarella sticks on the menu. I would document the mozzarella sticks item as a positive similarity, but not the overhead lights over the booths. While it would suck if both were removed, I wouldn’t expect the overhead lights on the booths to be removed if there were menu changes.

Going to the Christmas light example, these are all positive similarities:

• The lake still had illuminated decorations around it on all sides
  • This is an example of a popular feature appearing in both games or both versions of the game. For the lights, the lake was magical when it had Christmas lights around it. The park kept the magic once again.
• The playground remained to be undecorated
  • This is an example of an extinct unpopular feature not coming back or a potential unpopular feature not being added in a game or update. For the lights, while decorations make things look better, decorating the playground with lights would make it look tacky and is thus a poor representation of Christmas lights.
• The blue lights on the house were still blue lights
  • This is an example of how other good aspects of a game were left unchanged when everything else was being changed. For the lights, blue lights are good, so the house is still good.

Stuff that should’ve been changed:

As the most focused part of reviewing the similarities, negative similarities are features or aspects that should’ve been changed. It makes me wonder, but why did they leave these parts alone when they changed almost everything else. Examples for video games include:

• The absence of a feature I would like to see
• Bad mechanics are retained without reduction
• Previously removed popular features not coming back
• Other negative changes from previous versions that were retained
• A bug or glitch that has not been patched

While the latter version has some aspects that prove that it’s better than the former version and some aspects that prove otherwise, it also has some stuff that should’ve been changed. It was bad for the previous version, it’s bad enough that it still carried on to the next version.

Now some of these aspects were aspects that should have been changed no matter what. But others are stuff that would have been okay without a change, but external factors have ruined this part and is thus in need of a change. Once again, I would only document what I would expect to see a change. Moving off of food examples, let’s do a Star Wars one. So you know that the Special Editions have made changes, where some like the language change in A New Hope were good, while some like Greedo shooting first were bad. But one thing that hasn’t changed was that Chewbacca didn’t get a medal at the end in A New Hope when he would’ve deserved one. Another thing that hasn’t changed is that R2-D2 didn’t fly in Return of the Jedi. The former example is where a change should’ve been made by all means, while the latter is where a change should’ve been made thanks to a plot hole created in the Original Trilogy by the prequels.

Going to the Christmas light example, these are all negative similarities:

• The skateboarding half-pipe still has Christmas lights on it
  • This is an example of how a bad feature, whether from the original version or via negative change, still is part of the game. For the lights, Christmas lights may make something look better, but the skateboarding half-pipe should not be decorated.
• The gardens remain to be undecorated
  • This is an example of how a potential good feature or a once-removed good feature is still missing. For the lights, the gardens were a perfect opportunity to have Christmas lights. Having no Christmas lights in the gardens of the park is a wasted opportunity.
• The red lights on the house were still red lights
  • This is an example of how there are other aspects that should’ve been changed in a game when the new game or new version of the game came out. For the lights, red lights are bad, so the house is still bad.

Same stuff that have no opinion:

The other type of similarities are neutral similarities. Neutral similarities are similarities that I would be okay with whether they changed it or not. But the bottom line is, they didn’t change it at all. Examples for video games include:

• A feature that I never utilized stays in the game
• A character from a previous game that was removed, but I didn’t care about, is still absent
• A new character that I didn’t care about is still present
• The colors of a building are the same colors
• Sound effects are still the same

Just like neutral changes, neutral similarities are stuff that I have no opinion towards. Any similarity with a 1-star rating or a 0-star rating, whether I would like to see a change or not see a change, would be classified as a neutral similarity. This time, I do not have ambivalent feelings on what should’ve been changed or what should’ve stayed the same.

These similarities are areas I would have the least amount of information from. Of course there’s going to be a lot of stuff that stayed the same that I wouldn’t have cared if there was a change. However, if I did expect a change, but I didn’t care if there was a change, I would document it. For example, let’s say that an amusement park has updated several rides as part of its 20th anniversary. While many tracked rides were changed, some of them were left alone. Any ride that I don’t care if they changed would fall under this, but not when the park is open or closed.

Going to the Christmas light example, these are all neutral similarities:

• The bridge still has Christmas lights on it
  • This is an example of a feature that I don’t care about is still in the game. For the lights, I would’ve been fine had they been removed from the bridge or if they stayed there.
• The fountain remains to be undecorated
  • This is an example of a removed feature a potential feature that remains to be absent from the game but would have no impact on my opinion. For the lights, I would’ve been find if they added them to the fountain or if they didn’t decorated it.
• The white lights on the house are still white
  • This is an example of other aspects in a game that stayed the same, but I didn’t care if they changed. For the lights, white lights are fine, so the house is fine. Not the best, but not the worst.

Star-Rating System:

All similarities are rated on a 3-star scale. The higher the rating, the stronger my opinion is towards the similarity.

• A 3-star rating means that I have a strong opinion about expecting a change or expecting to stay the same, for that this is really something I wanted to see a change or see no change at all.
• A 2-star rating means that I have a moderate opinion about expecting a change or expecting to stay the same. If it’s something that I want to see a change, I am serious, but not too serious about it.
• A 1-star rating means that I have a weak opinion about expecting a change or expecting to stay the same, for that I am okay for leaving it the same, but my opinion tilts one way.
• A 0-star rating means that I have no opinion about expecting a change or expecting to stay the same, as I am completely okay with it either way.

No examples will be given this time.

Quiz Time:

That’s the end of the guide. To test your knowledge, you should try taking this quiz. It’s a true and false quiz based on the information above. Be mindful that there is a time limit on this one.

Change Rating Quiz:

I have another quiz, as this one is about choosing what rating matches each change the best. The topic of the quiz is the 2018 Pokémon game Pokémon Let’s Go Pikachu/Let’s Go Eevee, the very first main series Pokémon game on a Nintendo home console. As a modernized remake of Pokémon Yellow, it made quite a few changes to stay relevant to today’s Pokémon games, while also being faithful to the original game in some ways.

Here is a hint as you take the quiz. The first half of the quiz reviews positive changes, and to a degree, neutral changes, while the second half of the quiz reviews negative changes. Your job is to guess what rating is the best to match the greatness of positive changes and the severity of negative changes. If you didn’t get a high score on the quiz, don’t worry, you’re not at fault. This quiz would explain what rating each change would get in a normal situation.

Similarity Categorizing Quiz:

I also have another quiz, but it’s for similarities. Instead of guessing what rating matches each similarity the best, you should guess if the similarity was good (where it’s good that changes haven’t been made), bad (where changes should’ve been made, or neutral (where changes would have no effect on user experience).

This time, the topic of the quiz is on Pokémon Sun/Moon and the sequel, Pokémon Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon. Instead of focusing on the changes that Pokémon Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon did to Pokémon Sun/Moon (such as the addition of Mantine surfing and the plot change where Lusamine focuses on Necrozma rather than obsessing over Ultra Beasts), it’s more about what stayed the same between both games. It’s more about what Game Freak did right when remaking the game, what they should’ve done, and what would been inconsequential if they left it alone or changed it. Again, if your scores are low, don’t worry. Guessing the correct answer in a subjective quiz can be difficult.