Updated since July 30, 2022
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Website Goals
There are three founding pillars for this website that influence the kind of approach I have with its content:
- DIVERSITY: I want to encourage viewers to diversify their entertainment, mindset, and culture. This website aims to expose a variety of works, both good and bad, and enlighten viewers to new genres, styles, and opinions.
- EXAMINATION: I want to dive deep into many works of art, praising or criticizing certain aspects and explaining what it succeeds in or fails to do. I hope this further deepens a viewer’s appreciation towards its creators and inspires other creators to pursue their best.
- GUIDANCE: I want to offer my opinion on the various types of entertainment available, and steer viewers into what they would like to experience the most. For example, this websites’ reviews usually critique a work from multiple perspectives and angles.
Post Schedule
Due to the hobbyist nature of this website, as well as current engagement with college, there is no concrete update schedule in place. Reviews and blog posts come out whenever, though eventually I would like to move into monthly releases, then into biweekly releases.
Review Guidelines
- INCLUSIVITY
I welcome, encourage, and review all kinds of media from all kinds of forms and subject matters—to an extent. Certain genres may be “blacklisted” from this website because I feel they either exist to exploit money from their consumers or exist without advancing (or attempting to advance) the “art” of entertainment. For instance…
[X] Extreme Violence / Gore:
Games like Bayonetta or the Doom series are not banned because while incredibly violent, they are hallmarks of their respective genres and inspirations to many who pursue game development. Likewise, movies like Seven or a handful of anime/manga are not banned because depictions of such violence is not mindless and often play to certain themes.
[X] Sexual Content / Nudity:
Mostly referring to pornography. I’m perfectly fine with kissing, passionate scenes, and nudity if it means something to the relationship or the work as a whole. Games like the Danganronpa series or Cyberpunk 2077 are not banned because its sexual content (or implications) are not the focal point of the game; on the other hand, games like the Senran Kagura series are banned. For the sake of reiterating: I could review a work with sexual content, but I would rather not review a work that only has sexual content (or advertised as its most forefront feature).
[X] Corporate / Monetary:
Games based on comic books like Marvel’s Spider-Man are not banned because they exist within the entertainment sphere (and especially held to great standards by Insomniac Games and PlayStation). However, games made by businesses outside the entertainment industry, like I Love You, Colonel Sanders! A Finger Lickin’ Good Dating Simulator, are a gray area (how much is it a marketing ploy? how much is it an actual game?); in any case, I would rather steel clear of those types of experiences.
Likewise, I have no intentions in playing (or reviewing) games or media whose sole purpose is not to entertain, enlighten, or educate. Games with aggressively pay-to-win or play-to-earn systems are banned. To some extent, games that capitalize on memes, topical trends, or existing works (in which there is no sense of originality) are mostly avoided. Games like Untitled Goose Game or the Goat Simulator series are not banned because its merit comes from being a comedic and imaginative idea, not from being an established meme (though of course, they both naturally reached that status); the same cannot be said for games like Stumble Guys.
- OPTIMISM
I attempt a positive outlook when it comes to my reviews. I stand by the idea that no creator exists with the intention of making a bad work. While there certainly may be blemishes in a work, I do want to focus on its better aspects.
- MERIT OF THE WORK
Reviews are based on the work itself, without taking account of controversy or concerns of reality. In other words, my ratings are determined by the quality of a work, and not its price tag, company, or associated individuals. Of course, Full View reviews do have separate sections, such as the “Price” section, which delve into issues of reality and practicality.
- FUN PRIORITY (for video games)
I play to enjoy the game, then I decide and judge its worth. I do not want to actively critique a game while I’m playing it; otherwise, it defeats the purpose of video games—to have fun. Of course, there are times where I simply cannot ignore some aspects of the game; I might question the price tag or certain game design decisions. In those cases, I might jot something down for a later review—and then I continue to play for fun.
- INDIE PRIORITY (for video games)
I want to emphasize the individual and smaller teams over the so-called “AAA” companies. This is because the former group needs more exposure while the latter group has plenty of reviews and publicity online. That said, this does not mean I will completely avoid coverage of “AAA” or “AA” games.
Types of Content
- REVIEWS
Reviews are more structured, concise articles that aim to help readers determine whether a certain video game, movie, tv show, or other work is right for them—all the while assessing its merit. There are two major types of reviews, which change meaning depending on the type of work being reviewed:
Full View reviews are the most in-depth and complete form of reviewing for this website. In general, these reviews use a more critical, analytical approach towards the work in question, usually indicating that…
1.) the work is immense enough (perhaps in its content, or in society) for a deep examination
2.) I have experienced the work to the fullest extent possible
3.) I am fully confident in giving a fair judgement of the work
4.) I feel that it is worth my time, or I have enough time, to construct a detailed review
On the contrary, Quick Glance reviews are a more concise form of reviewing for this website. In general, these reviews tend to be more casual and focused on helping the reader determine if the work is something they would want to experience. As expected, Quick Glance reviews lack the criteria for Full View reviews…
1.) the work does not need a hefty review due to its brevity or lack of discussion surrounding it
2.) I have not experienced the work to the fullest extent possible
3.) I am not confident in giving a fair judgement of the work
4.) I feel that it is in my best interest to make a shorter review for a faster send-out
For video games, Full View reviews touch upon all of the categories possible in my template; Quick Glance reviews only touch upon a select few categories in the template. For any long-form work with multiple entries, Full View reviews touch upon the series as a whole while Quick Glance reviews touch upon each individual “entry”.
Generally, most reviews (outside of video games) have a word count of between 500 and 1000 words. Full View reviews or any review journaling a long-form work tend to have a word count beyond 1000 words.
- BLOG POSTS
These are articles for beyond the screen. There is no exact form for this type of content: some are quick analysis on a single aspect of an episode or series, while others are deep dive into a series or franchise. Some articles can talk about multiple works at once, while other articles can simply discuss issues of reality in relation to entertainment. Regardless, blog posts tend to look into the construction of the work (think plot, characters, dialogue, aesthetic, design, etc.).
CRITICAL EYE 