You might be thinking, “How do you go about doing your reviews, Thumb Culture?”. Maybe you’re not. Either way, if you are then have a read of this and you can gain a better understanding on how we move from deciding on a game to review to get the final score and the reward system we have in place.

Obtaining and Distributing Review Codes

Thumb Culture does accept review codes in order to complete relevant coverage. If a developer, publisher, or PR firm wishes to send us a review code, they can do so by emailing [email protected]

Each of the members of Thumb Culture have their own personal tastes when it comes to games, and we try to (as far as is practicable) match up the right person with the game. This is so that they are able to give a decent review of the game, and not just shoot it down because its not their particular chosen genre of game.

In the case where no one on the team wishes to review the title the code shall not be redeemed and instead stored into a document for if anyone does become interested at a later date. Usually, codes will not be requested unless a member of the team expresses interest in carrying out coverage of the game.

We can get sent review codes from the Developers, Publishers, or PR Firms without requesting. If we have been sent a code to complete our piece, it will be stated at the end of a review in a disclaimer.

If a writer accepts a code, they are expected to complete coverage on the title. Should a writer disappear without providing coverage after accepting the code, Thumb Culture will try to reassign another writer to the code. If this is not possible then Thumb Culture will reach out to whoever supplied the code and explain the situation and potentially request another code and provide it to a trusted writer, such as the owner of the website.

Should we receive more than one code we shall pass this on to another member of the team to provide additional coverage, such as streaming, video content, or even allow another member of the team to join in to test multiplayer functions. In the case that we do not pass the code on to another member of the team, we will use the codes in a giveaway to the community.

It is important to note that Thumb Culture will not provide coverage of a game should the Developer, Publisher, or PR Firm offer payment in return for a more favourable review. Thumb Culture will also not provide coverage if a game has been obtained through illegal methods.

Reviewing

Whilst in the process of the review, the writer in charge of reviewing the game will play the game as much as is needed to give an overview of how the game plays and all the mechanics herein. It will not be required for the reviewer to complete all side missions, and collect all collectables, achievements, and unlocks. Should the reviewer gain access to any DLC, they will make it known within the review.

Thumb Culture requires writers to follow a guideline as detailed below,

Gameplay
What do you do? How do you do it? Story outline (without giving away too many spoilers)? etc

Graphics And Audio
How does the game look? Is it of sufficient standard? Glitches and bugs present? How does the game sound? Does the game audio give anything extra to the game? etc

Longevity
How long will you play this game? Will you keep going back to it? etc

Final Thoughts
Our conclusion and criticisms, as well as giving the review its final score.

Review Scores

When a writer reviews a title they will be expected to provide an overall score based on their personal experience and opinions. This score is in no way endorsed by any third party, and should not be influenced by the developer, publisher, or PR Firm.

Thumb Culture runs on a scoring system in which the game is rated out of 5 with the following medals associated with the number scored.

• Platinum Award (5/5) – This is not stating that the game is perfect, but stating that if you are a fan of the genre then this game is an essential purchase for you.
• Gold Award (4/5) – This game is great, it’s as good as it gets without being an essential buy.
• Silver Award (3/5) – This game is ok, give it a try if you like the sound of it, but don’t blame us if you find a lemon.
• Bronze Award (2/5) – This game isn’t great. Only buy this if you find it in a sale.
• No Award (1/5) – For games that really should be avoided at all costs/Preview and Early Access Titles
• Broken Award (No Score) – Reserved for games littered with bugs and instances that prevent a full and accurate review.

Moderation

Every review will be read through by the Editor-in-Chief and will need to be approved before being published to the website. If there are any issues with any posts on our site please use the contact us page to get in touch providing links and errors.

If you do have any further questions please feel free to reach out to us!