So we are going to look for people interested in judging with every upcoming official contest.
HOW DO I BECOME A JUDGE?
Please post your application for becoming a judge in this thread. We need to learn a little bit about you ahead of time, so we get an idea of your background and preferences when it comes to levels. In this spoiler is a couple of questions/things we need. Please make sure to answer each of them in your reply, then post your reply in this thread. Don't fret if you don't hear from us immediately, as we usually approach people directly in the run-up to the contests.
Spoiler: show
WHAT MAKES A GOOD JUDGE?
Use these guidelines as a way to estimate what we are looking for in judge applications.
- Good writing: The text portion of a review works as an explanation for the score given. As long as it's clear where your opinion on a level comes from from the text, and the score matches that description, you're good.
- Positive outlook: Reviews are read by the level's designer. Not all levels are good. But that doesn't mean you have to unload a bucket of chum over their heads as you tear down everything they tried to build up over the past month. Reviews should be fun to read, especially for the designer whom you're critiquing.
- Quick to the point: There's no reason to point out every little detail in a level that peeved you. Focus on the important bits and write a concise review, rather than an exhaustive one.
- Curious: Find something in a level you don't understand? It's easy to write that off as nonsense, but thinking about what the designer may have tried to do, and giving advice on how to improve the implementation of that vision is much more powerful!
- Disciplined work ethic: We do not want to wait 6 months for a judge to finish their reviews.
- Decent at the game: You should be able to play difficult levels within a reasonable time frame. The difficulty guidelines can be inferred per-contest, so don't expect kaizo around every corner, but even the simplest contests may have challenging levels. So be prepared!
We're looking forward to your participation!
