A buddy told me my game reviews read like instruction manuals and he was right

I used to write these super detailed breakdowns of every rule and mechanic in a board game. Thought I was being thorough. Then my friend Dave straight up told me my reviews were boring and sounded like I was reading the rulebook out loud. He said nobody cares about the exact turn order or how many cards you draw per round. That stung but he had a point. So I started focusing more on the feeling of playing the game and how the table reacted to big moments. Now I mention maybe two or three key mechanics and spend the rest talking about the tension or the laughs. My comments section actually has people saying they bought a game based on what I wrote. Has anyone else had to completely rethink how they talk about games after someone called them out?

3 comments

3 Comments

quinn1613d ago

Tbh that Dave callout sounds like the best thing that could've happened to your reviews. I had a similar moment when someone told me my game breakdowns were like reading a textbook out loud. Now I always start with one specific moment from a game night, like the time my friend Mike flipped the table after losing a close round of Catan. That hook gets people interested way more than explaining how to build roads.

miles_robinson202d ago

Yeah I read something similar about how stories stick way better than facts in people's heads...

smith.elliot1d ago

Whoa, hold on, I gotta push back on that a little! I think facts can be way more powerful if they're the right ones, like a shocking stat that makes someone stop and think before they can even process a story. Stories can get twisted or remembered wrong, but a hard fact like "90% of people who do X see Y result" sticks in your brain and doesn't change every time someone tells it.