We left out the overall average on purpose since the different criteria are measuring pretty different things, and combining them into one score would mean making up weights. We’d rather show how each game did in its own way instead of boiling everything down to a single number.
I wish we could do the same for the "official" jurors reviews too, but that's a years-long custom hard to change.
I get that and understand how it might seem unfair, but so much of rating is subjective. We all accept that. It's just an unavoidable aspect of any kind of competition. Overall ratings make a huge difference for us:
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I came in 8th place in the 2026 7DRL game jam
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I came in 8th place for innovation in the 2026 7DRL game jam, 26th place in polish, and 29th place in fun.
It just doesn't feel the same and is completely anti-climactic. I always regret taking part in jams which omit ratings and avoid those. I don't think I'm the only one.
right, but this isn't a contest, it's a challenge to create a complete game.
Honestly, I don't remember where that decision came from, since the peer ratings over itchio are a relative new component to the challenge, compared to the review committee which has some long standing rules (and even includes a simple average rating).
I know that the spirit of the challenge has always been that rankings are only there to help with discoverability, not to provide an evaluation of "who won the challenge".
> I came in 8th place for innovation in the 2026 7DRL game jam, 26th place in polish, and 29th place in fun.
Personally I think this is much more interesting and really tells a lot more about your game than an overall rating, provides a wider ground for conversation and self-improvement.
Personally I think this is much more interesting and really tells a lot more about your game than an overall rating, provides a wider ground for conversation and self-improvement.
It's not either or. It's a case of both vs only this way.
The over all rating is about motivation, a key component of challenge. Leagues and rankings don't adversely affect challenge, they heighten it.
