Valve is making a significant change to its Steam user review system with the introduction of the ‘Helpfulness System’. This new system prioritizes reviews that provide valuable insights to players considering purchasing a game. The goal is to create a more informative and helpful review section for users.
Previously, Steam sorted reviews based on the number of ‘helpful’ votes they received. However, Valve has recognized that many players use the review section for sharing jokes, memes, ASCII art, and other content that may not be useful for potential buyers. The Helpfulness System aims to address this issue by pushing such reviews to the bottom of the list.
While unhelpful reviews will not be removed, the system will use a combination of user reports, the Steam moderation team, and machine learning algorithms to determine which reviews are most likely to be helpful to potential customers. This means that AI will play a role in identifying reviews that lack substance and are not contributing to informed purchasing decisions.
It’s important to note that this change will not impact how Steam calculates game review scores, meaning review bombing will continue for games that receive updates or patches that don’t satisfy the community.
Valve acknowledges that it will take some time to evaluate every single review on Steam due to the sheer volume of content. However, the initial focus will be on readily identifiable unhelpful reviews. With this update, Steam aims to create a more efficient and helpful user review experience for its vast player base.
