Review Site Outs Developer for Reviewing Own Apps!

[Sinecure Industries]

Film at 11.

http://appaddict.net/2012/04/03/ill-...review-system/

[30BelowStudios]

Hey that's you!

I know there has been a big discussion about this before and people were on both sides of the fence. If your friends buy your app, can't they leave their own review? In the other thread (can't find it now) someone paid for reviews from Fiverr. This, along with 1 person opening multiple iTunes accounts to review, is what I would consider manipulation. I saw an app that had a very high amount of reviews. Upon playing I found that one of the quests was to leave a review (which I didn't do). What would you consider that?

This article makes me feel like I'm watching the local news. Not much going on so you sort of pick the best story you have and put a spin on it to make it sound like breaking news. Just my opinion.

[Sinecure Industries]

That is me! I was having some fun on my personal twitter and messaging every single follower I had to say hey (as opposed to a marketing blitz ) and he just seemed to... take it the wrong way I guess. I loled pretty hard that he took the time to write the article so the least I could do is share it.

As for our reviews - I don't see why a reviewer could leave a review for themselves, big deal. A couple of our friends with iPhones bought it as well (surprisingly "mikeysaunite" is not related to me) and left reviews. If they paid for it, that's their entitlement as far as I know.

As for paying for reviews, that I disagree with. We have 10 reviews, maybe 4 are people I know, including me. Opening multiple iTunes accounts is also gaming the system, a tedious one I'm sure, haha. Having people you know support your app? I don't see it as particularly devious.

The quest to leave a review is particularly stupid, hahaha. Clever, but stupid.

[binaryhelix]

Originally Posted by Sinecure Industries

As for our reviews - I don't see why a reviewer could leave a review for themselves, big deal.

The problem is you didn't disclose you were the developer in your review. It's a trust and ethics thing. Would a buyer find your review as useful if you disclosed this fact? Probably not.

Times are tough for indie devs, but we've never reviewed our own apps. Even when some idiot on the Amazon Appstore gave us a one-star review with a ridiculous childish rant that had no bearing at all on the game. This is what it said for a few days all by its lonesome:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-re...owViewpoints=1

1 star
Horibles and Dumb-Heads
Who would get this?Its horibble!Don't get it! This is the stupidest game ever!Go go go go go away stupid video game!

I swear this is one of the funniest things I've ever read. I'll have to frame it some day. Luckily, a couple of our fans jumped to our rescue. Even if they hadn't, I would never review my own app.

[Blackharon]

I wouldn't want to review my own app... at least not at release.

I would have to say something along the lines of 'Played it so much, saw (and fixed) so many bugs that it doesn't interest me anymore.' One star.

As a personal policy I don't review my own apps. Just so that people like that appaddict reviewer can't say anything about me.

[schplurg]

Rather than pick a side, I will simply point out that big companies spend billions of dollars every year to lie to us. They hire actors to portray "real people" and tell you how wonderful their product is and how it's changed their lives.

They don't say "Hi, this is Toyota, and we are paying the people in this commercial to tell you the things we want you to hear about our trucks. They look like actual truck owners, and some of them may actually be, but we aren't required to tell you that, and we don't care either way."

I've said it before - big companies don't have consciences, they have lawyers. They'll say whatever they can legally get way with to get you to buy their products. If they get caught lying then they must pay the consequences, if people give a crap enough to even bother calling them on it.

When it comes to iTunes reviews, or TV commercials, or TV in general, assume that most of what you are hearing is bull excrememnt and act accordingly. If a company gets caught cheating the system then they will have to deal with the public backlash, if any.

I guess my point is...I dunno. I forgot.