So there's been something going on around here that lead to a lot of discussion, which is definitely one of the reasons why I'm writing this post. But I also think new hackers or critique givers can learn from this guide. Now, before the guide begins, 2 things.

1. This thread is NOT made to create drama, for personal insults or to give people the wrong ideas. It's more to make sure something like this won't happen again. Please, don't get offended by anything that gets said in this post, because it really isn't meant to. If you do, I sincerely apologize for this.

2. The guide was written by AAO user: Ryu Ushiromiya. And while this hasn't anything to do with Ace Attorney, it still applies here. I'll make little adjustments or spoilers to explain things a bit better for us, NSMBHD users. I have send him a message about me using but he hasn't posted/visited the site in almost 2 years. So Ryu, if you ever read this...


Because this guide has been written by Ryu (And not by me.) HE TAKES FULL CREDIT FOR ALL OF THIS POST.
The original guide can be found here

So with that out of the way, here is the guide!

Giving good critique and accepting it appropriately

By: Ryu Ushiromiya

Table of Contents

I. What is critique?
II. Why critique is mandatory
III. Being a good critic
IV. Receiving critique gracefully
V. Tips
VI. Critique in AAO
VII. Conclusion and References



I. What is critique?

Critiquing is the simple act of judging not only the merits but also the faults of a product, item, document, art piece, or other things. In other words, it is the act of finding errors and mistakes within something. It is usually taken as extreme prejudice, however.

II. Why critique is mandatory

Critique is absolutely mandatory in all of your endeavors for one reason: by detecting your flaws, you are able to correct and improve upon yourself, therefore making you a better person. Is it easy? Let's find out below.

III. Being a good critic

Let us begin by explaining (at least from my point of view) what good criticizing is.

Destructive Criticism/Nitpicking/Complaining/Faulting something because you disliked it

Destructive criticism is exactly what it is, and also the most common form of criticism: you concentrate on finding the faults, but you don't mention the virtues, or compliment the person. This is incorrect. Not all people can take this kind of criticism. Some people might be sensitive because they might have some sort of mental disorder that impairs them a little from understanding criticism (like me, I confess.) Or they simply are too sensitive. Also, this sort of criticism can also be seen as complaining from the critic. It's almost like saying, "You must change this because I didn't like it and doesn't fit with Ace Attorney NSMBHD customs." You're not supposed to say that, jerk. You are supposed to say the correct thing: "While I liked how you used this, you might have to change it because this map doesn't follow the correct Ace Attorney method. Please ask someone for help on the matter." Hold your tongue. Don't just attack: STOP. THINK. THINK AGAIN. THINK A THIRD TIME. LET GO OF YOUR TASTES. THEN you may speak. Also, there is an important thing you must remember: never keep your standards too high. This can hurt the person receiving the critique in many ways. You have to understand that not everyone operates or understands like you do. Also, don't scold the person, or attack the product or thing in question just because it has flaws. Also, if you have any kind of snide remarks about how it doesn't "meet the standard", shut up and keep it to yourself. Once you do this, you're on your way to becoming an excellent critic.


Constructive Criticism

This is the correct method for giving a critique. Great critics don't always slam or detect the errors in something and let it go as if they're expecting you to take it like a man (hence my issue with movie critics.) Great critics use the knowledge and skills they possess to explain what you may have done wrong or may need correcting, and at the same time uplift, inspire and above all, motivate you. This is defined as having a compassionate attitude to spur you on to improve or move on with no regrets. In a sense, this is where some of the best teachers and friends succeed. An excellent critic will avoid using harsh, strong or judgmental language, and will drop his preconceptions or standards, instead helping the person to improve or do his best. You're not supposed to make the person feel bad: Compliment their good work. Expand on what needs improvement and give a concrete reason as to why. Don't just expect the person to take it easily: be sensitive to the person if he or she has a history of being sensitive with the issue.


What about self-criticism?

Personally, if you're like me (This applies to me,  RiksKing aswell.) and you have issues with the subject, don't. You'll do more harm to your mind and body than most. If you can think you can take it, go for it. But if you get obsessed with it to the point where being extremely self-critical harms you and affects your daily life, stop and get help immediately.


IV. Receiving critique gracefully

This is the hardest part of the guide so far. Accepting or understanding critique is extremely hard for 90% of us. We'll cry. We'll get mad. We'll defend ourselves. We'll attack someone or something. This is bad. Really bad. Even if there is no real merit to the "critique" of the person (i.e. a story wasn't featured on a newspaper because the editor hated it), it's not worth it to lash back. That is incorrect behavior. Violence never solves anything... even though it feels so good to just let it all out and basically go "Let the bodies hit the floor" on the person (nice Drowning Pool song by the way. ) But trust me, even if it's therapeutic to lash out and scream, it's just not worth it.

Not everyone takes critique wisely that easily. It's extremely rare to see someone taking critique in stride and using it correctly. That is why it's important to take a deep breath before looking at the critique and calm down. Read the critique. If it makes you mad or frustrated or sad or anything bad, STOP. Close the window immediately. Go away and do something different to take your mind off of it. Do some breathing exercises. Read a good book. Do a prayer. Drink some water. Vent with a friend over MSN or the phone, then stop and calm down. Don't go back yet. Try getting a nap. But calm down. After a couple of hours, then you may go back and reply to the comments- even if they were very mis-demeaning. I recently learned an excellent approach to harsh critiques: don't say anything to it. Instead, say thanks. Maybe they were having a bad day. Maybe they got a bad grade on a test. If you get a rude post, or a really harsh judgment, don't just attack or leave a reply. If for example you get a post here in AAO NSMBHD (I had to do it eventually) that says basically something like, "This trial is not good enough to be featured. The plot is a mess, the contradictions are illogical, and the maps are absurd," "This game is not good at all. The level design is too bad, backgrounds don't make sense, the music doesn't work and this Star Coin is too hard to get to" don't say anything. Leave it alone for a while like I mentioned before. Then when you are calmed down and you've thought, leave something like this as a reply: "Thank you very much for your time and for reviewing this trial game. Could you please explain what aspects of the trial can be improved upon?" You might be surprised at the results.

V. Tips

-Meditate on this and apply it for whenever you critique: "Never write a letter when you are angry." --Chinese proverb.


-Choose your words and tone very carefully: it can make the difference when you evaluate something.


-Be nice: no one likes a smart ass jerk.


-Be humble, no matter what your role is. Humility is a sign of personal excellency.


-Respect the person's background and beliefs and choices when critiquing or replying to a critique.


-A critique is not a personal attack on you: it is an evaluation of your creation, NOT your personality.


VI. Critiquing in AAO NSMBHD

RiksKing: I'll put spoiler marks below this paragraph because it simply won't make sense to you if I strike all of this through. I'm not completely rewriting it in honor of the original guide. If you want to get the most out of this paragraph, please read the spoilers.

-If the trial maker in question is a newbie, respect that. Don't compare them to the more established trial makers. Don't even dare say that a trial isn't as good as what is already featured. EVER. Regardless of its state. It doesn't help the person at all- or the critic. It makes them feel even worse about their project instead. This also applies to more established trial makers: don't compare them to others. You're not evaluating Bad Player's Silence of the Turnabout. You're not complimenting any of Hodou Okappa's work. You are evaluating the new trial you saw. Don't compare it to other works- not even mine, LOL.




-Don't just state the flaws of the trial game: note the virtues as well as what you genuinely liked. If there was nothing you liked, at least say what was done well.


-Don't be quick to dismiss characters as being slightly OOC: remember that these are fan cases. Authors can take some degree of creative liberties when it comes to characters. Look at the Mia Fey: Ace Spirit Attorney series, or The Omniscient Game. I strike that one through because it doesn't apply to NSMB Hacking at all.


-Don't just look at how hard a trial was: this includes contradictions, investigations, trials, etc. Remember that plot and story are just as important. Read above


-If a trial game wasn't fun to play, don't say it sucked, or just that it needs work. WHY does it need work? WHY did certain features not work? Explain yourself, and always be nice.




VII. Conclusion and references

Thank you very much for using this guide. Please let me know how it has helped you! Below are a couple of references on the subject.

http://zenhabits.net/how-to-accept-criticism-with-grace-and-appreciation/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism

I, RiksKing, find this guide to be really good and feel like we need it on our forum as well. Hopefully, people who review games, or new game posters will read this .

And, for the last time. This guide is not mean to insult, attack or humiliate anyone!

Thanks for reading!
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I apologize to everyone for my horrible English.

Well, thanks for reading.



That's actually pretty accurate. The Dutch are indeed more direct than most people from other countries.
I wouldn't like to say that I was/am able to handle criticism that perfectly though. I'm kind of a sensitive person.
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I apologize to everyone for my horrible English.

this is a very good post.

i know some of these already though, such as not pointing out only flaws, but also doing some compliments etc. etc..

i suggest everybody to read this. this taught me something.

Thanks for the compliments guys! I'm glad that this has helped some people
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I apologize to everyone for my horrible English.

You did a good job creating this  RiksKing, but I want to know one thing:
_I find the timing of your thread way too coincidental, was my latest thread one of the reasons that pushed you to create this topic?

Even if it wasn't, I'm going to say whoever trashed my monster of thread did well in doing so, it was only going to degenerate from there.
I knew the consequences and already expected that its lifespan would be a matter of days, in fact I'm surprised it lasted this long.

I want to say sorry for the tension and the uneasy atmosphere I created, especially to  snake block and  Arceus for dragging you down into the mud with me as well as opening past wounds.

I'm sorry if this thread made you feel bad. Yes, like I said in the beginning of the post, there were some discussions going around, and the thread you posted was one of the reasons to create this one. However, it wasn't created with the mindset to unease people, instead I wanted to make sure that something like this wouldn't happen again. The timing, like you said, is not coincidental.

I did have the luck of remembering this great guide on the AAO side, because if I had to type it myself, I probably wouldn't have even started^^

That being said, another, probably more important reason is that I wanted people to know how to give and accept criticism, for like, this site in general. Even though I personally rarely give criticism because of me, as I said, kind of being a sensitive person and not wanting to make people feel bad with negative things. People that know my posts for a long time already, note that they're fairly rarely negative. So I guess in a way, this guide was also meant for me, even though I've read it like 3 times now just to copy/paste it here
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I apologize to everyone for my horrible English.