Though many publications have since sworn off scoring for their reviews, there is still a lot of value in a system that assigns points or grades. In order for it to work however, it should be objective, fair, and consistent.

Even with a strong framework, scores are susceptible to wild misinterpretation. Please respect the process and its intent, and please keep in mind that review scores are simply a general impression, not the end of the discussion.

Whether it's a game, a show, or a movie, ratings work the same way: each medium is broken down into various parts determined to have a meaningful impact on us (e.g., graphics, story, duration, etc.). Those parts are graded on a scale of impressiveness, and the associated numerical values are added up to determine the overall grade or score.

Some parts are weighed differently due to their significance because some things can be overlooked or simply don't matter quite as much. This is important as the average score is 50, but it is possible to obtain a score that is higher, indicating either something of high quality, strong impression, or both.