I don't know about you but I always make an effort to review any video I purchase.

I do this for a few reasons:
1. To congratulate the producer (where appropriate) on a job well done!
2. To provide constructive feedback.
3. To inform others about what to expect from the video.
4. To help the video's rankings

This evening I logged into UMD to discover a string of disgruntled messages from a producer following a 3-star review I gave them. In the review I praised the exciting scenario and costume, but stated that I would have loved to see a thicker consistency of gunge used (runny gunge means the fun is over much too quickly). I also mentioned that I would have used a more vivid colour of gunge. But hey, that's just my personal preference right? The customer is always right, right?

The producer are of the opinion that "no one will buy the video" thanks to my review and that I shouldn't have bought the video in the first place as I could see the colour of gunge from the stills.

I really don't understand their argument. I'm simply saying "i loved this about it I would have done these things differently - great idea!"

I should also mention that I've left this producer many reviews in the past - I believe they were all 5 star reviews. My reviews of their work are almost always overwhelmingly positive. They were among my favourite producers.

Can we reaffirm what the point of reviews are? I don't think I owe any producer anything and not only have I paid them for their work, but I've taken the liberty of leaving a review too. They should be thanking me!!!

Broadly speaking I think reviews are useful but really only if people are free to be honest - provided all criticism is constructive of course. I've certainly bought scenes in the past which have looked up my street from the preview pics but turned out to be a disappointment - for example a beautiful model who gets very messy but has a flat, bored attitude while getting messed. I think it is implicit that not every review will be 5 stars and producers need to accept that.

I hope this thread gets a bit of traction, will be interesting to see what people say.

I've never left a review yet but I have read a few and I find a lot of the five star ones just seem to be blowing smoke up the producer's arse. Some can be informative about the scene, especially if there's no trailer which is great but I can imagine anything other than top marks is gonna piss some people off.

I have noticed that any critique of a scene or comments of what someone else would have done differently are always met with "order a custom or hire the models and do it yourself"

And while I understand that no producer owes someone a scene that is completely specific to one individual's taste when they are not paying for it, it'd be nice for people to say what they want about a scene without being made to feel bad for it.

Good and bad reviews are to be expected no doubt, but as they are used in some way for sorting I can see why it could be an annoyance.

Putting myself in a producer's shoes, I might find it annoying when subjective criteria end up determining my score - in that way it ends up being pure random luck that one video has positive reviews and one negative, even if they are mostly the same.

This may be when people are inclined to say "order a custom" - i.e. "your personal subjective criteria will be met".

There are substantial inherrent issues with 5 star rating systems, and we're seeing them being gradually phased out. Known to me:
1. Nobody knows or can agree on what the stars actually mean. As such the data is meaningful in the case of the very best and worst only.
2. You'll never buy anything with less than 4.0 (or even 4.5) average, so how descriptive are the 5 points of the scale, really?

For my part, when reviewing things with this scale, it tends to go.

Score: was this product objectively as described. If so, 5*

Description: subjective critique, good and bad, goes here.

(Yeah, I'm aware that forces a binary paradigm, see point 1 above. Also aware few things are truly objective)

Alternatives

Binary - buyers understand "recommemd" vs "wouldn't recommend", and the distinction is meaningful enough for useful data. Buyers more likely to leave reviews.

Catagories: Give buyers a more detailed breakdown. Data is more detailed, buyers can express themselves better through their review scores.

This is a great comment. I think deducting stars based on personal preference is wrong. Things like sound/video quality and how accurately the video matches the description are better criteria for a rating.

Comments should address things like slime was all the same colour and too runny - for my taste

I don't leave reviews myself because I find it hard to be objective. I am too easily swayed by my own preferences and I have my favourite models etc. But I do read quite a few reviews.

I think it stems from a culture of online reviews where giving anything less than 5 stars is seen as a complaint.

For example, Uber drivers are meant to maintain an average rating of something like 4.6 out of 5, or higher still if they want to be premium drivers. So that rider who thinks "well, the seats weren't very comfortable, traffic was a bit slow, didn't like the driver's haircut etc" and gives 3 or 4 stars is being a real pain to the driver and affecting their chances of work. 5 stars should mean exceptional and that the service went above and beyond their expectations, but because people don't want to be a dick, the culture has become to give 5 stars by default.

Star-based review systems are kind of evil really because they discourage honest reviews and reduce the whole thing to school-style grading. That's why I wouldn't give a three-star review myself, unless I thought something was deceptive about the video. If it's just personal preference, I think that's more a matter for discussion on the forum.

The problem with reviews is that if you are reviewing the content based on what your preferences are, without qualifying those in the review, it's not going to be useful to other people with different preferences. Positive reviews are mostly useless, 5 star reviews for things that don't appeal to me don't help with a buying decision.

I think reviews can be useful if the video you got was not what you expected based on the advertising. I left one review once, that stated that the screencaps were misleading. The slime in motion was different to how it appeared in the screencaps, to the point that it would bother other people, so I left a review to let other people know. I can't remember what score I gave it but giving it a score wasn't the point.

Maybe the option to leave a review without giving the video a rating would be useful.

This is the most salient response so far on this subject. I don't mind getting an honest review on my videos, especially if it will help me sell more. But the problem is whether or not what your complaint is about is just based on you having a preference for something that others don't have a preference for that the producer isn't really capable of knowing or understanding. A five star rating system just doesn't seem logical for a product like this unless we've established what the specific criteria for all 5 stars should be. For the right reviewing process it depends on what you're reviewing. Is it a product, or is it a service? I mean, I definitely want to know if certain elements of my scenes are ruining the entire effect of the experience of the scene. The consistency of the slime can actually be important and if everyone is complaining about it, then you obviously want to take note of that. But the biggest issue is really about the expectation of what you're looking for versus what's realistically doable and actually available. A lot of people are looking for much higher quality production than is realistic for the kind of production cost available for what we're doing. I mean, of all the fetishes, this is one of the most difficult to produce scenes for. So the market for what is available is more than likely not going to be up to the standards you set on it.

So really the most important part of this discussion should be expectation versus reality and what's possible and what's not. I mean, a five star review system just isn't applicable to what we're doing. This isn't that kind of service or product we're working with, this is more about personal fantasies and whether or not you're turned on, so the requirements to meet are not fixed on any specific criteria. Just a basic review without the rating system is the only thing that makes sense to this particular product that we're selling.

Unfortunately, a ratings system is too easy to manipulate. Truthfully a bad rating can be just as deceptive if it's based on a preference you have that others don't. So even if you give the final product praise, you can in fact cause a video to not sell if you leave a less than top rating on a rated review. A lot of people don't even read what is written, especially when you're horny and want to fap, you're not going to take the time to thoughtfully read reviews with cock in hand. This is why a ratings system on something as subjective as sexual fantasies is simply illogical. I would also suggest that if you have any complaints about the scene then discuss it in private with the producer first and get more understanding on why they made those decisions and you can use that as part of your review when you leave one. This way you're not leaving a review based on unfair accusations that may cause irritation with someone.

Welp. Since you can go through your profile and clearly see the post is about me- I feel like I have to weigh in.

1 I offered to refund you or re edit the footage. My old producer was not great at editing and this was one of his first videos he edited. He had no clue how to enhance the color and just used raw footage (which was purple but filmed an odd shade). Instead of that and us figuring out a solution- you took to the forums to complain.

2 IF YOU DON'T LIKE A COLOR OF GUNGE-DON'T BUY THE VIDEO! There's stills for a reason. Someone else may like that color and we all have different preferences. So yes. When I say it prevents others from buying the video- I mean that the only reason you took stars away is because you didn't like the color- then someone sees the bad stars and skips it.

3 this is why we have the ability to talk to producers. If you liked a certain color or wanted a gunging to last so many seconds- Talk to me. I will guide you to a video best suited for your needs.


So yes. Reviews are important. It lets others know if the sound or camera work is bad etc. But do I think it should be used when someone hates something they can plainly see and then complain about it? Nope.

In response to the last message, I was not aware of this refund offer and I certainly not expect, ask for, or would accept a refund. I purchased video and I enjoyed aspects of the video but there were a few things I would have done diffidently if I was directing it. I don't see really understand why you would want to issue a refund.

My review was not a complaint, I have every right to buy any video I fancy watching and review it - and that review will obviously contain my own feelings on the content. Everyone is entitled to do this.

I do not need to write to you before buying a video to ask your advice on what videos I should buy or avoid. The notion of this is ridiculous.

Also, there was absolutely no need to respond to this the way you did. As someone who wears a mask in your videos I thought you'd appreciate the dignity of anonymity. I don't think a single person in this thread would be remotely bothered in identifying the producer, I'm trying to have an open discussion about reviews and their purpose - and based on all the great replies so far, we are having that. Your presence here is not really required.

And since I never know when to actually stop talking- I'll add to my post.

OP has deducted stars before for other reviews due to him also not liking how the gunge was when again- there are plenty of pics to see exactly how it is. I reached out to him then and he never responded. As he is one of the very few who leave reviews, it sticks out. It's not like Amazon where one bad review doesn't really change the overall score- he's the only one reviewing.

We as producers are not allowed to then add a comment under the review or have much of a say in the matter. And like Creamy said- most don't read the reason and the review- they just see the stars. So bc OP doesn't like exactly how my gunge is despite enough pics to see- I get a lesser rating on the whole video.

Respond the way I did? I simply said I didn't appreciate you giving me a bad review for something you could have clearly seen. And ya- if you are only going to like a very specific thing and give bad reviews otherwise- I'm sure we'd all like to make sure it's something you'd like before you purchase.

Just going to skip to point 3 and can confirm that Chloe is very approachable and helpful of you are looking for something specific. I told her what I like about her videos and she provided me links to others she thought I would enjoy. She wasn't pushy about buying anything I just asked about ABC and she suggested XYZ. Very polite and courteous. Even down to discussing types/colours of gunge and slime. She has so many recipes to pick from it was honestly overwhelming, which is why I asked. Sometimes if you don't know just ask, respectfully of course.

I'm usually a pretty infrequent commenter on these boards, but after watching how this has played out I just gotta say, bruh. OP I think you're wrong in this case. What's more, I think you're being pretty disingenuous. You came here looking to put Chloe on blast and pick a fight under the guise of discussion.

I mean, you can see in the preview pictures that the gunge is brown/red. It's literally right there. If that's not your taste why even buy it? You knew exactly what you were getting. There's also ways of stating your criticism without being a tool about it. "The gunge is a little on the thinner side, but Chloe delivers as always". But knocking off two stars for thin gunge? C'mon man. That's harsh. Nobody else gives a shit about YOUR tastes to that degree.

Ultimately a review should, in my humble opinion, do two things. 1). Give someone an opportunity to crow if the video exceeds expectations and 2). Let others know if it delivers what's advertised. They're not a sounding board for you to talk about yourself and what you like.

But you're right. You do have the right to post that review. And others also have the right to call you out about it. Welcome to the internet. But you really shouldn't come here looking for sympathy when you don't get the reply you want. I'm not trying to attack you dude but this really isn't a good look. Just comes off as complaining for the sake of complaining. Anyway that's it. cheers, all.

Actually you can. Either contact MM and say you want to respond, or use the "Report" link on the review. MM will let you add an answer-back if you think a review is unfair.

TBH the best place for the kind of comments made in the review in question would actually not be in a review but as a response to the producer's forum post promoting the scene (if still open for replies), or create a new thread about the scene if the original is closed to replies. That has the advantage that it boosts the producer's promo (bearing in mind the bump filter means unless others reply, promo posts vanish from sight without trace after a day or so), while also allowing other people to chime in on the same subject, which they can't do with a review. And because it's an ephemeral forum post and not a permanent review, it doesn't kill all future sales of the scene in the way a bad review can.

When I review things I try and be as factual as possible, I'll comment on the quality of the camera work, whether we could see all the details properly, whether the scene includes everything I expected it to, and things like the timings of clothed vs nude if the scene has both. Stuff that will be useful to other people in making a purchase decision.

I could see the appeal of a tiered review system. Something like overall impression, quality of the video, quality of the sound, quality of the model, quality of the substance etc. That would leave the option for the reviewer to point out things that they liked in a video and things they did not. This way a fast scan would see why the video was rated that way.

There are producers that know editing is an issue or sound was an issue in the final product. They call out the issues in the description and sometimes give a discount based on that. For me if it is a sound quality thing I have no problem watching videos without sound. Some videos I have purchased in the past come from countries that speak other languages and do not provide subtitles. So I am used to watching videos without sound. If a producer calls something out in a description, that should not be counted against them in the review.

If you see in a still that gunge is green for example, then you watch the video and due to a setting it appears a different color or not as bright of a green I can see a little deduction for that under quality of video. However, if the color in the still is blue and you get to the video and the actual color is brown or gray, I can definitely understand the producer offering a refund or to re-edit things and then have the re-edit available with the original video. The fact you were offered a refund for something that I would think was partially your fault, shows that the producer recognizes you as a frequent customer and wants to throw you a little something as a loyal customer.

Reminds me there is a Chloe scene I got but didn't review and should get round to doing as soon as possible

It's fitting the general sentiment of "didn't think my views would be interesting to anyone" amongst the contented. Maybe the review system could do more to capture that kind of positive feedback.

Here's a question for producers:
Where would you like to see buyers saying *what type* of content they would be interested in seeing?
I was in the thread where a few producers were surprised by the vocal support for the idea of swimsuits in the gunge tank - but I never would've thought "I really should go tell UMD about my preference" if it hadn't just come up like that.

A "suggestion box" would be great. It could be like comments or like a message direct to the producer. Users could be not allowed to reply "go buy a custom if you want something specific". Producers could write guidelines or boundaries for the sort of thing they produce. The whole thing could be optional for the producer.

That could be nice. I wonder if it would make it more or less likely for people to harrass producers by being creepy weirdos