{"rewrite":{"id":"r_eef4081d7c38626ded9dca2c","clusterId":"c_a5cf0b2a75f723fe86413c32","slug":"moon-studios-ceo-launches-user-focused-review-site-videogamescritic","model":"deepseek-v4-flash","headline":"Moon Studios CEO Launches User-Focused Review Site VideoGamesCritic","summary":"Thomas Mahler, CEO of Moon Studios, launched VideoGamesCritic on September 2, a review aggregation site that weights user reviews at least two-thirds against media scores. Mahler criticized Metacritic and OpenCritic for favoring media scores and for keeping launch ratings fixed. The site also publishes a trust score for media outlets, calculated by comparing their reviews to concurrent Steam user ratings.","whyItMatters":"A developer who has publicly clashed with review culture now runs a scoring system that shifts weight to users and lets post-launch updates reshape a game's score over time.","webCardHtml":"\u003cp\u003eMahler has long argued that existing aggregators freeze a game\u0026#39;s score at launch. He cited No Man\u0026#39;s Sky, whose Steam rating reached 80 percent positive by November 2024 after dozens of updates, while its Metacritic score stayed at the original figure. VideoGamesCritic instead lets newer reviews carry more weight over time, so a score can move after major updates.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe site also assigns media outlets a trust score, calculated by comparing their reviews to Steam user ratings from the same period, and publishes the formulas. The method has drawn questions, since it judges media reviews by how closely they match user sentiment. Mahler defended the approach in replies, arguing a review is a service that helps purchases, not an art form.\u003c/p\u003e","blueskyPost":"Moon Studios CEO Thomas Mahler launched VideoGamesCritic, a review site that weights user reviews at two-thirds and lets post-launch updates move a game's score over time. It also scores media outlets by how closely their reviews match Steam user ratings.","twitterPost":"Moon Studios CEO Thomas Mahler launched VideoGamesCritic, a review aggregator that weights user reviews at two-thirds and lets post-launch updates move a game's score. It also scores media outlets by how closely their reviews match Steam user ratings.","threadsPost":null,"newsletterBlurb":"Moon Studios CEO Thomas Mahler launched VideoGamesCritic, a review aggregator that weights user reviews at two-thirds and lets post-launch updates move a game's score over time. The site also assigns media outlets a trust score based on how closely their reviews match Steam user ratings, a method that has drawn questions.","attributionJson":"[{\"source\":\"Automaton\",\"url\":\"https://automaton-media.com/articles/newsjp/20260904-465240/\",\"title\":\"人気ゲーム開発者が自ら、\\\"Metacritic対抗\\\"レビューサイトを立ち上げ。「メディアよりユーザー重視、最新評価も重視」をアピール\"}]","lintFlagsJson":null,"lintHits":0,"costUsd":0,"inputTokens":5163,"outputTokens":1678,"status":"published","repairAttempts":0,"nextRepairAt":null,"factsAttemptedAt":1788529520,"createdAt":"2026-09-04T13:26:33.000Z","publishedAt":"2026-09-04T13:29:04.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-09-04T13:29:04.000Z"},"cluster":{"id":"c_a5cf0b2a75f723fe86413c32","canonicalTitle":"人気ゲーム開発者が自ら、“Metacritic対抗”レビューサイトを立ち上げ。「メディアよりユーザー重視、最新評価も重視」をアピール","representativeArticleId":"a_4e84b635a08f15a8242a26b3","sourceCount":1,"writtenSourceCount":1,"writeAttempts":0,"isSolo":true,"entitiesJson":"{\"anime_titles\":[],\"manga_titles\":[],\"work_titles\":[\"VideoGamesCritic\"],\"studios\":[\"Moon Studios\"],\"people\":[\"Thomas Mahler\"],\"type\":\"news\",\"domain\":\"games\",\"is_roundup\":false}","contentType":"news","status":"published","firstSeenAt":"2026-09-04T12:21:16.000Z","lastSeenAt":"2026-09-04T12:21:16.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-09-04T13:29:03.000Z"},"attribution":[{"source":"Automaton","url":"https://automaton-media.com/articles/newsjp/20260904-465240/","title":"人気ゲーム開発者が自ら、“Metacritic対抗”レビューサイトを立ち上げ。「メディアよりユーザー重視、最新評価も重視」をアピール"}],"entities":{"anime_titles":[],"manga_titles":[],"work_titles":["VideoGamesCritic"],"studios":["Moon Studios"],"people":["Thomas Mahler"],"type":"news","domain":"games","is_roundup":false},"keyFacts":null}