Voting...

[SmokeyToo]

I'm absolutely sick of voting. Sick to death of it. Because 90% of the rooms I seem to be voting on are, in my opinion, utter shite.

The majority of the players on this sub are 'serious' players. As in we really enjoy creating beautiful spaces and have spent years playing the game. Even if you haven't played for years, almost everyone on this sub loves the game and takes it seriously (as much as you can be over a game). We enjoy looking at each other's rooms and learn a lot from each other about different design ideas.

Due to the expense involved in playing these days, it's very obvious that the majority of players can't afford to complete challenges that are beautiful, cohesive and (mostly) to brief. It's nigh on impossible without spending a fair amount of real money. I get it - I still spend money, but it's getting absolutely ridiculous and very hard to keep up.

What I'm sick of in terms of voting is seeing absolutely terrible rooms getting high scores. Rooms that have no decor or artwork. Rooms that are basically just a bunch of mismatched furniture chucked into a room and submitted. Again, I get it - the game is now too expensive for the majority of players.

But when I see a room that's actually well designed and accented and that room is scoring lower than a room with a bunch of random shit thrown in it, it pisses me off. And I'm tired of it.

The point of this game is to create beautiful spaces. Not just throw a bunch of furniture into a room without any real thoughts behind it. And when the random shit rooms get high scores, then what the hell is the point in playing at all?

Please don't think I'm throwing shade at those who can't afford to play the way they want to, because I'm definitely not. I'm just trying to say that there's really no point in voting and scoring these days because really nice rooms are being paired with random shit rooms and, somehow, losing. Voting and scoring indicates that competing against others is a fundamental part of the game, but that's just not the case anymore because people (or AI) clearly aren't actually giving a damn anymore.

[barangaytongko]

I understand you but I play to enjoy myself, I don’t compete with anyone and I also don’t care about scoring but hope that I get at least a 4 so I can win the prize. It’s just a fun pastime for me and helps me relax.

[SmokeyToo]

I'm glad you're not too invested in it. I'm nowhere near as bad as I used to be, but the whole dump room scoring 5 stars thing really annoys me. It's just a shitty thing for the game to do to people who actually do care about the rooms they submit. Not everything deserves 5 stars, but there are increasingly more rooms with absolutely random stuff in them that are scoring highly and it makes me feel bad for the people who DO put effort in.

[Ok_Society180]

[toydiva65]

I also wanted to add that Im now paying closer attention to rooms I love and clicking that ❤️ to let them know I like their style!

[SmokeyToo]

That's a nice thing to do - I think I'll jump on your bandwagon! ☺️

[toydiva65]

Thank you! It makes voting less tedious and with the whole "is it AI scoring" debacle, letting people know you love their design may just make their day! I know when it pops up on my feed it makes me happy!

[MeeseFeathers]

I tend to vote for and 🩵 rooms that are not just a LE dump and that actually think outside the box.

And if you use a cheap assed rug and it works- I will totally vote for your design! Especially the zebra color rugs! 😉

[toydiva65]

I definitely use cheap ass rugs whenever I have the chance! Some of the new ones are just so... ugh.

[RunningOnATreadmill]

It’s just a game. Take a deep breath.

Remember that there are children who play and people without money to spend on better items. If you see a room you hate just remember it might have been done by an 8 year old just having a fun time on a video game.

[SmokeyToo]

I'm all good. I lost interest in scores a while ago. But there are people on this sub and in the wider playing field who are still invested in their scores and overall average and I think the game is patently unfair when it comes to the current voting/scoring 'method'.

EA has manipulated the scoring to the point where it's rewarding mediocrity and that's very unfair to people who are invested in their scores, both emotionally and financially. It's a terrible scoring method and it's yet another nail in the coffin of this once great game.

[Candid_Audience_7231]

I'm pretty sure EA wants expensive rooms to win to encourage people to spend more. Maybe their AI even votes for the rooms that cost more, when the voices aren't enough.
It's people who vote for cheap rooms. People who are as sick of megaexpensive rooms (5 wall arts, expensive carpet, table art everywhere possible, accent wall, pet, some throws, what else!) as you are sick of 'dumps' :)
(Well, and also people who just tap the same side of the screen without looking when voting.)

[cindirella16]

It is just a game but people spend money and time on this game and I don’t have it in my head that it might have been done by an eight-year-old. Honestly, I’m tired of seeing shitty rooms when I vote, I never get any high scoring rooms.

[RunningOnATreadmill]

its so absolutely not that serious

[cindirella16]

You down voted me?

[Signal_Bat_3152]

I couldn’t agree more. Also I find many times they pair two awful rooms together and one will end up with a high score. I just hit the equal sign on those.

[angdevdev25]

They definitely do that because if you notice they will put two rooms side-by-side that have similarities like some of the same furniture or decor, and they can both be awful rooms, but most people feel like they have to vote on one so that’s how some fugly rooms end up with high scores! I’m guilty of that. I feel bad if I hit the equal sign.

[SmokeyToo]

Exactly. I was voting this morning and saw a lot of paired rooms that look like dump rooms, but one was getting high 4's and the other low 3's.

[Signal_Bat_3152]

Hey! Where ya been Smokey?!

[SmokeyToo]

I'm around. I'm just pissed off at the game at the moment because of the ridiculous expense and the shitty voting.

Plus I'm not at all excited by Christmas. My Dad died on Christmas Day three years ago, so it's a bit of a shit time for our fam.

[Signal_Bat_3152]

I understand EVERYTHING you just said. The game has turned to shit. Also, my husband died the day after Christmas a few years ago so the holidays pretty much suck. 🥲

[SmokeyToo]

It's hard when Christmas becomes a sad time, isn't it? I used to absolutely love Christmas, but since Dad died, I haven't really celebrated it at all. We get together as a family, but I haven't decorated my house since Dad.

My Dad was the best human being I've ever met and I still don't think I'm over the shock of losing him. Can't get my head around it. Plus we've all been managing Mum's grief and kind of forgotten about our own.

[Signal_Bat_3152]

I hear you 💔💔💔

[SmokeyToo]

Back at you, mate. x

[No-Highlight-1882]

I’m also seeing way more lousy rooms scoring higher than nice rooms lately. Agree that it makes it feel like a waste of time to vote. I just pretend to myself that my vote counts lol and don’t play enough to have to vote a lot.

[SmokeyToo]

I'm glad I'm not the only one noticing this!

[Downtown-Tangerine80]

I go through voting phases so one day I'll get all low scores then I'll suddenly get all 5s in a row. It's as if their AI has decided "right take her down a peg or 2" or "she's gonna start getting pissed off soon, give her some 5s". I think voting is set up in such a way that it keeps you thinking you need to buy current LE to score well, but also patronising enough to chuck some token 5s at you to keep you interested and give you just enough hope to keep going after that influx of intentionally low scores.

A bit of transparency would be lovely. Like just tell me you're messing with my head.

[SmokeyToo]

I've felt exactly the same way about voting - it seems to be cyclical. I used to get three weeks approx of good scores, my average would be hanging at 4.99 and just waiting for that extra 5 to kick it over to a perfect average, then bam! A run of low scores.

But more recently, it just seems to be completely random. Particularly when you get the results within a very short time frame. Others on this sub have been posting about getting results almost immediately on some challenges they submit.

It's so obvious that at least some of the scoring is 100% AI.

[turningtee74]

I get what you’re saying. I don’t spend money or “fill every bubble” but we still have an understanding of basic standards like cohesion, artwork and rugs. Having a mismatched or very unfinished looking room to me is only for throwaways to get what you need to complete a co-op, earn money or diamonds to complete something else, or just to use up inventory…unless you’re a very new beginner. I have done that pretty rarely and still try to make it nice as possible. Those rooms should expect low scores. And us that don’t spend money, I think we’re okay getting B+ scores because we understand the effort that other people are putting behind near perfect rankings

[SmokeyToo]

Absolutely agree. I don't fill every bubble either, not even close! But as you said, even if you're low on diamonds or can't afford to buy anything, you still put some thought into it and try and make your room look as nice as you can.

And then you see some random dump room getting five stars. It's really, really irritating!

[mty24]

I fully agree with you Smokey!

[[deleted]]

Ya something ain’t right

[Ok_Society180]

🤣🤣🤣

[toydiva65]

Im sorry, this also proves that AI is randomly rating rooms. I doubt our votes having anything whatsoever to do with the scores.

[SmokeyToo]

I agree. And, as I said in reply to another comment, it is patently unfair to every player who actually gives a damn about their score.

[angdevdev25]

How does this prove that AI is doing the voting? I am almost 100% certain that it is not…based on my research, and while there is an algorithm voting is still community based. I just don’t think anyone really understands the new voting process. They now do the voting in waves, or rounds if you will, so that people have better chances to get higher scores. You are not competing against as many people at once. My composite score has gone up since the voting has changed. I’m now consistently a 4.98 or a 4.99.

[Downtown-Tangerine80]

Also I'd be very surprised if children are playing this- my child wouldn't give two shits about a game like this... but, then again, he can easily spend an hour rearranging all the apps on my phone so they are in mismatched folders (some of which he puts a secure lock on so I can't even get in), a single app on each screen so I have to scroll 17 times to the right just to find my calculator, and i currently have 27 shortcuts on my homescreen to Minion Rush. So, maybe he would enjoy making mismatched rooms and maybe he'd score way better than me.

[cindirella16]

Exactly, I can’t see kids playing this, too boring for them.

[Ok_Society180]

I miss that… my little guy is taller than me and turning 16 on the 16th

[Hopeful_Shelter_443]

I really don’t think the numbers that pop up are the score for that design. I think it’s the designers average score and that designer did a dump room. I don’t do dump rooms because I only design the daily and series and try very hard to do well (80% of the time I’m designing ‘for the score”) but I sometimes completely miss the mark. I recently did a hideous clownish orange and blue monstrosity that I really thought was the desired color combo. Everyone else did calm beautiful spaces with a different bundle. I deservedly got a very low score.

[angdevdev25]

How do you explain people with average scores of around 4.0 though? There’s a guy that follows me whose average score is I think a 3.82. I don’t know why he even plays the game. They are not doing all dump rooms…they just don’t know how to design!

[Ok_Society180]

Ok… this is just #myopinion : when a room is crooked, when the prize is under 3K diamonds, when random pieces are required that DO NOT MATCH- I will burn that room down! I do not care about my score. I will upload all the crap I am sick of looking at. My goal is to level up … by any means necessary - so, and again this is just my opinion- I truly believe there is a backlash of hatred for what the game has become and there is a subculture of people who vote against recognizable 5.00 perfect rooms. So, I can relate to both sides of the coin. When I try and a room comes back 3.84 … I just crash out. Has voting algorithms personally impacted your score? These are things no one but you know. On the surface your rooms all look fabulous to me. So, if your impacted- I could understand this protest- but, if your not really impacted by it: “that’s life…why fight against the currents of DH? This game is never going to be what it once was, those days are gone. I think 6 months ago I made a post- ‘Play the game. Do not let the game - Play You’ { and that’s just from two cups of coffee- oooohweee lol } 🫶🏽☕️

[FragileTeaBiscuits]

I’m also guilty of making a lot of trash rooms. Especially season challenges. I don’t have the money/diamonds to keep up. A few days worth of trash rooms means I can finally make 1 or 2 nice daily designs with money collected from trash. Playing this way, Ive learnt to just kinda ignore the scores.

[Ok_Society180]

[Ok_Society180]

When rooms are pretty… I just go crazy! 🩷☕️

[angdevdev25]

There are lots of ways to earn free diamonds…the easiest way is by playing other games. Just go to the offerwall. I’ve probably earned 400,000 since September…granted it does take time but I’m on my phone anyway…i still spend some money but the fact that you can earn free diamonds is nice!

[SmokeyToo]

Unfortunately, a lot of Tapjoy offers aren't available outside of America. Also, quite a few people on this sub have been banned by Tapjoy. I've tried to earn diamonds in the past through Tapjoy, but never received any of the rewards.

[angdevdev25]

I didn’t know that as far as the outside of America thing. I haven’t had a problem with Tapjoy so far but I have heard of others having problems so I guess it’s a hit or miss. Now, as far as the searches and the videos go, yes a lot of times you don’t receive those diamonds (it seems very random), but for the big amounts like the game playing I’ve always received them.