Reviews needed on the main site

[Harrison]

We have been spending the last few months adding a lot of information to the main site's game and demo sections. A big thank you goes to Demon Cleaner for his hard work adding a lot of entries to the Games section, and to PG and Teho for their hard work on the Demo Scene section. Also a big thank you to the newest Staff Member Alexj2002 for the work he has already put into the site, and to everyone else including Oz for helping out so far with the site content.

Now we need something from everyone else. If any of you have a spare moment please write some reviews for the main site's Game and Demo sections. This is one area that is in need of some content now that the number of games and demos added to the site has grown considerably to over 3000 different entries!

Reviews will aid the site in a number of ways. Having reviews for an entry gets visitors much more interested in the content of the site and makes them explore more, and hopefully take an interest in writing some reviews of their own, or in just trying out some of the games themselves for the first time.

The scores awarded to games get them featured in the sections of the site more and the text in a review is collected by web spiders to catalogue the game entries on the site in more detail than the entries without a review, thus aiding in getting us better search results in the search engines when people search for specific games or demos.

I would like to thank the members who have already contributed reviews to the site as it is already making a big difference. Especially like to thank PG for the reviews he has already added to both the Demo and Games sections. If you have some time it is worth reading them. And to Oz, Demon Cleaner, burns flipper, alexj2002 and rayzorblue who have also already written some reviews for the site.

Right from the first review being added the server logs quickly showed how the reviews helped increase visitors coming from search engine results. The Superfrog review we initially had on the site helped pull in over 1000 visitors itself, and the more recent reviews are also doing the same and guiding more here from their search engine searches.

[Demon Cleaner]

Looking forward to this, but I will still focus to finish the games section first. Then I will of course also add some reviews of my favorite games & demos. It's really important to add reviews to help the site getting more interesting and more visited.

As for the games section, I won't have any time this or next week, but after these weeks, I'll try to finish them. As also the sections still missing include some of the most popular games. Unfortunately I'll be off from tomorrow, as I will have a small surgery tomorrow afternoon, problems with my intestine (no jokes please JT ;)), but can probably visit the forum.

As for reviews, I will have to take myself more time, as my english isn't often THAT good, but anyone here can still read over it for me (but I think it's not TOO bad).

I also want to say, that I'm very glad to be able to add content, as it gives me a satisfaction too, seeing that people enjoy the site and visit more often. I really appreciate being here around such nice/cool/great guys like you all, and I hope this will still be the same in the years to come.

Kudos also go to the demo section (PG&Teho), which is growing daily, and as I wasn't really that much into demos on the amiga (remember: DC=C64, could call myself DC64), I will definetly take a closer look to the section, when I'm finished with the other content.

Thanks (from me) go to everyone who helps adding content to the games section in any way, like reviews, screenshots, media, audio... I think that Alex began to do a great job here lately, and I hope he will continue, and also that some others will follow suit.

:zipped: now.

[Harrison]

Unfortunately I'll be off from tomorrow, as I will have a small surgery tomorrow afternoon, problems with my intestine (no jokes please JT ;)), but can probably visit the forum.

Good luck with the surgery. Hope it goes well and you have a speedy recovery.



As for reviews, I will have to take myself more time, as my english isn't often THAT good, but anyone here can still read over it for me (but I think it's not TOO bad).

Your English is pretty good and I don't think you have anything to worry about when writing reviews. Don't forget that you can edit your own reviews after they have been added to the site, so you can tweak or alter parts you are not happy with at a later date if needed.

[Submeg]

I'm currently writing a review for wings. Have to find my instruction book....

[J T]

Unfortunately I'll be off from tomorrow, as I will have a small surgery tomorrow afternoon, problems with my intestine (no jokes please JT ;)), but can probably visit the forum.

Nah man, I take some shit seriously (despte having a few beers tonight). Good lucjk with the surgery and I hope it all goes well. Some things are no laughing matter,

I feel a tad ashamed as I haven;t really contributed much apart from some box art and disk and instruction scans idid ages ago. I'll try and do some re-e-views.

When the crowd say BO!

SELECTA

[Submeg]

wtf......RANDOM!:dancing_heroes:

lol, those guys are dancing in time with my music...

[Puni/Void]

Good luck with the surgery, Demon. Best of luck!

Thanks for the kind words regarding our contributions to the main site. Will do my best to add more demos orientated stuff in the coming future. Will also try to add more reviews and comments in the game section. :)

Also big-ups to all of you who has contributed to the games section. Things are truly beginning to take form, so let's keep up the good work!! :)

[TiredOfLife]

Hope everything went well mate.

[Teho]

I'd like to add my good wishes to Demon here too.

As for reviews, I've been meaning to write some. Will definitely get around to it soon. Very soon. I hope.

To start with, aren't there still lots of reviews from the old site that you could still add to the new entries, Harrison? I know I at least had reviews up there for Wings and Moonstone, don't remember if I wrote any more back then.

[AlexJ]

Best wishes to DC from me as well, hope all is well and you have a speedy recovery.


To start with, aren't there still lots of reviews from the old site that you could still add to the new entries, Harrison? I know I at least had reviews up there for Wings and Moonstone, don't remember if I wrote any more back then.

The transfer of old site content is currently a WIP (http://forum.classicamiga.com/showthread.php?t=308). However if you look at Wings (http://www.classicamiga.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=451) for example, your review is there.

[Teho]

Yeah, I noticed that topic after posting the above. Good thing, getting all the old data over to the new site should certainly help.

[Puni/Void]

It's good news that the stuff from the old site will now be included on the new one. There are quite a lot of reviews, cheats and other information there which will come in handy.

Harrison: You haven't happened to find those reviews I wrote for the old site of Zyriax and Tommy Gun? Those where never uploaded to the site, but you mentioned something about putting them on the new site. Thanks in advance for help. :)

Submeg: Good work with the Wings review! Read it and liked it!

[AlexJ]

It's good news that the stuff from the old site will now be included on the new one. There are quite a lot of reviews, cheats and other information there which will come in handy

Cheats are already in most of the entries on the new site. There are quite a few reviews on there that would be nice to have on here (there's a good Lotus Turbo Challenge one for example), although some other reviews are more like comments length-wise. Screenshots on the old site tended to consist of only one or two pictures of the game, so while these will be useful to start, we'll probably going to need to make more.

[Harrison]

The other issue is the some old members from the old site who wrote reviews are no longer with us. I will however still be adding all the good reviews under my own name and acknowledging that the review was written by them. I've already done this a while ago for the Dune II review by SeanIRL.

I also agree that some of the reviews on the old site are too short. I may still add this but just leave them as user reviews instead of editor reviews.

And don't worry, all the FAQs, Cheats, Walkthroughs, and anything else on the old site will be moved over to the new site too.



Harrison: You haven't happened to find those reviews I wrote for the old site of Zyriax and Tommy Gun? Those where never uploaded to the site, but you mentioned something about putting them on the new site. Thanks in advance for help. :)

I remember you asked me before but I couldn't locate them at the time. I never delete anything I'm sent so they will be around here somewhere. When I find them they will get added, don't worry.

[Puni/Void]

Thanks, Harrison! :) Hope you will manage to track them down. I can't find any copies of them on my HD's. :(

[rayzorblue]

Did i write a review? have to go check that out and add some more then lol.

[Submeg]

I will start working on the reviews for Zool and Sensible Soccer today :)

[Submeg]

Ok, my reviews for Sensible Soccer and Tanx are done, I have also submitted a new game, Shufflepuck Cafe. I have a stack of screenshots and am ready to write a review for that one

[Submeg]

Just uploading the screenshots for Monty Python's Flying Circus. Ready to write that one as well.

[Demon Cleaner]

I hope that I can finish the games section's commercial games the next 2 weeks, then look for missing ones at Obligement, and hopefully then I can also start adding screenshots and audio files.

[Harrison]

It will be great to have all the main games finally in the games section. This has been a dream for many of us for some time now, so will be great when it is finally completed and ready to expand each of the entries with even more information.

I hope to help with the data entry to finish the section off this coming week. I've also been adding some more content to the section. As well as continuing to add content across from the old site I have also been going through the collection of files I have been sent for the site over the years and am also slowly adding those. I've already added Nebulus and Puffy's Saga from these files and have a lot more to also add. Oh and not forgetting Tanx. When Submeg mentioned he was looking for it I added the game to the site and made some screenshots.

[Demon Cleaner]

Section P is almost finished, only a few games to add. I will then begin section T, and after that finally start with the big section S, as you have section R still in progress.

[Harrison]

Great news. I will continue with section R next week. :)

[Submeg]

Just written the review for Ikari Warriors. Uploading screenshots now.

[Submeg]

Finished screenshots for Dragon's Lair. Will upload and write the review now.

[Demon Cleaner]

As far as I remember, Dargon's Lair was a total disaster on the amiga, at least on the C64 it was :thumbsdown2:

[Teho]

It actually wasn't half bad on Amiga considering. Ok, the scenes were short and they used a lot of repeats and mirroring of frames. But it was the full hand-drawn high-quality animation same as the arcade had. Technically impressive, it would even run on a 512k A500, allbeit without sound. But in the end it got boring pretty quickly. But so did the arcade in my opinion.

But I agree that the C64 version really was atrocious. I could never get past the second stage in that one. Horrible graphics, impossible gameplay, and the graphics was the main pull of the Dragon's Lair games after all. A simply horrible title. Some claim that the SNES version is even worse, but I disagree. The C64 version really takes the cake!

[Submeg]

Hmm, but the reason I like it is because it is easy and looks awesome. But I agree, there should have been more stages...

[AlexJ]

The reviews really do help - I typed in Microprose Formula One into Google and CA is now the 3rd entry!

One thing to note though is that it can take up to a month for Google's database to notice the new reviews. However this provides a good opportunity for the entries with reviews to be brought up to standard in all other areas as well to present a good image of the site for those stumbling in from Google.

[Submeg]

Sounds like they are paying off. Will be working on more today.

[Submeg]

Just finished screenshots for Super Hang On. Ready to write that review.

[Puni/Void]

Alex wrote:


The reviews really do help - I typed in Microprose Formula One into Google and CA is now the 3rd entry!

One thing to note though is that it can take up to a month for Google's database to notice the new reviews. However this provides a good opportunity for the entries with reviews to be brought up to standard in all other areas as well to present a good image of the site for those stumbling in from Google.

That's very good, Alex! I also tried searching for that game you mentioned like this "Microprose Formula One" - Classicamiga was the first result. :thumbs:

It's true what you say about Google. We'll have plenty of time to add reviews, screenshots and the likes. Guess March can become a busy month for the site. ;)

Keep up the good work guys!

[Submeg]

Soon we shall be number one on Google!

[Harrison]

The reason it can sometimes take a month is because the Search engine bots/spiders normally only revisit sites once a month to prevent duplicate entries in their databases, and also the site server also sends it's automated search engine submissions once a month, which generally prompts the search engine bots to visit the site and look for new content.

The new entries each month are also picked up more quickly due to the site Google Site Map that is sent, as this automatically gives the search engine the direct urls of all the new pages on the site, so when compared against last months Google Map it knows which areas of the site are new and which pages need to be looked at by the search bots/spiders.

It is great to see such recent entries as F1 being logged so highly in the search results, and when I did the search just now it also appeared 3rd, although it is technically second as the second link is a sublink to the first entry in the results. Another thing that is great is that this search is for a complete global web search, not a UK only search, which is even better. :)

Did you all also notice that exotica, Wikipedia and hall of light were all a lot lower in the results than CA. :D

It's so cool to think that entries in both the game and demo sections are now starting to return search engine hit results so highly already.

Great work everyone. :thumbs:

[Submeg]

For Sensible Soccer we are number 9
For Wings.....nowhere....
For Battlechess....nowhere....
For Dragon's Lair....nowhere...
Hmm....so it takes about a month to pick it up?

[Demon Cleaner]

I finished section P today with 204 game entries now in total in that section. Will begin with section T now.

[AlexJ]

Hmm....so it takes about a month to pick it up?

Yep, imagine the bandwidth usage if it checked more regularly.


I finished section P today with 204 game entries now in total in that section. Will begin with section T now.

Nearly there!

[Demon Cleaner]

Nearly there!Yep, almost. I think that section T has almost the same amount of games than section P, but section S will be a lot of work still to do.

[Submeg]

Yep, imagine the bandwidth usage if it checked more regularly.


Lol, yea Google would come to a standstill

[Demon Cleaner]

Section T finished now. 250 games added. Now beginning with section S and when finished, I'm gonna get drunk for 3 days straight :guinness: (no guiness though), and celebrate.

[Harrison]

Wow, nice job. :)

[Puni/Void]

Good job, mate! Keep it up! :)

I'm not a big fan of Guiness myself, but I guess it all depends on what one are used too. To me, having a Guiness feels like drinking food, and that's not my idea of fun. Stella is king though.

[Harrison]

Guinness is the best drink ever! Well Murphy's is better! I do also like a nice beer, especially when the weather is hot.

[Demon Cleaner]

I don't like english beer like Guiness or Kilkenny, I don't like ale. The only thing I like is your Cider :thumbs:

Stella is king though.You don't mean Stella Artois from Belgium?, as that is one of the worst beers in the world. You should then consider trying another brand, and you'll see, that Stella ranks last. If you mean another Stella, just ignore this message, which will destroy itself in 5...4...3...2...1...

[AlexJ]

I don't like english beer like Guiness or Kilkenny

Except neither of those two are English beers or even British beers!

[Harrison]

Gunness and Lilkenny are Irish, not English. Thought I had better mention that for any Irish people flame you. ;)

I agree about Stella Artois. Horrible larger. On par with Fosters!

[Demon Cleaner]

Ok, you're right, they're irish. But Oz drank a Newcastle Brown Ale here yesterday, and it already looked disgusting, don't even wanna know how it tastes :sick:

[Harrison]

Newcastle Brown Ale is lovely. You should try one for sure. ;)