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Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority
TL; DR
- Starting in November, Google will change the Play Store rating system for apps and games.
- Ratings will be localized resulting in different ratings for some applications for people in different parts of the world.
- Next year, ratings will become even more accurate taking into account device form factors.
Apps and games on the Google Play Store have historically had aggregate review scores. In other words, Google adds up all the scores of users around the world and averages them to create a final score. This is reflected in the star rating you see with all apps and games on Google Play.
See also: The best Android apps available right now
However, this system is changing considerably this year. In November 2021, Play Store reviews will be located around the world. This means that Google will aggregate user scores from a country and create a localized score. Thus, the rating of an application in the United States, for example, may be very different from the rating of that same application in Japan.
Google explained this upcoming change in a blog post today. Here is a relevant excerpt:
Play Store users and developers have told us that ratings and reviews could be more helpful. This is especially true when the ratings of one domain have an unfair impact on another, such as when a bug that only affected one country negatively affects the app’s rating everywhere.
The example of Google there makes a lot of sense. Cultural issues can also affect Play Store ratings. For example, a game designed for people who speak French and know French culture may not be well received by people from other countries. Why should this game’s rating be lowered by negative reviews from people who don’t “get” it?
In the future, Google will go even further.
In 2022, form factor will affect Play Store ratings
Localized assessments will begin this year. However, next year Google will incorporate at least one additional variable: the form factor. This means that app reviews from tablet users will be aggregated differently from reviews from phone users.
Google explained the change using an example of “positive improvements in the experience of a tablet” for an application “overlooked due to the number of users on the phones.”
It will affect all kinds of different platforms including foldable phones, Android Auto focused apps, etc.
Google has not given a firm deployment date for the introduction of form factor variables for Play Store ratings.
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