It is a shame to see people writing disheartened posts based on their ratings. I just wanted to share some thoughts on this, incase it helps give some people perspective:

Comparing ratings between LD entries is questionably useful.

I see people doing graphs and think they are improving as a game dev because of some lines changing direction. If you are getting like 200 ratings per jam, then perhaps it is more meaningful. But having a sample size of ~20 means the variance is going to be huge and as a result it makes comparisons unreliable. Another factor to consider is that it's not the same people playing your game every LD. People rate games in different ways: some people 5 star everything if they liked it; some people are happy to use the 1 and 2 stars when warranted; some people rate games relative to all the other jam games they've played; some people rate jam and compo entries differently. All these factors introduce variance from event to event.

What did you think of your own game?

I saw someone say “this is the best game I've made” yet still were disheartened that they didn't place as high as they hoped. I'd recommend not to override your own internal sense of achievement by the validation of strangers. To me, making the best game you've ever made sounds like an achievement. Wanting an arbitrary score to validate your efforts is understandable but may be detrimental to your happiness and progress as a game developer. Game dev is done for many reasons: making games you want to make; making games that will be popular; as a creative outlet. Keep that in mind, and that they don’t always play nice together. For example, making a game that you love, may not be a game that majority of people like.

Was your game suited for a "jam" audience?

There are specific game dev considerations in a jam if you are looking to rank well. Making your game accessible is really important, this includes: how easy it is to download and play; how likely an average player is to explore all the content you’ve put into your game. Some people will only play jam games for 5-10 minutes, so if the depth and quality of your game is tied to a longer play session, then you may be limiting yourself. Difficulty plays into this too; it's always tempting to make a super challenging game which will be rewarding for those players who master it - but that may end up being only be 10% of the people who play your game.

In closing

I think every entrant should be proud that they chose to spend their free time being creative, growing their skills, and contributing to a great community. See you in LD51! 🕹🧡