Spec Encore 1.1.1

One card for every experience. Six dimensions that apply to anything a person chooses to do, three modifiers, two gut questions, one number.

vtested scores things you chose to do for their own sake, and it scores the first time through. A second viewing or a return visit is not what the card is for, so Novelty counts in full and is never discounted for being gone the next time. For an obligation (the dentist, a funeral, a work trip) mark what does not apply as N/A; the rest still scores.

The anchor

Every slider is rated against everything you have ever done, not just this category. That is what makes a coaster’s 85 and a meal’s 85 the same 85. The words match the tiers: a 6 is solid, and a score in the 60s is Solid.

Rating	Means
0	broken
1	awful
2	poor
3	bad
4	weak
5	fine
6	solid
7	great
8	excellent
9	among the best
10	the best, anywhere

The six

Each is rated 0 to 10, or marked N/A. The six are averaged with the weights below, renormalized over the ones you rated; at least 3 are needed for a score. Novelty carries the most weight: something new, unexpected or different is worth more here than anything else. Peak and Finish come next, because memory judges an experience by its best moment and how it ended more than by the average minute. Weights are the same for everyone on vtested, so scores compare across people.

Dimension	Asks	Weight
Novelty	Did it surprise you or show you something new?	1.5
Craft	How well was it made and executed?	1.0
Immersion	Did you lose yourself in it? Did time disappear?	1.1
Peak	How good was the best moment?	1.3
Finish	How did it end?	1.2
Resonance	Did it hit you, and does it stay with you?	1.1

Modifiers and gut

Input	Scale	Effect
Friction	0 to 10. Waits, breakdowns, discomfort, anything that got in the way. The notes field records what it was; stored and shown, not scored.	−1.2 per point, max −12
Value	Ripoff · Pricey · Fair · Good deal · Steal	−6 to +6
Versus what you expected	Way below · Below · Met · Above · Blew past	−4 to +4
If you could, would you do it again?	Never · Probably not · Maybe · Yes · Can’t wait	half of Gut
Would you tell a friend?	Warn them · Wouldn’t · If asked · Yes · Insist	half of Gut

The math

Head is the analytic score. Gut is the two quick questions, asked before the sliders so the number cannot anchor them. Gut is a guardrail, not an ingredient: the final score is Head, held within 25 points of Gut. Most of the time it changes nothing. When it does, the card says so, because that disagreement is usually the most interesting thing about the experience.

rated    = {novelty, craft, immersion, peak, finish, resonance} minus N/A    at least 3
base     = Σ(rated × weight) / Σ weight × 10                                0 to 100
value    = value_step × 3                                                   −6 to +6
expected = expectation_step × 2                                             −4 to +4
lift     = clamp(base + value + expected, 0, 100)
head     = clamp(lift − 1.2 × friction, 0, 100)                             friction always costs
gut      = (again + recommend) / 8 × 100                                    unanswered → final = head
final    = round(clamp(head, gut − 25, gut + 25))                           gut is a guardrail
gap      = gut − head                                                       the card speaks up only when the guardrail bound

Tiers

Tier	Range	Reads as
S	90 – 100	Legendary
A	80 – 89	Excellent
B	70 – 79	Great
C	60 – 69	Solid
D	45 – 59	Forgettable
F	0 – 44	Bad

Together

Every card is personal, gut guardrail included. When several people rate the same outing or the same thing, vtested overlays the hexagons, shows the per-dimension gaps, and reports the mean score with its spread (tight, mixed or split) and the dimension the group is most divided on. An aggregate needs at least two cards. A catalog item’s vtested score is the mean of the cards you are allowed to see.

Sources and attribution

Pinball machines: Open Pinball Database, with cross-references to the Internet Pinball Database.
Movies: TMDB. This product uses the TMDB API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDB.
Roller coasters: Captain Coaster.
Restaurants, museums, escape rooms and trails: Google Places. Place details are refreshed from Google when shown.
Everything else: added by members. Duplicates are merged by hand.

Encore is the scoring system behind vtested. The engine is open: the same code scores in your browser and on the server.