Dilemma (winner type)

The poll is missing an option for "I don't care, I just make low level giveaways when I feel like doing so".

This is steamgifts, not steamtrades. Why should I care if a person got gifts. I care about people breaking the rules, reselling the keys or stuff like that, but not people who want games for free to play. Therefore, choice 2 is a smash-pick for me

Choice 2.
(Assuming that by "played" you mean "actually played" and not something like "got some playtime on Steam while farming cards and not touching the game".)

I guess the question kinda boils down to "Do you think that games are to be played or to be collected?", right?
Personally... I really don't understand the mindset of "I'll gift this nice game to someone and then I don't care if it gets played or sits there, forever untouched, with 1000+ other wins which are in the same state"... :/

Potato.

Also I guess it depends. For some games I definitely hope the winner will play them (and usually I have a higher level or WL req for those so I guess it wouldn't fit your question), but for the most part I just make GAs to make people happy, be they playing or idling for cards or just completing their collection. I don't consider bad ratios leeches per se because you never know what's going on on the other side of the screen. If someone's day is made winning a game, who cares if they can't 'give back', or so I think. Maybe they pay it forward in other ways, in other places.

However that doesn't mean having a good ratio and rarely playing the games won is bad either. Again, you never know what's going on. They might not currently be able to for whatever reason, and perhaps they'll never catch up on that backlog, but I'm sure they made a lot of people happy with what they gave, so having them win a game in turn is a good thing methinks.

So for what it's worth, I'd consider it a win-win regardless of which of the two options were to apply to a winner in this scenario, I suppose. Even if that might seem a bit naive, haha. I just wouldn't consider it a dilemma to begin with. But I also can't vote on the poll because neither option is better/worse to me. Most of my GA experiences have been positive, all things considered, and I'd rather drop a key here and be disappointed than sitting on it when it's of no use to me. I know how happy I get seeing space cat, so the thought of being apple to make someone else feel that way, even if it's just for a bit, especially in these doom and gloom times, that makes up for anything unpleasant along the way.

I'd be curious where your cut-off is for really good/bad ratios. For some people anything below 2:1 is already unacceptable xD

Based on my own playing habits, I have to go with option 1. I will usually play a game I win, unless it's like part 3 of a series and I haven't played part 2 yet, but I tend to be a gaming butterfly so it doesn't get much play time, at least at first. At this moment, the only thing that's even stayed installed on my computer for more than 3 weeks is No Man's Sky (which I bought only because a friend wanted me to play with them, then they flaked and I have never once seen them in game), and that's only because I got involved in one of the Expedition things which lasts for 2 months. I tend to have about 6 to 8 games installed at any one time, and whenever I feel like playing something I'll pick one of them to play. If I want to play something else, I have to uninstall an existing one first. I have given a lot over time, and not won very much, so my ratio is through the roof (better than 10:1 both in number and monetary value). I have never entered a game for the sole purpose of getting a +1. Every game I have ever entered has been one I wish to play, but some of my wins have only a few minutes on them.

As we all should know: the road to hell is paved with good intentions. I only enter giveaways for games I want to play but alas from time to time I leave my basement especially in spring and summer taking away precious time. Some people even have jobs(imagine that) all to the detriment of playing games.

Personally I'd always prefer someone giving to a person only taking so it's the first option for me.

I really don't like idlers, which are literally everywhere on that site, so I barely do public giveaways. Low level giveaway I would never do, too many multiaccounters, resellers etc. I really appreciate when winner playes the game, but I started check just unbundled or highly wanted games. These I check three months after win and when I see winner haven't touched it or just idled it, he goes to blacklist.
I can imagine some people will rush to me that is unfair cause there is no requirement on site to play games... yeah, also there is no requirement saying I have to buy them more games... so I just ignore stupidos which goes cry "WhY aM i BLAcKLYzTeD?" I literally don't care. Same discussion we can have about word "thank you". There is enough people who just idle games for money and permanently yell "why say thank you for winning lottery"? I can just reply "why I would have to buy more games for someone who don't do such minimum as saying thank you?".

Possibly Option 2 (bad ratio, but play their games), though I have yet to see anyone like that here on Steamgifts. I would love to find a "leacher" who actually plays all their wins. Unfortunately for people who only take, they generally end up on my blacklist.

Maybe someone can point out that amazing leecher who plays their wins.

I don't care about either. I prefer that my winner:

1. Did not break any SG rules
2. Wasn't a bot (sadly, it's almost impossible to check)
3. Last, but not least - enjoys his win. I don't care in which way - if they play this game, or enjoys from addition to their collection, or maybe they just like to see this nice space cat. As long as they are happy about winning - that's fine.

I only do giveaways one level above mine, aside from that, I'm no one to judge how or what they do, I'm happy if they are happy, be it playing or simply collecting.

I only care choice 2. I dont mind if someone havent give anything as long as they play their wins. I dont like giving away games just for +1 or cards.

Depends on their win/gift numbers. If it's ten wins for one or no gifts, I'll see wins played as more important. But if it's five hundred wins to fifty gifts, I'm not gonna be as impressed that they play what they've gotten. At least not unless they've played all five hundred to 100% completion. lol

But for the most part, I'd rather people at least try what I've gifted, so I pick choice 2..

I think I like the first option because I recognize some titles are really shitty in all possible ways. Since I didn't select most my giveaways, I shouldn't care if they played them, when I wouldn't play those titles myself (I actually choose to give that title away, when I don't have, because it is something I wouldn't play myself). However, if it is a title that I really care about, like a few hundreds of my giveaways, I would love to see them played someday, with no pressure though, because, like myself, everyone has a life and play games isn't a job, neither develop social relationships.

I don't care about ratio, I just GA games I don't want 2 games ment to be PLAYED! And CV is my "bonus"

I kind of care about the played part more. But I don't care for checking every profile.

So I associate good ratio with good attitude towards what you win, as you know yourself what it takes to create giveaways. Does it always work ? Probably not. But I personally know that I myself sometimes fail to get around to playing a game immediately or fail to finish a game.. I am still slowly playing through a game I won a year or so ago ... So I suppose that is a gamble on what persons intentions (and means) to play are, but having a better ratio at least makes me think they will respect it more.

So I am more leaning towards having better attitude towards those with better ratios. May not be as precise, but is less tedious and at least for me works fine.

Just don't look at ratio if you are making lv 0-3 GA

It's a great question, but I rather have all my winners try out the games I give them for free. I don't mind if their ratio is low, because after all Level 0 & 1 barely has people giving no gamed to a couple of games before.

For me it's eitherway, i understand also the collectors that only keep their games in their library but also the ones who actually play all their games and not farm the cards from them.

We need "leechers" to enter for the giveaways people make - there are so awful games that barely any sane people would want to win the games for the games themselves. From this point of view, ratio can be quite pointless of a stat.
At the same time, when I happen to give away shovelware, I really don't care if people will play it. But when I give away a good game, I hope the winner will play it at some point. I have 7 year old wins that I haven't put enough time in to have a proper try, or 4-5 old wins of actually good games I want to play.

Overall I'm leaning towards option 2, but all I can do is hope for the game being played.