Running head: A RHETORICAL WEB AUDIT: RENPY

A Rhetorical Web Audit: RenPy

Paola Victoria Betancourt
University of Central Florida

Running head: A RHETORICAL WEB AUDIT: RENPY

Introduction
RenPy is currently the most popular free and open digital storytelling software on the
market-with hundreds of games created, commercial and non-commercial. The success of
RenPy is dependent on the user experience of Renpy.org, which is a source for creators to learn
about the software and its basic mechanics. A simple and friendly user experience is a
fundamental value for RenPy; an example taken from their website, The easy to learn script
language allows anyone to efficiently write large visual novels. As such, the content of the
RenPy website should reflect this characteristic.
This qualitative audit will answer this question: Does the website help a new user easily
approach the program it is trying to promote? The websites content will be analyzed for user
experience based on these factors: usability, findability and accuracy. These factors were
assessed on a scale between poorness, satisfaction and excellence. The results of this audit will
show the current state of the site and if there are areas needed for improvement. In addition,
recommendations and resources will be provided to better fulfill the objective.
Methodology
I first approached the audit with this question: Does the website help a new user easily
approach the program it is trying to promote? With this question in mind, my first step was to
gather data and record my findings into an Excel spreadsheet. I first used the page counter tool
from XML-Sitemaps, in which the result was a total of 216 pages. Although the page count falls
under the 500-page margin of exceeded pages in Content Strategy, many of the sub-pages are
repeated in terms of layout and design. Therefore, I carefully selected sub-pages to analyze that
represented the section as a whole. I made this selection based on research by Huckin, in which a

Running head: A RHETORICAL WEB AUDIT: RENPY

good study corpus should include texts that, "...correspond in some clear fashion to the research
question, and...are representative of some identifiable, larger body of texts," (Huckin, pg. 17).
I based my spreadsheet from Content Strategy, in which I listed primary sections of the website
as well as secondary sub-pages that serve as representative samples. Each page is attached to a
page ID in order to be referenced later in the audit.
I then proceeded to list types of content Ive found in each corresponding section. Since I
was analyzing user experience, I looked for content that would have the most effect to the enduser. This ranged from text, graphics, interactive elements, widgets and more specific subcategories of content such as screenshots or HTML code blocks.
Huckins article brings an interesting point in that "...analysis calls for a speculation
about the context..." (pg.18). In order to accurately give my analysis context, I created a rubric
that specified the three factors of user experience: usability, findability and accuracy. For each
factor, I applied a heuristic rating scale from 1 to 4, 1 being the least effective and 4 being the
most effective. I created a rubric as a reference for each section I analyzed and after grading each
page, I calculated the total average for the whole site.
Summary of Findings
The following is a brief findings report that highlights important discoveries of the
RenPy website in accordance with the three factors for user-experience: Usability, findability
and accuracy. These factors were assessed on a scale between poorness, satisfaction and
excellence.
Raw data of the findings can be found through the following spreadsheet. Information is
outlined by a page-by-page structure, each having its own page ID. Subpages or subsections are

Running head: A RHETORICAL WEB AUDIT: RENPY

recorded as children under each page along with content specific findings listed for each
section. Each major page is rated on a scale and then averaged for the final result in the
following summary.
Usability
Rating: Poor
Usability standards emphasizes on factors such as length of paragraphs, use of headings,
amount of text links and quality of graphics (Halvorson & Rach, 2009).

CONTENT USABILITY
Excellent
11%

Satisfactory
24%

Poor
65%

Overall, the website meets poor criteria for content usability. About 65% of content
related to text do not meet usability standards and faults range from long paragraphs, inadequate
use of headings and broken links. But where exactly do these faults lie?

Running head: A RHETORICAL WEB AUDIT: RENPY

POOR
USABILITY
Games
3%

Home
6%

Documentation
29%

Why
44%

Download
18%
A majority of poor usability comes from the why and documentation page. As such,
this area of content will be analyzed later in greater detail since text takes up the bulk of the
website.
The rest of the pages are less to do with text but rather with the placement of space and
images. Although informational, the site feels cluttered and overwhelming to a new visitor who
is new to the program or site. Lack of significant visuals and space between individual sections
make it hard to navigate for information.
The remaining 35% of content could use room for improvement, which is correlated with
graphics and images such as icons, screenshots and embedded HTML blocks. Each image has a
proper caption and link to its related topic. For example, the in-game screenshots on the sidebar
of the home page can be clicked on and the user will be redirected to that games website.

Running head: A RHETORICAL WEB AUDIT: RENPY

However, not all images serve a purpose and can seem jarring when placed beside text. For
example, the image of Moonlight Walks 2.0 under subsection 1.4 is unnecessary in context with
the paragraph about scripting and language.
Findability
Rating: Excellent
When considering findability, one must see whether or not a user can search for content
through navigation or via search bar. In addition, to see if metadata is appropriate (Halvorson &
Rach, 2009). Part of having a smooth user experience is first and foremost, finding information
easily. A website like RenPy is filled with guides on how to use the program and acts as a
learning portal for users approaching the program for the first time.
All pages and images are tagged with relevant metadata that would help the user easily
locate for information when using the search bar. Moreover, there are search bars across all
pages and users have access to optimize their search queries. Particularly, the Games page is
neatly organized with many options for the user to find a specific game in the directory. For
example, the user can search by year, name, gameplay, and genre to narrow down the search.

Running head: A RHETORICAL WEB AUDIT: RENPY

The Documentation page is set up neatly too, with every article labeled with topic headings
listed on the side bar.

Running head: A RHETORICAL WEB AUDIT: RENPY

Accuracy
Rating: Satisfactory
If the user finds that content or information is not accurate or out-of-date, it will leave a
bad impression on the company/brand and hurt legitimacy (Halvorson & Rach, 2009).
Particularly since RenPy is the go-to website for a user to learn how to use the program,
accuracy is crucial.
The RenPy website faces more out-of-date issues rather than inaccuracy. There are
several pages throughout the site that no longer serves a purpose and have been left to the dust,
which shows remnants of the sites history since its launch in 2004. For example, users can still
be linked to areas of the site that are no longer up to date and have to be redirected to the most
recent source.

Even if a warning it posted here in the FAQ page, users are still able to locate it within
the site and can stumble upon it through Google search.

Running head: A RHETORICAL WEB AUDIT: RENPY

Particularly, the forums of the website suffer the most. According to the website, The best place
to go for support is the Ren'Py forum at the Lemma Soft Forums, which has more than 56,000
posts in over 9,500 threads. (Figures accurate as of September 2014.) Its very likely that these
figures have tripled by now and a majority of posts are old and no longer applicable to the
programs current patch update.
Analysis of Findings
The bulk of the websites issues lies in usability, which is a crucial factor when
determining user experience. Good usability will constitute a positive attitude toward online
stores, increases stickiness and revisit rates, and eventually stimulates online purchase, (Lee &
Kozar, 2012). Although RenPy is not an e-shopper site, the goal is to minimize user frustration
when navigating content throughout the website.

Community
participation

Download
RenPy
program

RenPy
website

News/Update
patches

Learn
program
mechanics

Running head: A RHETORICAL WEB AUDIT: RENPY

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RenPy has the main audience of young people in various levels of programing, from
first-timers to advance. Mainly, these programmers have interest in the visual novel gaming, a
genre heavily focused on visuals and storytelling. Although the audience ranges in different
experience when it comes to programming, visualization is a common trait that should be
reflected on RenPys most complicated content.
Overall, information is handed to you straight-forwardly and you know where to go next
from the site. However, it's hard to take it all in and the visual design itself it's very eye-catching
or at least not attempting to direct your attention anywhere. To move around you have to click on
links instead of buttons and content is spread horizontally across the page instead vertically, like
most sites these days. Which brings another point in that the site struggles to be kept up with
current designs and most of the content is outdated.
The links used throughout the site makes it less-user friendly and annoying since it's
inconsistent with the occasional button here and there. The side bar that displays popular fan
made games is distracting and could be formatted better. Some features that do work though is
the clean top-menu and the search bar is useful for getting quick information.
The text does in no way show any hierarchal structure on the front page, nor does it
signal the reader important pieces of information. The text in the right column is distracting and
moves the user away from the content in the center, which is the most important on the landing
page. For example, you will first read the welcome text on the first block, which gives a brief
summary of what RenPy is all about. Immediately, the eye moves to the right column, in which
the text is now displaying various games created by RenPy.
Recommendations

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The goal of the landing page is to first get the reader comfortable with the characteristics
of the program before jumping into possibilities that could be created with it. As mentioned in
Solving Problems in Communication, text should be grouped rhetorically to move the reader
smoothly throughout the website. However, the text is organized in that you can easily tell there
is a two column structure with the use of white space and where things are divided since there
are headings to indicate different topics. Moreover, links are used frequently throughout the page
and colored in blue to signal the reader where to turn their attention, which helps the reader have
an idea where to go to next.

Information may not stand out as much as the other content in terms of where it is placed
on the page and visuals. It's not the first thing you notice when you first land on the site and
certainly not has flashy, visual wise, as the side-bar with the featured games, which may direct
your attention more. Its easy to locate because it's right on the front page if you need to

Running head: A RHETORICAL WEB AUDIT: RENPY

12

download the latest version without having to go through extra menus, sign-ups or annoying
pop-ups that usually appear on other sites (such as news or magazine sites). However, it would
be better if they could separate the information from the rest, like having separate boxes around
the text, instead of one long page of information. It's like stumbling upon the first page of a book
where it dumps information into a single paragraph.
References
Halvorson, K., & Rach, M. (2009). Content Strategy for The Web. New Riders Publishing .
Lee, Y., & Kozar, K. A. (2012). Understanding of website usability: Specifying and measuring
constructs and their relationships. Decision Support Systems, 450-463.