I want to value 5-star ratings like this: 1 star = -3, 2 star = -1, 3 star = 0, 4 star = +1, 5 star = +3. Works the same for restaurant tipping: $0.02 = you should be fired and this place should be closed, 0% = you suck and I won't ever come back, 10% = you blew it this time, 15% = median performance, 20% = you did better than most, 20% and yes we will also order booze and/or desserts = you're at least 98th percentile.

I dislike systems that end up being like this: 1 star = -8, 2 star = -4, 3 star = -2, 4 star = -1, 5 star = 0.

I need to be able to express when things are good as well as when things are bad. When everyone and everything has a 4.5-star average rating, there's no way to tell when anything stands out as being better than similar things. You can only see when things are significantly worse.