The argument claims that the electronic games rating system, although similar to the movie rating system, is not working because it is self regulated and violation fines are nominal, Hence, the gaming rating system should be overseen by an independent body. Stated in this way the argument fails to mention several key factors, on the basis of which it could be evaluated. The conclusion relies on assumptions, for which there is no clear evidence. Therefore, the argument is rather weak, unconvincing, and has several flaws.

First, the argument readily assumes that because the electronic game rating system is self regulated, it is not working well. This statement is a stretch and not substantiated in any way. There are numerous examples in other areas of business or commerce, where the entities are self regulated and rather successful. For instance, FIA, the Formula1 racing organization is self regulated. Yet, the sport is very popular and successful, drawing millions of spectators around the world each year. Tickets are rather expensive, races are shown on pay-per-view, and nearly all drivers are paid very well. Another example is the paralleled movie rating system that the argument mentions. The author fails to clarify whether it is working well, but it is clear that the movie rating system is pretty well received by people, who often base their decisions to go see a movie with kids or not on the movie rating. It has never been a case when someone would feel cheated by the movie rating and express disappointment afterwards. Since the movie rating system is also self regulated, it follows that this regulatory method is working pretty well and it is not obvious how it can be the reason for the poor electronic game rating system. The argument would have been much clearer if it explicitly gave examples of how the self regulatory system led to bad ratings and customer dissatisfaction.

Second, the argument claims that any violation fees for bad electronic game ratings are nominal. It thus suggests that this is yet another reason for the rating system not working. This is again a very weak and unsupported claim as the argument does not demonstrate any correlation between the monetary amount of the fines and the quality of the electronic game rating system. In fact, the argument does not even draw a parallel with the mentioned movie rating system and its violation fines. If any such correlation had been shown for the movie rating system, which supposedly works well, then the author would have sounded a bit more convincing. In addition, if the argument provided evidence that low violation fines lead to electronic game manufacturers to ignore any regulations with respect to the game rating system, the argument could have been strengthened even further.

Finally, the argument concludes that an independent body should oversee the game industry and companies that violate the rating system, should be punished. From this statement again, it is not at all clear how an independent regulatory body can do a better job than a self regulated one. Without supporting evidence and examples from other businesses where independent regulatory bodies have done a great job, one is left with the impression that the claim is more of a wishful thinking rather than substantive evidence. As a result, this conclusion has no legs to stand on.

In summary, the argument is flawed and therefore unconvincing. It could be considerably strengthened if the author clearly mentioned all the relevant facts. In order to assess the merits of a certain situation, it is essential to have full knowledge of all contributing factors.

to add to chineseburn, veritas tells you in paragraph #5 (before conclusion and after 3rd point) to add what would have made the arguement issues stronger (analyze the arguement) or to criticize your own arguement (issues question). They say to write 6 paragraphs.

Hi everyone,

I'm new here & I'm glad I finally found an AWA thread. My appreciations to the author of this guide, it is very helpful. However, I have a few questions about AWA that was not covered:

1. Does anyone have suggestions on the use of common abbreviations and acronyms (as a time saving method)? Would the computer rater grade such usage as spelling errors?

Example 1: I want to replace the word "and" with the symbol "&".
Example 2: If I am writing about small and medium enterprises, instead of writing out the whole phrase "small and medium enterprises" every time I refer to them, I would like to write out the complete phrase the first time, followed by an acronym in parentheses, and write ONLY the acronym in future uses.
Preferred usage - "An effective strategy for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) would be... Therefore, by doing..., SMEs can successfully..."

2. Does AWA affect the overall score (on the 200-800 scale) in anyway? How important is the AWA section?

If these questions were already asked/answered in other threads, it would be great if someone pointed me in that direction. Thanks for advance for any help given.

How long after we write the GMAT do we receive the AWA mark?