(tl;dr version): When searching for Premium Assets in the Roll20 Map Editor, many common keyword searches are skewed heavily in favor of just 2-3 packs. This seems to occur because there is no maximum number of assets displayed for a single pack, but there is a maximum number of total results displayed (~100). It would be nice if it were possible to add more search options (e.g., popularity, relevance, recent) and to limit the number of search results displayed per pack. In addition, I think it would be better if the default search category was "Everything" instead of "Tokens" so that items categorized as "Maps, Tiles, Textures" are not marginalized and users can choose to narrow their search if they want more specific results. (Note: I have made a similar post in the bug/technical issues forum here . That post focuses on keyword problems in which not-quite-relevant search results are produced. Here, I want to focus on suggestions to improve other things with the search algorithm.) Although I cannot claim to know how the Roll20 editor's search algorithm for assets works, there are a few things I have noticed: The maximum number of premium assets displayed for a single search seems to be 100. The search results within a single pack are in alphabetical order, rather than order of relevance to the search. There does not appear to be a limit on the number of items from a single pack displayed. The search results clearly weigh a number of factors. Amongst those are tags for individual assets. However, as far as I can tell, there are a number of less obvious factors as well. Perhaps there is also a popularity weight for individual packs. I have a problem with these rules -- specifically, that popular publishers that produce popular packs so heavily dominate the search algorithm that any new publishers are lucky to see themselves show up in the search results at all, even for more obscure searches. For a few examples of this, please go to the Roll20 Editor search, and then select "Maps, Tiles, Textures" from the drop down menu. Then type some things you might expect to be common tags, such as "cliffs," "water," and "poison." A particularly notable example of this is to search "tree," in which case you will find that results from only a single pack are returned (specifically, Gabriel Pickard's "Vile Tiles: Forest Mapper 1" pack). PLEASE NOTE: Reproducing this might not work properly if you already own the Vile Tiles: Forest Mapper 1 pack. The other searches might also not work properly if you own the packs that are dominant in the search. All of these factors bring me to my main point-- the current Roll20 Editor Premium Asset search seems very flawed. Since there is no limit on the number of items displayed from a single pack, search results can be dominated by a single pack. There is also the fact that if a particular pack is unpopular and does not include any obscure tags for its items, it might just never show up in the Roll20 Editor search results at all due to the limits on the total number of search items displayed. Moreover, if I am correct in speculating that the reason some packs are so dominant over any other search results is because of the popularity of those packs, then that means that in order for lesser known packs to gain any exposure, users must first purchase the popular packs to make those results disappear from the corresponding search terms. Purchasing one pack should not need to be a prerequisite to see search results from literally any other pack. As such, my suggestions are as follows: Find a way to make it so that less popular packs can get exposure. One way of doing this could be to allow users to determine certain priority factors in their search, such as by adding a drop-down menu to prioritize relevance, popularity, recent posts, etc. Add a limit to the number of items displayed from a single pack in all searches (maybe 2 - 3 items per pack). Perhaps if items are equally relevant in terms of tags, randomly select which ones are displayed for that particular search. Alternatively, perhaps the pack itself could be linked instead, with a note of how many items in that pack match the search criteria. Set the default option for searches to "Everything" instead of "Tokens." Since the default option is currently Tokens, this favors Marketplace items that are categorized in the Tokens category over items that are placed in the "Maps, Tiles, Textures" category. It would be better if users were shown all items equally by default, and could then narrow their search if they wanted something more specific. By changing these things, it will become easier for new Marketplace Creators to gain exposure and easier for users to find more varied items in their search results. As things stand now, a search for "cliff" is likely to produce, say, 30 cliffs from the same pack. If I don't like Cliff 1 from that pack, chances are I won't like Cliffs 2 - 30 either. I would love to see more different art styles in my search results without having to go to the Marketplace itself (as opposed to just staying within the Roll20 editor search) to find them. Thank you for taking the time to read my post!
