Arknights Story Tier List Update Guide
A practical process for updating your Arknights story tier list after new events and chapters. Keep rankings fair across old and new content, avoid recency bias, and slot new stories in without restarting from scratch.
The Problem: Keeping Rankings Consistent
After new Arknights events or chapters drop, or after catching up on backlog, players need a quick and consistent way to update their personal story tier list. The challenge is keeping rankings fair across old and new content, avoiding recency bias or memory fade, and deciding where new stories slot in relative to established favorites.
Prioritize personal enjoyment over "objective quality" or community consensus. Your tier list reflects your experience, not a popularity contest. Be honest about what actually moved you.
Step-by-Step Update Process
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Gather Your Current List and New Content
Pull up your old tier list (screenshot, Google Sheet, or TierMaker). Make a separate list of unread or new stories since your last update: main chapters, events, and side stories. Read or re-read in release order where possible.
Why: Release order keeps plot threads and character development consistent, preventing spoilers or tonal whiplash from out-of-order consumption.
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Refresh Key Older Stories (Selective, Not Everything)
Skim or re-read 1-2 top and bottom stories from your old list, plus any that new content directly references. Use in-game story review or saved screenshots. Limit to 30-60 minutes per refresh.
Why: Memory effect is the biggest complaint. Stories that felt S-tier years ago might feel dated now, and vice versa. A quick refresh grounds your comparisons.
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Score New Stories Immediately After Finishing
Right after completing a new event or chapter, assign a quick score (S/A/B/C/D or 1-10) based on your personal criteria. Note 2-3 bullet reasons covering plot, characters, themes, emotional impact, and worldbuilding. Do this before moving to the next thing.
Common scoring criteria from community discussions:
- Plot coherence and payoff
- Character writing and depth
- Emotional weight or political intrigue
- How well it stands alone vs. requires deep lore knowledge
Why: Immediate notes prevent "I forgot how good or bad it was" syndrome later.
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Slot New Stories Into Existing Tiers and Adjust
Compare directly: "Does this new one hit harder than my current S-tier?" or "Is it better than my old A-tier filler?" If top tiers get crowded, bump borderline ones down one tier or create sub-tiers (S+, S, S-). Re-sort the whole list in one sitting.
Why: Direct comparison forces honest ranking. One-sitting re-sorts prevent inconsistency from spreading the work across days.
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Finalize and Document
Update your visual (TierMaker, screenshot, spreadsheet). Add a short note like "Updated after [event/year] - lowered X because top was crowded." Post if you want community feedback.
Why: Documentation creates a record of your reasoning, making future updates faster and more consistent.
Key Decision Points
Recency Bias vs. Consistency
New stories often feel stronger right after playing. Counter this by waiting 1-2 days before final placement, or comparing directly to 2-3 old favorites while the memory is fresh.
Crowded Top Tiers
Decide if you want strict tiers (force distribution) or loose (many S-tiers). Players often lower borderline S-tiers to A to balance the list and keep tiers meaningful.
Main Story vs. Events
Some players separate them into different lists; others combine. Choose based on whether you value overarching lore (main story) or self-contained stories (events) more.
Headcanons vs. Canon Quality
Clarify your own rule upfront. If you rank based on headcanon potential, say so. If you rank pure canon execution, stick to that. Mixing both without a rule leads to inconsistent rankings.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Updating only new content without touching the old list, leading to inconsistent rankings across tiers.
- Ranking purely on hype or community opinion instead of your own reading experience.
- Forgetting context: older events felt groundbreaking at release but may feel less impressive now without that context.
- Rushing through backlog without taking notes, leaving only vague memories to rank from later.
- Ignoring release order, which can confuse plot threads and make stories feel worse than they are.