Then I discovered how easy it is to maintain a 90%+ S rating by blue phantoming for people in 3-3. I don't think I've ever recieved anything other than an S from that.

I only give people anything but an S or an A if they do something that makes my life more difficult than it would be if they weren't there. If I summon somebody and they white eye out, I'll give them an S because why should they get a D for trying to play with a friend? If they die right away because of some fluke, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt and give them an S. If they place their soul sign at boss fog, I'll give them an A, unless I think they performed really well. If they're shooting the Tower Knight, and distracting it from using its usual attack patterns, I'll White Eye them out with thanks and give them an A. If they set off a trap and it almost kills me, I'll White Eye them out with thanks, and give them a C. If they run off without me and try to clear the level on their own, I'll white eye them out without thanks and give them a D.

I usually give ppl S for helping. I even gave an S because the one guy said he was new.

Also, why do ppl hate the Scraping Spear? I don't use it but is it because of the armor repair cost?

Apparently his friend has been giving him S rankings even though he's probably died more times than all 14 of my characters COMBINED have.

Ex:
Blue phantom atacks a gecko and lets him get away: A at most
Blue phantom dies from a fall: B at most
Blued phantom prevents me from rolling back or causes me to get hit: C at most
etc

I just summon and go.

Lol i do give a D if i summon you and you leave. Im all about communication. If you help me beat a boss ill say thanks for help. Or if we beat a phantom and boss ill say thanks for the help with everything. If i die ill send a sorry.

If you come into my game and then leave and i get nothing you get a D

At least a dinner or sorry wrong game.

I only give a B if the player dies quickly : it can happen (mistake, lag, etc.) and for me B is a "neutral" rating (can't obvisouly give an S if the player has only stayed with you for a minute).

If a player really messes up or doesn't help, then I can give him/her a C or D (but, to be honest, I never had to)

if he atleast TRIED to help, I would be okay with giving him an S.I mean he helped me beat a boss. If the player sucks it not his fault, this is a fairly hard game. Hes only trying to get better(usually)

personally i never give ratings unless the boss is beaten. What's the point of pressing select then giving him a bad rating?!Does that make you feel better?!

I give an S where it is needed. If you showed skill and understanding on the level and enemies.

I also give a S if we go through the whole level and beat it.

If we go through the level and you die at the boss then unless you used alot of skill i give an A.

If you hid behind your shield and swung your slow large weapon once the whole time and die at the boss or in the level well C to D.

B is usually for a player who im undecided on. Like you did hide behind your shield but we killed a black phantom together you knew when to get out of the way didnt get me killed kinda thing lol.

How many times have you received a message basically saying this:
"You didn't give me an S, why?" and go ranting on about it
Its okay to ask why did you give me a D or a C, but not to ask for an S

Unless someone is being a complete jerk (such as intentionally summoning me into a Black Phantom trap), I give the player an S. To me, the rating system isn't about skill, it's about co-operative effort. Even when partners die, if they play with honor, they'll get an S from me.

Unfortunately, there are a lot of lazy players who don't take the time to select a rating, they just mash buttons to continue after a boss fight. This gives the other player(s) a lower default rating. On many occasions as a Blue Phantom, I've done a great job and not received a deserved S rating. In the grand scheme of life, or even in Demon's Souls, it doesn't matter that much, but I can understand why players feel insulted by not receiving an S rating for an S performance. I don't care about the amount of souls I receive, but I do care how my soul sign looks when a Host is considering whether to summon me.

Who cares about souls when you get a fair amount no matter what

One time I helped another newbie through 4-1, defeated the boss and showed the entire way, even shared some grass. Afterwards he 'only' gave me an A because he didn't know S was higher… :p

Generally ill usually give out an A, once in a while If the guy is really a team player and we work really well together Ill give him an S. Random glitchers, overconfident wuss' and cowards get a B or lower depending on what the problem is

I only give a D if they are hacking, glitching, or being a straight up douche by not helping me with BPs

Being a Blue Phantom is so addictive it's keeping me from the actual game, randomly.

Edit: I just got my first D, probably because the connection died again at the Tower Knight and he thought I left I guess. boohoo.