Reddit gamified participation, and the result was an addiction to trying to say things that people would click the updoot for. Here, the comment / post score is used purely to determine the relevance and value of the individual comments and posts. I think the result is clear: people feel less compelled to post the meme, the shitpost, the expected something and are more likely to express a thought they have, or think is valuable to the conversation.

The result is less stuff, but the stuff is more nuanced, interesting, and engaging (even if the engagement metrics are lower). It's also a less stressful environment to interact with, and is just kinda all around better since no one is trying to profit