Metascore
60

Mixed or average reviews - based on 25 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 25
  2. Negative: 6 out of 25
  1. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Jan 23, 2024
    100
    The main problem at the moment is that it lags behind its eight-year-old predecessor in every way except graphics. [Issue#326]
  2. May 1, 2023
    85
    The game is rather complex, with plenty of ins and outs to uncover and learn. It is undoubtedly challenging for newbies and can be overwhelming at first. However, you will eventually figure it out if you give the game a chance and don't get discouraged immediately. Once you get the gist of it, matches are engaging and gratifying, and you will be compelled to play over and over again.Blood Bowl 3 is not yet another turn-based RPG or rogue-like deck-building game. It is a rare mix of turn-based fantasy strategy and sports that requires relentless dedication. However, its significant emphasis on turn-based strategy, its fantasy theme, its Warhammer setting, and its extensive use of gore and violence may intrigue gamers who may not enjoy sports games at first but love tabletop-inspired games. Whatever the case, Blood Bowl 3 is worth trying; you may discover a rich, thrilling game that stands out with its bloodlust.
  3. Feb 23, 2023
    85
    Blood Bowl 3 is a great video game adaptation of a popular board game, using an updated set of rules and great presentation. The 12 featured teams offer variety and plenty of surprises on the field. The mix of careful planning and chaotic execution means each match is filled with surprises and reversals. But the tech side of the game is in rough shape and might take some time to fix. Fans of the franchise who cannot wait to play with the new Games Workshop rules and are willing to tolerate some issues will find great fun in Blood Bowl 3. Newcomers and those still having fun with previous installments are better served by waiting for patches.
  4. Feb 20, 2023
    80
    Blood Bowl 3 is undoubtedly the best new way to experience Blood Bowl. It is filled with character, brimming with options, and has plenty of depth for players to explore and toy around with. However, it is unfortunate that it doesn’t give new players the proper tools to break through its outer crust. For those that are hungry for more brutal sports action, however, you’d be hard pressed to find anything better.
  5. Mar 2, 2023
    70
    Blood Bowl 3 is a solid game that has a RNG system and match breaking bugs that will make you want to rage quit while the graphic and sound design, including the humour, reminds you: it’s just a game.
  6. Feb 26, 2023
    70
    Blood Bowl 3 seemed to be one step away from a touchdown, but as often happens during his matches he lost the ball along the way.
  7. Feb 25, 2023
    70
    The content in this game seems plenty for the price, and anyone who plans to play online will get more than enough value for their money. As someone who had never touched the game before I can absolutely see myself playing more of this, I might even be tempted to pick up a few models and a board.
  8. 68
    Blood Bowl is a beautiful game and Cyanide replicates it in every detail in its latest videogame version. Too bad the single player is ruined by terrible AI and multiplayer is plagued by incomprehensible restrictions. At least developers seem to be addressing the hottest topics raised by the community.
  9. Feb 28, 2023
    68
    Where Blood Bowl 3 fumbles is in its lackluster forward motion from the previous game. Its offline play is pretty limited, and too much has been recycled from Blood Bowl 2. It’s very rough around the edges for a game so long in the oven. All that aside, Blood Bowl 3 can be amusing, tactically engaging, and still great fan service for tabletop players and the Warhammer faithful.
  10. Feb 27, 2023
    65
    Blood Bowl 3 is a wonderfully charming game that is even more fun to play. Even so, the game falls short with it's numerous bugs and missing features. Unless you're playing offline, the microtransactions and server issues are constantly apparent and getting in your way. If you're looking for a game solely for offline play, Blood Bowl 3 may be for you. Otherwise, you probably want to skip it. Hopefully, with a few updates, Blood Bowl 3 will be as great as it can be.
  11. Feb 23, 2023
    65
    Blood Bowl 3 is as niche and complex as turn-based tactics games get, it just does it all with Orks and Elves and dwarves with silly beards.
  12. Feb 21, 2023
    65
    Blood Bowl 3 should delight the ultra fans of the first hour of the license, or at least those whose team is part of the line-up of the game from its release. If you can get past the roster issue and the (potential) business model issue, then it's still a game that "does the job", without reinventing anything. The atmosphere is still great, beating up the opposing teams is still satisfying... Special mention to the menus and customizations which have really evolved since Blood Bowl 2.
  13. Mar 20, 2023
    60
    Blood Bowl 3 not only has a relatively modest offer compared to its predecessors, but also minor glitches and doesn't really bring anything that wasn't already in the previous games. That's why it is not very attractive, basically it's useless - at least for now.
  14. Feb 24, 2023
    60
    We would be hypocrites to deny ourselves the pleasure of seeing Blood Bowl back in a cleaner and more "up-to-date" version, but that is also the biggest problem with this new opus. The fact that it is Blood Bowl 3 is not obvious, as it feels like a simple remaster. Even worse, we are leaving a previous episode better balanced and with more teams than this one. Of course, the customization can bring a real pleasure and an even greater investment in our teams (if it does not gradually become only governed by the virtual currency of the game). There is no doubt that the title will become more interesting as the months go by with real patches, team additions and so on. It is still difficult to recommend Blood Bowl 3 for the moment, as it struggles to offer a sufficiently technically accomplished title.
  15. Mar 23, 2023
    55
    Blood Bowl 3, at its best, never manages to even equal the quality of its predecessors at their lowest, but it would also be wildly inaccurate to say that there is no hope whatsoever for some at least partial redemption moving forward, as Cyanide Studio desperately attempts to salvage both the game, and their unfortunately-marred reputation. Hopefully the hard lessons learned here will result in a more faithful, and less monetization-crazed, future sequel, whenever they get around to working on such. In the meantime, longtime fans and newcomers alike would do well to keep their distance from this particular bloody field.
  16. Feb 27, 2023
    55
    I have absolutely no doubt that 18-24 months from now Blood Bowl 3 is going to be the game the community has dreamed of for so long. However, as it stands today, it’s the game we all hoped it wouldn’t be.
  17. Mar 3, 2023
    50
    Blood Bowl 3 feels like an early access game and that's a real shame, because the fun gameplay is plagued by a ton of inexplicable design choices and the pushy microtransactions do the rest.
  18. Feb 24, 2023
    50
    As someone who enjoys the tactical action of Blood Bowl, I can easily recommend you go pick up Blood Bowl 2 Legendary Edition and have a gorey good time with it. As for Blood Bowl 3, though, I struggle to come up with a reason it needs to exist other than that someone has bills to pay, I guess. There's less reason to recommend it over its predecessor than an especially weak year of Madden or NBA 2K. It's a sloppy, muddy, buggy rehash of a better game. Sure, the strong core mechanics can still lead to some tense, exhilarating matches, but you could have all of that with a much sharper presentation in the version that came out during the Obama Administration.
  19. Feb 24, 2023
    50
    Although the core game is enjoyable and the stories it can generate will leave lasting memories, Blood Bowl 3 has a lot of problems. For Blood Bowl fanatics interested in PvP, there is fun to be had here, but for the more casual player who likes to play against the AI, it’s a really hard sell. With a few changes and improvements, the game could be a great one, but for now it is a bit of a fumbled attempt at a touchdown.
  20. Mar 7, 2023
    48
    Blood Bowl 3 is a step back from the second installment of the series in terms of content, and it seems like an early access release full of glitches and omissions. We love its gameplay and the possibilities of its proposition, but we think it still has a long way to go to reach its potential.
  21. Apr 13, 2023
    40
    Blood Bowl 2 suffered a poor launch, but was eventually patched into something enjoyable, and the developers have already been at work on fixes for Blood Bowl 3, so I am guardedly confident that it will eventually be a good experience… but that time is not now, sadly. In its current form, Blood Bowl 3 is not worth the purchase price — yet — but I’m ready and willing to love it when it matures.
  22. Mar 16, 2023
    40
    This is a mixture of a good basic concept that is wasted with technical flaws and greedy microtransaction systems.
  23. Feb 24, 2023
    40
    If Blood Bowl 3 does one thing right, it’s that it really makes me appreciate that Blood Bowl 2 exists, which right now is a far superior game in all aspects. For now, save your money and wait to see if this one gets any better.
  24. Mar 2, 2023
    30
    Blood Bowl 3 is the type of game that makes people say things like, “I’ll wait until it’s on sale” or, “maybe this will be good in a year or two.” Now, I don’t work in publishing, but it seems to me like that’s the opposite of what you want when you’re releasing a game that’s so blatantly predatory in its monetization. What I don’t understand is why the game was delayed for two years only to launch in this abysmal state. Maybe in another two years, this game will actually be playable. For now, stick to Blood Bowl 2 instead.
  25. Feb 24, 2023
    20
    Bug-infested and content-light, Blood Bowl 3 feels like an open beta you have to open your wallet for. Unplayable as a single-player game and merely frustrating in multiplayer, it’s hard to recommend this even to die-hard fans.
User Score
1.5

Overwhelming dislike- based on 34 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 34
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 34
  3. Negative: 31 out of 34
  1. Feb 24, 2023
    0
    Now, I know it does sound dramatic to give a game a 0, as it does sound like a review out of anger, but please, do try and understand theNow, I know it does sound dramatic to give a game a 0, as it does sound like a review out of anger, but please, do try and understand the logic: This game, in the version that it is on release, has no reason to exist, as, unless you REALLY want the updates on the rules, bloodbowl 2 is an superior game, for cheaper.

    To say that the launch was incomplete is being kind. The game is nowhere close to finished, as gamebreaking bugs, constant crashes and server issues have made it impossible to play it, especially when early access was sold as a bonus. I do not joke that I could not complete 70% of the matches I attempted to play, either because the server just decided to break, the DRM decided that I was not online, or a perpetual loop started because a player used a skill that is currently bugged, ensuring that I would have to alt-f4 out of the game or just watch some repeating animation.

    The micro-transactions are.... obscene. On a game where the target audience are at least aware of the tabletop, everything that involves customization is paid for in real life money. Such includes things that WERE already included in bloodbowl 2, and now, you will have to buy them INDIVIDUALLY for each player. (Not a joke, each gear, paid with real money, is for one player only).

    I am still torn on the new aesthetics of the game, and with such a negative review, I will not comment on such because it is a matter of taste. If you do like a more gritty filter, it should please you. I prefer the bloodbowl colors flying high, but again, that part is taste.

    All in all, I do not reccomend this product, as it is unfinished, monetized offensively agressive and is a downgrade from its predescessor in almost all areas. I sincerely do know that this was not by accident, as there is no excuse for what they did. To both new and old players alike, this is worse then the worst fumble you had....
    Full Review »
  2. Feb 24, 2023
    2
    Well this is painful to write. Blood Bowl is a niche and often underappreciated franchise. The last thing it needed was an insulting disasterWell this is painful to write. Blood Bowl is a niche and often underappreciated franchise. The last thing it needed was an insulting disaster to smear the digital IP.

    THE GOOD:

    The fundamentals/ruleset of Blood Bowl are still good raucous, fun. And it can be an engaging multiplayer exercise. When it works.

    THE BAD

    Jesus wept, where to start. With the crashes? The always online requirement leading to unbearable server load, frequent disconnects, lost data and intolerable input lag? The vast ocean of missing features...and here I don't just speak of teams cut for additional content, but BASIC features that are roadmapped for 6-9 months out? The obtuse, confusing UI that was designed by either someone who had never seen a UI before or someone who'd seen many and come to hate them? The muddy graphical sidegrade?

    I suppose even with all of that, you could just call it a classic bungled launch, stick a pin in it, and circle around in a year when the game was on a deep discount. Assuming you weren't motivated to punish the publisher for failing to accurately market the game as early access.

    But the microtransactions. Oh my dear god, the microtransactions. This game makes Diablo Immortal look generous. Do you want some boots for your Pestigor? Buy them, one boot at a time, with the in game currency. But only for THAT Pestigor. Those are HIS boots. Want boots for the whole team? Get your wallet out. It might be the single most egregious, predatory, greedy implementation of paid cosmetics in the history of gaming. I say "might" because gaming has set the bar pretty low and there are a lot of mobile games I've never been exposed to.

    The game might be feature complete and widely playable in 2-3 years. If the microtransactions are left as is, it will still be an outrage.

    Avoid this gong show. I'd direct you to the second game, which is broadly identical but 1) actually works and 2) doesn't pick your pocket, but that would still be funneling money to a company that very evidently does not deserve it.

    Blood Bowl as a franchise deserves a robust 7-8/10. The 2 is for the negative 6 I would give the rest of this clown rodeo.
    Full Review »
  3. Feb 28, 2023
    2
    Blood Bowl 3 is one of those games where you can't press refund fast enough if you've got the option to do so. Way worse than Blood Bowl 2 inBlood Bowl 3 is one of those games where you can't press refund fast enough if you've got the option to do so. Way worse than Blood Bowl 2 in almost every way possible. The things that are better (ruleset and graphics) are completely overshadowed by the bad things. Full Review »