Watch Dogs

 PC
User Score
6.4

Mixed or average reviews- based on 5182 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2,662 out of 5182
  2. Mixed: 913 out of 5182
  3. Negative: 1,607 out of 5182
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  1. Mortvicr
    May 29, 2014
    2
    Foremost, before you buy this game I would like to warn you of the terrible car handling, as with most of these type of games from GTA, Just Cause 2 and Sleeping dogs the driving is one of the main part of the game. GTA driving mechanics weren't great, but Watch Dog are just awful, bordering unplayable.

    The cars slip and slid around like that the ice part in Zelda: ocarina of time, -    Foremost, before you buy this game I would like to warn you of the terrible car handling, as with most of these type of games from GTA, Just Cause 2 and Sleeping dogs the driving is one of the main part of the game. GTA driving mechanics weren't great, but Watch Dog are just awful, bordering unplayable.

    The cars slip and slid around like that the ice part in Zelda: ocarina of time, - Don't turn enough and the car doesn't turn, turn too much and its slips'n'slids and fish tails around like crazy, hitting every, lamp post, car, fence, wall, pedestrian and building, which makes those - Chase guy mission frustrating, or tail that guy and invade the goons are just plan unenjoyable. And there are loads of these, the main campaign is mostly tail this guy, chase those guys oh and the terrible sneak into the build or sneak out without been seen, and if they catch you it's right back to the beginning again.

    It take all the worst and annoying elements from other open world games, the parts that are just filling to add more packing to the game, Watch_Dogs is that, filler.

    This is a god awful game, and a nasty little PC port..    … Expand
  2. kstud1
    Jun 1, 2014
    0
    Bait and switch from E3, playing watch dogs I jumped into the river to escape cops, the water disappeared and i was running on the bottom of the river ground with no water and looking up I could see boats but sense there's no water I could not swim up to them, what was the extra six months for?
  3. KushAstronaut
    Jul 24, 2015
    10
    Great game. They've updated it to make it more compatible with AMD hardware, as far as I can tell. It really doesn't deserve so many negative reviews. Hardware issues aside, the game itself is a fantastic game, and is a lot of fun to play.
  4. DNGrigorov
    May 27, 2014
    0
    Quite possibly the most overhyped blunder of the new-gen. Horrible optimization, horrible graphics that we were outright lied to at E3, AI is abysmal, gunplay is abysmal, the list goes on if you want just scroll down and read through the negative reviews. They're mostly all true.
  5. kartana
    May 27, 2014
    4
    Overrated and badly optimized console port. There is nothing new here. The hacking is mostly a gimmick. It's the standard "go here, go there, click that and now escape the bad boys chasing you".
  6. Synt0xx
    Jun 7, 2014
    2
    Just bugged, the game is nice, but you cant play infact of a bug which lets you stuck in the loading screen since release and ubisoft cant find that issue
  7. MetalDude185
    Jun 29, 2014
    3
    Let's start with the bloody obvious. The state of the PC version is a joke. The lighting is hideously flat and a filthy monochrome in most scenes, as opposed to what we saw at E3 two years ago. It has hideously outdated particle effects and shadows. Yes, the water looks great, but that doesn't count when there is no setting in the entire game that makes it run at at least 60fps on myLet's start with the bloody obvious. The state of the PC version is a joke. The lighting is hideously flat and a filthy monochrome in most scenes, as opposed to what we saw at E3 two years ago. It has hideously outdated particle effects and shadows. Yes, the water looks great, but that doesn't count when there is no setting in the entire game that makes it run at at least 60fps on my high-end PC. In some places I felt like I was playing GTA IV. The pop-in in the open world is so terrible that it interferes with gameplay, especially when driving at high speeds. Weeks after its release there's still no patch out.

    Now for the gameplay, the hacking is has turned out to be a gimmick that becomes tired in the first few hours you actually get to play with it. There are some interesting things you can do with it but those become boring after you've seen them a few times and most things you do with it are executed by just holding down a button for a second. Other than that, there are serviceable driving mechanics in place, but there's very little to do with it, as everything in the gameworld just has nothing interesting to offer you, not to mention that the graphics are so bad that it doesn't even have the entertainment value of just looking at the scenery, like you could do if it was just a boring game with great visuals.
    Also it has semi-cover-based shooting mechanics, but there's just no punch to it and it's usually just frustrating to "play", especially when the framerate runs like a turtle.

    The story is clichéd and the main "character" is not even just unrelatable, he's boring and hasn't got a single sign of a personality or character trait, but it's not presented in any way in which we could roleplay as our own. The game clearly thinks it's got an interesting character loaded with personality and a heavy emotional story, but it just falls flat on its face, because there is no character or actual strong emotional development to any of it.

    This game would have been a huge dissapointment, if I would have been invested in the hype, so at least it didn't hurt me there, but what we have is still a hugely boring and noticeably overhyped "Triple-A" game, with a terrible PC version.    … Expand
  8. Loyen
    May 27, 2014
    3
    plain boring, forced mouse acceleration and plenty of unoptimization issues, Uplay sucks and the graphics are nowhere near what they showed at E3, just a pile of garbage.
  9. Mamurai
    May 28, 2014
    3
    Ubisoft didn't bother optimizing this game for PC at all, which means it will poorly at the moment on any system. Combine that with graphics which do not look next gen when it comes to PC and you have an overhyped game that is a GTA clone with better graphics, yet runs poorly. It certainly doesn't look better than Battlefield 3 for PC and that game is hardly new anymore. Uplay doesn't workUbisoft didn't bother optimizing this game for PC at all, which means it will poorly at the moment on any system. Combine that with graphics which do not look next gen when it comes to PC and you have an overhyped game that is a GTA clone with better graphics, yet runs poorly. It certainly doesn't look better than Battlefield 3 for PC and that game is hardly new anymore. Uplay doesn't work very well either and you will find yourself wishing you didn't have to go through that program to play a singleplayer game.

    The game is overhyped, but seems to be an ok GTA clone if they can sort out all those optimizing issues. Unless you have a high-end PC then stay far away unless they fix any of the current issues, and you want a modern GTA clone.    … Expand
  10. Bleuzarro
    May 27, 2014
    4
    So here's the thing, the game is simply horrifically optimized. They said the 2012 e3 version everyone saw was actually running on a gtx Titan. So it looked great, but clearly not everybody has a Titan. Even if you can run all other games these days on ultra, you prob will barely get by on medium unless you have a 3k$+ rig. It's sad. And AMD users are horrifically screwed over.

    Anywho.    So here's the thing, the game is simply horrifically optimized. They said the 2012 e3 version everyone saw was actually running on a gtx Titan. So it looked great, but clearly not everybody has a Titan. Even if you can run all other games these days on ultra, you prob will barely get by on medium unless you have a 3k$+ rig. It's sad. And AMD users are horrifically screwed over.

    Anywho. Aside from that, which to me really ruins the experience. The controls are terrible. It was meant for a controller. If you use a mouse you get terrible lag until you manually change the settings in the file. Thank reddit users for that info.

    The driving made me so angry at first, because the game didn't seem to take into account anything I was telling it to do. Pretty much any game ever has better driving in it. Sleeping dogs, gta, saints row. The controls are just terrible. But I eventually got the hang of it several hours later, although it certainly isn't an enjoyable experience.

    The reason I started with these things is because sure, the story may not be great and hacking is cool sometimes, but ultimately if I can't even play the game and enjoy it, all the little things about gameplay don't even matter.

    TL:DR.
    Graphics are a huge let down. Most people wont be able to run it on max settings to get it to look good. Mouse settings are finicky and driving is horrendous. GTA V is a better game to me simply because all the controls and optimization were so polished that you didn't have to worry about it and could enjoy the game and story and characters for what it was.

    PS. the story was clearly an afterthought. The idea came first then they meshed splinter cell and infamous and whatever other story they could find and tacked it on. Also another disappointment.

    Oh one other thing, game looks great at night in the rain. Put on some cheats and run wild with a grenade launcher and destroy the cops. Most fun I've had in the game.    … Expand
  11. MateusRoscoe
    May 28, 2014
    0
    It looks like a game from 2008, it doesn't respect ANY physics... Driving is the most terrible thing I've ever seen, you can "crash" with your bike into a car and you don't fall, you can drive your car into another and nothing happens, there's a lot of bugs too... The game's optimization for PC is a crap, you can't play with the recommended settings, AMD graphics cards ? Forget it, itIt looks like a game from 2008, it doesn't respect ANY physics... Driving is the most terrible thing I've ever seen, you can "crash" with your bike into a car and you don't fall, you can drive your car into another and nothing happens, there's a lot of bugs too... The game's optimization for PC is a crap, you can't play with the recommended settings, AMD graphics cards ? Forget it, it won't run well... It was about 4 years of development and this game seems like a crap indie game... Smaller map than GTA 4... If you buy it, you will see bugs, every **** moment. They're selling a unfinished game just that... Hyped us with something real good, they delayed it to finish, but they didn't finished anything, I rather wait more 4 years than buying this ****… Expand
  12. Vicodine
    Jun 6, 2014
    0
    Even If I started at 10/10 and deducted .1 point for every single thing that is so horribly wrong with this game, I would still reach 0.

    The long version, 20 things I hate about this overrated, overhyped piece of crap: -Horrible port -Stupid handling of cars, barely controllable with keyboard -Never even think about touching a mouse while driving. The camera gets **** up so fast    Even If I started at 10/10 and deducted .1 point for every single thing that is so horribly wrong with this game, I would still reach 0.

    The long version, 20 things I hate about this overrated, overhyped piece of crap:

    -Horrible port
    -Stupid handling of cars, barely controllable with keyboard
    -Never even think about touching a mouse while driving. The camera gets **** up so fast
    -The story gets from dumb to stupid to i don't care so fast
    -The AI is so stupid
    - Pedestrians try to look clever with scripted stand there/talk/talk on the phone... but the reactions to any action you take are so stupid. I tried to play as a Protector but killing them was a bigger pleasure. Such stupid AI doesn't deserve to live
    -Not to mention how bad drivers they are
    -The AI characters/cars spawn and despawn like 10 meters from you. It's the **** that GTA 3 did, that cars behind you despawn instantly, and a few meters ahead also. Same goes for any AI that is not story driven. Shame.
    -The combat is unfair. The tips say that when you move, the AI will lose track of you. Ok, but when they know where you are, they see you and shoot at you through anything you are hiding behind. Succesfully
    -The 1 button to hack is mediocre at best. Not many things at all you can do with it, and it gets boring. You can get rich by spending 5 minutes at a highly populated square and then you just don't care
    -Side missions are repetitive as **** and appear way too often. I don't even bother anymore, stopped doing them after 2 hours of gameplay
    -The mini games ,,, well good to have them, but they are not "that" great. Slot machines, poker, trips, AR game... boring.
    -No matter what I do I cannot find anything to do while I'm not in a mood of going through another painful and stupid part of the main story. I just end up killing everything that moves or ramming a truck full speed into incoming traffic, watching the bad physics handle the crash
    -Yeah, physics aren't that great either. Gravity works, sometimes, but that's probably it...
    -If it ain't a sniper rifle, you won't hit anyone that is further than 5-10m from you. No chance. Well, a bit but not in a combat situation while covering.
    -Yeah the cover system. I expected and still expect "Press C to cover, C to exit cover", but no, you have to walk away from the surface you are covering behind to "uncover". And it takes a few seconds of holding the right directional key for it to really work and unstick you from the wall.
    -Weapon wheel is bad. I get killed so many times while switching weapons, just because after each load of game it puts a sniper rifle as my selected weapon. I really don't know why.
    -Who thought of putting character progression into an open-world action game. And levels. And skillpoints. Why ? Why ???? Just teach me how to do what in the process. Gain "skills" by going through the story, completing objectives, not by spending ****ing skillpoints and leveling up.
    -The mouse. Oh the mouse. That's the first thing that **** me up. It acts just silly, it starts as if you are moving through maple syrup, then it starts responding lightning fast. Really great in combat.
    -The damage to the cars is stupid, except for blown tires which are awesome, i mean look awesome, the physics are broken on that one more than anything else.

    The short version:
    Don't you dare buy it. Don't support Ubisoft for developing and releasing a game that had so much potential, yet still managing to **** it up so bad. If you want to play it, just pirate it. Please. Don't give them a single cent for this.    … Expand
  13. Eyes1
    Aug 29, 2014
    0
    The more I play this game the more convinced I am that I have been ripped off! The developer carries on like the graphics and visuals are a 'game' changer but I honestly cannot see the greatness. Especially given the amount of resources it uses. It does remind me of a time when we wrote programs and our code was not very good which resulted in our basic game utilizing massive resources.The more I play this game the more convinced I am that I have been ripped off! The developer carries on like the graphics and visuals are a 'game' changer but I honestly cannot see the greatness. Especially given the amount of resources it uses. It does remind me of a time when we wrote programs and our code was not very good which resulted in our basic game utilizing massive resources. But that cant be the case here can it....Maybe I should go have my eyes tested or something.… Expand
  14. bestreviews2020
    Nov 13, 2020
    10
    Just came here to say, here's my positive review for this amazing game.........
  15. MrBrioche
    May 29, 2014
    0
    Two words describe this piece of crap : SCRIPTED EVENT!
    They said we could choose how to do the mission... **** if you do a perfect stealth mission at a point some guard/car will pop out of nowhere and charge like you have some kind of GPS on you.
    Another thing I had to get closer of my tv, the game was giving me headache. I played for 30+ hours and so far the most ''fun'' thing I've    Two words describe this piece of crap : SCRIPTED EVENT!
    They said we could choose how to do the mission... **** if you do a perfect stealth mission at a point some guard/car will pop out of nowhere and charge like you have some kind of GPS on you.
    Another thing I had to get closer of my tv, the game was giving me headache.
    I played for 30+ hours and so far the most ''fun'' thing I've done is the Spider-tank mini game and it wasn't that fun...    … Expand
  16. Loucetios
    May 31, 2014
    3
    Horrible game, amazing engine.

    I flat out refuse to believe they have been working on this game since 2009. The engine for the game? Sure. The entire game can be summarized in one sentence "Press Y to hack." The music is **** and the gameplay is like a dumbed down GTA5 with terrible controls. All vehicles handle like go-karts, and they all handle exactly the same. The    Horrible game, amazing engine.

    I flat out refuse to believe they have been working on this game since 2009. The engine for the game? Sure.

    The entire game can be summarized in one sentence "Press Y to hack."

    The music is **** and the gameplay is like a dumbed down GTA5 with terrible controls.

    All vehicles handle like go-karts, and they all handle exactly the same. The motorcycles are a complete joke.

    I appreciated the unix nods in the intro and stuff like that but ultimately the game has absolutely nothing to do with network security or "hacking". It may as well be magic.

    The story is garbage, complete and utter trite.

    The only redeeming feature of this game is the engines ability. There seems to be amazing A.I in the game, and bullet/particle/physics effects are all very cool. They slapped a very ****ty game onto a very cool engine by the looks of it.

    Wait for the sequel.    … Expand
  17. Dhrall
    May 27, 2014
    0
    Can't even launch the game because of Uplay, until Ubisoft gets rid of the idiotic 'service' don't buy anything from them. This isn't the first time Uplay has caused issues for me either, having previously deleted 6 hours of game progress in AC4.
  18. silenterfox
    May 29, 2014
    0
    i had 2 gb nvidia 540m and i cant play this **** .producers use nvdia in ads that so funny. this is a fraud. this is a shame. we are aggrieved. im so sad.
  19. Weiker1
    May 28, 2014
    2
    Tris game is broken. Is not normal with a pc gamer with hi specs the FPS goes 15 on ultra. Many people with 780Ti with 6gb vram watch dogs runs 20 FPS.

    Very bad optimization. The last game that I buy from Ubilol. Never again.
    Que te den Ubilol.

    Sorry for muy poor english.
  20. Mel2387
    May 28, 2014
    2
    - Stupid AI
    - Basic shadow
    - Poor graphics
    - Bad shooting system
    - Hacking system not interesting
    - Game full of bugs
    - Copycat of GTA
    - Just boring !
  21. mrklotz
    May 27, 2014
    0
    This game has 9 different editions and the season pass doesn't even cover all the available DLC, to add insult to injury it also uses uplay DRM on top of steam. I guess you can view those points as problems with the publisher instead of the game's fault - that's why I didn't factor those into my score, nonetheless they are here so you can make an educated purchase or not.

    Now about the    This game has 9 different editions and the season pass doesn't even cover all the available DLC, to add insult to injury it also uses uplay DRM on top of steam. I guess you can view those points as problems with the publisher instead of the game's fault - that's why I didn't factor those into my score, nonetheless they are here so you can make an educated purchase or not.

    Now about the game itself. Ubisoft has promised us a true next-gen experience (whatever that actually means) but Watch_Dogs fails to deliver in almost every regard.

    - The PC Version is very unoptimized and is crash prone, there are also crashes related to AMD AND Nvidia drivers but you can't fully blame them for this.
    - Graphics on ultra doesn't look that good yet the game requires big hardware for it (see point above for why)
    - Car Handling is really bad
    - AI is overly scripted and generally bad; Examples: When you are in a vehicle and drive onto the rails the trains will do a full stop for you - even if they have just 4m to hit you which brings us to the next point
    - Physics are very, very bad. Generally the game feels like GTA on training wheels, Cars and trains will do physical impossible full stops to get out of your way, there is no real deforming/damage models on vehicles, you can hop out of moving trains without any injury, drive your bike with full speed into a wall and it just stops, then you drive backwards against a pole and your car is flung 100m into the air.
    - Missions are repetitive and not fun after a while, the story is also a kind of hit and miss. There is really no character development
    - The most notorious flaw however is lazy developers/ Lack of detail: Poor Water detail (no spray when you shoot it, static waves etc), static shadows, reflections are phony - they only reflect static images no cars, NPCs or even the protagonist, lack of vehicle damage model, most decorations are static and can't be destroyed by driving your car into it, no scratching walls with your vehicle, invisible walls everywhere, overdone minigames with little to no change to them, shooting civilians always kills them with a single bullet even if you hit their pinky. Hacking is very boring after 1-2hrs in the game, always the same pattern (very much like a problem with the AC series), speaking of Assasins Creed: They even copied the run animation for Watch dogs, do some sprinting and you will recognize it.

    There really is no excuse for all that laziness for a game that promised a nextgen experience and even went so far to compare itself (in it's own ads) with GTA. GTA4 does everything in the detail category better and was released 2008! Also it's highly modable which can put it above this game graphic wise and still perform better.
    I'd give this 3/10 but as so many idios give it 10 to "even out" the bad reviews, well I'm doing that too.    … Expand
  22. static1990
    May 27, 2014
    3
    Sadly this game is really unplayable at this stage,it is very bad optimized i have a high end rig and i got 15-35 fps on ultra and like 45-50 fps on low and even then it sutter.
    PS: Intel i5 Haswell 2.8ghz,gtx 780 and 8gb ram yea...shame ubisoft.
  23. Rewind84
    May 28, 2014
    2
    Fast Facts about Watch Dogs:
    1st- CONSOLE PORT !
    2st- you can not drive with out game pad
    3st- plot is average
    4st- The game is unoptimize for PC's
    5st- Gta IV can beat watch dogs !
    6st- Its not A NEXT GEN game is an old gen game !
  24. johnnyjoint
    May 27, 2014
    0
    The game is amazing!!! This is the nextgen!!! The cars are handling like a brick and missing the deformation. Those amazing pedestrians with the same walking animation. The boring storyline, and press to win hacking. Oh god 10/10!!!
  25. metaduke
    May 27, 2014
    0
    Ubi$oft really dropped the ball on this one. I guess the delay didn't help at all.

    The game launched with many bugs and complaints. One of the biggest ones is the need to install uPlay and launch it through steam everytime before you play as a sort of middleman who really hates you.

    The game crashes constantly, if you can even get in the game that is.
  26. easy91
    May 27, 2014
    0
    Brain dead AI!
    Carton cars!
    Cliched and boring story lane!
    Boring City!!!!!!!!!
    You cant fight!!!!
    Nothing to do in this game!!!
    Worthless game!
  27. ablindpoet
    May 27, 2014
    0
    Uplay and optimization needed? These are just some of the many complaint I have about Watch Dogs. I hated it. I really did. Hoping from the very beginning that it was going to be a great science fiction action game, I was generally let down. Only positive critique I can give this CASH GRAB from Ubisoft is that that water is alright. These developers expect all of us to hype up about theirUplay and optimization needed? These are just some of the many complaint I have about Watch Dogs. I hated it. I really did. Hoping from the very beginning that it was going to be a great science fiction action game, I was generally let down. Only positive critique I can give this CASH GRAB from Ubisoft is that that water is alright. These developers expect all of us to hype up about their games. Make the trailers and "game play" trailers not exactly fact. Then we pre-order the **** out of it. This needs to stop.… Expand
  28. killazz2630
    May 27, 2014
    0
    It starts out really promising, but of course this game is utter **** Read all of the other reviews, and you'll understand.

    Even a game from 2008 could beat this.
  29. Phatsnake
    May 27, 2014
    0
    Ubisoft just gave the middle finger to 40% of the PC community who use AMD Radeon cards like myself. I won't blame Nvidia for ruining the industry with their proprietary crap and closed environment. I'm blaming Ubisoft for ignoring us. I'll update my review once the game gets patched, and if not I'll be requesting a refund.
  30. SethEvandor
    May 27, 2014
    0
    Those people voting low are not just voting low for no reason. When you pull out a gun, people will suddenly turn around and look at you and people will see you take it out through a wall. When you shoot at a vehicle window, it doesn't do anything if you're not fairly close to it... When you're driving, people will just run out the way without turning their head, it's so incrediblyThose people voting low are not just voting low for no reason. When you pull out a gun, people will suddenly turn around and look at you and people will see you take it out through a wall. When you shoot at a vehicle window, it doesn't do anything if you're not fairly close to it... When you're driving, people will just run out the way without turning their head, it's so incredibly unrealistic. Damn we're talking about a game which fails on a basic level. There are a plethora of problems, stated already in the other reviews here.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

2
#2 Most Discussed PC Game of 2014
20
#20 Most Shared PC Game of 2014

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 18 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 18
  2. Mixed: 8 out of 18
  3. Negative: 0 out of 18
  1. Pelit (Finland)
    Sep 3, 2014
    79
    Ubisoft's flagship title has a really, really repulsive protagonist. The entire storyline feels like it was cranked out of a automated story generator. On the positive side, Watch Dogs looks really good on PC, especially after modding the graphics to match the visual splendor of the early E3 demos. [Aug 2014]
  2. PC PowerPlay
    Jun 29, 2014
    70
    There are some strong gameplay elements in Watch Dogs, but overall it's merely an adequate open world game. [July 2014, p.46]
  3. GameCritics
    Jun 23, 2014
    80
    Nothing could have realistically lived up to the immense level of hype that Ubisoft stirred up for this game, and while I value strong narratives and envelope-pushing technological advancements, I place just as much importance in the ability to enjoy the gameplay that's being offered to me. Watch Dogs is one of the more exciting sandbox games of the last few years, and if this is to become Ubisoft's next big franchise, I'm excited to see where they take it.
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