Digitally Downloaded's Scores

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For 3,524 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 52% higher than the average critic
  • 11% same as the average critic
  • 37% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 2.2 points lower than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Game review score: 73
Highest review score: 100 Bayonetta 2
Lowest review score: 0 Orc Slayer
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,789 out of 3524
  2. Mixed: 1,411 out of 3524
  3. Negative: 324 out of 3524
3526 game reviews
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    • 83 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Project CARS
    A truly fine racing game, and for PlayStation 4 owners this will be the first next-generation racing game of worth for serious revheads to sink their teeth into. Racing beginners, or people who are used to racing games where powerslides are enough to get around corners may feel very frustrated with this one at first, but I can't think of a racing game that is more worth taking the time to get to know, and master, than this one.
    • 91 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Her Story
    Part of me is agonising over every detail and wondering what – if anything – I missed, but that is already subsiding in the hours since I left that police station for the final time. I may be slowly coming to peace with what has happened, but the memories that Her Story created will last a lifetime. Her Story has become intertwined with mine.
    • 78 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Tormented Souls 2
    Tormented Souls 2 is the kind of horror game you like to see from independent developers. As a clear passion project that is willing to push back against “best practices” to maintain the creative vision, it’s here for people who have fond memories of the formative years of survival horror, while also looking very modern. It’s by no means perfect, but the clear enthusiasm that went into it – and the fact that it’s so atmospheric – makes it compelling.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Lost Dimension
    Lost Dimension is an incredible title, with a constant sense of escalation and drama.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Tales of Berseria Remastered
    The “remaster” is good because the game itself is, but given some of the work we’ve seen in remakes and remasters in recent years, this one is far too pedestrian for its own good. I can’t help but wonder just how incredible Tales of Bersaria could have been if it was given a full-on remake to bring it to parity with the most recent new game in the series (Tales of Arise). That could have been something truly special.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Dragon Quest Heroes II
    It’s all so completely charming that immediately after swearing for a few seconds, I was good to go again. I would like to see Koei Tecmo and Square Enix collaborate on more of these kinds of games down the track. Dragon Quest Heroes 2 is undeniable proof that the mix between a genuine JRPG and Warriors game works, and now it’s time for a Final Fantasy Heroes, methinks.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Valkyrie Elysium
    I found myself utterly captivated by this game, which takes so many creative risks in the name of its vision. The limited “story” in favour of a deeper narrative working on a more subtle level, downbeat and muted visuals, and graceful rather than visceral combat are all things that are lauded in video games, however appropriate to the experience that the developer is crafting. But this team stuck with the vision, and we should be thankful for that. If you do enjoy the likes of theatre, opera, and ballet, then Valkyrie Elysium belongs to the incredibly small group of titles that share a similarity to those art forms, and that’s more than a nice to have, it’s the kind of art we need to see more developers experimenting with.
    • tbd Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    FOCUS on YOU
    Like a wave of nostalgia, Focus on You is over fleetingly quickly, and it's not exactly a deep and meaningful experience. It is beautifully produced and performed, however, and an excellent use of the unique experiences that VR enables. It's not going to win game of the year awards, but nostalgia is a tricky beast for developers to work effectively with, and I think this one captures the aesthetic and tone of a nostalgic memory perfectly.
    • 68 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Dear Esther: Landmark Edition
    Say what you want about Dear Esther, but The Chinese Room really know how to respect its legacy. Almost a half decade on since it first saw light as a Half Life 2 mod, Dear Esther has captured the hearts and minds of players, effectively started a genre and polarised the gaming community perhaps irreversibly. And the developers absolutely know this as they relentlessly justify their artistic choices in the commentary. This game is rich and thought provoking in its design, hiding its depth behind simplicity. It deserves an hour of your time.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Amnesia: Memories
    There’s not much more I can say about Amnesia without going heavy on the spoilers, and part of the reason it has been re-released on Switch is so people can experience them for the first time. However, what’s important here is that Amnesia: Memories is a well-written visual novel, and in so many ways epitomises the qualities of what you might expect from a “classical” otome game. For that reason alone, genre fans, and anyone interested in learning about it for the first time, owe it to themselves to check this game out.
    • 90 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Tekken 8
    Tekken 8 is, without a doubt, a highly polished gemstone of a fighting game, and it offers players the opportunity to demonstrate some truly elite skills through the aggressive, offensive-first focus on the combat system. But outside of the overly serious, hardcore fighting game community, it’s difficult to see this capturing the imagination of many. A lack of humour, creativity, narrative and personality makes it clear that Bandai Namco’s only real interest was making sure that no one was offended by the game and therefore it will be the headline act at fighting game tournaments for years to come. Luckily for the developers, they hit the brief and it almost certainly will be exactly that game.
    • 86 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Final Fantasy XIV Online: A Realm Reborn
    This was always a great game, but the improved visuals and social features, as well as the additional content that Square Enix continues to add into the game, is enough for me to happily say that Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn has become my favourite MMO.
    • 68 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Kromaia Omega
    Kromaia Omega’s technical shortcomings are kinks that can be ironed out. That I’m lavishing a game that physically ails me with so much praise is a testament to its glorious, grand vision. If other companies are bold enough to follow in Kraken Empire’s footsteps with similarly intricate shooters, this game could be the launch pad for a whole new subgenre and that’s exciting stuff indeed.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Metal Max Xeno Reborn
    Once you push through the initial slog, Metal Max Xeno Reborn is a truly entertaining take on the apocalypse. The mixture of tank modifications and turn-based combat using those vehicles is something different for JRPGs, and it’s nice to have a game that acts as a foil to the aggressively dark apocalypses that plague this industry.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap
    I am so happy that The Dragon’s Trap was rereleased in this way. Its visual style appeals to a whole new generation, and the love and attention given to the game as a whole will make fans of the 1989 original smile from ear to ear. From the hand-drawn visuals to the instrumental soundtrack, everything about The Dragon’s Trap remake shows how remakes should be done. This isn’t a mere cash-in for nostalgia’s sake, this is a remake that has been targeted for all audience, a rare gem for sure.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    ZEN Pinball 2: Aliens Vs. Pinball
    These tables are so beautifully designed with all kinds of challenging scoring opportunities.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    YU-NO: A Girl Who Chants Love at the Bound of this World
    Yu-No's biggest problem is that it's a game that deserves a lot of respect for its intricate, intelligent storytelling and nuanced look at deeper themes, but unlike the legendary visual novels that people do tend to take seriously (Steins;Gate or Danganronpa, for example), Yu-No's fan servicey elements are on the juvenile side of things just often enough that certain elements of the community will dismiss the game on that basis. It deserves better than that, because Yu-No is a brilliantly written, seminal visual novel, and even in the fan service it gets things right far, far more often than it misfires.
    • 83 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Worms W.M.D
    It's Worms, and Team 17 has done a good job in restraining itself this time around so that the only gimmicks within the game genuinely add to it. What's important to note here is that the Nintendo Switch is absolutely perfect for Worms, and that fact alone makes this the best entry in the series in years.
    • 80 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Gravity Rush 2
    Gravity Rush 2 deserves to be one of Sony’s biggest games of the year. Even if you weren’t able to get into the first, give this one a go. The story’s self-contained enough that you’ll still be able to follow along, and in the effort to make the game more accessible to a wider audience, the overall experience is also more refined and there’s clearly a meatier budget backing it.
    • 66 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten
    The expanded Utawarerumono franchise might never elevate beyond the most niche of niche properties, but it is a wonderful, positive contribution to video games, and Monochrome Mobius continues translates this from a blend of visual novel and tactics to a traditional JRPG with complete success. This is a beautiful, heartfelt and sweet little game that, at around 30-40 hours, doesn’t outstay its welcome. It also reminds you that sometimes a determination to tell a good story really is better than AAA-blockbuster production excesses and flashy and overly complex gameplay gimmicks alike.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Cafe Enchante
    It's easy to be charmed by Café Enchanté, which brings together whimsy, romance and humour together with one of the more understated joys - having a favourite café and being able to take a moment out to enjoy both it, and the company that it brings.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Romeo is a Dead Man
    I’d be lying if I said that this is a game for everyone. By its nature, the absurdism and surrealism of Romeo is a Dead Man is only going to resonate with people who can appreciate that quality about it. The game itself point-blank refuses to be entertaining to play on a passive level. But given that video games around us are becoming more and more generic, “best practice” driven, and in general, everything that Romeo is a Dead Man pokes fun at, it’s nice to have the occasional game that’s willing to put some people off in pursuit of its creative vision.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Nelke & the Legendary Alchemists: Ateliers of the New World
    The bright, charming, and community-focused story, in a world without a great evil or catastrophe to reveal the ugliness of humanity, means that Nelke, like every other Atelier title, is the perfect foil to the unrelenting angst and anger of so many other games out there.
    • 78 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Taiko no Tatsujin: Drum 'n' Fun!
    If you’re after a rhythm game that’s heartwarming, bold, and a hell of a lot of fun to play at parties, then you don’t have to look any further.
    • 67 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Neptunia ReVerse
    Neptunia ReVerse is clearly a "first-run effort" by Idea Factory to take the tools of the PlayStation 5 and see what they can do with them. It's perhaps a less ambitious effort than what Idea Factory made as its launch on PlayStation 4 (Omega Quintet), but putting that aside, this is a genuinely good game, worth the time of any JRPG fan, and by its very nature the perfect introduction to the entire series for new players with the new console. The additions that have been made here make it even more complete and also worth a replay for the Neptunia faithful. And if nothing else having an excuse to watch Neptune and the other girls run around in swimwear costumes for a few hours is always worth the investment.
    • 82 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered
    I have not minded the opportunity to step back into Oblivion at all. It’s a big, beautiful adventure with some truly exceptional, memorable moments. The world of Oblivion alone is a perfect recreation of the Dungeons & Dragons descents into hell from my tabletop days, and I had such a rush of nostalgia playing that through again. It has made me feel old to reflect on the fact that it’s a 20-year-old game and I swear I remember playing it new like it was yesterday, and nostalgia always comes with some rose-tinted glasses, but yes, I haven’t minded having the opportunity and excuse to play this again at all.
    • 81 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth
    If Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth is really the last big 3DS release, it's one smashing swan song. The game is more straightforward than its predecessor, but this change plays to the strengths of Persona’s multitudinous characters. All up, it’s an exemplary crossover game worth investing hundreds of hours before you even start playing in just to appreciate its nuance.
    • 80 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon
    Those gripes are minor indeed. Bayonetta Origins is a far more brilliant addition to the Bayonetta character and mythos than I would have ever guessed it could be. It’s by turns sensitive, charming, exciting and dramatic. The game gives Bayonetta a depth of character that adds so meaningfully to the world and story of this incredible character. This is essential. It’s not a “spinoff.” It’s a critical addition to the franchise. PlatinumGames has truly delivered something both surprising and special with this effort.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Demon Gaze II
    Demon Gaze II is only one or two tiny steps away from breaking away from its genre trappings to be a game that is so good that people who don’t usually like the dungeon crawlers should give it a play. The developer has done a great job in making the game more accessible (while still leaving plenty of ultra-difficult stuff there for the really committed), and the art direction for the characters and monsters is so vivid and vibrant that you can’t help but admire them.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin
    I have to wonder if the gaming audience is quite ready for the kind of metatextual experience that Stranger of Paradise presents. It’s not only a game that doesn’t take itself seriously, but it outright challenges players’ expectations on how games are made and how they should be played. It’s hugely entertaining and as experimental as Final Fantasy at its best, but I do wonder how well something so reflective will click and be remembered as a great in the longer term. I only hope that people realise that the nonsense of Jack, his iPod, and his obsession with Chaos is just the surface of this brilliantly smart, layered thing, and they then take the time to dig into what Stranger of Paradise is really saying as a work of metatextual satire.
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