GLHF on Sports Illustrated's Scores

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For 321 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 38% higher than the average critic
  • 6% same as the average critic
  • 56% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 0.3 points higher than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Game review score: 75
Highest review score: 100 Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree
Lowest review score: 30 Peppa Pig: World Adventures
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 171 out of 321
  2. Mixed: 141 out of 321
  3. Negative: 9 out of 321
333 game reviews
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    • 86 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
    Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart is a brilliantly made action platformer. The action is as solid as the platforming, and it all comes together cohesively. It doesn’t do anything groundbreaking, but solid level design and varied gameplay between levels keep things feeling fresh. Combine that with the solid gameplay mechanics, and you have yourself a winner. Rift Apart isn’t going to blow anybody away, but when a game is this well-made, you can’t help but play with a smile on your face.
    • 85 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector
    Starward Vector expands on the Citizen Sleeper formula not just with gameplay features, but how they connect to the narrative. You’ll experience higher highs and lower lows in ways that will surprise even aficionados of the original. When I finished Citizen Sleeper’s multiple endings, I felt a sense of ease, as if I’d seen all that the game had to offer. The opposite is true of Starward Vector. Your decisions, actions, successes and failures all feel as if they have stark outcomes on story beats going forward. If you want a great story, I urge you to play Starward Vector, even though your experience won’t be the same as mine.
    • 85 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    A Space For The Unbound
    There are some exciting puzzles and well executed point-and-click elements which add to the story and encourage you to explore the town. But there are also some fighting sequences and quick time events, which seem completely opposite to the themes it’s going for. There are also a huge number of collectibles, which in general add to the world-building, but feel punishing as many are time or chapter specific. However, for these fumbles the story is so incredible that it’s easy to look past them, and enjoy one of the best stories gaming has to offer.
    • tbd Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Femdemic - An Idle World Feminization Game
    Look, this game isn’t going to be for everybody, but as a cute little idle clicker that has you acting as either an angel for good or a demon for chaos, it’s a lot of fun to have running while you do other things on your PC.
    • 69 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Shadows of Doubt
    When you engage with it on a deeper level Shadows of Doubt really sings, and that wouldn’t be possible if they sacrificed that complexity just to widen the appeal. It knows exactly the kind of experience it wants to be and doesn’t compromise its ideas to make sure that’s what players get. The result is one of the best mystery games ever made, and I hope they continue to develop these systems even after this 1.0 launch.
    • 74 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Cities: Skylines II
    Even in this subpar technical state, Cities: Skylines 2 is a potent and captivating sandbox that’ll see the hours fly by as you engage with it. It’s a worthy successor to the title that dethroned the mighty SimCity and will define the genre for the years to come. Official as well as modded content will surely supply players with even more toys and tools in the future.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Empire of the Ants
    A unique genre mix, Empire of the Ants positively surprised me with its beauty, story, and smooth controls. Tower Five and Microids didn’t deliver perfection, but something thoroughly enjoyable.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Hi-Fi Rush
    Hi-Fi Rush runs incredibly well on PS5, with a rock-solid 60fps output, fast loading times, and a resolution target that looks close to native 4K. It looks excellent on a 4K display. The 3D audio integration is also noteworthy, although the DualSense integration leaves a little to be desired. The same is true for no cross-save support.
    • 80 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Lies of P
    Despite its similarities to so many other soulslike games, it does enough to be different. For hardcore soulslike players, there is the promise of a new story, and alternate endings among the difficult boss fights. For newcomers, Lies of P does a good job of easing you into the action. It hasn’t made me more interested in soulslike as a genre, despite me obsessing over it for the last few weeks, which I guess goes to show just how different it is. Despite how dark and rainy it may seem, there is a genuine goofiness to it that is rare to find, and the promise of a unique story for each playthrough will see it stand out.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Super Mario RPG
    Even after more than two decades of RPGs featuring Mario since, Super Mario RPG is still up there with the best of them, and this remake solidifies that. It’s simple, sure, but it’s great fun, and set the stage for every turn-based Mario game since. It’s been a brilliant year for Nintendo fans, and Super Mario RPG is the perfect send-off for the Switch in 2023.
    • tbd Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Against the Storm - Keepers of the Stone
    If you love Against the Storm and simply want to add some more spice to your runs, because you already know every cornerstone and event like the back of your hand, then Keepers of the Stone is a no-brainer for you – it brings a variety of new content, a slight increase in challenge, and minimal mechanical add-ons that will feel impactful to someone who plays the game a lot. If you’re new to the game anyway, then you’ll be completely fine without the added investment into the DLC for a long, long while.
    • 66 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Park Beyond
    Park Beyond is a fabulous theme park builder with vibrant aesthetics, rock-solid controls and UI, and satisfying mechanics – and thanks to the power of impossification, the game has a much longer staying power and more variety than many other representatives of its genre. The game does exactly what it promises: It lets you build your wildest dreams.
    • 83 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Forza Motorsport
    Optimization on PC seems a tad problematic. Aside from a challenging Thrustmaster pedal set-up, the frame rate is on the low 70fps with an Nvidia RTX 3080 while resorting to a relatively low resolution of 2560x1080. Even at such low resolution, the game features aggressive dips between cutscenes and traffic at the start. This may be something to watch out for for those not playing on Xbox Series X, where performance is solid.
    • 81 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero
    Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero isn’t a competitive fighter or a story-driven adventure; it’s a toybox. It’s a place for you to play and experiment with the Dragon Ball universe, toying with its timeline, characters, settings, music, and more. It’s not the sort of thing that manages to charm me, it’s a bit “10 hours of jingling keys,” but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have a big smile on my face when I finished off Perfect Cell with an Instant Transmission Kamehameha before Gohan even got a turn. Wish the lads from the playground could see that now.
    • 80 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess
    Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess is one of the oddest games we’ve seen from Capcom in a while. It feels like an indie idea, given a reasonable budget, the kind of game we haven’t really seen since the PS2 era. Because of that, it almost feels hard to recommend. I can’t say, ‘if you liked X, you’ll love Kunitsu-Gami’, because there’s nothing else quite like Kunitsu-Gami. And that’s probably why you should play it anyway. If you’re not an action nut or strategy master, that might be even better, as it doesn’t fit neatly into either of those genres either. It’s weird, it’s wonderful, and it’s well worth your time.
    • 83 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Nexus 5X
    Despite those minor gripes, Nexus 5X is a fantastic turn-based strategy game to play on a game night: It’s easy to get into, has strategic depth, and an important social element that will make you hate your friends – at least for the duration of the game.
    • 85 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered
    Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered updates the original game with mixed results from an artistic perspective, but its abundance of accessibility options, improved performance, and technically improved asset quality make it an unnecessary but worthwhile upgrade.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Classified: France '44
    Classified: France ‘44 offers a strong package for turn-based tactics enthusiasts, delivering fun, thrilling battles and some strategic freedom inside a grounded, authentic World War 2 narrative.
    • 80 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Wildfrost
    If I’m making it sound like a mess, it’s not. Great care has been taken to make all of these systems work together beautifully, pulling the best elements of each system into a game that is very challenging, yet satisfying to play. Gameplay has a nice sense of momentum that stops you from getting bogged down in drawn-out strategies, but there’s still plenty of room for careful planning and clever tactics.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Live A Live
    Live A Live is a piece of JRPG history, and the remake is the best way to play it. While there are a few obtuse puzzle and pacing issues, these are more indicative of the time it was originally released than the remake. If you don’t have a stomach for heavy story, maybe leave this one, but it's one of the better narratives you can enjoy.
    • 82 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II
    Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is a bombastic celebration of the setting, a must-play for its fans, and a bloodlust-inducing third-person shooter experience for everyone, though anyone looking to engage with single-player content only will find themselves chewing on bone a little too soon.
    • 74 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Monument Valley 3
    You get what you expect from Monument Valley 3, but that isn’t a bad thing. It’s a beautiful, whimsical journey through plenty of impossibly pathed levels perfected for mobile play, and honestly that’s all it needs to be.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Visions of Mana
    The ending didn’t sour me on Visions of Mana overall, but did leave me pondering its squandered potential. This is a game that could have brought the Mana series back to its former glory, but it appears that the development team weren’t given the room to shine. If you decide to try it for yourself, you’ll still find a beautiful game befitting of the Mana series, with some of the best battles it has to offer, but just be prepared for a story that goes nowhere.
    • 81 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores
    Burning Shores doesn’t add a great deal to the story and character development is seemingly optional, but if you want more beasts to bash, more ways to bash them, and gorgeous scenery to ogle at, you won’t be disappointed.
    • 74 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Emio - The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club
    As a visual novel connoisseur Emio – The Smiling Man doesn’t go to the top of my list. However, it does gain points for taking risks with how horrifying the story is willing to go, and for the few instances of breaking the fourth wall. The pacing and characters are strong, but the way you interact with the world can be repetitive and ultimately frustrating. It’s one for those who love a mystery and don’t mind occasionally hitting a brick wall.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster: FF35th Anniversary Edition
    The Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters aren’t necessarily the perfect versions of the original six Final Fantasy games, but they’re the easiest to jump into and play right now, and they’re well worth it. If you’ve ever wanted to play the original games, this is how you should do it.
    • 87 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Ex Astris
    Ex Astris is a very solid start for Nous Wave Studio and worth picking up for anyone willing to sink their teeth into a deep combat system on the go or wanting to experience a mobile JRPG without the gacha looming in the background.
    • 74 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Winter's Wish: Spirits of Edo
    It doesn’t do anything special, but it is a solid story that will keep you intrigued with some tense decision-making. I captured my imagination enough that I wanted to see all six routes, with not only the good but the bad endings too. It’s a cliche, but Otome fans will enjoy this one, though it doesn’t have enough of a mystery to attract those outside the genre.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    The Centennial Case: A Shijima Story
    These minor niggles aside, it really is an excellent story. It’s tightly woven with clues to the eventual conclusion woven throughout from the very beginning. I thought there were glaring plot holes at first, but these are well wrapped up by the time the epilogue comes around. If you like games that challenge you with twists and turns then I can’t recommend it enough. It uses the interactive elements well, but could have tightened up how right and wrong answers are handled.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Assassin's Creed Mirage
    I hope Ubisoft continues to make city-based Assassin’s Creed games because it’s refreshing to play something this tight and focused after the more bloated, RPG-focused AC games, but the developers need to update it for modern tastes. From the tech powering it to the structure and base mechanics, I’d love to see where the series could go with a proper overhaul. I’m not asking for a completely different game, but the physics and parkour controls feel drastically dated, and it’d be nice if they could find a way to let us infiltrate buildings beyond making us search for keys like it’s Doom.
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These unscored reviews do not factor into the Metascore calculation.

In Progress & Unscored

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    • 90 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Destiny 2: The Final Shape
    I might rag on Destiny 2’s level design (I’d probably do the same with Halo, honestly), but I can’t fault Bungie on its pedigree when it comes to making a shooter that feels great. It’s far easier said than done, and many shooters manage to be merely functional and serviceable rather than fun – looking at you, Starfield, Borderlands, Outer Worlds – but Destiny 2’s guns are genuinely great to shoot. It helps that smaller, weaker foes will usually get wiped out in a fraction of an Auto Rifle’s clip, instead of acting like perpetual bullet sponges. Having dozens of weaker foes to fight against is far more satisfying than one big bullet sponge, and Destiny 2 understands this, all the way up until you find a dungeon or raid boss. [Review in Progress]
    • tbd Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Palworld
    By focusing on survival crafting rather than traditional Pokémon-style gameplay, Palworld has made something unique out of two genres that have been stale for a long time. It’s still missing some big features like PvP, but given that it’s only at the beginning of its time in early access, it will only get bigger and better. [Early Access Score = 80]
    • tbd Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Age of Wonders 4: Eldritch Realms
    Age of Wonders 4: Eldritch Realms superbly serves the power fantasies of wielding evil, ancient knowledge and becoming something otherworldly as well as fighting against such abyssal horrors, finding a nice balance between fresh content and mechanical additions. [Recommended]
    • 60 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Mortal Kombat 1: Khaos Reigns
    A year on, and Mortal Kombat 1 is still plodding along. If you’ve felt a bit gore deprived recently, Khaos Reigns is a great way to refresh your sicko meter and have some fun with friends, but even with infinite combos and a variety of new characters, MK1 still feels stuck in the mud. Hopefully, the next MK game will take place in a timeline where the gameplay doesn’t feel stiff, though I’m not sure even the Kamidogu can help with that.
    • 75 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    MultiVersus
    This doesn’t feel like a game you can reasonably “get good” at anymore, it just feels like a mess. Win, lose, it doesn’t matter. Perhaps younger gamers can forgive the gameplay quirks in exchange for seeing characters they love duke it out, but that alone is not what made Super Smash Bros. a sensation. MultiVersus’ online net code is great, which should be a massive selling point, but why would you want to play this game? [Review in Progress]
    • 82 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Cataclismo
    Cataclismo is built on a fantastic foundation thanks to solid fortress construction mechanics that capture your imagination. Build your Helm’s Deep, build your Minas Tirith, and hold it against the tireless forces of evil – that’s the simple and yet so very seductive promise of Cataclismo, and its Early Access launch already executes the idea brilliantly. Once the developers have gotten around to adding more spice, this meal will delight any strategy fan. [Early Access Review - "Recommended"]
    • 90 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
    The best part of the new port is the potential for all the upcoming mods. All of my complaints can be fixed by the community through mods, although Square Enix should address them directly first. Overall, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth looks and runs better than its PS5 counterpart on PC. The amount of options and scalability is enough to satisfy most PC gamers with modern hardware, and certain quirks can be fixed with quick updates.
    • tbd Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Manor Lords
    Though not content-complete, Manor Lords feels like an incredibly fresh take on city-building, borrowing mechanics from other genres and fusing them authentically with history to create something unique and special. Its mechanical foundations could not be more solid, so all this game needs to fully unlock its immense potential is more time and meat on its bones...We aren’t scoring Early Access reviews, so all I’ll say is that I highly recommend this game even ahead of its full launch, if the developer’s vision speaks as much to you as it does to me. [Early Access Review - "Recommended"]
    • 86 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Diablo IV
    Diablo 4 treads familiar ground in its story and characters, but its combat and gameplay systems shine where prior games fell short. I wish its single-player experience was a little less hostile, and I worry for its longevity in its current state, but even at its lowest lows, it manages to match or outpace its predecessors in almost every conceivable way. [Review in Progress]
    • 87 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Crusader Kings III: Roads to Power
    For me, Roads to Power is an incredibly flavorful Crusader Kings 3 DLC – it’s a game changer in the literal meaning, because it introduces a way to truly play this title as a RPG as opposed to a strategy game, though I would recommend a healthy mix to get the best out of the experience, and it really spices up empire-level gameplay. Even if you’ve conquered the world, keeping your dynasty on the throne is now much more intense thanks to Administrative Realm politics. Now even more roads lead to Rome, and what could be better? [Recommended]
    • tbd Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Breachway
    Edgeflow Studio has managed to create an immersive deckbuilder that really knows how to make use of its setting and connect it to the gameplay. This quality greatly enhances the heart of the game, which is the thrilling and intricate turn-based space combat that’s already fantastic in Early Access. The same can’t be said for its roguelike layer, which requires more variety and incentives to become similarly engaging. Breachway is not quite Faster Than Light, yet.
    • 81 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Songs Of Silence
    If Songs of Silence wasn’t an auto-battler, but featured either turn-based combat in the style of Age of Wonders or real-time battles a la Total War, and just a little more empire management, this would probably land on my game of the year shortlist (heck, it may very well still do so) – as things are, its genre, its resulting drawbacks, and a few technical issues ever so slightly lessen my enthusiasm, so it has to settle for being the best auto-battler and most gorgeous strategy game I’ve ever played. [Early Access Review]

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