Hardcore Gamer's Scores

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For 4,331 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 50% higher than the average critic
  • 9% same as the average critic
  • 41% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 1.4 points lower than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Game review score: 73
Highest review score: 100 Assassin's Creed III
Lowest review score: 20 The Quiet Man
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2,431 out of 4331
  2. Mixed: 1,658 out of 4331
  3. Negative: 242 out of 4331
4334 game reviews
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    • 71 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Hotshot Racing
    Hotshot Racing is a refreshing blast of retro-arcade racing action. Every inch of each course is filled with personality, from fans waving on the sidelines to dinosaurs wandering through jungles and caves. The racers don’t come out quite so well but you spend most of the time looking at a car rather than the person driving it, so thankfully that’s not too much of a problem. The racing action feels as good as the courses look, and while eventually you learn that the first couple times around the track don’t matter so long as you’ve got a nice supply of boosts for the final lap (Normal and Hard modes only), it’s still more than fun enough to burn up the track at top speed. Hotshot Racing plays as nice as it looks and ends up being a concentrated shot of pure upbeat racing happiness.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Strange Brigade
    Strange Brigade is one of those difficult games to review, the one where for every positive thing you have to say about it, there’s a downside related to or accompanying it in some way or another. But in the end, what we have here is still some classic shooter action best enjoyed with friends, with enough eye-catching style and various challenges to potentially keep players coming back for more. So much like the pulp stories it aims to emulate, one could say that it’s corny and flawed in several aspects, but still an enjoyable romp that can be worth checking out under the right circumstances.
    • 67 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Kane & Lynch: Dead Men
    Kane & Lynch is more "Freedom Fighters" than "Hitman", so it should appeal to action junkies looking for their next fix. [Dec 2007, p.67]
    • Hardcore Gamer
    • 81 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    GoNNER
    Gonner is a single gameplay mechanic away from being a fantastic run & gun roguelike, and if you don’t mind passing up a set of options, that problem can be ignored. It has a wonderful aesthetic, blending cute and cartoon-creepy, rendered in a unique art style that does a wonderful job of tying all the elements together.
    • 67 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Shenmue III
    Some players may want to mainline Shenmue III in order to see all the story has it has to offer as quickly as possible. This is not advised. For one, there’s actually not very much new story information to glean during a playthrough. Secondly, doing so would make the more annoying aspects of the game all the more glaring. It’s much better to savor Shenmue III at a leisurely pace. There’s tons of enjoyment to be had simply taking in the scenery, wasting hours fulfilling weird requests for NPCs or even just fishing. It may not be perfect, but it is undoubtedly a Shenmue title. Even after all these years, there are no other games quite like it out there.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    The Sims 4: Get Together
    The game is not without some technical issues, with crash bugs and UI glitches needing to be addressed, but for anyone still invested in The Sims — or curious to see how the game has evolved since 2014 — this expansion is worth picking up.
    • 66 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    The Walking Dead: Michonne - Episode 2: Give No Shelter
    Give No Shelter is another good episode of The Walking Dead: Michonne that showcases some slight improvements and sets the stage for a potentially great showdown, but still suffers from a few cliches and an all-too-short length that leaves you demanding more.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Mirror's Edge Catalyst
    An improvement in every way over the original, Catalyst is a solid offering that fills a major gap in EA’s portfolio, considering that the major publisher isn’t necessarily known for its open-world games. Bringing an IP back from the dead is always a risky proposition, but Mirror’s Edge Catalyst is a good example of how to mitigate that risk with an enjoyable title that succeeds in more ways than it fails.
    • 55 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    A.W.: Phoenix Festa
    A.W.: Phoenix Festa attempts to combine an action RPG with a dating sim and is actually able to pull it off.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Tchia
    Tchia is a terrific ode to New Caledonia that’s sadly hampered by a bloated and standard open-world design that tries to do too much. Still, even if the gameplay isn’t wholly original, there’s fun to be had here, with truly impressive sights and sounds that can make the archipelago a delight to explore at times. Just try to maintain some focus as you navigate the numerous distractions and you’ll experience quite the impressive trip.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Death end re;Quest
    There are moments of tedium in Death End re;Quest, but there’s a compelling story and entertaining gameplay as well. This title doesn’t always shine, but there are flashes of brilliance when it does, in particularly adding a pinball-esque mechanic to battle. Imperfections aside, this is a worthwhile game to look into, especially for fans of other Compile Heart/Idea Factory games.
    • 81 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Final Fantasy XV
    There are moments of brilliance spread across the campaign, but with it comes a frustratingly disheartening story.
    • 81 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen
    Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen for PC is a gem among the RPG genre, despite it being flawed in places.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    The Night of the Rabbit
    It breaks my heart to even talk about The Night of the Rabbit in a negative manner because, while it has its issues, it’s still an imaginative experience.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Exile's End
    For hardcore fans of games like Out of This World, this is a must play title, as well as for those who love adventure games from that era. For everything Exile’s End gets right about why adventure games from 25 years ago were great, however, it includes all the blemishes exactly as they were.
    • tbd Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Enola
    The twisted world of Enola is worth exploring despite itself.
    • tbd Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Dark Scavenger
    You probably already know whether or not this is a game for you, so if you don’t have a problem with lots of reading and very minimal visual presentation, you can’t go wrong with Dark Scavenger.
    • 78 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    NBA 2K20
    There’s no doubt that the game is fun as the grind and work throughout it gives such a feeling of satisfaction at the end because you battled for that win. Having that broadcast presentation helps with that since after the game there are so many options to do off-the-court management that it keeps the player engaged for some time. The quirks and issues become aggravating over time as you try to get better, but the core feel of the game has felt this way for a while.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Hitman - Episode 5: Colorado
    As a penultimate episode to the first season, Freedom Fighters makes an effective statement, even though there are flaws in its execution.
    • 80 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Dropsy
    Longtime adventure fans should have little to no trouble decoding pictorial dialogue and should already be accustomed to carefully scanning each and every scene for objects, it’s just a shame that these caveats still persist in even in a modern point and click title with as much promise as Dropsy.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris
    Despite issues with some of the puzzle designs, there’s a lot to enjoy on your own, and even more so in local 2-4 player co-op where the inclusion of additional players freshens up the design and gameplay. The major glaring fault in this package is how its online features have been implemented, with strange bugs and forceful overwriting of campaign progress.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    FIFA 21
    FIFA 21 has thrown a lot of adjustments under the hood to help give players more tools than ever before. A lot of the casual players, however, may not take advantage of this. Something needs to be updated to the shooting model and not just the 1-on-1 matchups. The feeling of a soccer match is still fantastic, but it seems EA has put this in the back seat in favor of VOLTA. Even though the Career Mode offers a good bit of options and control, the focus still feels like it is on VOLTA and FUT in terms of game modes even though neither mode changed much. FIFA 21 is a great soccer experience for those who don’t play these types of games often, but the limited mode selection and the overall feel of the game will leave a lot to be desired for yearly fans.
    • 59 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Cross of the Dutchman
    For all of the faults that can be pointed out, there is a great game here. The combat starts flawed, but becomes rewarding. The stealth sections were annoying, but contrasts well with the combat and highlights it more. The story isn’t handled in the best way, but leaves the player wanting more.
    • 69 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Fortified
    Yes, it’s a massive bummer to see games that appear to be prime split-screen titles go completely without this functionality, but if you’re looking for a solid game to hop into with friends before larger multiplayer experiences begin to drop, you could do a lot worse.
    • 61 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Hellbound (2020)
    Hellbound may not be great but it’s a short, sweet thrill ride while it lasts. The action is nice and fast with the guns packing a solid punch, and all the weapons earn their place in the arsenal. The length of the game means its limits don’t have a chance to feel grating and the sameness of the enemies is nicely offset by the personality of the levels. Even after the game is over there are still a handful of arena levels to play in, trying to survive as long as possible to claim a spot on its leaderboards. Hellbound may be restrained by its limits but there’s no question it does a lot within them and it’s good bloody fun while the ride lasts.
    • tbd Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Gathering Sky
    Gathering Sky is exactly what it wants to be — a lovely journey in the skies of a sprawling world, guiding a flock of birds through passages and over wind currents to their eventual resting place.
    • 80 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Planet of Lana
    Far from the scale of odyssey its tagline implies, what it lacks in some emotional gut-punch or satisfying narrative depth, Planet of Lana eventually wins over through the raw power of artistic direction. A direction that if nothing else, ensures such a brief trek across an alien world, remains an eye-catching one.
    • 74 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    The Council
    Gameplay is far more superior to any other episodic title on the market, with Big Bad sending an important message to other developers that this aspect should never be overlooked in episodic gaming. From the opening moments of The Mad Ones, it’s clear as day that the RPG mechanics would bring forward an engaging experience over the story. The developer didn’t hold back from introducing a new mechanic in the later stage of the title and it seamlessly worked in harmony with the features that have been there since the opener. While it doesn’t boast mind-blowing visuals or sounds, The Council has a simple art direction that makes it feel right at home in the period that it takes place.
    • 56 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Deadly Premonition 2: A Blessing in Disguise
    Despite technical hiccups and awkward moments, the gleefully bizarre characters, twisted and intriguing story, quirky dialogue and loads of fun content to fiddle around with in Deadly Premonition 2: A Blessing in Disguise provides an experience worth checking out, albeit one you may find yourself questioning at certain points.
    • 52 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Contra: Rogue Corps
    Contra: Rogue Corps tries to maintain the essence of Contra while changing the gameplay mechanics into something that doesn’t remotely resemble classic Contra. It plays more like Smash TV cosplaying as Contra with several nods to classic Contra titles. In the end, anyone wanting a return to the glory of 2D Contra won’t find it here, but removing expectations of what Contra should be will find a great deal of entertainment. The intro mission establishes that this is a title that doesn’t take itself seriously; it’s simple, over the top dumb fun with nonstop carnage and some dark humor. The characters, enemies and scenarios are all ridiculous but that is what makes the game so enjoyable.
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