Nintendo Life's Scores
- Games
For 5,856 reviews, this publication has graded:
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45% higher than the average critic
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18% same as the average critic
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37% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 8 points lower than other critics.
(0-100 point scale)
Average Game review score: 67
| Highest review score: | Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story | |
|---|---|---|
| Lowest review score: | 153 Hand Video Poker |
Score distribution:
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Positive: 2,260 out of 5856
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Mixed: 2,820 out of 5856
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Negative: 776 out of 5856
5864
game
reviews
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- Critic Score
Shovel Knight Pocket Dungeon is a smartly designed and truly delightful revitalization of the falling block puzzle genre. High intensity, combat-driven gameplay, oodles of replayability, a cute art style, and a surprising amount of depth make this one a ridiculously easy recommendation. If you’re at all a fan of Shovel Knight or falling block puzzlers, you owe it to yourself to give this a shot; even if you don’t fall neatly into either of those camps, we’d still very much suggest you give this one a look.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Dec 13, 2021
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Kirby And The Forgotten Land - Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Star-Crossed World gives you the base Forgotten Land experience at a delicious 60fps with a whole big bunch of new content thrown in for good measure. The 12 remixed areas that make up the DLC are uniformly delightful, the new transformations are excellent, and there's even new challenges for hardcore Kirby fans to get stuck into. One of the best games on Switch, and one of my favourite 3D platformers in years, polished to a sparkly sheen and packing some meaningful new content? That's a very easy recommendation and a truly excellent addition to the Switch 2's early lineup.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Aug 27, 2025
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From the beginning, this series has very much been about the journey to the destination in both a literal and figurative sense, and now we’ve arrived at the end, it's clear that this was the strongest point all along. The development of characters and the gradual progression of the story naturally have less emphasis this time around, as this is the end of the saga, but what you do get is multiple endings with fitting outcomes. Now all that's left is for you to decide whether or not this game and series are for you, much like the many choices present within the games themselves.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Aug 26, 2018
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Given that we’ve only had SNES and GBA versions before, this new Switch port of Doom is the best version ever released on a Nintendo system by a country mile. That doesn’t mean it’s perfect, though: its annoying still-to-be-fixed DRM and its smattering of small technical issues does dampen the entertainment somewhat. That aside, if you’re looking to slay hordes of Hellspawn on the move, there’s no better way.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Aug 1, 2019
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It’s impossible to go wrong with King of Cards, and whether standalone or as part of Treasure Trove, we’d recommend you make a point to play it as soon as possible. This is likely the last we’ll see of the ‘core’ Shovel Knight series for some time, and King of Cards acts as a worthy swansong for a now-legendary platformer. Bravo.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Dec 9, 2019
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Yet another fantastic rhythm game to add to the Switch's ever-growing repertoire. It may be a tad on the expensive side, but its core mechanics are rock solid, its minimalist visuals are a treat to behold and the fact it's got to much to play through and unlock means you'll be happily tapping your toes to this one for months.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Dec 12, 2019
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From stem to stern, Knights and Bikes is a delight to behold and a testament to the creative power of the talent at Foam Sword. Demelza and Nessa’s story is a compelling one that hits all the right emotional and comical beats, while the laid-back gameplay proves to be varied and interesting as the narrative continues. All of this is tied together by some stellar presentation to make for a couch co-op experience that you won't want to miss out on. We’d give Knights and Bikes a strong recommendation whatever way you choose to play it, though bear in mind that you’ll be getting the best and most fulfilling experience if you play it through with a friend.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Feb 15, 2020
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Knockout City is an absolute blast, a colourful arcade sports game that's easy to jump into for newbies with plenty of depth and strategy for crews looking to become the ultimate dodgeball champions. With four modes and five stages currently on offer, tons of unlockable cosmetics, daily challenges and cross-play/cross-progression included from the get-go, this one has hit the ground running and there's absolutely no reason not to jump into the free trial and see how you fare.- Nintendo Life
- Posted May 24, 2021
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A Boy and His Blob hasn’t changed since its release back in 2009, but it’s still well worth checking out if you’re after a decent puzzle platformer. The visuals still look incredible after all these years, with spectacular animation to boot. Some aspects of the game feel a bit outdated by comparison, with the inability to map certain abilities being a key culprit. Nevertheless it remains a fun, breezy experience, and one that the younger generation of gamers in particular will adore.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Nov 14, 2021
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Ultimately, Demon Turf: Neon Splash is a much better game than its predecessor thanks to the complete removal of the underwhelming combat. Not only that, but the experience feels more focused and streamlined without the requirement of a hub world or mandatory collectibles. This is Demon Turf at its best, and we sincerely hope to see more of the same in a true sequel later down the line.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Apr 15, 2022
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If you liked the previous Atari Recharged titles, Yars: Recharged presents another enjoyable diversion and interesting take on the theme. While not always as thrilling as it could be, the design overhaul still works well. That said, those who aren’t entirely intrigued by the formula may find it repetitive and ultimately tiresome. This reimagined Atari catalogue would probably be better off as a compilation title rather than a segmented anthology. And who knows, that may still eventually come to pass.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Aug 30, 2022
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Labyrinth of Galleria: The Moon Society does a fantastic job of providing a dense and devastating journey into the depths of dungeons, though it sometimes does so at the cost of accessibility. An attractive art style, expansive team-building options, and genuinely surprising story all combine to make this one worth a recommendation, but with the big caveat that a lot of its appeal is lost if you don’t enjoy min-maxing in RPGs or don’t have the patience to fully digest and comprehend all its systems. If that does sound like it's up your street, though, Labyrinth of Galleria is absolutely worth your time and money.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Mar 1, 2023
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Judged on its own, the final wave for the Booster Course Pass is another perfectly fine, if slightly uneven addition to the expansion. The Tour courses remain reasonably good fun, but are ultimately forgettable, while Daisy Circuit stands as one of the most boring tracks in the entire game. Nintendo could have just adapted Airship Fortress instead, y'know? That said, there's still a lot to enjoy here, including four great new character additions, making Wave 6 a solid finale to the Booster Course expansion.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Nov 9, 2023
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Overall, Crypt Custodian is a pretty traditional Metroidvania elevated by its fantastic world, aesthetic, characters, and soundtrack, with solid combat and a lot of build flexibility. These aspects all help alleviate some visual clutter issues and frame rate hiccups, ensuring that Crypt Custodian shouldn't end up lost in the eShop bargain bin like so many other Metroidvanias.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Aug 28, 2024
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Sorry We're Closed is one of the most unique and memorable survival horror games we've ever played. The juxtaposition of bright colours and quirky characters against moments of true terror is unlike anything we've ever seen before, and the first-person combat mechanics manage to feel immensely satisfying and empowering while still retaining a sense of creeping dread. This is a world we won't soon forget, and unlike the protagonist's desire to shy away from love, we suspect you'll immediately fall head over heels for this one.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Mar 6, 2025
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Classic-inspired gameplay, an orchestrated soundtrack, and a unique approach to storytelling make this a game that you won’t want to miss. This is an absolute must buy.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Jul 12, 2018
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BYE-BYE BOXBOY! is a fitting farewell to our favourite monochromatic cuboid. Clever, but not too challenging puzzles, a decent if not toe-tapping soundtrack and an adventure that ends before it becomes tiresome make for a winning formula, especially considering the low asking price for a HAL Laboratory title. If you’re itching for something to do on your 3DS and want the most bang for your buck, you could do far worse.- Nintendo Life
- Posted May 10, 2017
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Triangle Strategy is an absolute triumph for Artdink and Square Enix, a fantastic mix of satisfyingly strategic battles, an excellent choice-driven campaign narrative and top-notch world-building, all of which come together to form one of the finest tactical RPGs we've played in a very long time. There's an absolute ton of content here, with a huge story featuring multiple paths to take depending on the choices you make and several properly impactful endings to enjoy on return visits. Serenoa Wollfort's epic journey is a joy from start to finish, a grand and ambitious adventure that stands proud as one of the very finest examples of its genre on Switch.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Mar 3, 2022
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TMNT: The Cowabunga Collection is indisputably the best thing Konami has released in a long while, meeting all expectations and then some. Bar absent difficulty settings for the arcade games, it’s an anthology that finally gets it totally right. Digital Eclipse and Konami have done the fans justice, offering a comprehensive library that doesn’t hide content behind a paywall, while going above and beyond in terms of features and bonuses. With online functionality and rollback netcode being the icing on the cake, this is now the gold standard for retro collections. Capcom, pay close attention.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Aug 29, 2022
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This is a fun puzzler that continues the superb work of its predecessors, although there could have and should have been more free to play levels to give potential players a little more incentive to purchase those packs. That said, fans of the concept and puzzle games in general should consider treating this like its predecessors - a stand-out puzzle experience.- Nintendo Life
- Posted May 18, 2015
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Mega Man Zero/ZX Legacy Collection is everything that you could’ve hoped it to be. This is ultimately six great Mega Man games presented to you with a slew of customizable features, extra content, and quality of life updates. If you’re a fan of either Mega Man or sidescrolling action games in general, you owe it to yourself to give this release a go and see what all the fuss is about. These are hard and occasionally frustrating games, but they offer up some rewarding, action-heavy gameplay that even today stands among the best of its class. Don’t pass this one up, it’s definitely worth the punt.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Feb 26, 2020
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Creating a great game idea is impressive in and of itself, but you have to appreciate it when a developer goes the extra mile and surrounds that great game play idea with high quality artwork and music to give the overall experience that little something extra.- Nintendo Life
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If you’re also a fan of the oppressive, grim nature of the original game, The Mermaid’s Curse might also give you a bit of whiplash. Lots of scenes take place in broad daylight, with seemingly no sign of anything weird or supernatural. As I mentioned earlier, a lot of the story involves exploring past events, historical context, and interrogating various characters. You’re certainly not going to be using curses every five minutes to kill an NPC, and overall, it never feels particularly unsettling or scary. It’s still well worth your time, though, even if it doesn’t match up to the original.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Feb 17, 2026
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A very enjoyable conclusion to the Tales of Monkey Island story, and it won't disappoint anyone who's played through the rest of it.- Nintendo Life
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OlliOlli is one of those games you really have to live with; perseverance pays dividends, but so does taking a break and coming back in the morning to find muscle memory kicking in. Before you know it you’ll be grinding elegantly and racking up impressive points, but you need to stick with it. With the skateboarding genre largely on hiatus, this is an easy recommendation to newcomers with the patience to master it. This version doesn’t bring anything new to the table if you’ve played it before, but it’s a fine game in fine form on Switch.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Feb 12, 2019
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Mixtape’s greatest accomplishment is that it more than lives up to its name. This is a thoughtfully curated collection of music, sure, but before that, it’s an exciting, sentimental, funny game. Rather than simply twiddling your thumbs while the licensed music plays, you’re living life with a soundtrack – the only way Stacey Rockford would have you do it.- Nintendo Life
- Posted May 7, 2026
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All told, Mutant Mudds Super Challenge is a worthy sequel to its popular predecessor; it's everything fans loved about the original and more.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Mar 17, 2016
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If you want to play a top-down Legend of Zelda game as a rogue-lite while also taking shifts as a shopkeeper then, hey, Moonlighter is about to scratch a distinctive itch for you. It hits a sweet spot somewhere between satisfying swordplay and nitty-gritty economic sim, although some players may feel it gets ‘grindy’ after a while in its mechanics. Nonetheless, Digital Sun Games has produced a lush work it can be proud of; one that even touches on our humanity in an optimistic way.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Nov 1, 2018
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If you’re willing to look past a handful of typos and some fairly significant visual issues, WitchSpring R is a great example of turn-based combat with a strong story to back it up. It’s whimsical and enchanting, and you won’t be able to predict how it all ends. On top of this, the NG+ option gives it an extra splash of replayability for players who like a challenge. That being said, the visual quirks do take a toll on the score here. While they weren’t game-breaking, having the main character pop out of existence during crucial cutscenes was frustrating, and it did affect our overall experience.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Aug 25, 2024
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We’re very careful when we use this word, but Gris is a masterpiece. Its jaw-dropping visual style and heart-wrenching score combine for one of the most emotional pieces of interactive art you’ll ever play. It may be too short for some, its puzzles may be on the simple side and the lack of any real challenge may not be to everyone’s taste, but this is a game focused more on fragility than ability and as long as you’re willing to go along for the ride, it’s one that will stick with you for a very long time indeed.- Nintendo Life
- Posted Dec 13, 2018
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