PC Gamer's Scores

  • Games
Select another publication »
For 3,862 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 50% higher than the average critic
  • 5% same as the average critic
  • 45% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 2.7 points lower than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Game review score: 72
Highest review score: 98 Crysis
Lowest review score: 7 NRA Varmint Hunter
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2,078 out of 3862
  2. Mixed: 1,412 out of 3862
  3. Negative: 372 out of 3862
3877 game reviews
view
per page
    • 89 Metascore
    • 94 Critic Score
    NORCO
    On a good day, Norco is a bastion of beautifully evocative storytelling that invites any player to take refuge in its world. On a bad day, it cuts deep as a sobering, but loving portrait of a modern dystopia—a community on the edge of great change. But on a personal level, it's a game that understands who we are and what the internet has made us—how this digital constellation of fragmented subcultures has shaped the way we see the world and our place in it. There are few games in the world like Norco, and it belongs unequivocally in the highest tier of narrative experiences in the medium today.
    • 89 Metascore
    • 88 Critic Score
    Rez Infinite
    Like having a drunken conversation with a friend who really loves music, but it's a videogame and good.
    • 89 Metascore
    • 91 Critic Score
    Battlefield 1942
    In a team-on-team multiplayer battle on the well-designed maps, you may well find yourself kissing your monitor out of pure joy. [Dec 2002, p.126]
    • PC Gamer
    • 89 Metascore
    • 74 Critic Score
    Madden NFL 2003
    It still feels like PC gamers are getting short-changed, especially since the multiplayer game is still so weak. [Nov 2002, p.114]
    • PC Gamer
    • 89 Metascore
    • 89 Critic Score
    Persona 3 Reload
    Persona 3 Reload is a highly-polished remake of the 2006 classic. A few elements don't age well.
    • 89 Metascore
    • 88 Critic Score
    DiRT 2
    So, McRae-tagged it may be, but DiRT 2 isn't really a rally game. It has thrown off the stern shackles of the sport it theoretically represents, determined instead to turn racing into one giant party--and everyone's invited. [Jan 2010, p.82]
    • PC Gamer
    • 89 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    It Takes Two
    An excellent co-op adventure that doesn't take itself too seriously, and that's the only place it falls short.
    • 89 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Return of the Obra Dinn
    A beautifully constructed and powerfully atmospheric mystery that you really have to work to solve.
    • 89 Metascore
    • 84 Critic Score
    Battle Suit Aces
    A delightful visual novel and a great deckbuilder combined. What more could you want?
    • 89 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Rayman Legends
    A charming and inventive platformer that understands what makes the genre special, and never rests on its laurels.
    • 89 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Kingdom Come: Deliverance II
    Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is a big, bold, unutterably weird thing, and it's a new RPG classic.
    • 89 Metascore
    • 81 Critic Score
    Ghost of Tsushima: Director's Cut
    A slow opening and a slightly dated core game engine do not detract from a thrilling and engaging samurai epic that's ported with skill to PC.
    • 89 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Stardew Valley
    Stardew Valley’s blend of pixel charm and gentle pacing makes for an excellent little escape.
    • 89 Metascore
    • 79 Critic Score
    Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
    The worst part is that Sands uses a save-point system - and wouldn't you guess it, save beacons materialize only after you've destroyed every last zombie. [Mar 2004, p.58]
    • PC Gamer
    • 89 Metascore
    • 92 Critic Score
    Railroad Tycoon II
    Strategy gaming at its finest - minus all the senseless violence. [Feb 1999, p.172]
    • PC Gamer
    • 89 Metascore
    • 91 Critic Score
    What Remains of Edith Finch
    What Remains of Edith Finch is a masterful piece of storytelling: gorgeous, skillfully told, uplifting in places, and devastating in others. Avoid seeing too many spoilers— seriously, I can't think of a game more in need of being unspoiled than this one—and play it.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    XCOM 2: War of the Chosen
    The new classes and super villains are excellent, even if the expansion bloats the campaign a little.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 89 Critic Score
    DUSK
    A obsessively tuned, finely crafted shooter that more than recreates the speed and pure joy of '90s classics.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 82 Critic Score
    Medieval: Total War
    It's highly addictive (I've played at least 50 hours and still want more), and the variety of factions gives it a LOT of replayability. [Dec 2002, p.96]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004: A Century of Flight
    Weather effects have been vastly upgraded, with much more varied and convicing cloud layers, snow, and lightning, and even improved rain effects. [Oct 2003, p.120]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 92 Critic Score
    Abiotic Factor
    Abiotic Factor is an unforgettable interdimensional odyssey with you and your closest friends.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 91 Critic Score
    Mafia
    It's rare in this day and age to be truly impressed by a game's graphics, but a lot of your early game time will be spent just marveling at the scenery. [Dec 2002, p.90]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 89 Critic Score
    Lorelei and the Laser Eyes
    A thrilling mystery that asks players to rise to its challenges, and rewards them when they do.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 92 Critic Score
    Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice
    A brutal, uncompromising action game with sensational sword combat. From Software has done it again.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 86 Critic Score
    Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
    An exhilarating adventure teeming with unique things to see and do- and most importantly, people to stab.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Crusader Kings II: The Old Gods
    The Old Gods does just about everything you could ask for in a sandbox strategy game expansion, and with far fewer initial bugs and technical issues that any previous release of the series. [Aug 2013, p.75]
    • PC Gamer
      • Posted Jul 19, 2013
    • 88 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Cocoon
    A puzzle adventure of rare ingenuity that thrives on its tactility as much as its design.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 83 Critic Score
    Superbike 2001
    If you're into this stuff, there's no need to look anywhere else. [Dec 2000, p.174]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 92 Critic Score
    F.E.A.R.
    As a shooter, F.E.A.R. succeeds admirably. It's the first game to convincingly channel the kinetic exhilaration of "John Woo violence" in the FPS format. [Nov 2005, p.48]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 86 Critic Score
    Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2
    A perfect blend of authenticity mixed with modern-day quality of life enhancements. Joyous, slick, hi-score gaming that looks nice too.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 96 Critic Score
    Kerbal Space Program
    A perfect blend of science and slapstick, and a robust and compelling sandbox of possibility. Simply outstanding.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 93 Critic Score
    Age of Empires II: The Conquerors Expansion
    If you failed to get Age of Empires II before, you have absolutely no excuse now. This is as good as real-time strategy gets. [Nov 2000, p.126]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 89 Critic Score
    Tribes 2
    An addictive and challenging step forward for team-oriented shooters. [June 2001, p.87]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 92 Critic Score
    Mewgenics
    A sprawling, ridiculous, and endlessly surprising roguelike that will drag you body and soul into its chaotic world.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 89 Critic Score
    Dragon's Dogma 2
    A magnificent adventure with impressive fights and some very rough edges.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Super Hexagon
    A frenzied, elegant action game that pulses with great music and demanding thrills, for only £2/$3.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 81 Critic Score
    Ori and the Will of the Wisps
    It's inconsistent and sometimes annoying, but ultimately a charming, challenging, heart-string-pulling fable.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 89 Critic Score
    Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2004
    Ball physics are right on the money, with a mouse-swing that really does capture the "feel" of a measured swing. [Dec 2003, p.134]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 83 Critic Score
    Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne
    My nit-picking gripes aside, the sheer amount of gaming to be found here is dizzying. [Dec 2003, p.78]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 92 Critic Score
    StarCraft
    Strong strategy, great graphics, and variety make this one of the year's best. [July 1998, p.114]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 88 Critic Score
    Pentiment
    A beautiful and beautifully-written narrative game that makes masterful use of its early modern setting. One of Obsidian's finest.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 85 Critic Score
    Monster Hunter Wilds
    Best in class monster combat makes up for a wilderness that's a touch too streamlined.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 89 Critic Score
    Far Cry 3
    You've got a huge island to explore, ridiculously effective tools for scouting every hostile situation, and so many clever intersecting systems to inspire creative ways to conquer them. It's a better stealth game than Far Cry 1, set in an open world that feels richer than Far Cry 2's. That's an amazing thing to play.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 89 Critic Score
    World Soccer Winning Eleven 8 International
    For dynamic looks and pure depth of gameplay, Winning Eleven 8's smooth, stylish, fast, and fluid style of soccer is a joy to behold. It's better than "FIFA," and that's the bottom line. [May 2005, p.63]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 88 Critic Score
    Rogue Legacy 2
    A sublime addition to the Rogue Legacy family and one of the best roguelites yet.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 88 Critic Score
    Torchlight II
    It's a charming, sunshine-bright indie action-RPG with an old-school disregard for your time. It'll consume you with a smile, and you'll be smiling, too: but it's down to the community to turn it into something special.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 94 Critic Score
    XCOM 2
    Exceptionally tough, rewarding strategy and a masterful reworking of the XCOM formula. We’ll play this forever.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 88 Critic Score
    Myth II: Soulblighter
    Myth II has wanton carnage, great multiplayer action, and killer graphics. What more could you want? [May 1999, p.101]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 86 Critic Score
    Cuphead
    Not just for the masochists, Cuphead is a demanding but supremely rewarding modern 2D shooter that looks and sounds fantastic.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Celeste
    An engaging, vibrant and challenging platformer that adds narrative to a genre often shy of it.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 88 Critic Score
    Megabonk
    This 3D take on the Vampire Survivors’ formula is brilliant dumb fun that’ll have you bonking monsters for hours. Eww.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 87 Critic Score
    Halo: The Master Chief Collection - Halo 3
    The genre-defining shooter holds up fantastically, despite an imperfect package.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 91 Critic Score
    Return to Castle Wolfenstein
    It took the core aspects of every good shooter, and made them great. [Jan 2002, p.64]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 89 Critic Score
    The Talos Principle 2
    Not just a great sequel, but a thoughtful and human narrative adventure wrapped in a satisfying and beautiful puzzle game.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Shogo: Mobile Armor Division
    If you like you action games fast and furious, Shogo is your one-way ticket to nirvana. [Dec 1998]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Thirty Flights of Loving
    You should play this because it's an inventive story with three or four things you've never done in a game before, and because it suggests a future where games don't insult our intelligence with dull plotting, dire exposition, and endless cut-scenes. [Dec 2012, p.75]
    • PC Gamer
      • Posted Oct 5, 2012
    • 88 Metascore
    • 84 Critic Score
    Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales
    An excellent evolution of its predecessor that, while carrying over some of its weaknesses, has further strengthened its high points.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 91 Critic Score
    Unity of Command II
    Wargames don't see a lot of innovation, but Unity of Command 2 builds new things out of familiar parts.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Medieval II: Total War
    A bigger, prettier, and more addictive game that leaves even the series' most recent efforts in the dust...If you think "Rome: Total War's" battles looked good, especially for the number of units on-screen at once (i.e., thousands), Medieval II will blow you away. [Dec 2006, p.28]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 93 Critic Score
    Apex Legends
    Apex Legends is a quiet revolution in how we communicate in games, and an excellent team-based battle royale I can recommend to anyone, caveat-free.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 89 Critic Score
    F1 2002
    Perhaps the most impressive new feature is F1 2002's dedicated multiplayer support for up to 16 players. [Sept 2002, p.70]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    The Stanley Parable
    Effortlessly inventive, frequently surprising and consistently hilarious. The Stanley Parable shows how to make a story about game stories.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Shogun Showdown
    This wonderfully clever strategy roguelike demands your best, and it deserves to get it.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    BioShock 2
    Similar and slightly improved mechanics make this a worthy sequel, despite a sadly less-memorable story. [Mar 2010, p.70]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 93 Critic Score
    Sid Meier's Civilization VI
    Sight, sound, and systems harmonize to make Civilization 6 the liveliest, most engrossing, most rewarding, most challenging 4X in any corner of the earth.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 89 Critic Score
    Battlefield 1
    By returning to the past, Battlefield 1 feels renewed. The best game in the series since Bad Company 2.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 91 Critic Score
    Starcraft II: Legacy of the Void
    A brilliant strategy game that manages to be both broad and deep, challenging and accessible.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Diablo III
    It's a changed game, but it's never been such spectacular fun to play, or so creative to tinker with.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 88 Critic Score
    F1 2020
    The deep career mode is even better when managing your own team, and the racing is superbly tactical.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 86 Critic Score
    Monster Hunter: World
    Monster Hunter: World’s thrilling fights with fantastic beasts never get old, even if they require tiresome item management during downtime.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Rise of Nations: Thrones & Patriots
    Both single-player and multiplayer RTS buffs will find plenty of utterly fantastic content here. Thrones is a must-buy expansion for owners of "Rise of Nations." [July 2004, p.60]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 91 Critic Score
    Sid Meier's Pirates!
    Combat is extremely fun and very easy to control - you can play the entire game using just your keyboard's Numpad. [Feb 2005, p.46]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 82 Critic Score
    Armadillo Run
    You're limited by a strict materials budget on each puzzle, but the solution is limited only by your imagination, your passion for tinkering, testing, and rejiggering, as well as your tolerance for roughhousing an innocent armadillo. [Nov. 2006, p.120]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    World of Warcraft: Legion
    If Blizzard can continue to deliver, Legion sets the stage for what could be the best chapter of World of Warcraft yet.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 88 Critic Score
    Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire
    A massive, bountiful RPG with richly descriptive writing, a well-realised setting, and deep tactical combat.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 94 Critic Score
    DOOM Eternal
    Doom Eternal is a ceaseless, panicked nightmare that pushes you to point and click with more skill and style than ever before.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Dark Age of Camelot
    It’s impressively well thought-out, and a highly engaging MMORPG that’s kept me captivated for the last few weeks solid. [Jan 2002, p.80]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 95 Critic Score
    HYPER DEMON
    A masterpiece that will have you soaring like an angel through the depths of hell.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 82 Critic Score
    Owlboy
    A beautiful adventure platformer with a cheerful pixel art veneer, but with very modern themes.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 87 Critic Score
    Mouthwashing
    My favorite horror game of 2024, and one of the year's best narratives, period.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 88 Critic Score
    Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4
    TH4 is so packed with content and character that even a non-skater should have a wicked time when armed with a solid gamepad. [Dec 2003, p.109]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 82 Critic Score
    Night in the Woods
    A beautiful, heartfelt coming of age story that says something about life, and cracks a few jokes in the process.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 87 Critic Score
    Ori and the Blind Forest
    Challenging and gorgeous, Ori is a classic platforming genre modernized and done strikingly well. Use a controller and save often.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 89 Critic Score
    Forza Horizon 4
    Unless you're looking for a hardcore sim, Forza Horizon is still the best racing series around.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 94 Critic Score
    Diablo II
    Don't steal, but lie and cheat if necessary. As a gamer, it's your duty to own Diablo II. [Aug 2000, p.75]
    • PC Gamer
    • 88 Metascore
    • 89 Critic Score
    The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings
    Last minute collapse onto its own silver sword aside, this is one of the most impressive RPGs you'll ever play.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Omori
    Omori's ending is brutal, but its characters and humour put some heart behind the horror.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Halls of Torment
    Halls of Torment's specific aesthetic couldn't be more attuned to my sensibilities as a child of the ARPGs of the late '90s and early 2000s. Give me two honking great orbs representing my health and mana and a protagonist who has no articulating joints in his legs and I'm a happy man, and HoT makes me very happy indeed with its lo-fi heroics and diffuse, stygian levels. If I could play this thing on a beige CRT while Rob Zombie screamed in my ears I wouldn't know it wasn't 1999. Actually, wait, I can do that. If anyone needs me, tell them I'm busy for the next… foreseeable future.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 74 Critic Score
    Mixtape
    Lovely, beautiful, heartwarming, and unable to convince me it needed my input as a player at all.
    • 87 Metascore
    • 91 Critic Score
    Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection
    Nathan Drake's last outing is still at the top of the action-adventure genre.
    • 87 Metascore
    • 94 Critic Score
    DOOM 3
    Doom 3 is a masterpiece of the art form - staying true to the frantic legacy of the Doom series, while ambitiously reaching new heights and bashing down the doors of the next generation of PC shooter. The bar is raised. Let's see someone else climb over it. [Sept 2004, p.34]
    • PC Gamer
    • 87 Metascore
    • 89 Critic Score
    Subnautica
    A smattering of technical issues keep Subnautica from true legendary status, but only just.
    • 87 Metascore
    • 92 Critic Score
    Final Fantasy XIV: Stormblood
    Stormblood’s rousing tale of rebellion and exceptional boss fights aren’t just exquisite by MMO standards, but rival even the most beloved Final Fantasy games.
    • 87 Metascore
    • 91 Critic Score
    FINAL FANTASY TACTICS - The Ivalice Chronicles
    This is an extraordinary remaster of an essential RPG, and as unmissable today as ever.
    • 87 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Hitman 3
    A beautiful, deep, and endlessly replayable murder sandbox, featuring some of the best levels in the series.
    • 87 Metascore
    • 87 Critic Score
    PRAGMATA
    Pragmata's confidence in its punchy shootouts and old-school cool pays off, and the two leads roved their way into my heart despite a predictable plot.
    • 87 Metascore
    • 86 Critic Score
    Out of the Park Baseball 6
    A huge improvement (thanks to a ground-up rebuild) over last year's version... Hardball fanatics everywhere owe it to themselves to try this great game. [Oct 2004, p.96]
    • PC Gamer
    • 87 Metascore
    • 88 Critic Score
    Europa Universalis II
    True, the learning curve is Himalayan, but once I got sucked in, my love of strat games was instantly rekindled. [Feb 2002, p.73]
    • PC Gamer
    • 87 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow
    All multiplayer modes have the spy needing to complete a set of objectives, like swiping top-secret vials, while the mercs try ot keep the spy from succeeding. The resulting match-ups are breathtaking. [June 2004, p.68]
    • PC Gamer
    • 87 Metascore
    • 74 Critic Score
    RimWorld
    An imaginative management game but a weak story generator.
Page:

Top Trailers

See all »
See all trailers »