Post Arcade (National Post)'s Scores

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For 624 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 45% higher than the average critic
  • 5% same as the average critic
  • 50% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 1.2 points higher than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Game review score: 76
Highest review score: 100 The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Lowest review score: 10 Alien Creeps TD
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 434 out of 624
  2. Mixed: 170 out of 624
  3. Negative: 20 out of 624
628 game reviews
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    • 76 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Super Mario Run
    This seeming brevity will undoubtedly miff some customers. The question you’ll need to ask yourself before making the spend is this: What do I want from a Mario game? If it’s simply to jam through courses, Super Mario Run‘s value proposition probably won’t make sense. You’d be better off with the virtually limitless array of courses available in a Super Mario Maker game, even though it costs five times as much. But if you’re looking to play the way kids did back in the day – repeating courses again and again until thoroughly mastered, every secret found and every trick jump carved into your grey matter like grooves on a record – then Super Mario Run becomes infinitely more appealing....It is, in fact, designed to make players want to play this way.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Gears 5
    The resounding theme of Gears 5 seems to be marrying old with new. There’s never any mistaking it for something other than a Gears game, thanks to its polished cover-based combat mechanics, gleefully gory action, and 4K, HDR-enhanced graphics that raise the bar of what we can expect from an Xbox One game. But it’s also trying to grow the Gears experience by focusing on new characters, altering the flow of the campaign, and adding daring new multiplayer modes.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Rare Replay
    Just as entertaining as playing some of the games is fast-forwarding through the progression of Rare’s work over a period of decades. It’s like watching the evolution of the medium itself.
    • 78 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Battlefield V
    It might lack the spit and polish seen in some other shooters, but Battlefield V delivers a visceral thrill unique to the series. Its adrenaline-filled, large-scale battles give rise to memorable moments simply not seen in other games, and these moments are augmented by the faithful Second World War setting. Those looking for an alternative to the twitch-driven combat of other popular shooters will find it here.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    No Man's Sky
    It’s not perfect, but No Man’s Sky is as much – and probably a lot more – than we had any right expect from such an ambitious game made by such a tiny team.
    • 82 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    The Talos Principle: Road To Gehenna
    Gehenna is an extremely interesting environment that’s brought to life by what amounts to being a message board filled with ornery, divisive, and Internet-fluent personalities.
    • 83 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Project CARS
    That said, Simply Mad’s latest earns a pretty easy recommendation for anyone looking for a racing game unambiguously and unapologetically locked in the simulation category. Its vision is clear, and there can be little doubt that much love and passion was poured into its crafting.
    • 87 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Gran Turismo 7
    Gran Turismo 7 is a bit of a throwback to the genre’s early days — and includes some of the series’ old shortcomings — but when it comes to accurate driving physics and sheer, unadulterated love of cars, it’s something close to peerless.
    • 43 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    LEGO Friends
    Lego Friends may not be the sort of game you steal away to play yourself after your daughter goes to sleep. And it’s not one you can play together with her for a shared and meaningful family gaming experience...But if you want to buy her a game that’s clearly meant just for her, a game that, as a parent, you can feel okay about having her play on her own or in the back seat of the car, not worrying that it will tarnish her developing brain with mindless violence or make her obsess over her appearance, Lego Friends is worth consideration.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Mario Tennis Aces
    If Mario Tennis Aces is a herald of what’s to come in sports games for Nintendo Switch, then fans of golf, baseball, soccer, and other sports have reason to get excited.
    • 87 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Destiny 2: The Witch Queen
    I’m admittedly still a bit lost when it comes to how all of the upgrade systems, subclasses, and secondary objectives and tasks work. And I’m sad that — as usual — I’ll miss out on the new raid mission for lack of being able to schedule a big team of friends to get together for multi-hour play sessions. But perhaps this is just the cost of doing business as a casual Destiny player.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Life is Strange: Episode 1 - Chrysalis
    Narratively, Life is Strange is kind of a mashup of My So Called Life and Donnie Darko (with a few elements of Alan Wake and Gone Home thrown in for good measure).
    • 72 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Skylanders Imaginators
    Cutting to the chase, Skylanders Imaginators on Switch offers the same creative, co-operative fun as on other platforms, minus a portal but with the added bonus of portability. It is, however, noticeably inferior to the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One editions in its visual presentation.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    PlayStation Vita Pets
    I’d say it’s a little bit better. It has the best graphics, you can hear your puppy talk, and you can go on a little adventure. There’s no buggie, in case I haven’t mentioned that, but it’s still pretty good.
    • 80 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Fantasian
    Fantasian draws clear inspiration from mid-numbered Final Fantasy games. From its orthodox structure — players are put in control of a party of heroes who explore towns, dungeons, and an overworld map, with turn-based battle occurring at random intervals — to its sci-fi-cum-fantasy vibe, which includes grand airships, imaginative monsters, and even glowing save crystals, anyone who played a turn-of-the-century Japanese role-playing game is going to experience some welcome nostalgia here — especially when Uematsu’s signature battle music and themes kick in.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Axiom Verge
    Five years in the making, this one-man project is an ode to retro games like Metroid and Castlevania. From graphics and music to design and mechanics, it channels a late 80s gaming vibe in a way few other modern takes on classic genres do.
    • 85 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
    It took a little longer than I’d have liked to really draw me in, but once Star Wars Jedi: Survivor had its hooks in I went happily along for the ride. If Kathleen Kennedy greenlit a Cal Kestis TV series or film, I’d be over the moon. Maybe just with a little less wall-running.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Saints Row IV: Re-Elected
    However, if you skipped Saints Row IV when it originally landed there’s no reason not to dive in now. Saints Row IV: Re-Elected is an easy recommendation for adventurous players with a taste for the bizarre – especially at the bargain price of just $30.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Sid Meier's Starships
    Starships may lack the complexity and nuance of other strategy games, and it feels a bit rough around the edges in places, but its accessibility, terrific turn-based combat, and bite-sized duration combine to create a tempting alternative to a multi-evening marathon campaign.
    • 82 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Madden NFL 17
    All is not perfect — there are still some visual glitches and long load times to contend with — but for a title routinely derided for not improving enough between titles, Madden has really raised its game this time around.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    FRU
    At this point even a game like FRU is highly unlikely to make anyone rush out and by a Kinect camera. But any existing owners still interested in the possibilities of Microsoft’s sensor bar would do very well to give this refreshingly inventive little indie a shot.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Anno 2205
    Anno 2205 is a solid city builder, albeit one that doesn’t feel like the full Anno experience to me. If you’re someone who has been interested in the series but has been a bit scared by its fussiness and micromanagement, I’d recommend it. Ditto if you just want a city builder with a heavy resource-management angle...If you’re a long-time fan of the series though, you’ll probably be a bit put off by some of the changes and a very real drop in difficulty.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Castle Doombad
    It’s a nice twist on traditional defense-style games. The strategy is surprisingly thoughtful, and the wacky traps rarely failed to bring a smile to my face.
    • 66 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 Plus
    It may not be more than the sum of its parts, but it’s still a fun action adventure and definitely a worthy sequel to Ninja Gaiden Sigma. Just don’t expect to be blown away by the sometimes convoluted story.
    • 78 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Yoshi's Woolly World
    Co-op play isn’t as much fun as we might have hoped, and it’d be nice if the designers could find a way around Yoshi’s outmoded aiming mechanic, but the abundance of delightfully creative levels ought to sate casual Wii U gamers and the considerable challenge of tracking down every last collectible on each stage should appeal to Nintendo’s hardcore platformer fans.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege
    Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege knows exactly what it wants to be, and it’s not necessarily something that will likely appeal to a particularly broad swath of players...It’s a small, focused, and intense game with but a handful of maps, modes, and playable characters. Clearly designed for a niche group of first-person shooter fans interested in teamwork, tactics, and authenticity, it entertains with the challenge of honing skills and strategies rather than jamming a mountain of mostly middling content down players’ throats, as so many other shooters seem eager to do...But that means it won’t be for everyone – especially not those who want to play alone.
    • 74 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Batman: Arkham Origins
    It may not be the best or most innovative game within the series, but it definitely feels like it fits with the two games made by Rocksteady Studios.
    • 81 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Sid Meier's Civilization: Beyond Earth
    It is certainly more polished than Civ 5 was when it was released, and feels much more like a finished game, where as the predecessor was merely alright until it was elevated by its expansions.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Star Trek: Bridge Crew
    I don’t know that I’ve ever enjoyed a Star Trek game this much. Star Trek: Bridge Crew‘s target audience may not be as broad as those of most games, but it exploits just about everything the medium of virtual reality does well in its current state. I’d happily take a sequel.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    South Park: The Fractured But Whole
    I laughed loudly and frequently, and could hardly bring myself to stop playing. But I’m not sure I’ll be in the majority.
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These unscored reviews do not factor into the Metascore calculation.

In Progress & Unscored

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    • 74 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Street Fighter V
    For those not interested high-level competitive play just yet – those who want to watch a fun anime-style story while mashing some buttons, or at most learning the characters’ special moves for a gaming night with his or her friends at home – there’s no point picking this up at least until March. At that time SFV might very well be a casual-friendly game with all the tools to teach you the fundamentals needed to unlock the most rewarding levels of play.
    • Post Arcade (National Post)
      • Posted Feb 17, 2016
    • 57 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Destiny 2: Curse of Osiris
    All I can really say is that Destiny 2: Curse of Osiris is sufficient for someone like me, an admittedly casual Destiny player. I’ve found it worth the price of admission, and satisfying once consumed. If all you want is sufficient motivation to jump back into the blessedly refined firefights in Bungie’s online shooter for another week or three, Curse of Osiris probably won’t disappoint.
    • 90 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Monster Hunter: World
    I can see myself continuing to play on and off for months to come, getting better and trying new tactics all the while. And that, if nothing else, earns Monster Hunter: World an enthusiastic recommendation for anyone interested in the idea of seeing if they have what it takes to combat roaring, furry, fire-spewing bird dinosaurs.
    • 82 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Tom Clancy's The Division 2
    Tom Clancy’s The Division 2 has stuck its landing. Like other games of its ilk, it could do with learning a lesson or two from its competitors, but it has arrived playable, polished, and with so much stuff to do that most players probably won’t even reach its sizeable endgame — which, at this point, I’ve only read about — for weeks, if not longer. I’m not ready to give it a numbered score, but I do feel comfortable saying this is one loot shooter you can dive into with confidence on day one. [Review in Progress]

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