The Games Machine's Scores

  • Games
For 2,656 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 71% higher than the average critic
  • 7% same as the average critic
  • 22% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 4.3 points higher than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Game review score: 79
Highest review score: 99 Baldur's Gate 3
Lowest review score: 30 Dino Dini's Kick Off Revival
Score distribution:
2658 game reviews
    • 79 Metascore
    • 83 Critic Score
    Even without surprising like MW did in 2019, beyond the technical problems of day one and a revisable UI, MWII knows how to entertain and chain to the another-game-and-I-stop loop as only the great CoDs can do.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 83 Critic Score
    Few games offer the precise mix of escapism and relaxation that is the basis of New Pokémon Snap. It's an exquisite game that improves on its predecessor on Nintendo 64 in every way, smartly taking advantage of the Switch's merits. If you adore Pokémon, this is certainly the well-deserved vacation for you.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 85 Critic Score
    Developed by one man only – Jason Smith – Cultic is an excellent old school shooter. The campaign isn’t particularly long, but the second part will come as a free update in the future (hence the ‘Chapter One’), and there’s also a fun survival mode that will let you hone your skills.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 81 Critic Score
    Alaloth: Champions of the Four Kingdoms is an action RPG that takes the graphical style of Baldur's Gate and Pillars of Eternity and enriches it with a much more challenging than average combat system, making any button mashing-centric approach futile and forcing us to use, for once, all the skills the game makes available. Although all the typical RPG elements have been included, a certain sparingness has been used in the variety of options so as not to scare off those who do not like to get lost in hundreds of statistics, making sword skill more important than the skill point placed on a given feature.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 88 Critic Score
    Sniper Elite 4 is a superb adaptation, capable of shrinking Karl Fairburne's Italian adventure into a pocket size while keeping the strengths of the original game intact. If you already played Sniper Elite 4 three years ago and aren’t itching to replay it in a portable format, your savings would be better spent elsewhere, given the absence of exclusive content.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Pokémon Let's Go is an exquisite and adorable game that will surely attract many new recruits to Nintendo's cause. Sadly it isn’t the much-desired herald of a new generation of games for this brand. It’s a rather easy title, but this also makes it very suitable for a young audience.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 85 Critic Score
    Dystopika is a relaxing city builder without any of the ambitions typical of management video games. It's a pure sandbox game with which to unleash your creativity and build your dream cyberpunk megalopolis.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 85 Critic Score
    Everhood 2 is as weird as the first game. More RPG, more "real video game" vibes, but in the end is the same unconventional experience played 4 years ago.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Not just a pretty face: Afterimage is not only a beautiful metroidvania, but also a very competent one, clever in taking inspiration from the right sources and able to deliver a world that you never get tired of exploring. Good thing too, considering how big it is.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 88 Critic Score
    Intense, detailed and capable of telling a story that goes far beyond expectations, Dordogne is a story that strikes the soul, thanks to an excellent play system. Must have absolutely.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 78 Critic Score
    After many years of waiting, Assassin’s Creed finally lands in feudal Japan. However, although Shadows’ gameplay is engaging and the setting visually satisfying, Ubisoft Quebec’s work is penalized by a particularly invasive live service structure and a plot that gradually loses its bite, until it reaches an unsatisfactory conclusion. Despite everything, the experience remains enjoyable, thanks to an open world full of activities without ever being oppressive and a combat system that fully enhances the peculiarities of both protagonists.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 84 Critic Score
    Although Hell Let Loose can undoubtedly be improved in some aspects, the prerequisites for long-time fun are all there, as long as you’re looking for a war simulator full of immersion, action, strategy and collaboration. Black Matter's WWII is harsh and unforgiving, but also stunning in its depiction of war.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    KOF XV is a great game, but it lacks a bit of courage, that spark capable of revolutionizing the series. I don't expect a Copernican revolution like it was at the time of KOF ‘96, but SNK will have to come up with some new ideas for the next chapter.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Part adventure horror, part digital representation of Tim Burton's dreams, The Midnight Walking must be played to be truly understood. Possibly wearing a VR headset, so that it can express the best of itself, involving and deeply moving, because in a flat version it loses effectiveness.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 85 Critic Score
    House Flippers 2 is a simple game that couldn't be simpler. While it focuses on simplicity, in fact, and on a fabulous and effective game design, it manages to blend in a fantastic way with a context that gives emotions and leaves you with a smile. Yes, that's right: just like Unpacking.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 82 Critic Score
    F1 22 manages to improve on last year’s game by evolving its driving model based on the new Formula 1 regulations. Unfortunately this happened to the detriment of the amount of content present in this iteration. Right now we have a foot in the new era, but the other is still in the past.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 84 Critic Score
    Kyle Crane returns, the nightmarish nights return, and the sensations that Dying Light, more so than Dying Light 2, Stay Human, gave us return, albeit transposed into a very different setting design. The Beast may not be perfect and is a more contained experience than its predecessors, but it will certainly delight fans of the first installment because it recalls it where it matters most. The hunt for the Baron isn't for those looking for elaborate narratives; after all, it's just a pretext to get back out there and dance from rooftop to rooftop with Techland-style agility, among the most "beautiful" infected ever, nervously checking the clock to avoid finding hordes of horrors of the night on your heels... until the Beast makes his monstrous appearance. With this intense installment, peace is officially made between those who were disappointed by the direction the franchise has taken and Techland.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 88 Critic Score
    Metal: Hellsinger is an interesting hybrid between FPS and rhythm game that sounds like a real Love Letter to the great classics like Doom. Its gameplay and music come together in a combination of violence and adrenaline in which it is easy to get lost.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Sackboy: A Great Adventure is perhaps the real surprise of the PS5 debut. A solid platformer as expected from Sumo, which knows where to draw inspiration from and how to reinvent it, as if they were true game design restorers. Simple and very smooth from start to finish, but a good challenge to bring to full completion, with all its collectibles and challenges that enhance a level design that is not at all trivial and that always strives to do something different to make each stage a unique gaming experience.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 86 Critic Score
    Eleven years after the first installment, LocoRoco remains stylish and enjoyable as ever. The level design is polished and encourages exploration, and the art direction is simply incredible. An almost perfect game, hindered by some minor problems in the control system.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 85 Critic Score
    Ion Fury is a love letter to 90s shooters, especially addressed to Duke Nukem 3D. A well written love letter, although it could have been more varied in some parts.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 85 Critic Score
    A Like a Dragon a little bit different from the usual. A fun adventure starring the mad Goro Majima. All the elements of the previous chapters return in a Caribbean version, but the rate of madness reaches unprecedented levels.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Far Harbor is the best DLC ever released for Fallout 4. With its blend of traditional sci-fi and horror, this expansion rewrites the world of Fallout, with more than 12 hours of new content, a living and captivating new area to explore, and some intriguing characters to interact with.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 84 Critic Score
    Gunlord X is an absolutely excellent Turrican clone, recreated with love on a new platform without laziness and with the desire to offer the best possible experience.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 81 Critic Score
    Gato Roboto is an adorable metroidvania that never lowers its rhythm: the controls are perfect and the feeling is the right one, ideal for alternating shootings, platforming and exploration.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 82 Critic Score
    Blazing Chrome is the coin op you didn't play in the arcade, the cartridge that never came out for Neo Geo, the game you didn’t know you missed so much. A game with spasmodic, sadistic and punitive action, just as we liked in the 90s.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 75 Critic Score
    The Longing’s gripping storyline and multiple endings clash with the lack of puzzles and too many pauses. Worth to try if you are looking for an original story, but if you love to have your brain continuously tested and challenged, this is not your cup of tea.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 83 Critic Score
    Coffee Talk Episode 2: Hibiscus and Butterfly is a collection of wonderful and beautifully written stories. Going back to preparing a coffee, getting to know customers and finding beauty in these nuances could be a must to everyone. A big comeback.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 88 Critic Score
    Ultros is a passionate and engaging Metroidvania, with excellent art design and level design, strong graphics and an artistic direction of absolute value. It is a long-lived and detailed video game, very original and multifaceted, with a game design that explores all its potential in a peculiar way. An absolute must have if you are passionate about the genre, and if you are a beginner. It is also particularly suitable for beginners.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Pro Evolution Soccer 2019 is a good title, which would have deserved a much higher rating with more courage on the options and game-modes.

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