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
    • 65 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Despite some minor flaws, MXGP2 provides one of the best experiences in the motorbikes racing genre. Be sure to activate the first person camera and the "pro" physics, and you'll be in for a real treat, made of a genuinely fun and thrilling gameplay.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Over-the-top violence? Check. Iconic memes from the original series? Check. A solid battle system that cleverly borrows the best ideas around to deliver something uniquely its own? Double check. Honestly, there are very few reasons not to jump on board.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Despite some invedent microtransactions, Total War Arena is a huge surprise, where the mix between RTS and MOBA's dynamics works perfectly. Beware: you have to make a close-knit and coordinated group of friends to play with, if you don't want to loose too many matches.
    • 80 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is "simply" a well-packaged soulslike, extremely derived from the previous work of Team Ninja, very unbalanced in terms of mechanics, but still fun and satisfying. An operation almost tending to experiment with some new mechanics that are not always perfectly blended with the rest of the game grammar, speaking more to the regular users of Souls, rather than to newbies. Fun and with a difficulty that rewards only towards the end but, all in all, it's a properly packaged game.
    • 82 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration offers a lot, but the shadow of a legendary brand like Atari pushes to demand even more. The absence of Atari Games' historic coin-ops along with many of the more distinctive home machine games weighs heavily, but the new games created by Digital Eclipse somehow manage to save the party. As a work of preservation and divulgation, however, it plays in a league of its own that is really hard to approach.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Little Nightmare 3 is a commissioned work and could have been decidedly less inspired. The co-op mechanics work, even in single-player thanks to the companion AI, but they somehow make the scenarios easier to read and decipher. The saga's strong point, however, remains its atmosphere, and here Supermassive has hit the mark by creating a horror anthology in which Low and Alone move under the guidance of solid virtual direction. Perhaps the formula itself has reached its limit in terms of mechanics, but in terms of inspiration, Little Nightmares 3 always manages to convey something to the player.
    • 77 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Nine worlds of fantastic platform action peppered with generous doses of colorful swearing. Donkey Kong Country Returns HD has aged quite well and is still a pleasure to play, even though its sequel Tropical Freeze remains the high point of the series. Given the “full” price, we expected some additions that would justify the additional outlay for this fourth edition of the game, which instead (facelift aside) is identical to its 3DS counterpart.
    • tbd Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    A small-scope but excellent game with very clear ideas, enjoyable, sincere and particularly exciting when the going gets tough, like during very intense boss fights. Pimping our ride to make it look even more aggressive and suited to the post apocalyptic world feels great. A Mad Max-like shoot 'em up is exactly what we needed.
    • 69 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Bye Sweet Carole is a thriller/horror adventure that finds its strength in the visual arts: the narrative, aesthetics, animation, and music are meticulously crafted down to the smallest detail, resulting in a delightful, extremely inspired and well-paced work. This marriage is marred by a few sporadic bugs and some escape mechanics that might require more than one attempt due to the way the game maps are designed. None of this, however, manages to detract from the experience—primarily emotional—that the game offers, proving captivating in both form and content, drawing inspiration from classics like Clock Tower and Heart of Darkness.
    • 83 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Rogue Waters is a roguelite with turn-based combat that is certainly not among the most complete around, but it benefits from a fascinating setting and interesting use of pushing and projecting to create domino effects and quickly get rid of enemies. What's more, it has a story to be followed all in one go or by taking breaks while engaging in the many side quests. Unfortunately, the naval combat section was not articulated enough, but the battles and character growth lift the fortunes of this production, which will not fail to thrill lovers of turn-based combat.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Dice Legacy is a competent strategy/survival game with some neat and well-implemented ideas; the random element is there, but generally easy to handle, and good planning trumps sheer luck. However, it isn’t particularly rich in content, and it might get grindy if you’re aiming for the hardest difficulties.
    • 60 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    A very pleasant and engaging adventure, Flint: Treasure of Oblivion reaches the goal without distorting the genre and not inventing anything particularly new in the scenario of tacticians with RPG elements. Shuffle the cards on the table by taking inspiration from Baldur's Gate 3, inserting the dice mechanic and, in the meantime, detail an intense story polished to reach as many players as possible. If you haven't read Treasure Island, you want to get closer to Stevenson and then buy this toy here, then this adventure could give you unexpected emotions.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    The Wardrobe does not have some magnificent 3D engine nor some extra-cool special effects for your graphic cards, but it does have tons of black humour and a lot of abstruse puzzles that will please the old-school adventure fans.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Skylanders Imaginators is fun and does not disappoint, though it's not particularly innovative and it may exceed in being too familiar to longtime fans.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Psychic Specters is a sort of YO-KAI WATCH 2 Definitive Edition, that adds more and more contents: a perfect game for those who haven't played the main game yet, dispensable for everyone else.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    This is a game of pure wrestling which aims to replicate the most technical and psychological aspects of the discipline by offering a rigorous, but very rewarding gameplay. You need an investment in terms of hours and effort to get satisfaction from Fire Pro Wrestling World, but you’ll get a game that can last, literally, decades.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2 is simply huge, with an engaging story, an incredibly rich roster of characters - including some obscure (mini)figures - and an enormous world to play with. That is, unless you've had enough of the usual Traveller's Tales formula, basically unaltered from all the previous LEGO games.
    • 83 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Finally, after fourteen years, Red Dead Redemption also arrives on PC. The title has aged very well, unfortunately this conversion brings with it countless technical problems.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Warlander is a high-quality MOBA with a hack 'n' slash combat system that works well even in the most chaotic online situations. Regardless of the task at hand in battle, there is never a shortage of action, whether you seek for a fight to break through enemy lines or stay in the rear building defen-sive machines. Character growth and equipment provide satisfaction, and even without the Battle Pass, a lot of rewards can be unlocked. I am a bit afraid about the importance of in-game purchases, however, since the upgrades are not all merely cosmetic but directly affect player stats.
    • 82 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    The Last Spell combines RPG, Tower Defense, and City Builder genres, with the extermination of numerous hordes as seen in They Are Billions, managing combat with the beloved turn-based system. The problem is precisely here: each run is a complex and slow chess match that can last a very long time, so those expecting quick sessions may be disappointed.
    • 68 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Pixel Ripped 1978 lasts less than ten hours and isn't particularly memorable to play, yet the spot-on humour, the abundance of hilarious gimmicks and the feeling of being in Sunnyvale during those pioneering years manage to pack enough of a context to make the game appealing to anyone interested in Atari's history and in the mood for a few good laughs. Overall, it is a game that is greater than the sum of its parts.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    The Berlin Apartment is a short but sweet walk through a century of history of the German capital, where the underlying theme is life under oppression; of the Third Reich at first, and of the DDR later. Good voiceover, pleasant visual style, but the “gameplay” is a bit clunky at times.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 ReMIX is the n-th collection of the series. As usual, it's completely useless if you're a long time fan, but totally worth it if you want to catch up before Kingdom Hearts III.
    • 69 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Wolfenstein: Youngblood could be wrongly categorized as a "more of the same", but the many new features make it an indispensable title for fans of the series, even if these new mechanics aren’t without flaws.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Deadlight: Director's Cut is a beautiful and enjoyable game, although a little short and with a taste for trial & error. Highly recommended if you didn't play the original version, published four years ago on PC and Xbox 360.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Coming 27 years after its predecessor, Beyond a Steel Sky inevitably lacks the originality that made Beneath a Steel Sky such an instant classic, and a strong source of inspiration for many games that came later. Union City is now a 3D world, but it’s still filled of clever puzzles and interesting characters, shaped around Cecil and Gibbons’ view of society. It might not be as groundbreaking as the original, but Beyond a Steel Sky is still a good adventure that tries to offer a perspective on our society and how we should try to improve it without leaving anyone behind.
    • 78 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    The only thing more difficult than making a revolution is to re-make a revolution. SUPERHOT: MIND CONTROL DELETE is still a fun shooter, based on innovative and intriguing ideas, but no longer as effective as they had been in 2016. The roguelite approach certainly gives the game a more conspicuous length, but on the other hand ends up watering down at least part of the mechanics, making the overall experience less incisive than that of the original chapter. After all, as SUPERHOT has always taught, reality is all about perception.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Much like Everybody's Gone to the Rapture, Tacoma captures the player's attention from the beginning to the end, thanks to an intense story, a strong personality and a gameplay tightly connected to the sci-fi setting. It's a pretty short experience, but definitely worth your time, at least if you love a good sci-fi story.
    • 69 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Neverwinter Nights 2: Enhanced Edition is a respectful and functional restoration of the role-playing video game originally developed by Obsidian Entertainment. The graphics and overall performance have improved, but the aesthetic remains dated. Modern accessibility features are missing, while companion AI is still lacking. However, most of the content, especially Mask of the Betrayer, shines with narrative depth. This is a faithful remake that aims to preserve the magic of the original, and it largely succeeds.
    • 69 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    It doesn’t really introduce anything new to the genre, yet Warhammer: Chaosbane is a nice hack & slash ARPG with a deep and engaging endgame.

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