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
    • 76 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    EA Sports PGA Tour is a game that fails to unleash its full potential. It offers a considerable amount of content and a rather realistic game structure, with some graphical bugs and some questionable choices in the game modes (especially in the Career) that slow down its race to success. This is a good starting point which that could improve along the way.
    • 69 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    Hey! Pikmin is a decent game, a pleasant mix between platform and puzzle games. It offers a pretty different experience than the main saga, and it's light years behind the astounding Wii U version. Probably a disappointment for hardcore fans of the series, but entertaining nonetheless.
    • 78 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    A few good ideas and the excellent acting of Ashly Burch and Andy Samberg are not enough, however, to make this game unmissable, on the contrary they end up highlighting how the formula begins to need a much more decisive will to innovate than that.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    Despite a certain repetitiveness and joy-con imperfect controls, Sushi Striker: The Way of Sushido is a delightful variation of the classic Match 3 in Bejeweled style, with some elements nicely taken from Puzzle Quest.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    This re-release of Raiden III doesn't add anything new, but it packs and brings to the audience a fun and solid vertical scrolling arcade game. The price is a little high, but enthusiasts will appreciate it.
    • 78 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    Solid, no-nonsense roguelike with a comparatively rare sci-fi setting. Too bad it doesn’t deliver the badass power fantasy that its inspiring material source (Doom) does so well.
    • 78 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    Although driving is super fun, the design of the career mode feels boring and samey after the first hour. Hopefully the multiplayer will be able to lend the game some more longevity.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    Milestone has the reins of motorcycle racing in hand, which it manages with enviable confidence, raising the level of the motocross sub-genre like never before but at the same time not being particularly interested in pushing the franchise in a new direction.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    The Centennial Case: A Shijima Story shows us a hundred years of the Shijima clan amidst mysteries, deaths and intrigues. It does so with an interesting story, which works well and which, albeit with some strange events, follows a coherent and understandable plot. Gameplay is simple, with some interesting ideas and a few too many hints that reduce the need to think and to guess what happened. Even with this limitation, it still remains a fun gaming experience, that will bring crime fans on a century-long journey for a considerable number of hours.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    The Great War: Western Front aims to be a faithful reconstruction of the many battles the France, Britain and Germany fought more than a hundred years ago, and of the context surrounding them. It definitely succeeds at that, thanks to a very good soundtrack and to videos, posters and quotes from the period. Gameplay wise, however, the result is a game that is more catered towards a niche of players.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    Loot Rascals is a roguelike, as they say, easy to learn but hard to master (despite having only five levels). Trying to escape the "doomed" planet can be really fun, especially at the beginning. The multiplayer is curious but rather limited, the daily runs offer a moderate challenge, and at the end this is a game you'll probably enjoy once in a while.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    Curious League of Legends spin-off, this Hextech Mayhem. It’s a simple but solid rhythm game that could use some variety to spice up the gameplay and the level design.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    Dawn of Ragnarok is a bit shallow and nothing more of a “more of the same”. Still a decent content for the Assassin’s Creed Valhalla fans, but it could have been much more.
    • 77 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    Agent 47 is always a charismatic character, and this first episode offers a lot of opportunities to the player willing to seize them. Sadly, the most dangerous enemies of the bold assassin are a poor technical execution and a buggy interface.
    • 69 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    AER Memories of Old is a pretty basic adventure title, with simple puzzles and no real action elements. You can expect a relaxing experience spanning a couple of hours, with some intriguing ideas, a distinctive personality and some touching moments.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    The Kaito Files offers an interesting, engaging, well-written storyline that allows to learn more about Kaito. Gameplay is good thanks to the two new fighting styles, with an intense and well-balanced challenge (at the highest difficulty levels). So why is our final grade high, but not very high? What's wrong? It’s simple. Some elements (pursuit, stealth moments, exploration) are far from perfect and, considering the price, it was reasonable to expect something more contents. Used to wandering around Kamurocho with a thousand collateral activities and a thousand characters to help, I admit I was partly disappointed in finding it so empty.
    • 67 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    A-Train: All Aboard! Tourism might seem a lighthearted game suitable for beginners, instead the last of Artdink’s productions turns out to be the exact opposite. It’s a complex and articulated managerial title, full of micro-management elements and with a particularly steep (perhaps too much) learning curve. That’s because, despite the presence of two exhaustive tutorials, there’s always the risk of being disoriented by an unnecessarily confusing interface.
    • 58 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    Despite a truly intriguing gameplay formula, Peaky Blinders: Mastermind ends just when it really begins to show all of its potential.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    Not very different from other GIANTS Software productions, Farming Simulator 2025 certainly brings some interesting news, implementing three new biomes and as many different methods to deal with the experience. Recommended for anyone who needs to get their hands dirty with mud and for those looking for a quiet experience.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 77 Critic Score
    Let's be frank: an evolution of Lunar Lander must do Lunar Lander's job, and Lunar Lander Beyond fulfills its task. Do you find the gameplay too simple and repetitive? This is a 1979 game repurposed in a deliberately faithful manner, for better or worse, adding some features typical of modern productions but aiming above all to preserve the spirit of the original. Nothing to object to in this respect then, but more effort could have been made in terms of aesthetics, with some elements looking too amateurish that almost makes you regret the vector graphics of the old arcade.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 76 Critic Score
    Stolen Realm is an interesting hybrid son of Dungeons & Dragons, with a very functional "hexagonal" game system, but overall it is a project with strong and obvious production limitations.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 76 Critic Score
    Pac is back with its first PlayStation adventure. This time the yellow fellow must save his family across six worlds, full of danger and (obviously) ghosts. A nice platform game for young and nostalgic players.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 76 Critic Score
    A faithful remaster of a PS2 classic, Onimusha 2: Samurai’s Destiny brings back the brooding atmosphere and layered storytelling fans remember. The improved resolution and new QoL features are welcome, but the lack of real enhancements or modern refinements holds it back. While Jubei’s journey remains compelling and replayability is high thanks to branching paths, the dated combat and stiff controls may deter newcomers. Longtime fans will appreciate the nostalgia, but this feels more like preservation than revival.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 76 Critic Score
    As a cinematic experience, Observation can easily be considered one of the highest points of the genre. Cool photography and a great reproduction of the space environment supports a solid and unnerving narrative. On the gameplay side, however, something did not work to the end and at least part of the screams I left to wander in space were not one of terror, but of frustration.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 76 Critic Score
    Farming Simulator 22 re-proposes the formula that made the Giants Software series famous, with all its strengths and weaknesses. The new features (new crops, cross-platform multiplayer, new build mode, seasonal cycles) are interesting, but the frequent graphical glitches should be addressed.
    • 74 Metascore
    • 76 Critic Score
    Clementine’s story deserves to be finished, and this third episode does justice to the legacy of Telltale Games.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 76 Critic Score
    Evil West isn’t a bad game, but it’s certainly a disappointment. Jesse Rentier is a fun character to play, but unfortunately the encounter design doesn’t always let his full capabilities shine, and the boss battles are downright awful. Still worth playing if you’re looking for a decent single-player (or coop!) action with over-the-top characters, but perhaps wait for a sale.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 76 Critic Score
    Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water is still an intriguing survival horror experience with creepy atmosphere and engaging story, but younger audiences may not like its old-style controls and slow pace.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 76 Critic Score
    Blacksad: Under the Skin is an adventure that moves away from the classic point and click structure, but it's far from perfect in the ambitious game design. That said, Pendulo Studios game is pleasant to play and overall unmissable by fans of the original comic.
    • 61 Metascore
    • 76 Critic Score
    Phoning Home tries very hard to blend the survival genre with a narrative experience. In doing so, it manages to give the player a real reason to keep going on in his adventure but, at the same time, some gameplay dynamics are a little bit flawed. Anyway, there's some real magic in the connection between the two main characters, Ion and Ani, and that's something.

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