Windows Central's Scores

  • Games
For 812 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 60% higher than the average critic
  • 5% same as the average critic
  • 35% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 4.5 points higher than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Game review score: 79
Highest review score: 100 INSIDE
Lowest review score: 20 Soda Drinker Pro
Score distribution:
  1. Negative: 10 out of 812
827 game reviews
    • 79 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Nobody Saves the World is a humorous romp through a 2D world where the hero is little more than a pale, pantsless shell that players can magically transform into a colorful cast of characters. RPG elements let players customize the experience even further as they rack up a body count of baddies.
    • 83 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Yakuza: Like a Dragon swaps out its long-running protagonist and gameplay tropes to magnificent results. The team at Sega has crafted one of the most absurd, most entertaining, and most fun JRPG I've played in years.
    • 81 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    By improving upon the issues of the last two episodes while continuing their successes, the conclusive episode to Life is Strange: Before the Storm is a near-flawless end to the impactful, heartfelt prequel.
    • 86 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    I loved exploring the dilapidated swamps of the Baker Plantation, exploring each macabre room, perusing each foreboding text file, and desperately diving through each fetid trash can for discarded shotgun shells. The Baker family are brimming with depraved personality and beat out some of the franchise's most staple characters for their demented, violent behavior. Some of RE7's most horrific moments will be burned onto your mind and may take weeks to subside.
    • 80 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    The Artful Escape has been in the works since around 2015, and the effort shows. The game is precise in what it wants to portray and doesn't overstay its welcome. It tells a contained story about one guy, his famous uncle, and the whole of the cosmos, and does it well. It's also a story about the power of music, the art of creating, and the journey to becoming your true self. You can take what you want from it, make it one of your best comfort games if you want, but at the very least, it's a cool game to look at. It'll look great as one of the best Xbox games joining Xbox Game Pass this month.
    • 86 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Between the excellent gameplay and the solid presentation, Mega Man X's return to the market is a strong one.
    • 89 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    With a colossal open world packed with well over 100+ hours of engaging content, substantially improved combat compared to the original KCD, and more, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is an undeniable triumph from Warhorse Studios. It's one of the best RPGs I've ever played, and will undoubtedly be in the conversation for 2025's Game of the Year.
    • 85 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Desperados III is the game I never knew I needed. A perfect blend of satisfying Wild West tropes, a surprisingly compelling story, and an endlessly-gratifying tactical layer that will make you feel like the architect of a bandit-murdering Rube Goldberg machine. With guns.
    • 86 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    A stellar fighting game and is one of the best ones ever made in my opinion. The depth and variety it offers are unparalleled, even by the likes of Injustice 2, another NetherRealm creation. There are so many characters to customize and master — with many more on the horizon — which should keep you enthralled for months to come.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire is an amazing game. Obsidian has gifted the already cluttered RPG genre with an excellent title that offers hundreds of hours worth of gameplay. Puzzles, ship combat, side quests, exploration, and other activities keep you occupied along the way.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    If you like tough cooperative experiences, it really is a joy. The game naturally encourages everyone to stick together in large or small groups, watching each other's backs and using class abilities to help the team. The 15 levels are all excellent and memorable (despite the lack of environmental interactivity), providing the sense of variety that the bosses do not. With tons of classes to level and weapons to wield, Killing Floor 2 has some serious staying power. Tripwire has announced Xbox One X enhancements, too, which will keep the game going even longer.
    • 89 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    From the beginning of the game to the end credits, I loved Sea of Stars. It has an engaging combat system, gorgeous pixel-art graphics, a large variety of intriguing side content, and a fantastic plot featuring a charming world, likable characters, and crazy twists that I didn’t see coming. If you grew up playing JRPGs in the 1990s or are a younger fan who likes JRPGs in general, then I guarantee you’ll love Sea of Stars.
    • 91 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    As if it was in much doubt, Forza Horizon 3 is one of the finest games you'll find on the Xbox One right now. It's so incredible to look at, so beautifully crafted and so enjoyable to play that there are literally hundreds of hours of fun to be had here.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Persona 5 Strikers delivers the meaningful story, relateable characters, and complex mechanics fans expect from mainline games but switches the gameplay up to focus on action over time management.
    • 92 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    The Shadow of the Erdtree DLC is Elden Ring at its most refined, with overly formulaic elements of the base game's open world design cut away and some of the most exhilarating boss battles in the entire FromSoftware Soulsborne catalog. The result is a game-sized masterpiece of an expansion that will keep players enthralled for upwards of 40 hours, with its new map home to an enjoyable character-driven narrative, a diverse collection of treasures, and countless secrets to discover.
    • 81 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Between the perfect gameplay, great story, and flawless presentation, Aragami is a stealth masterpiece. It's that simple.
    • 81 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    If you fancy yourself the town mayor of a sprawling metropolis of your own design, pick up Cities: Skylines. Just keep an eye on the clock, or you might find that you lost an entire day to this wildly addictive game.
    • 78 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    The inelegant blend of serious themes and wacky comedy, and the use of what I feel are dated strategy game aiming mechanics prevent Mutant Year Zero from being truly perfect, but it's still an incredible experience that you can't miss.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Sniper Elite 5 takes the foundation of the of the familiar franchise and builds upon it with improvements to world design, historical accuracy, and accessibility.
    • 82 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    The only downside to Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 and 2.5 ReMix and Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue is that they're quite expensive and the camera can be finicky at times if you're in a claustrophobic environment.
    • 91 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Sandfall Interactive's debut RPG perfectly fuses the deep strategy of turn-based combat with the satisfying challenge and mastery of real-time action games, resulting in a wholly unique experience that sets itself apart. Together with the game's stellar storytelling, jaw-dropping presentation, and good overall performance, that makes it one of 2025's must-play titles — and a huge release for Xbox Game Pass.
    • tbd Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Halo Wars 2: Awakening the Nightmare is a superb expansion that closes out the game's DLC schedule with a bang. Between the creative levels, fun and simple story, useful and powerful multiplayer leaders, and challenging Terminus Firefight mode, Awakening the Nightmare is a quality experience you don't want to miss.
    • 86 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Civilization is a legendary strategy franchise, and to finally get it on Xbox One is a dream. Just be warned, this is one hell of an addictive game.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    In my opinion, the combat, visuals, and themes, hold up well, and it's a treat to play them at 60 FPS.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Powerful characters, nuanced story-telling, and stunning visuals make Mafia: Definitive Edition one of the best story-driven games of the year.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Airborne Kingdom breathes new life into the city-building genre with its unique concept, innovative mechanics, and enjoyable exploration. Together with the gorgeous visuals and awesome music, these features allow Airborne Kingdom to soar above the rest of the genre.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    While the AI can be a little too exploitable sometimes, and the stuttering can often be really annoying, these are problems people can mostly overlook. The frustration I feel from these issues is a tiny fraction of the joy and love I feel for the game.
    • 86 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection is one of the most fun Capcom JRPGs I've played in ages. It has refined the series' turn-based combat and monster-catching formula with new innovative ideas that kept me hooked for hours, and it has some of the best story and character writing the whole franchise has ever seen. While its reduced Monstie roster and lack of High Rank are disappointing, they should not deter you from enjoying this gem.
    • 93 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Split Fiction proves that Hazelight Studios isn't done defining what co-op games can be, with excellent gameplay and unique level design that stays fresh throughout the entire experience. Mio and Zoe may drift into some cheesy genre clichés, but that's entirely the point of this warm story that emphasizes human creativity above all.
    • 87 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Subnautica is an exceptional game of exploration, crash-landing the player on an unknown planet with unfamiliar terrain, unexplored depths, and strange wildlife. While some smaller creatures will appear more afraid of you, it's the larger predators that will make your oxygen levels quickly drop with the increased heart rate. It's a game that captivates you as soon as you step out of the lifeboat with the gorgeous water effects and stunning environment.
This publication does not provide a score for their reviews.
This publication has not posted a final review score yet.
These unscored reviews do not factor into the Metascore calculation.

In Progress & Unscored

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    • 64 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    FBC: Firebreak is a lot of fun, at least when you've got a friend of two to play with. It's the most different a Remedy game has dared to be, taking a first-person perspective and introducing co-op play. There's a large number of fun gameplay systems that interact in enjoyable or unexpected ways, and if you're okay with a little chaos, it's a fun ride that seems perfectly suited for hopping in and playing a bit without spending thousands of hours in-game. [Review in Progress]
    • tbd Metascore
    • Critic Score
    While still in early access, Palworld is far more polished and engaging than many other creature-collecting games out there. The inclusion of survival mechanics, challenging combat, crafting, and exploration all work together to make one of the most compelling games in years. Since you can play with your friends in co-op multiplayer, it's also a great way to be social with friends. [Early Access Review]
    • tbd Metascore
    • Critic Score
    SpellPunk VR is a unique concept with incredible visuals and a lot of potential. The problem is that, right now, there's almost no content to be found. The game is designed as a multiplayer-only experience, but there's no player base to speak of at this time of review. Aside from that, it's a shallow experience that will only appeal to the most magic-crazy among us. [Early Access review score = 40]
    • 82 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    The Division 2 sets the standard for visual quality on Xbox One X. Moody lighting, evocative weather effects, and painstakingly-detailed environments have pretty much become Ubisoft's calling card, and they're all the more impressive when you consider how Division 2 increases the stakes...Early on, The Division 2 feels very similar to the original game, but the small improvements look as though they could help the franchise realize the potential largely missed by The Division when it launched in 2016.
    • tbd Metascore
    • Critic Score
    From its distinctive art style to its decently fleshed-out world, Kitaria Fables is as cute as they come and filled with its own personal brand of charm. However, surprisingly engrossing combat and a stable experience don't cover the myriad of strange game design decisions that cause Kitaria Fables to move at glacial pace.
    • tbd Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Nightingale is a game I wanted to love. It's a game I kept telling myself and others about whenever more information came out about it. I was excited, enthralled, and mystified by the idea of it. It pains me to say my experience left a sour taste in my mouth. It's as though everything is half-baked at this point. With that said, it's early access, and what the developers have lined up could be a fascinating game once finished. [Early Access Review]
    • tbd Metascore
    • Critic Score
    What I've seen is but a tiny snapshot of what's to come, but it's immediately clear that this is the most grandiose release to date. [Hands-On Impressions]
    • tbd Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Even at this early stage, Grounded is an incredibly fun adventure with exciting combat and creative survival gameplay.
    • 77 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Ghostwire: Tokyo is an intriguing investigative thriller where players weave elemental magic against angry apparitions in a Tokyo-inspired limbo spirit world.
    • tbd Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Whether this Viking simulator can differentiate itself from other survival games remains to be seen. However, as an early access game, it works well, and it's definitely worth a look, especially if you're a fan of Assassins Creed: Valhalla or the recent God of War reboot. [Early Access Impressions]
    • tbd Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Lightyear Frontier's development team is determined to bring its debut indie game to life. Despite an indefinite delay, the game's well-defined roadmap for expected updates promises an exceptional, comforting gaming experience. Although there's still room for improvement, the early-access farming simulator could transform into the cooperative game of my dreams. [Early Access Score = 90]
    • 73 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Beyond Light has an excellent campaign and Europa is an awesome patrol zone, but the lack of new loot and the terrible Stasis balancing make the expansion difficult to recommend.
    • tbd Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Please, Touch the Artwork is a subversive, heartfelt, and cheeky love letter to modern art and minimalism.
    • tbd Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Simply put, Manor Lords is a gorgeous game, especially for something that was almost entirely put together by a single developer. Its various structures and NPCs are some of the most detailed I've ever seen in a city-builder, and the beauty of its medieval European landscapes is accentuated by its natural lighting and color balance. The environment also changes as seasons come and go, with heavy spring rains, autumnal color shifts, and winter snowfalls highlighting the passage of time. [Early Access Review]
    • 81 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Wuchang wears its soulslike inspirations well and truly on its sleeve, but the absolutely stunning, if dark, romanticised Chinese setting gives it a unique and beautiful canvas that we're not often exposed to in AAA games in the west. For all of Wuchang's beauty, it hides deadly, and utterly brutal difficulty which can spike to intense heights at unforeseen moments — forcing you to reconsider everything about your playstyle and build. I haven't finished the game yet, but I'm confident enough to give you a review-in-progress about what you should expect from Wuchang: Fallen Feathers. In short, steel yourself. [Review in Progress]

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