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For 493 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 38% higher than the average critic
  • 9% same as the average critic
  • 53% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 9.3 points lower than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Game review score: 66
Highest review score: 100 Potion Permit
Lowest review score: 20 Asemblance
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 214 out of 493
  2. Mixed: 160 out of 493
  3. Negative: 119 out of 493
493 game reviews
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    • 94 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Celeste
    Overall Celeste is a phenomenal game. While the game delivers on all fronts, the relatable story and soundtrack stand out as two of the most memorable aspects. The challenging platforming helps to keep the player motivated to push forward. The discussions between Madeline and side characters to the game help the world around you feel alive, and their guidance helps Madeline to continue pushing forward. Celeste is not a game for everyone. The difficulty alone is something to easily turn players away. To those who are looking for a challenging platformer with a rewarding story, Celeste is definitely a one of a kind diamond in the rough.
    • 93 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    INSIDE
    The prospect of not playing this game is far scarier than whatever Inside's ominous bad guys have planned for that poor little boy.
    • 92 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    What Remains of Edith Finch
    What Remains of Edith Finch is an absolutely beautiful and emotionally complex game. Despite a certain sense of morbidity in telling so many tales of death, the game is truly about the celebration of life. Despite all their differences, each family member is remembered more for who they were than how they were lost. This is a wonderful little tale that uses every second to the fullest, and truly should not be missed.
    • 91 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Dead Cells
    The way the game infuses its roguelike elements with a deliberate linear design is brilliant, creating a sense of consistent forward momentum that you rarely see in its peers. This isn’t an experience which mostly relies on RNG for a good run, as you’re always in the driver’s seat building your character and navigating the interconnected world. Its moment-to-moment gameplay is pure gold, but the way the overarching game remains compelling after so many hours is its greatest feat.
    • 90 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Ori and the Will of the Wisps
    I actually haven’t played the first Ori so I can’t compare the two nor do I have a bias based on how much I enjoyed the previous installment. I would wait for some patches before attempting this game. It’s excellent, there’s no doubt about it, but when things don’t work you become robbed of the experience. Still, it’s better than most platformers out there, even with the issues.
    • 89 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Zen Pinball 2: Bethesda Pinball
    Zen Studios has taken a lot of time to think each stage through and try to bring as much of the feeling of that game and its world as they could. Each table felt 100% like a pinball representation of its triple-A counterpart and not only was the table enjoyable to play but it sparked great memories of the original games.
    • 89 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Stardew Valley
    This game is $14.99, but it should be $30, or even $40. The game is vast, detailed and nearly impeccable in every way, with perhaps only the social element lagging behind the rest. It is every bit as feature packed as the AAA rated games that it is similar to, such as Harvest Moon and Animal Crossing. I'll be playing Stardew Valley for a long time to come, and I genuinely hope that this review inspires you to pick it up and do the same, because this is one of the finest examples of passionate, empowered independent video game making I've ever come across.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    N++
    N++ may be the definition of too much of a good thing. As much as I enjoy the game, it got tiring after a while, soon finding it more enjoyable in short bursts rather than long marathons. If you're fine with a mountain of content that becomes so difficult, you'll most likely never finish it all; this is a great sequel that kept retained what was good about the last game and made some worthwhile additions. It gets repetitive, but the gameplay is so fun it'll keep pulling you back in for more.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    The Banner Saga 3
    The Banner Saga 3 is a truly wonderful interactive story and a solid tactical role-playing game. While this entry can stand on its own in the trilogy, The Banner Saga should be experienced as one cohesive work across the three games. It’s a fitting end to a harrowing journey. It’s not often that games are developed as such a complete package, from the art and gameplay to the narrative and score – everything comes together in harmony as an incredibly unique experience.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Manifold Garden
    Playing through Manifold Garden is a lot like examining an MC Escher work, admiring its beautifully impossible architecture while parsing the complexity of the world. It’s undoubtedly confusing at first, but look close enough and you’ll get a grasp of the mechanics holding this reality together. I’ve played my fair share of first-person puzzle games, and I can’t remember the last time I played something this unique, intelligent and downright beautiful.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice
    As a game, Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice is the cross between a puzzle-lite walking simulator and a brutal action-adventure. Despite some mild design and middling technical flaws, it balances both aspects rather well. As a narrative, this is one fantastic experience. It’s an honest, challenging look at battling mental illness that will stick with you long after the credits roll. It’s as beautiful as it is soul-crushing, making it a must play for anyone who still has a soul to crush.
    • 87 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Kingdom: New Lands
    If you’re already a strategy fan or enjoy the ever growing breed of roguelikes that seem to be springing up everywhere, you’ll almost certainly enjoy Kingdom: New Lands. On the other hand if you’re new to either then I can’t think of a better place to start.
    • 87 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Donut County
    To go for the lazy metaphor, Donut County is like a delicious pastry. It’s baked with the kind of care you’d only get from a homemade dessert. Maybe they could have been a little more liberal with the jelly filling, but it’s a fantastic treat regardless. Modest yet satisfying, it’s the perfect go-to if you’re craving something sweet.
    • 87 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Insane Robots
    Overall Insane Robots is a well presented, fun little card battler. Its simplicity makes it an ideal game to start with if you’re new to card games, and the difficulty curve is spot on meaning you’ll be continuously challenged until the end and beyond. Whilst a multiplayer mode is available, given the lack of player base, you should view this as a single player game. However, the story could have done with some more depth to make the game a true standout; in fact, I would happily waive the multiplayer aspect for some better lore.
    • 86 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Cuphead
    I wish I could recommend Cuphead to everyone purely on its amazing animation and the sheer amount of work that was obviously put into it, but I can't. The game behind the cartoony visage is finely tuned, well-rounded and (mostly) fair, but above all, it's incredibly hard. It starts off challenging and gets absolutely relentless by the final act. This is the kind of game that asks for a lot of patience and dedication from the player, but if you're into this type of challenge, you're in for an absolute blast.
    • 86 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Sky Force Reloaded
    Sky Force Reloaded is everything that I wanted it to be and more. The replay value that every unique level offers up, as well as the four difficulty levels that each level has to offer assures there is always a challenge waiting to be tried and conquered. If you are looking for a game that keeps its overall design simple but still offers a fair challenge, Sky Force Reloaded may just be what you’re looking for!
    • 85 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Firewatch
    Firewatch is one of my favourite walking simulators because of its engaging script and lasting story, but it is by no means the revolutionary, life changing experience that I had built it up to be in my mind. It's actually more of an ordinary, pedestrian experience, and that is kind of what makes it successful.
    • 85 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Guacamelee! 2
    I liked Guacamelee 2 more than I did its predecessor, though being a few years removed from that experience it’s hard to pinpoint why. I remember the original left me unimpressed and occasionally frustrated; here those feelings were lessened but not completely mitigated. It’s the same game but better, backed by a team that’s gained a lot of experience since they’re first go-round. If you loved the first you’ll love this; if you didn’t love the first this still may not win you over, but it’s a definite step in the right direction.
    • 85 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Axiom Verge
    It's incredibly well-designed, a ton of fun to explore and has its fair share of clever gameplay ideas. If you're a fan of amazing retro titles, this one's worth checking out.
    • 85 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom
    The game is both playful and challenging, encouraging you to overcome the obstacles before you and keep the story moving. The franchise may have been overshadowed back in the day, but Monster Boy deserves to be up in the rarefied air primarily populated by Italian plumbers with a fondness for the color red.
    • 85 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Enter The Gungeon
    Despite playing for hours on end I never got particularly good at Enter the Gungeon, but that doesn't mean I didn't thoroughly enjoy my time with it. It's great as a top-down shooter, even if it's just average as a roguelike. Pairing the frustration of bullet hell with the frustration of a random number generator doesn't always yield results, but when the stars align there's just something magical about it.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    The Touryst
    The Touryst is an absolutely great game with a lot to do during its playtime. The mini games are diverse and fun enough that I would come take the challenge again. The story, while barebones, is quirky enough to hold my interest with a twist that I can say I didn’t expect. This will be a game I make a return visit to.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    The Missing: JJ Macfield and the Island of Memories
    Besides being a fun puzzler, The Missing provides a look into depression and psychological torment. It’s grotesque yet elegant. I would even go to claim that it’s a borderline masterpiece. It leads you in one direction then turns out you were wrong the entire time. When it ends, it clicks all at once, and you suddenly want to read all the message conversations over again and play through to see everything in a different light. I couldn’t stop playing and actually spent seven hours straight playing until it was finished. I even kept replaying chapters afterward to collect what I missed. Overall, I think bold design choices were made, and we are rewarded with one of the best platformers available.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    The Banner Saga 2
    The Banner Saga 2 builds on the foundation of its predecessor while forging a path for the future. This sequel introduces new ways to play but, unfortunately, keeps some of the troubles that plagued the first game. It’s a good sequel to what’s turning out to be a great series, though: the banner still flies high with a story worth being told weaved into it.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Nidhogg 2
    Nidhogg has always felt like the promise most fighting games make but set the bar way too high to actually deliver: two highly skilled combatants that have not only mastered their technique, but can read their opponent and counter accordingly. No memorization of strange combos or endless character variations, just simple controls with a highly balanced set of rules that make for a learning curve so smooth it’s practically nonexistent. Nidhogg 2 adds some small but mighty innovations to the gameplay, making it feel fresh without ruining what made it so special in the first place.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night
    If someone asked me right now, what my favorite game of the year was it would be Bloodstained, hands down. Even after completing it, I still felt an addiction to find every single item and upgrade all abilities. I can play for hours and not get bored. It has everything you could imagine a platformer to have. I played on normal and have a feeling I’ll start a new game plus on a harder difficulty. Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is easily going to be a favorite for many people. I am beyond impressed with the production value as well as the combat and excellent story. I can’t express how much I recommend this to everyone. It’s an experience you won’t want to miss.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Thimbleweed Park
    Thimbleweed Park is so much more than a nostalgic throwback. It's a distillation of everything that makes point-and-click adventures great, and a modern perfection of a classical type of game design. It's an absolute must if you are or ever were a fan of the genre. While it may be a bit too niche to bring in new fans, I'd still say it's worth a recommendation to even the most puzzle-adverse among us.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Race The Sun
    This game is completely in my wheelhouse, as the saying goes. It’s great if you have a few minutes to wait for something (such as a game update finishing up), but it’s equally superb at getting you to play it just one more time. Therefore, you won’t be returning to your planned activity until you start yet another race you know without a doubt you will lose … and you’re quite okay with that. Race the Sun is a fantastic game at a bargain price that deserves a portion of your Xbox One’s hard drive space.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Moonlighter
    This game is a beautiful experience from beginning to end and something that is not only unique but can be a fantastic introduction into the rogue-lite genre for those that have never ventured in or even those that felt the genre was maybe not for them.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Assault Android Cactus
    In the end, Assault Android Cactus didn’t meet my expectations; it exceeded them. The five zones that are offered grant a unique experience with each level and boss you face. Some of the bosses can be a bit overwhelming at first, but even with the different attacks they have, the variety of android heroes available to play as assures the player that there is something for every encounter. The different modes that are offered ensure that there is something more for the player to do after the main story has been completed and for a true competition, the game offers the challenge of earning a S+ rank on every level, requiring the player to complete every level without ever letting their combo end. Good luck on that one.
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