How this score was computed
The VGC Score is a weighted blend on a press-comparable 0-100 quality scale. Steam approval rates are first calibrated (95% positive on Steam ≈ 89.5 quality, since Steam approval skews high). Press and tracked creator reviews each count ~2x a player review and share one cap against player evidence (creator buy/skip calls pool into an approval rate, calibrated like Steam approval); all-time sentiment is capped and halved (it's context, not verdict); reviews of the current build carry the most weight when a fresh patch anchors the window; and a 'typical game' prior keeps small samples from pegging the scale. Because press reviews and Metacritic user aggregates describe the launch build, their weight decays as the game ages (3-year half-life after a 1-year grace). That's how a game that launched rough can outgrow its old reception once updates win players over. Reviews under 2h playtime (the refund window), non-Steam activations, and free copies are downweighted.
| Component | Positive | Quality (0-100) | Weight (pseudo-reviews) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Press reviews (Metacritic) | – | 75 | 20 |
| All-time Steam reviews | – | – | 0 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | 64 | 123 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | – | – | 0 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Scoring window: last 30 days (no significant patch detected) · 0 reviews sampled · 0 total reviews in window · weighted 0 up / 0 down · computed 2h ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (24)
Individual verdicts from outlets we track: scored reviews first, most trusted outlets first among them. The small badge is each outlet's trust score: how well its scoring history aligns with players.
- 70
“The Crown Tundra is another fine addition to Pokémon Sword & Shield, but it emphasises many of both the highlights and shortcomings of the base games. The highs are excellent, white hot flashes of wonderment, but they’re a little spoiled by a foundation of ageing game design. We would recommend this to anyone who enjoyed The Isle of Armor, but considering if you’ve paid for that you’ve already paid for this, it’s hard to argue otherwise. The Crown Tundra offers a glimpse of a possible future, and what it does well, it does seriously well, but the series as a whole deserves to be completely dug out of the nearly 25 year-old design philosophies that made the originals great. The world has moved on since Pokémon first arrived, and it’s time for the series to catch up.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“As an expansion to the main game, The Crown Tundra offers perhaps even less varied distractions than its predecessor, The Isle of Armor, and fewer rewards or strategic advantages to unlock. However, it also potentially offers more playtime, since Dynamax Adventures are sure to keep players invested in search of a sought-after rare or legendary shiny Pokémon with good IVs. Since both expansions can't be bought separately and come bundled no matter what, both ultimately complement one another rather well. It is therefore hard to scoff at what's on offer in the Expansion Pass, although it should only be considered indispensable by the most eager Pokémon fans, who are more likely to get the most value out of it.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“The Crown Tundra brings back some fan favourite Pokémon and provides some much-needed end-game content. However, it’s content felt skin-deep and could have fit easily into the main game.”
read full review ↗ - 78
“The Crown Tundra is a little inconsistent, but the sheer amount of content and the delightful tundra itself make for Game Freaks best open world experience yet. Also, the many legendary Pokémon and the cooperative Dynamax Adventures give Sword and Shield some welcome new endgame experiences.”
read full review ↗ - 60
“It features some of the best moments from this generation of Pokémon but this final slice of DLC still suffers from a lack of substance and ambition.”
read full review ↗ - 75
“Pokémon fans now have some great new challenges, new Pokémon and more dynamic areas to explore. We wish it had been there from the start. [Issue #2, p.76]”
- 80
“Pokémon Sword and Shield: The Crown Tundra is another fun DLC that offers more cool Pokémon to catch, an awesome new game mode in Dynamax Adventures, and a surprising amount of discovery and secrets. Its weak story, grindy encounters, and modest amount of content are offset by the fact that it nails open-world exploration and the thrill of hunting for legendary Pokémon, even if it doesn’t break a whole lot of new ground doing it.”
read full review ↗ - 85
“The better of Pokémon Sword and Shield's two expansions, The Crown Tundra provides the best framework yet for an open-world Pokémon game. The new Dynamax Adventures mode provides one heck of a challenge, and the emphasis on Legendary Pokémon is a nice focal point. A few things could've been handled better, but fans likely won't want to put it down.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“Pokémon Sword and Shield: The Crown Tundra is the better of the two DLCs for the game, though that's not saying much. It manages to weave Pokémon's modern sensibilities with some strong nostalgia for old-time fans like myself, and I found myself more than happy to cycle around The Crown Tundra for hours on end, catching all of the Pokémon I found. If that's not a good result, I don't know what is.”
read full review ↗ - 75
“Now that the season pass is in the hopper, it's easy to feel like Pokemon Sword and Shield are a transitional generation to something greater.”
read full review ↗ - 65
“Pokémon Sword and Shield The Crown Tundra it's a finish line in Pokémon eighth generation, but also a sad and limited one. Mostly because nothing makes really difference, although the challenges makes us curious it really doesn't enough.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Does The Crown Tundra completely reinvent Pokemon Sword and Shield and right everything that has dragged the series down in recent years? No, it doesn’t do that. In fact, at its core, it’s still just more of Sword and Shield. However, it does at least augment the core gameplay experience of Sword and Shield in some really interesting ways through Dynamax Adventures and with Wild Areas being packed with more things to do and see.”
read full review ↗
Nintendo Life
Cubed3
Pocket Tactics
Power Unlimited
Metro GameCentral
IGN
Nintendo Enthusiast
Wccftech
Destructoid
Hobby Consolas
Twinfinite…and 12 more tracked reviews.