Screenshots & trailers
Review sentiment over time
Weekly positive-review rate (green) and review volume (bars). Dashed lines mark significant patches; the amber line is the start of the current scoring window. Hover the dots to see what drove a dip or a jump.
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 (OpenCritic) | – | 66 | 12 |
| All-time Steam reviews | 83% | 77 | 192 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | – | 0 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | 90% | 83 | 335 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Scoring window: since the last significant patch (Apr 24, 2024) · 300 reviews sampled · 335 total reviews in window · weighted 91 up / 10.6 down · computed 17m ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (8)
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.
- 75
“Life Eater is the kind of game that comes with a lot of ifs. If you're able to buy into its disturbing narrative, if you're okay with abstract systems-driven storytelling, if you're okay with short and easy... then sign up! And if you are able to embrace all of that, you could come away with it being one of your favorite experiences of the year. If even one piece doesn't click for you though, the house of cards starts to fall apart. For me, it almost put all the pieces together. Its narrative stunned me, but it was over in a blink. Its gameplay systems build a fantastic foundation but never quite find that cohesion I'm used to from the team. But when Strange Scaffold only half-clicks you still come out the other end with one of the most original games of the year, one of the strongest narratives of the year, and almost definitely the best kidnapping sim ever released.”
read full review ↗ - 55
“Life Eater is a game with great promise. It has a unique and horrific premise that sees you as a serial killer fulfilling the wishes of some demonic god through ritual sacrifice, but never manages to live up to that promise through its gameplay or story elements.”
read full review ↗ - 65
“Life Eater is a game I'm a little sad I can't rate on concept and premise alone. Snooping through timelines of activities of potential targets and investigating tidbits to try and correctly take down those requested is good on paper, offering the same highs of franchises such as Hitman. However, its execution is a little underbaked. The qualifiers for targets are equally too vague and too simple with little variety, leading to friction and distrust about whether or not you're on the right track. There is quality design in the way you're managing meters to avoid suspicion and maximising your time, along with some stellar returning performances from the likes of Xalavier Nelson Jr. However, Life Eater needed a little more time bunkering down, taking notes, and just getting every little thing right. The perfect hunt it is not.”
read full review ↗ - 60
“Mechanically, Life Eater uses a diary-based puzzle system in some really interesting ways, but it struggles to say anything meaningful about the shock-factor setting it's gone for.”
read full review ↗ - 60
“While I was undeniably a little disappointed after going into this with high expectations, it's a very unique game that offers an interesting experience once you accept that it's a much smaller project.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“Life Eater provides something quite different from anything else available, and will likely live long in the memory. For that reason, even in spite of its faults, it's probably worth a try for anyone with even a cursory interest in horror or new ways for games to tell their stories.”
read full review ↗ - 55
“Life Eater feels like an experiment that neither fizzled nor exploded. All the parts are there, but they don’t fit together quite right. Something is missing, and before that something was located, it was released into the wild as-is. Because it can’t find its effectiveness, the central concept that should be so compelling and disturbing is just kind of fluffy. If an apathetic detachment from ritual sacrifice was what Life Eater was aiming for, then it nailed it. Unfortunately.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“In Life Eater, this manifests through its interesting stalking mechanic and the Strange Scaffold staple of an exemplary script.”
read full review ↗
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Checkpoint Gaming
Eurogamer
GameLuster
Screen Rant
Destructoid
TheGamerPatch history
- Controller Hotfix (v1.3.12)May 29, 2024
- Endless Mode Has Been UnlockedMay 20, 2024
- Endless Mode Has Been Unlocked (v1.3.10)May 17, 2024
- Update #2 (v1.2.4)May 11, 2024
- Update #1 (v1.1.0)Apr 24, 2024significant · resets scoring window
- Cloud Save Issue Resolved!Apr 18, 2024
- Hotfix #1Apr 17, 2024