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The Magic Circle

The Magic Circle

Question · released Jul 9, 2015

ActionAdventureIndieSimulationStrategyPCPlayStation 4Xbox One

In this darkly comedic story, you are the hero of an unfinished fantasy game, and your designers have failed you. Steal the power of a game god - trap their creations, swap behaviors and body parts, crafting your own unique solutions to free-form puzzles. Can you release a game ...from the inside?

Steam page ↗OpenCritic ↗Metacritic 79 · users 7.9 ↗
86
VGC Score
·No trend datamedium confidence
83%
At launch
92%
Steam all-time
80%
Press
83%
Player sentiment
n/a
Recent sentiment

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.

ComponentPositiveQuality (0-100)Weight (pseudo-reviews)
Press reviews (OpenCritic)–806
Creator reviews (1 tracked)–970
All-time Steam reviews92%87750
Metacritic user ratings–832
Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted)––0
Calibration prior (typical game)–7250

Scoring window: last 30 days (no significant patch detected) · 0 reviews sampled · 0 total reviews in window · weighted 0 up / 0 down · computed 4h ago · full methodology →

Press & Creators reviews (27)

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.

  • 80
    Slant MagazineSlant Magazine
    trust 77Aug 7, 2015

    “Simultaneously cynical and sincere, The Magic Circle is a postmodern critique of video games that comes in the form of a neofuturist video game. ”

    read full review ↗
  • 70
    Gamer EscapeGamer Escape
    trust 72May 9, 2016

    “Sure, there are plenty of titles that poke fun at multiple aspects of gaming tropes and the surrounding culture. But sometimes pulling back the curtain in a creative way can really work to the medium's advantage.”

    read full review ↗
  • 70
    Cubed3Cubed3
    trust 70Jan 24, 2016

    “The wonderful irony of The Magic Circle is that despite the extreme cynicism that informed its creation, it's actually representative of many of the positive aspects of modern gaming. Its biting humour and brilliant premise place it as part of a vanguard of indie titles keeping videogames more alive and engaging than ever, beneath the AAA mire. It's a very human product and, as such, makes some very human mistakes (most notably dreaming up amazing gameplay systems that vastly outstrip its own scope), but that's an acceptable price to pay for a work of genuine creative vision.”

    read full review ↗
  • 90
    The EscapistThe Escapist
    trust 66Jul 14, 2015

    “The Magic Circle is the best "broken" game you've ever played - and a rich satire of the industry to boot.”

    read full review ↗
  • 75
    EurogamerEurogamer
    trust 66Jul 20, 2015

    “This is a game written for people who have worked in a particular kind of game development. It's hard to applaud the jokes when it's unclear where the lines between reality and exaggeration lie - and this is a story whose shoots grow from lived experience. Far easier to applaud the game's core gameplay invention, which enlivens The Magic Circle at its heart, and a piece of design that, unlike Ishmael Gilder, will surely find a life beyond its game.”

    read full review ↗
  • 65
    GameGrinGameGrin
    trust 65Jun 28, 2016

    “Although its mechanics are not upbeat enough to have you engaged for hours at a time, the story is interesting enough to say something, however niche this message is.”

    read full review ↗
  • 80
    Power UnlimitedPower Unlimited
    trust 65Oct 7, 2015

    “The Magic Circle is meta as all hell and it works in fascinating ways. Its gameplay and graphics are far from groundbreaking but it’s an interesting experience nonetheless. [Sept 2015, p. 068]”

  • 78
    PC GamerPC Gamer
    trust 64Jul 9, 2015

    “Visually drab and a bit too taken with its own story, but otherwise a clever and fun exercise in creative problem-solving.”

    read full review ↗
  • 90
    Washington PostWashington Post
    trust 63Jul 21, 2015

    “The Magic Circle conspires to challenge video game culture from the inside, taunting players and developers alike.”

    read full review ↗
  • 95
    TechRaptorTechRaptor
    trust 63Jul 15, 2015

    “A memorable trip into game design and development hell, The Magic Circle's only sin is that there isn't more of it to play around in. What is here is storytelling and gameplay intermingled with expert care, bringing the player on an intellectual thrill ride that should be seen by all.”

    read full review ↗
  • 78
    IGNIGN
    trust 61Jul 31, 2015

    “A marvelously creative, puzzling adventure that’s very mad at you.”

    read full review ↗
  • 90
    PressA2JoinPressA2Join
    trust 61Jul 20, 2015

    “"The Magic Circle was definitely a quirky, lovingly made and interesting ride which I enjoyed immensely. The only thing I'm still unclear on is I'm still trying to decide whether the fact that it left me wanting more is a good or a bad thing."”

    read full review ↗

…and 15 more tracked reviews.

Patch history

  1. Update With A Small Fix
    Sep 6, 2016
  2. Update With A Small Fix
    Sep 6, 2016
  3. Update With Some Bugfixes
    Aug 23, 2016
  4. Update With Some Bugfixes
    Aug 23, 2016
  5. June Update with a Number of Tweaks and Fixes
    Jun 14, 2016
  6. June Update with a Number of Tweaks and Fixes
    Jun 14, 2016
  7. Small Update With A Puzzle Tweak and Small Fix
    Apr 18, 2016
  8. Small Update With A Puzzle Tweak and Small Fix
    Apr 18, 2016
  9. Humble Monthly Update: Welcome New Players!
    Apr 3, 2016significant · resets scoring window
  10. Humble Monthly Update: Welcome New Players!
    Apr 3, 2016
  11. Ides of March Update, IGF Nomination, and SXSW!
    Mar 15, 2016
  12. Ides of March Update, IGF Nomination, and SXSW!
    Mar 15, 2016
  13. Update With Numerous Small Fixes and Tweaks
    Feb 24, 2016
  14. Update With Numerous Small Fixes and Tweaks
    Feb 24, 2016
  15. Fix For Rare Endgame Bug and Some Tweaks
    Feb 11, 2016
  16. Fix For Rare Endgame Bug and Some Tweaks
    Feb 11, 2016
  17. Russian Translation, Optimizations, and Fixes!
    Jan 26, 2016
  18. Russian Translation, Optimizations, and Fixes!
    Jan 26, 2016
  19. Small Change To How Default Language is Determined
    Oct 23, 2015
  20. Update With Fixes for Minspec Machines and More
    Oct 12, 2015significant · resets scoring window
  21. Update With Fixes for Minspec Machines and More
    Oct 12, 2015
  22. Small Update With a Few Bugfixes
    Oct 2, 2015
  23. Small Update With a Few Bugfixes
    Oct 2, 2015
  24. Update #8: Major Addition To The End Of The Game!
    Sep 22, 2015significant · resets scoring window
  25. Update #8: Major Addition To The End Of The Game!
    Sep 22, 2015significant · resets scoring window
  26. Post-PAX Prime 2015 Update
    Sep 4, 2015
  27. Post-PAX Prime 2015 Update
    Sep 4, 2015
  28. Release Patch 6
    Aug 12, 2015
  29. Release Patch 6
    Aug 12, 2015
  30. Release Patch 5
    Jul 18, 2015
  31. Release Patch 5
    Jul 18, 2015
  32. Release Patch 4
    Jul 16, 2015
  33. Release Patch 4
    Jul 16, 2015
  34. LINUX VERSION NOW AVAILABLE! Release Patch 3
    Jul 15, 2015
  35. LINUX VERSION NOW AVAILABLE! Release Patch 3
    Jul 15, 2015
  36. Release Patch 2
    Jul 14, 2015
  37. Release Patch 2
    Jul 14, 2015
  38. Small Patch Update
    Jul 13, 2015
  39. Small Patch Update
    Jul 13, 2015
  40. Update #9 Is Live! Language Localization!
    Jul 7, 2015

…and 17 earlier patch announcements.