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) | – | 83 | 16 |
| All-time Steam reviews | 97% | 92 | 1000 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | – | 0 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | 96% | 90 | 825 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Acclaim gate: the raw blend lands at 90.6, but scores above 88 must be earned in front of a mass audience; this verdict rests on 2,248 player reviews, a largely self-selected fanbase. As more players weigh in, the ceiling rises (full scale unlocks at 100,000 reviews).
Scoring window: since the last significant patch (Jun 10, 2026) · 300 reviews sampled · 825 total reviews in window · weighted 177.6 up / 8.2 down · computed 1h ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (10)
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
“Vivid, strange, clever, and haunted, Forbidden Solitaire runs on dungeon master theatrics, online folklore, and a morbid affection for bygone eras, even if it doesn't do enough to make the many, many games of solitaire you'll play particularly interesting or tense.”
read full review ↗ - 95
“Forbidden Solitaire is a near-perfect game to me. It's quick, it knows what it is and stays true to itself from end to end, and it's created with such heart that you can't help but smile all the way through. Dream games are few and far between in this industry, and for me, Forbidden Solitaire is a dream game. Grey Alien Games and Night Signal Entertainment found each other at just the right time to make something no one else is making, make it right, and pour all they have into it.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Forbidden Solitaire turns a simple game of patience into a surprisingly clever horror card adventure with dungeon-crawler DNA. Not every battle hits hard, but its musty ’90s CD-ROM charm works brilliantly.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“A unique and solid experience that blends solitaire with FMV and horror. Great for anyone looking to get into the card game or bring some freshness to it!”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Forbidden Solitaire takes everything we love about mid-90s CD-ROM full-motion video games and incorporates a well-thought-out and sometimes deep twist to solitaire. With its strong writing, perfectly formed visuals, creepy atmosphere and some interesting fourth-wall-breaking moments, even with its shortcomings, this makes for one of the year’s most original and memorable titles and will forever change the way you play solitaire!”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Forbidden Solitaire is a brilliantly addictive experience that manages to balance a spooky, creepypasta-like narrative with genuinely fun solitaire mechanics. As someone who appreciates both gaming urban myths and a bit of nostalgia, it ticked all of the right boxes for me. And sure, it is guilty of being a bit easy, but between the tantalising setup, the satisfying puzzle-based battling, and the unsettling nature of the overarching tale, Forbidden Solitaire undoubtedly stands out as a wonderful old-school experience.”
read full review ↗ - 100
“As it stands though, this is a compelling package and is more than “just solitaire” that cannot come more recommended. While it revels in being a forgotten, discarded, and controversial game with a storied past, Forbidden Solitaire is one you’ll definitely remember.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Forbidden Solitaire is at its best when it’s being a new old game, perfectly capturing the look and feel of a spooky, experimental FMV horror game made for PCs in the 1990s. It’s at its worst when it’s trying to be a metatextual tribute to creepypasta-style storytelling. And in the middle, there’s a pretty good take on Tri Peaks solitaire that uses modern roguelike-style mechanics without just being another roguelike. And as a bonus, the story about business and creativity clashing in the middle of the cheeky horror and meta stuff is much better than the stuff it’s sandwiched between. With a pitch-perfect runtime this experience doesn’t come close to overstaying its welcome, and ends up being one of the more memorable games of its ilk as a result. If you like card games and horror stories that play in the bizarre, and you’re sick of roguelikes and everything being 30 hours long, Forbidden Solitaire is a bullseye.”
read full review ↗ - 100
“It is wonderful to see such a difficult and unwieldy idea executed so brilliantly. It has been a pleasure to go on this weird trip back to the crucible of PC gaming culture. You don’t have to be nostalgic for the period of fuzzy FMV and splatterhouse gore to appreciate Forbidden Solitaire, it works as a brain-teasing card-battler in its own right. But if you were playing games 30 years ago, when interactive horror meant bad acting, looming purple skies, pixelated images of decapitated heads and stories inspired by pulp fantasy fiction, Forbidden Solitaire is a wildly self-aware, multi-textured treat. Enter if you dare.”
read full review ↗ - –
“It's a long way from Regency Solitaire. Or is it? Birkett is a veteran of the era Forbidden Solitaire represents, and there's less distance than you might think between the casual game portals he used to work on and the CD-ROM trash his new game pretends to be.”
read full review ↗
video games are good
Eurogamer
GameGrin
So Many Games
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Saving Content
Shacknews
Guardian
PolygonPatch history
- Forbidden Solitaire FREE Art Book Update!Jun 12, 2026
- V1.06 UpdateJun 10, 2026significant · resets scoring window
- V1.05 UpdateMay 24, 2026
- V1.04 UpdateMay 22, 2026significant · resets scoring window
- V1.03 UpdateMay 15, 2026
- 'New Game+' Update & Steam Trading Cards!May 9, 2026
- Update V1.01May 2, 2026