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) | – | 49 | 7 |
| All-time Steam reviews | 72% | 69 | 1000 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | 55 | 4 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | 0% | 15 | 2 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Scoring window: since the last significant patch (Aug 31, 2026) · 2 reviews sampled · 0 total reviews in window · weighted 0 up / 1.2 down · computed 4h ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (17)
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.
- 20
“In its current state, PixARK on the Switch is a poorly optimized, unenjoyable, and otherwise weak approximation of the Minecraft experience that in no way delivers value equivalent to the money you’re paying for it. Considering it comes with a $40 price tag at the time of writing, this unfinished and unpolished game is borderline robbing you of your hard-earned money and time that could be so much better spent on just about anything else you can think of. We would strongly urge you to take a hard pass on PixARK, as it offers a lacklustre survival experience that’s not even worth the memory it’ll take up on your SD Card; life’s much too short to be wasted on poorly made games such as this.”
read full review ↗ - 20
“What little merit PixARK has is thoroughly overshadowed by how blatantly unfinished it is. It’s astonishing that a Minecraft knock-off would be listed on the eShop at a higher price than Minecraft, but it’s truly mind-boggling that the actual game is in such a sorry state. Do not play PixARK.”
read full review ↗ - 60
“PixARK is a very complicated game that allows almost complete freedom, but at a cost.”
read full review ↗ - 30
“AWFUL - PixARK is a Minecraft clone that should be avoided. This game offers a lot of content that is tedious to play through. Everything that should be a simple feature is made far more complex than it needs to be. When just walking around feels like a chore, then you know you’re in for a bad time. This feels like an unpolished early access experience and not a finished $40 game.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“PixArk has got a lot of problems, and you should be aware of them- but if you are, and if you can grit your teeth and work your way through them, the final experience is oddly rewarding and engaging.”
read full review ↗ - 55
“There are so many gamers around the world who really want to see the different worlds combine and give them a new world, but PixArk is probably not the combination that anybody has ever seen or asked for. The child of Minecraft and Ark is not an engaging experience nor a creative one. The online multiplayer can be fun from time to time, but the overall result is not something that you enjoy a lot.”
read full review ↗ - 73
“ARK mixed with Minecraft. It need better performance.”
read full review ↗ - 77
“PixARK realises a lot of things in a good way, some even better than ARK: Survival Evolved. Even, if the basic gameplay is nearly the same, the characters in PixARK are far more likable, atmosphere and soundtrack are more intense and the pixel-optic creates surprisingly detailed dinosaurs. Furthermore, PixARK deliveres some quests, that open the monotonous gameplay-routine at least a little bit.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“A few months back I picked up Ark Survival Evolved on the Nintendo Switch. Before I could even pop the cartridge into my Switch, my twitter feed was flooded with posts on how awful the game was… and how poorly it was ported. I had already bought it at this point and wasn’t to be deterred by the posts. One of the things that drew me to this title was the ability to tame and ride dinosaurs, which I found such an exciting mechanic.”
read full review ↗ - 40
“PixARK is a really poor Minecraft clone, and that's it.”
read full review ↗ - 80
- 75
“PixARK straddles the line between Minecraft's accessibility and ARK's genre-bending setting, bringing a sandbox of crafting fun with countless options that is hindered by clunky console interaction and menu navigation.”
read full review ↗
Nintendo Life
NintendoWorldReport
Checkpoint Gaming
Nintendo Times
GamingBolt
Gamefa
Battle4play.com
Mighty Games Mag
Rapid Reviews UK
BaziCenter
GameSpace
Digital Chumps…and 5 more tracked reviews.
Patch history
- PixARK 1.229 Update AnnouncementAug 31, 2026significant · resets scoring window
- PixARK Client UpdateAug 29, 2026significant · resets scoring window
- 方块方舟 客户端更新公告Aug 28, 2026significant · resets scoring window
- PixARK: Terracrypt – Quest "A Deadly Threat" Display Issue NoticeAug 27, 2026significant · resets scoring window
- PixARK Legacy Official Server Saves Now Available for Download!Aug 25, 2026significant · resets scoring window
- PixARK: Terracrypt - Official Server Modes and Launch ScheduleAug 24, 2026significant · resets scoring window
- An Important Update on PixARK Official ServersJul 31, 2026
- PixARK Patch 1.225 Summer's Day!Jun 25, 2026
- PixARK Patch 1.224 Children’s Day EventMay 28, 2026significant · resets scoring window
- PixARK 1.223 Easter Patch NotesApr 2, 2026
- Dev Update FAQ: What’s Coming Next in PixARKMar 20, 2026significant · resets scoring window
- Patch 1.222 St. Patrick's Day EventMar 12, 2026
- PixARK 1.221 Lunar New Year&Valentine's Day Patch NotesFeb 6, 2026significant · resets scoring window
- PixARK 1.220 New Year's Eve Patch NotesDec 26, 2025significant · resets scoring window
- Pixark 1.219 Christmas Patch NotesDec 18, 2025significant · resets scoring window
- PixARK Patch 1.218 Thanksgiving UpdateNov 25, 2025
- PixARK Patch 1.217 Halloween UpdateOct 24, 2025significant · resets scoring window
- Pixark Patch 1.216 Autumn Reunion UpdateSep 29, 2025
- PixARK Patch 1.215 Summer's Day!Jun 26, 2025significant · resets scoring window
- PixARK 1.214 Patch NoteJun 18, 2025
- PixARK 1.213 7th Anniversary UpdateJun 13, 2025
- PixARK Patch 1.212 Children’s Day EventMay 29, 2025significant · resets scoring window
- Temporary Server Maintenance AnnouncementMay 16, 2025
- PixARK 1.211 Easter Patch NotesApr 17, 2025
- PixARK Server Maintenance AnnouncementMar 17, 2025
- Patch 1.210 St. Patrick's Day EventMar 14, 2025
- PixARK Patch 1.209 UpdateFeb 28, 2025
- PixArk 1.208 Valentine's Day Patch NotesFeb 13, 2025
- PixARK 1.207 Lunar New Year Patch NotesJan 17, 2025significant · resets scoring window
- Pixark 1.206 Christmas Patch NotesDec 19, 2024significant · resets scoring window
- PixARK Patch 1.205 UpdateDec 3, 2024
- PixARK Patch 1.203 Halloween UpdateOct 24, 2024significant · resets scoring window
- Pixark Patch 1.202 Autumn Reunion UpdateSep 20, 2024
- PixARK Patch 1.201 UpdateSep 12, 2024
- PixARK Patch 1.200 UpdateAug 29, 2024
- 1.199 Summer Sports！Community Creature Contest is entering the voting stage.Jul 11, 2024significant · resets scoring window
- Pixark Patch 1.198 Summer's DayJun 27, 2024significant · resets scoring window
- PixARK Patch 1.197 Children’s Day EventMay 30, 2024significant · resets scoring window
- PixARK Patch 1.196 UpdateMay 16, 2024
…and 11 earlier patch announcements.