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) | – | 85 | 10 |
| All-time Steam reviews | 95% | 89 | 1000 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | – | 0 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | 97% | 92 | 19 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Acclaim gate: the raw blend lands at 88.4, but scores above 88 must be earned in front of a mass audience; this verdict rests on 3,947 player reviews, a largely self-selected fanbase. As more players weigh in, the ceiling rises (full scale unlocks at 100,000 reviews).
Scoring window: last 30 days (no significant patch detected) · 50 reviews sampled · 54 total reviews in window · weighted 45.1 up / 1.6 down · computed 2h ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (26)
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
“428: Shibuya Scramble is a classic nonlinear visual novel that requires you to be attentive. More than 50 hours of delight are guaranteed to the fans of good detective stories.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“428: Shibuya Scramble is a fun addition to the PS4's growing visual novel stable. Solve a kidnapping, thwart a viral conspiracy, and assist a hapless salesperson in taking off her giant cat costume: Spike Chunsoft's zany story has charm to spare and is both funny and thrilling while it lasts.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“The unique presentation and excellent storytelling of 428: Shibuya Scramble make it a great visual novel experience.”
read full review ↗ - 90
“428 : Shibuya Scramble is clearly a game worthy of its Japanese reputation. Spike Chunsoft's Visual Novel tells a riveting story and makes a really clever use of its multiple bad endings system. The game gives you a tour of the real Shibuya and introduces you to a cast of characters that grows on you very fast. It grows on you so much in fact, that once the game ends, you're sad that you'll never see them again.”
read full review ↗ - 100
“The way 428: Shibuya Scramble is presented is unlike any other translated title, but if you value games with strong stories you owe it to yourself to not let this creative crime drama fly under the radar. Like Shibuya's scramble crossing, the events are chaotic and the passing moments between characters are sometimes fleeting, but crossing that iconic intersection is one hell of a memorable experience.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“In the end, 428: Shibuya Scramble is yet another top notch Visual Novel, a genre that has exploded onto the console scene seemingly overnight and shows no signs of slowing down. ”
read full review ↗ - 90
“It won't satisfy those who like a lot of action in their games, but anyone who likes to take their time and devour a good book will be in their element, that's for sure.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Despite some minor issues, 428: Shibuya Scramble is one of the most unique visual novel ever seen.”
read full review ↗ - 100
“When all is said and done, this visual novel is absolutely incredible through and through. Again, having no VA on a console VN is a shame, but the game is just fine without it. The camera work is superb while admittingly the amount of motion blur in some shots are definitely a bit much in some situations. But other than that, I can’t give any praise higher to a work like this. The use of Live Action truly elevated what would be considered just another good visual novel. Everything here is just spectacular.”
read full review ↗ - 100
“Overall, I really enjoyed 428: Shibuya Scramble. The story is excellent; incredibly engaging, getting my very emotionally invested in all the characters especially as things ramped up in the later hours. The writing style perfectly combines seriousness and occasional lighthearted jokes when appropriate, making it enjoyable even during relative downtime. None of the main characters stand out as particularly weaker than the others, and each of their stories carries the same weight and quality all the way throughout the game. That’s a long way, too; completing everything took me just shy of 50 hours, with just playing through until the end of the epilogue taking just over 40 hours. Even though it’s on the longer side, it still kept me fully engaged through all of it, and is definitely worth the $49.99 USD, having easily earned the respect it has among visual novels. If you’re at all interested in visual novels, mystery and detective stories, or you just want something exciting and different (there’s even a demo on PS4 if you don’t want to take the full plunge right away), I can’t recommend 428: Shibuya Scramble highly enough.”
read full review ↗ - 87
“428: Shibuya Scramble's Western release is a miracle. Don't sleep on it.”
read full review ↗ - 85
“After a wait of ten years, finally 428: Shibuya Scramble has also landed in our area. With a fantastic setting like Japan surrounding a compelling and intriguing story, the game deserves to be widely promoted with few reservations. Absolutely recommended both to those who appreciate visual novels, and to those who are entering the genre for the first time even if for the latter the impact may not be immediately the best. If you do not let yourself be discouraged by the presence of the English language alone, you can therefore prepare yourself for a story made up of many, many paths to follow to trace your destiny.”
read full review ↗
GameMAG
Push Square
GameSpot
Gameblog
JRPG.moe
DarkZero
GameSpew
IGN
Gaming Gamma
oprainfall
RPG Fan
Tom's Hardware Italia…and 14 more tracked reviews.
Patch history
- Patch Notes (1.01)Oct 25, 2018