Screenshots & trailers
What players say
Why the number is what it is: aspect mentions counted across 299 sampled Steam reviews (224 positive / 75 negative), recent and most-helpful. Plain keyword counting, fully reproducible; nothing here is written by a machine.
What positive reviews talk about
- Story & writing21% mention it
- Grind & repetition14% mention it
- Visuals & art12% mention it
- Combat10% mention it
- Music & audio9% mention it
What negative reviews complain about
- Story & writing27% mention it
- Combat24% mention it
- Visuals & art21% mention it
- Controls & UI16% mention it
- Grind & repetition13% mention it
Satisfaction by hours played
Same score, different games: see how sentiment holds up the longer people play.
Under 5h
36%
47 reviews
5-15h
71%
69 reviews
15-40h
85%
130 reviews
40-100h
91%
43 reviews
100h+
90%
10 reviews
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 | 48 |
| Creator reviews (1 tracked) | – | 80 | 0 |
| All-time Steam reviews | 93% | 87 | 1000 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | – | 0 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | 84% | 78 | 3000 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Scoring window: since the last significant patch (May 9, 2024) · 300 reviews sampled · 3563 total reviews in window · weighted 197.6 up / 32.4 down · computed 1h ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (132)
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.
- 50
“So, what we've got in Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is a well-designed game that's poorly developed. A championship-caliber team that needs another few months (or perhaps another year) of training camp. 505 Games has promised to fix the glaring problems, but I can't review a game based on promises. There's still some fun to be had here, but it shouldn't have been released in its current state. Wait for the updates. If they don't come, wait for a sale…and stay away from the bookshelves.”
read full review ↗ - 50
- 80
“Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is the game that Castlevania series' fans have been waiting for so long - with an interesting world to explore, well-developed locations, great and very atmospheric music, thoughtful progression and a diverse combat system. Small bugs and some design mistakes may disappoint, but if you have long dreamed of getting the spiritual heir to Symphony of the Night, just buy this game. But on on Switch. This version as of now is absolutely unplayable.”
read full review ↗ - 95
“Igarashi delivered exactly what his fans wanted, an incredible game which is one of the best metroidvanias out there.”
read full review ↗ - 90
“As varied and intriguing as the game can get on a conceptual level, it outdoes itself in the minutiae of traversal and combat.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“Despite the fact that this is unquestionably a very fine video game, there's no escaping the fact that the Switch version has some serious issues”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Plenty of things await the attentive player who keeps an eye open for goodies off the beaten path, and exploring the entire place is a thrill.”
read full review ↗ - 85
“With plenty of weapons to find, powers to unlock and secrets to uncover Bloodstained will keep you adventuring through the castle for quite a while. If you’re into the Metroid-Vania genre you should definitely check it out. Igarashi has delivered a solid spiritual successor to his classic Castlevania titles but has also given Bloodstained it’s own two feet to stand on. I’d love to see where he decides to take this series next.”
read full review ↗ - 98
“Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is one of those masterpieces in gaming that only comes once every generation. With responsive controls, great combat and a massive list of weapons and items, it will keep you coming back for more.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“Want to play an old-school action/exploration game the likes of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night? Well, you can't get more old-school, or more... Symphony of the Night than Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night. This offers a vast castle to explore, full of monsters to slay, and with lots of ways to slay them, be it the many weapons that your Shardbinder can use, or the demonic powers that she can absorb. If you are in need for something that's NOT an exact copy of late '90s metroidvanias, though, better look elsewhere.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is a fantastic game and is a sequel to Koji Igarashi’s Castlevania games in all but name. There’s enough familiarity there but also many new ideas which will please newcomers and veterans alike. It may have been a long time coming but Koji Igarashi’s return has been well worth the wait.”
read full review ↗ - 95
“Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night captures the essence of the Castlevania series, perfecting the formula that made Symphony of the Night a classic, and even surpassing its spiritual predecessor in many aspects.”
read full review ↗
Pure Nintendo
Fintendo
GameMAG
3DNews
Slant Magazine
Nintendo Life
RPGamer
ani-game.com
Nexus Hub
Cubed3
Gamer Guides
Gaming on PC…and 120 more tracked reviews.
Patch history
- Bug Fixes | Update 1.6 NotesOct 22, 2024
- Chaos and Versus Modes Are Live | Update 1.5 NotesMay 9, 2024significant · resets scoring window
- Journey Crossover Area | Update 1.4 NotesAug 23, 2022significant · resets scoring window
- Game Update 1.31Jun 2, 2022
- Update 1.21.0.1 - Windows 7/8 FixMar 2, 2021
- Update Notes - 1.21Feb 11, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- Bloodless Rises!Nov 9, 2020significant · resets scoring window
- Development Roadmap UpdateNov 6, 2020
- Soundtrack UpdateOct 5, 2020
- Update 1.17 - Bloodless Pause and Timer FixesAug 4, 2020significant · resets scoring window
- Update 1.16 - Achievement and NPC Crash FixesJul 23, 2020significant · resets scoring window
- Production Status UpdateJul 21, 2020
- One Million Milestone and Development RoadmapJun 11, 2020significant · resets scoring window
- Game Update Patch Notes - August 8, 2019Aug 6, 2019significant · resets scoring window
- Development Update #79 - New Shards and Graphical UpdatesFeb 28, 2019significant · resets scoring window
- Development Update #76 - "Development News and the Team at Work"Dec 27, 2018significant · resets scoring window
- Kickstarter Update #75 "A Hunter Joins The Fray"Nov 29, 2018
- October Kickstarter Development Update #74 is live! The Killer Barber and More ProgressOct 25, 2018significant · resets scoring window
- The September Kickstarter development update #73 "Lighting Optimization, GOG Demo, and More" is live!Sep 27, 2018significant · resets scoring window