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) | – | 67 | 16 |
| All-time Steam reviews | 73% | 69 | 300 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | – | 0 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | 88% | 81 | 1 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Scoring window: last 30 days (no significant patch detected) · 2 reviews sampled · 0 total reviews in window · weighted 0.6 up / 0.1 down · computed 2h ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (43)
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.
- 70
“The nostalgia is nice, but I'm also reminded of advancements that the genre has made over the past twenty-plus years. With brisker combat and some much-needed voice work, this could be great, but Earthlock is still good as-is for genre fans.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“An indie adventure with a lush world, fun characters, and enjoyable battles, Earthlock brings the soul of PS1-era JRPGs to the Switch with excellent results. Inconsistent dialogue and notable load times are among its few missteps, but as a package, it captures the appeal of the epoch wonderfully. If you're looking for a fresh-feeling JRPG that still calls back to the classics, this is a lovely choice.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“It’s a good game and I did enjoy playing it but there isn’t as much depth as I would like in the story. It sounded promising and has a fairly interesting backstory but with ok dialogue and simple storyline, it didn’t blow me away. The gameplay itself was everything I wanted of the game though quite repetitive and simple but with unique features that were exciting to play around with. As a big fan of JRPG’s I am impressed with Snowcastle Games and looking forward to the next chapter in the story.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“All in all Earthlock is a solid JRPG experience that should be quite welcome on the platform since it is currently a bit lacking in the genre. While it’s hardly revolutionary it does a fairly good job of delivering on what’s most important in terms of combat mechanics and fun. While it may be priced a bit high for an indie title for the most part it’s a reasonably-good investment.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“Earthlock isn't going to go down as an essential JRPG, especially on the PlayStation 4 where RPGs aren't exactly uncommon, but it will go down as a charming, respectable title that pays tribute to the PSone era of the genre without forgetting to carve an identity of its own.”
read full review ↗ - 60
“Earthlock: Festival of Magic is a surprisingly hardcore RPG that belies its child-friendly surface. Teeth-gnashing boss battles can almost always be overcome with careful consideration and patience, and, when you find the solution, you'll wonder why you were even annoyed in the first place. The story is guff with a set of bland characters that do little more than move you from place to place, but you could do worse.”
read full review ↗ - 60
“From the animation to the structure of the combat and progression, most aspects of Earthlock can be traced back to an earlier game that just did it better. Without its own original or unique hook, Earthlock just feels bland and dated. For a independent developer to be able to carve out a piece of the RPG market dominated by big players like Atlus and Square Enix you need to bring something new and unique to the table and unfortunately this is something that Earthlock doesn't accomplish.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“Storytelling and character development aren’t Earthlock’s strongest points, but it has some interesting twists on classic JRPG gameplay. If you miss those classic games, Earthlock: Festival of Magic is worth a look, just don’t expect anything earthshaking.”
read full review ↗ - 65
“Earthlock: Festival of Magic shows that the JRPGs aren’t games of a bygone era. It’s got it’s issues, but it’s still a fun game if you’re a fan of the genre. Hopefully, the developers will have the funds and resources in the future to deliver a more fleshed out experience, but for now, this game is just fine.”
read full review ↗ - 30
“A loving homage to PS one era JRPGs, but its small innovations are suffocated beneath a dead weight of clichés and conventions that in most cases were better off left to the past.”
read full review ↗ - 75
“If there's one word to describe Earthlock, it'd have to be "charming". The characters are likeable, the world is well designed and there are plenty of interesting things to do or discover.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Earthlock does, for the most part, succeed in going beyond its nostalgically-inspired roots.”
read full review ↗
Pure Nintendo
Nintendo Life
Invision Community
Nindie Spotlight
Cubed3
Push Square
NintendoWorldReport
MonsterVine
GameGrin
Metro GameCentral
ThisGenGaming
SwitchRPG…and 31 more tracked reviews.
Patch history
- Earthlock 2 Update!Feb 18, 2022
- Patch today (Bug fixes)Mar 16, 2018
- Patch today (Bug fixes)Mar 16, 2018
- Linux Beta is live!Mar 9, 2018