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) | – | 63 | 5 |
| All-time Steam reviews | 88% | 82 | 118 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | – | 0 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | 100% | 97 | 1 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Scoring window: last 30 days (no significant patch detected) · 2 reviews sampled · 2 total reviews in window · weighted 1.4 up / 0 down · computed 3h ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (15)
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
“How To Train Your Dragon is, in theory, a movie franchise rife for decent video game adaptations. With plenty of lore, world building and material to draw on across both the TV and film platforms, it’s surprising then that the games haven’t managed to take advantage of this as much as they should. Despite some fun dungeon crawling mechanics and a simple, original story, New Riders fails to deliver a compelling and memorable experience, devolving too often into the usual tropes you’d expect from this sort of movie tie-in.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“Despite being a licensed tie-in, Dragons: Dawn of New Riders is anything but a broken, half-baked money-grab. It's not particularly remarkable in its features, and it really misses a trick by not adding more things to do while riding your dragon between dungeons, but for recovering Skylanders fans and those a little too young to go loot crazy in Diablo, this is still a family-friendly adventure that's well worth your time on Nintendo Switch.”
read full review ↗ - 55
“Boring and rushed experience, probably just to promote the new movie. ”
read full review ↗ - 60
“Dragons: Dawn of the New Riders is a solid if unspectacular companion to the movie threequel.”
read full review ↗ - 60
“This child-friendly dungeon crawler has brief moments of brilliance, but descends too often into dull drudgery. Plus, for a game about flying a dragon, actually flying your dragon is a lead weight. ”
read full review ↗ - 65
- 60
“WORTH CONSIDERING - Dragons Dawn of New Riders makes for an easy to pick up adventure/RPG and an entertaining romp through the Dragons universe. It’s not going to blow any minds, but fans of the series will love its charming presentation, while younger audiences will appreciate the game’s accessibility and light-hearted style.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“Film tie-in games are always looked down upon, and the fact that it’s a franchise aimed at kids means most grown-up gamers are not going to take it seriously. But underneath its licensing, Dawn of New Riders is a sweet adventure game. ”
read full review ↗ - 65
“Dragons Dawn of New Riders is an ideal game for young gamers, but lacks some essential elements hardcore gamers would like to see. There's a lot to explore and there're a lot of iconic How To Train Your Dragon elements to find in this game.”
read full review ↗ - 55
“Still, DreamWorks Dragons: Dawn of New Riders is the rare movie tie-in that doesn't flagrantly lean into a reliving of the film. Dawn of New Riders tries to do something else entirely, and that's admirable in its own way. There's a decent time to be had -- especially for youngsters -- and its flaws and shortcomings don't grate too much, thanks largely to a relatively short runtime. But, because it forges its own path, Dawn of New Riders won't make a lasting impression on the How to Train Your Dragon canon.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“Dragons: Dawn of New Riders mostly keeps it simple and fun with an easy to follow story and gameplay. It is not the most complex action game but makes uses its licensed property creatively. So instead of looking like forced tie-in, it feels more like a proper spin-off to the movie.”
read full review ↗ - 60
“Simple but stylish, Dawn of New Riders is nothing new but a lot of fun, especially for fans of the series.”
read full review ↗
TheReviewGeek
Nintendo Life
PLAY Zine
FingerGuns
TheSixthAxis
SomHráč.sk
Nintendo Times
GameSpew
XGN.nl
Destructoid
GearNuke
The Digital Fix…and 3 more tracked reviews.
Patch history
No patch announcements found on Steam yet.