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) | – | 74 | 9 |
| All-time Steam reviews | 91% | 86 | 1000 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | – | 0 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | 92% | 86 | 687 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Scoring window: since the last significant patch (Oct 12, 2023) · 300 reviews sampled · 687 total reviews in window · weighted 191.5 up / 16.5 down · computed 1h ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (14)
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.
- 75
“With a variety of titles proving that the tight and challenging strategy of a roguelike can make for compelling play it’s not hard to see some of Ring of Pain’s influences...”
read full review ↗ - 85
“Ring of Pain is an immensely enjoyable experience that can be monumentally frustrating due to its luck-focused nature. It has excellent mechanics and really has a way of worming itself into your brain. But it can be horribly aggravating all the same.”
read full review ↗ - 75
“This is a game designed with a vision which was successfully executed. Playing Ring of Pain to see that execution alone would be worth it. Fortunately, there also happens to be a decently compelling dungeon crawler in there despite some pain points.”
read full review ↗ - 65
“A speedy roguelite with confusing narrative content that bogs down an otherwise fulfilling blueprint of satisfying moment-to-moment gameplay and positively off-putting visual design. A case of carte blanche backfiring in the face of a finale that fails to uphold a promise on one end, betraying that quick-thinking nature.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Ring of Pain can be frustrating in its difficulty, but more often than not, it's satisfying and wonderfully creepy.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“Ring of Pain is an excellent concept which is almost perfectly executed, but falls flat at the final hurdle. The gameplay is as engaging as it is moreish, which is why it's such a shame that the difficulty spike at the end ruins the experience. Hopefully this is something that's amended after today's release.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“GOOD - Ring of Pain is an artistic blend of casual card combat, procedural dungeon running, with some roguelike mechanics. Its strengths are in the short play sessions, and dynamic outcomes that can be had, along with the more advanced strategy that’s possible. Shortcomings include a heavily RNG based system, where sometimes the cards just won’t be in your favor. Additionally, a lack of really any meta unlockable carry-thru content was a strong disappointment for me. Still, I can see myself jamming on a run or two over a lunch break for the foreseeable future without feeling burned out, which says a lot for this genre.”
read full review ↗ - 85
“Ring of Pain has some slight issues that hamper its replayability but, overall, its a dark, atmospheric and well rounded addition to the card rogue-like genre”
read full review ↗ - 70
“Ring of Pain probably isn’t something you’ll sit and play for hours at a time. It’s the sort of thing you’ll enjoy a few rounds of before turning it off, more than likely feeling defeated. But it won’t be long before you’re itching to jump back in and try again. There’s something infectious about its simplicity; it’s a roguelike dungeon crawler like no other, and despite the lack of action or actual dungeon-crawling, it’s huge amounts of fun. Even when you’re exploding left, right and centre.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“There's certainly room for improvement in Ring of Pain, but what is here is an intriguing step forward for the genre that's just in time to celebrate the Halloween season. With a few content updates and a rebalance that lets players experience more of the game's arsenal more consistently, this could be a real contender. As it stands, it's an engaging mystery waiting to be solved, a gameplay loop that's perfect for shorter play sessions interspersed with more in-depth dungeon dives done elsewhere.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Ring of Pain takes a mashup of genres and brings them together for a dark and challenging adventure. The most important takeaway is that it works and provides some great gameplay moments for hours with many new ways to approach encounters. Sure, there are a few high moments of difficulty, and a few systems aren’t completely newcomer friendly, but there’s definitely enough here to keep you entertained for hours of dungeon-crawling and deck-building.”
read full review ↗ - 55
“Ring of Pain shows creativity and promise, but all to little depth to carry those qualities through. The choices presented by the game are interesting in principle, but in practice your success or failure are determined by luck more than anything else. The result is a game defined by repetition, which struggles to justify the time it asks of you. That said, for a minor price and a fun few runs, you could do far worse as a distraction.”
read full review ↗
Nindie Spotlight
PC Invasion
NintendoWorldReport
GameGrin
GameSpot
TheSixthAxis
Nintendo Times
TechRaptor
GameSpew
Screen Rant
Noisy Pixel
GamingTrend…and 2 more tracked reviews.
Patch history
- Build notes 1.6.02f2Oct 6, 2025
- Build notes 1.6.01f2Nov 1, 2023
- Multiclass UpdateOct 12, 2023
- Build notes 1.6.00 - Multiclass UpdateOct 12, 2023significant · resets scoring window
- Beta update 1.5.07bSep 8, 2023
- Beta update 1.5.06bAug 19, 2023
- Beta update 1.5.04bMay 26, 2023
- Beta update 1.5.04bMay 17, 2023
- Team update from Twice DifferentMar 21, 2023
- Build notes 1.5.03 - Minor Daily Dungeon fixOct 21, 2022
- Build notes 1.5.02f3 - Minor patchSep 6, 2022
- Build notes 1.5.02 - Minor patchAug 26, 2022
- Build notes 1.5.00f2 - Minor patchJul 22, 2022
- Community Content UpdateJul 22, 2022significant · resets scoring window
- Build notes 1.5.00 - Community Content UpdateJul 22, 2022significant · resets scoring window
- Beta update 1.4.08bJun 14, 2022
- Beta update 1.4.07bMay 10, 2022
- Build notes 1.4.04f3 - Minor patchApr 8, 2022
- Beta update 1.4.06bApr 8, 2022
- Build notes 1.4.04f2 - Minor patchMar 9, 2022
- Beta update 1.4.05bMar 8, 2022
- Build notes 1.4.04 - Minor patchJan 6, 2022
- Build notes 1.4.03 - Minor patchDec 21, 2021
- Build notes 1.4.02 - Minor patchDec 14, 2021
- Time Weaver UpdateDec 10, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- Build notes 1.4.00 - Time WeaverDec 10, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- Beta update 1.3.13bNov 23, 2021
- Beta update 1.3.12bNov 19, 2021
- Beta update 1.3.11bNov 4, 2021
- Beta update 1.3.10Oct 27, 2021
- Beta update 1.3.09f2Sep 30, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- Beta update 1.3.08Jul 16, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- Beta update 1.3.07Jun 18, 2021
- Build notes 1.3.06Jun 11, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- Build notes 1.3.05Jun 4, 2021
- Build notes 1.3.03May 18, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- Build notes 1.3.02May 12, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- Build notes 1.3.01May 10, 2021significant · resets scoring window
…and 34 earlier patch announcements.