How this trust score was computed
Trust blends alignment (40%): does the outlet rank games the way players do; decoded accuracy (30%): after translating the outlet's own scale habits (a '7/10 means mediocre' scale is decoded, not punished), how well its reviews predict player sentiment; and player-side (30%): on games where press consensus and players sharply disagreed, whose side it took. Recent reviews weigh more (2-year half-life), and the blend is shrunk toward a neutral prior (60) so small samples can't peg the scale. Player quality is launch-window Steam sentiment, so outlets aren't punished for reviewing a launch build that later got patched.
Controversy record: on 67 games where press consensus and players sharply disagreed, this reviewer sided with players 18 times.
Computed 1h ago · full methodology →
Outlet vs. players
Each dot is a game both this outlet and players scored. The dashed line is perfect agreement: dots above it mean the outlet was more generous than players, below it more harsh.
Biggest disagreements with players
The receipts: games where this outlet's verdict landed furthest from player sentiment.
- -28Ghost of Tsushimaoutlet 60 · players 88 · Jul 2020
- -27Marvel's Spider-Manoutlet 60 · players 87 · Sep 2018
- +42EA Sports FC 24outlet 80 · players 38 · Sep 2023
- +36Call of Duty: Black Ops 4outlet 80 · players 44 · Oct 2018
- -68Goat Simulatoroutlet 20 · players 88 · Apr 2014
- +27The Outer Worldsoutlet 100 · players 73 · Oct 2019
- -31Metroid Dreadoutlet 60 · players 92 · Oct 2021
- +39Monster Hunter Wildsoutlet 100 · players 61 · Feb 2025
- +21Halo 5: Guardiansoutlet 80 · players 59 · Oct 2015
- +32No Man's Skyoutlet 80 · players 48 · Aug 2016
Recent reviews (799 tracked)
- 60Resonance: A Plague Tale LegacyAug 27, 2026
“Sophia may traipse a path similar to that of countless treasure-hunting, action-adventure video game classics – but for all the overfamiliar design choices, there is enough verve in the beguiling presentation and lively, compellingly drawn characters to elevate this beyond mere retread. Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy succeeds, in large part, because of Sophia, a heroine who confronts history head on, before finally breaking free of it in apocalyptically spectacular style.”
read full review ↗ - 80VHOLUMEAug 26, 2026
“That’s what’s so perverse about this game. One of Vholume’s creators made their name with Babbdi and Straftat, two games that look like a product of the demoscene but actually zero in on deeply satisfying mechanics delivered with care. Vholume’s world is horrible, then, but your path through it is paved with joy and exhilaration. It understands that the only thing better than a game that wants to make you think is a game that wants to make sure you never think, even for a millisecond – because if the thinking brain gets itself involved, the whole beautiful thing will fall apart.”
read full review ↗ - 60The Sinking City 2Aug 17, 2026
“Generous doses of squishy gallows humour, elaborate secrets and expert tension pick up the slack. As does writing that skirts the grim glorification of overt war allegory to tell a story about refusing to leave what you love in the rubble, so long as the faintest signs of life remain. If you’re going to create, wrote Bukowski, you’ll do it “while the whole city trembles in earthquake, bombardment, flood and fire”. And there’s me thinking he was being dramatic.”
read full review ↗ - 80MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting SoulsAug 12, 2026
“This is another way in which Marvel Tōkon succeeds Marvel vs Capcom: it’s not just mechanics or characters, it’s cultural exchange, as American superheroes are once again reinterpreted by Japanese game developers in a genre that facilitates international competition. Marvel Tōkon is built to show off how fun it can be to participate in that evolving conversation. Won’t you go a few rounds?”
read full review ↗ - 80Big WalkAug 6, 2026
“ I shan’t say any more: you and your pals will want to discover these delights for yourselves.”
read full review ↗ - 60Beast of ReincarnationAug 4, 2026 · Diego Arguello
“Game Freak channels a post-apocalyptic reality that reflects our own repetitive erosion cycles, with a fair bit of hand-holding”
read full review ↗ - 60Beast of ReincarnationAug 3, 2026
“Despite being rooted in conflict and grief, Beast of Reincarnation doesn’t culminate in a nihilistic afterthought. Rather, it uses whichever energy it has left to muster a glimmer of hope – like the sight of a flower blooming on an empty, barraged field.”
read full review ↗ - 80Halo: Campaign EvolvedJul 30, 2026
“Campaign Evolved is a good remake of a brilliant game. There are things that are worse: I miss the original Warthog’s erratic handling and the early-00s sci-fi aesthetic, which is simply irreproducible with modern graphics. For all its prettiness, this remake chugs along at times – especially in split-screen it would occasionally slow to a crawl, and we never had to worry about linking various different online accounts and connecting to servers when we fancied a quick game of Halo in 2001. But the core of this game is impossible to mess up. For millions of younger players, Campaign Evolved is a perfect, modernised introduction to everything that was great about the 00s-style first-person shooter. For those of us who were there at the time, it’s a welcome return trip.”
read full review ↗ - 80The Mermaid MaskJul 28, 2026
“Some players may find this completion percentage approach too formulaic, especially if they exhaust their current inventory and resort to pixel hunting to locate the rest. And the pacing does falter in the final chapter, where the game presents you with a more literal checklist to work through before you get to tie up each character’s loose ends and make your final accusation. But while the conclusion of The Mermaid Mask feels far more satisfying than that of Tangle Tower, these games are far more about the twisty journey and the laughs you have along the way.”
read full review ↗ - 40Splatoon RaidersJul 21, 2026
“This is the biggest surprise about Splatoon Raiders: it is pedestrian. If you’ve played one of dozens of modern cooperative action games, you’ve played this.”
read full review ↗ - 80Denshattack!Jul 16, 2026
“Colourful, counter-cultural and captivating, this rail riding game set in a dystopian Japan is as weird as it is exhilarating”
read full review ↗ - 80Denshattack!Jul 16, 2026
“If it had been released in the early 2000s I doubt Denshattack! would have made waves. But in an era of remakes, remasters and sequels, I think weird games are as satisfying to discover as nailing that perfect landing feels to play – and they should be celebrated for daring to be nonsensical. Go forth and engage in some multitrack drifting.”
read full review ↗ - 80Assassin's Creed Black Flag ResyncedJul 8, 2026
“The game’s old strengths hold firm. The depth and variety of Edward’s day-to-day life still delights – one day he’s upgrading the manor at his private cove, the next he’s clambering Incan ruins for Templar treasure. Primary quests are well-paced, well-acted, and have a knack for making you feel heroic. But in the end, it’s the moments in between that make this game special. It’s when you’re sailing your ship at night, watching the lanterns sway, listening to the crew sing a shanty. This game gives you enough space to feel a pirate’s freedom, now more than ever. It may be a case of Ubisoft plundering its own library for riches, but players get their fair share of the booty.”
read full review ↗ - 80Rhythm Heaven GrooveJul 2, 2026
“The mini-games in Rhythm Heaven Groove might not reach the same cohesive and triumphant highs as series classics Ringside or Hole in One, nor is the entire package attempting to reinvent the wheel like many of its contemporaries. But it doesn’t need to. After 11 years, it feels like being reunited with an old friend who has remained untroubled by the passage of time. Even if they ring a familiar tune, you’re still eager to hear what new stories they have to tell.”
read full review ↗ - 80The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium TalesJun 18, 2026
“The Adventures of Elliot is not especially ambitious. It is a comforting balm during turbulent times. If you can stomach its occasionally nauseating earnestness, this rich fantasy world is a cosy one to retreat to. And despite my instinctive reaction to the off-puttingly cheesy dialogue, this charming world eventually began to warm even my cold, cynical English heart, thanks to some inspired dungeons and rewarding, customisable combat.”
read full review ↗