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 10 games where press consensus and players sharply disagreed, this reviewer sided with players 4 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.
- +24Fallout 4outlet 96 · players 72 · Nov 2015
- -18Goat Simulatoroutlet 60 · players 78 · Aug 2015
- +12Far Cry® Primaloutlet 80 · players 68 · Mar 2016
- -27Slender: The Arrivaloutlet 55 · players 82 · Mar 2015
- +20Broken Ageoutlet 83 · players 63 · Apr 2015
- -22The Escapistsoutlet 60 · players 82 · Jun 2015
- -23LEGO® MARVEL's Avengersoutlet 56 · players 79 · Feb 2016
- +33Blackguards 2outlet 84 · players 51 · Dec 2014
- +13Trine 3: The Artifacts of Poweroutlet 76 · players 63 · Aug 2015
- -16Zombie Army Trilogyoutlet 70 · players 86 · Mar 2015
Recent reviews (135 tracked)
- 85Hyper Light DrifterJul 12, 2016
“Hyper Light Drifter is a great homage to the generation of 8/16-bit games that came before, while respecting the sense of wonder they produced long ago. Parts can be taxing, but ultimately rewarding. Try not to break your controller.”
read full review ↗ - 80Rise of the Tomb Raider™Jul 10, 2016 · Jack Gash
“Rise of The Tomb Raider is a very good sequel that improves a lot of the issues present in the original but doesn't completely fix them. While definitely flawed in some areas it is undeniably fun and an incredibly strong entry in the franchise.”
read full review ↗ - 80INSIDEJul 9, 2016 · Ben Xavier
“If you’re looking for something different, PLAYDEAD’s 8-10 hour offering, is definitely worth the price of admission.”
read full review ↗ - 30BreachedJul 4, 2016 · Jack Gash
“Breached is an amazing Sci-Fi novel or film in the making, however as a video game struggles to keep attention through its boring fetch quest gameplay style.”
read full review ↗ - 50ShadwenMay 24, 2016 · Martin Segarra
“Shadwen boasts some cool mechanics and can even be entertaining at times, but it never truly feels like a cohesively good game as a whole. The repetitiveness of the levels, clunky physics and sub par story only hinder what could have been a great entry into the stealth genre.”
read full review ↗ - 73Shantae and the Pirate's CurseMay 16, 2016 · Jordan Moseley
“Entertaining character interactions, the inclusion of an enemy respawn mechanic and a retro-facing aesthetic art-style offer enough to save this Metroidvania love-letter from the trappings of repetitive gameplay, an uninteresting plot and predictable enemy movements.”
read full review ↗ - 49Stranger of Sword CityApr 29, 2016 · Joanne Paul
“Stranger of Sword City has many elements which should make it a fun dungeon crawler. However, the storyline is confusing, the battle mechanics are tricky and there are many aspects of the gameplay which aren't explained to their full making it difficult to progress through the game. Also, the addition of permadeath makes this game more frustrating than it should be.”
read full review ↗ - 75Stikbold! A Dodgeball AdventureApr 28, 2016 · Martin Segarra
“Stikbold! A Dodgeball Adventure is a breath of fresh air among today’s online-only titles. Besides being an awesome throwback to the golden age of couch gaming, its wacky characters and bizarre humor mix well with the pick-up-and-play controls and great level design. The novelty might wear off too soon, but you should definitely give it a go if you’re yearning to share some laughs with your friends”
read full review ↗ - 56Nitroplus Blasterz: Heroines Infinite DuelApr 27, 2016 · Jordan Moseley
“A well-presented - if misjudged- presentation based on an obscure IP with a fresh feeling graphic style that is often bogged down by the lack of relevant additional modes and an online play system which is better left untouched. Excessive action, revealing costumes and an additional story mode are not enough to save this average fighter from a destiny of mediocrity.”
read full review ↗ - 89DARK SOULS™ IIIApr 21, 2016 · Daniel Vaughan
“Dark Souls III certainly lives up to the brutal difficultly levels of its predecessors. It constantly gets you to push your boundaries as you're encouraged to press deeper in each run, plus the tension and challenge very rarely lets up, even if it does occasionally resort to cheap tricks. It's robust, exciting combat is by far the most appealing element of this game, offering many ways to fight, allowing players a great deal of depth to character building and giving them many choices on how they would like to proceed through this melancholy world.”
read full review ↗ - 72Salt and SanctuaryApr 18, 2016 · Jordan Moseley
“Only suffering from minor problems, Salt and Sanctuary proves that not all 2D platform games are for children.”
read full review ↗ - 75EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New DespairApr 8, 2016 · Martin Segarra
“Earth Defense Force 4.1: The Shadow of New Despair won't win any prestigious awards, but it still manages to be a fun little cult offering that will please those looking to simply have a good time. If you don't expect anything serious or realistic to come out of it, you'll definitely enjoy blasting away at your enemies while listening to some of the silliest dialogue ever put on a game”
read full review ↗ - 63Nights of AzureMar 31, 2016 · Daniel Vaughan
“What we have here is a simple free flowing hack n' slasher with a number of interesting mechanics that sadly fall a bit flat. Building Servan decks can be fun, but ultimately they don't make much of an impact in fights, and weapon switching adds some variety but none offer anything really unique. Despite this Nights of Azure is still an enjoyable enough experience, the character focused narrative is certainly worthwhile and there are plenty of talking points from both story elements”
read full review ↗ - 50KholatMar 23, 2016 · Daniel Vaughan
“Kholat does a fantastic job at creating a tense, moody atmosphere in which you're completely alone in an unforgiving landscape. However for everything the game does right there is an equal flaw to break player immersion. The grizzly tail of a real life a real life incident immediately draws you in, but the narrative is often perplexing leaving you with a lot of unanswered questions. The open-world environment is realistic, beautiful and calls on your adventurous side, but the gameplay is overly simplistic and exploration is tediously long.”
read full review ↗ - 76101 Ways to DieMar 23, 2016 · Jonathon Shilling
“101 Ways To Die does exactly what it says on the tin! It provides a multitude of ways for you to kill your experiment participants, with a wide range of tools and combos, each as humorous as the last! The unlock progression is well paced so you get a good play time from the game (though some curveball puzzles can grind your progress to a halt). Having said that, you wouldn't play a single sitting for too long anyway, with repetitive gameplay slowly making it a drag. However, being so sadistic and murderous is rarely such a comical delight, and a kickback-and-enjoy experience as can be found in 101 Ways To Die.”
read full review ↗