What Our Ratings Actually Mean

People sometimes ask why a fun game only got a 4.1 while a slower one scored higher. The short answer is that our numbers reflect how a game held up over real sessions, not a first impression.

We weigh a few things: does it feel good to control, does it respect your time, and does it keep giving you reasons to return. A game can be gorgeous and still lose points if the controls fight you or the loop wears thin fast.

A score under 4.0 doesn't mean bad. It usually means good with clear caveats. We'd rather tell you exactly where a game stumbles than pretend everything above four is interchangeable.

Numbers are a shorthand. The paragraphs are where the real opinion lives, so read those before you trust the digit.