IChoosing the next journey
Our selection centres on games available to UK players on a mainstream platform, with a story, an explorable world or a sequence of meaningful quests at their heart. The board makes room for lengthy role-playing adventures and shorter experiences, and for both private solo journeys and adventures shared with other people.
IITime with the game comes first
We spend multiple evenings with a game before writing about it, testing solo play and company where those options exist. Shops, communication settings, reporting controls and family options are examined alongside the adventure itself. Ordinary sessions are timed so that the practical details describe an actual evening rather than the length of a trailer.
IIIThe questions behind a judgement
A score considers the experience as a whole, with five recurring questions guiding the review. A beautiful world alone cannot answer all of them, and different kinds of adventure achieve their strengths in different ways.
- Narrative: are the writing and characters compelling, and do decisions have consequence?
- Play: are the controls responsive, the systems rewarding and the challenge fair?
- World: do the art and sound make exploration worthwhile?
- Company: does the experience work well alone, with friends or with a family?
- Stopping: are there clear places to save, manageable sessions and room to step away?
IVReading the rank
Each game receives an editorial mark out of five, expressed to one decimal place. That mark determines the rank displayed on its notice; the accompanying review explains the reservations and the audience behind the recommendation.
- S · Mythic — 4.8 and above: an exceptional journey for someone drawn to its genre.
- A · Heroic — 4.5 to 4.7: a strong recommendation with qualifications explained in the entry.
- B · Valiant — 4.0 to 4.4: a worthwhile choice for a particular kind of player.
- C · Wanderer — below 4.0: a less polished experience that may still reward the right interests.
VA sitting and a stopping point
The session length comes from an ordinary stretch of play: perhaps a chapter, an expedition, a run or several days within the game. The stopping point identifies a natural pause, commonly somewhere progress can be saved. These details help organise an evening; neither the stated duration nor the chosen stopping point alters the score.
VIChecking the practical details
Our own play informs the information about platforms, communication, accounts and purchases, and official game pages are used to cross-check it. Those official pages remain the place to confirm current prices and age classifications. Where a studio’s home town is mentioned, it comes from information published by the studio itself.
VIIWhat cannot purchase a recommendation
Money does not secure a listing or change a mark. We do not publish sponsored scores, manufacture facts or turn trailers and publicity releases into supposed first-hand reviews. The useful distinction is between information we have checked and an opinion we can explain, with neither offered for sale to a publisher.
VIIIReturning after the credits
A review needs attention after publication, too. We revisit links, supported platforms and purchase systems, and return to the game when a substantial update changes the experience. A score is reconsidered after further play, rather than adjusted solely because a new announcement or marketing campaign has appeared.