14 launches · 2 Nov 2026
The Reception Index
October 2026
The Reception Index tracks how players receive each month’s launches: whether they recommend the game, how that changes after launch, and what they praise and criticise. We use no critic scores or press coverage.
This edition covers 14 October launches, with reviews counted to 2 November 2026. Among games with at least 1,000 reviews, Final Fantasy Resonance has the warmest reception, with 96% of 4,457 reviews recommending it, and AION 2 the coolest, at 55% of 43,535. Phantom Blade Zero drew the most reviews, 49,609.
01
Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve
- Developer
- Bandai Namco Aces
- Publisher
- Bandai Namco Entertainment
- Released
- 31
SalesAnnounced
1 million copies, the fastest in the series.41
What players say
Players who finish the campaign rank its story and music among the series’ best. Crashes partway through the campaign, multiplayer matchmaking and limited remapping draw most of the complaints.30
Read in full
We read every one of these reviews on 2 November 2026 and judged each by what it says.
- A month in, players still praise the campaign, the cast and the music.
- Many call the soundtrack the best in the series and the story and characters memorable. The arcade flying and the variety of missions keep drawing praise.30
- PC crashes now hit players partway through the campaign.
- Players describe crashes every few missions, a softlock late in the campaign and memory use that climbs over a session. At Day 7, crashes mostly stopped players in the opening hours.30
- Multiplayer draws complaints about matchmaking and grind.
- Matchmaking errors, slow progression and short eight-player matches are the main complaints. The praise stays with the campaign.30
- Remapping and flight stick support still hold some players back.
- Players still ask for in-game button remapping and wider flight stick support. Complaints about the Ace Combat Zero bonus have gone quiet.30
Themes raised
| Theme | Reviews, of 28 |
|---|---|
| Campaign and story | 10 |
| Flight and gameplay | 10 |
| Music | 9 |
| PC performance and crashes | 8 |
| How it compares with the series | 6 |
| Characters | 5 |
| Multiplayer | 4 |
| Controls and flight sticks | 3 |
| Missions | 3 |
| Visuals and sound | 3 |
| Price | 2 |
Since then
What players say
Players praise the looks, the early combat and the pets and mounts, and criticise the market, server-bound purchases, failed upgrades and energy caps.172
Read in full
We read every one of these reviews on 21 October 2026 and judged each by what it says.
- It looks superb.
- Players call the graphics beautiful and the character creator one of the best in the genre, and towns and open areas draw praise for their detail.172
- Early combat is fast and fun.
- Skill chains and dodges reward good timing, and players enjoy choosing their skills.172
- Pets, mounts and flight win fans.
- Collecting pets and mounts from wild monsters is a favourite, and flying and gliding feel good.172
- Real money buys progress through the market.
- Premium currency converts into in-game currency that buys top gear from other players, and passes speed up dungeon runs. Players say spenders pull ahead most in PvP.172
- Purchases are tied to one server or character.
- The monthly membership covers one server, and battle passes and Founder pack rewards cover one character, so alts or friends on another server mean paying again.172
- Failed upgrades and energy caps slow progress.
- A failed craft or upgrade can destroy the materials or the item, and dungeon loot draws on an energy pool that refills slowly.172
Themes raised
| Theme | Most helpful, of 80 | Latest, of 33 |
|---|---|---|
| Monetisation and pay to win | 63 | 13 |
| Visuals, world and flight | 41 | 9 |
| Combat and classes | 38 | 8 |
| Social play and trading | 34 | 9 |
| Crafting, gear and chance | 25 | 6 |
| Account, server and character locks | 28 | 3 |
| Time gates and energy | 24 | 6 |
| PvP and the Abyss | 18 | 4 |
| Performance, servers and queues | 21 | 2 |
| Bots and gold sellers | 14 | 2 |
Since then
What players say
Players praise the combat and Horde Siege, and the latest reviews are far kinder than the most helpful ones. The story’s focus, the cast, crashes and missing series features lead the complaints.50
Read in full
We read every one of these reviews on 10 October 2026 and judged each by what it says.
- Marcus and Dom feel sidelined.
- Players bought an origin story for the two leads on the cover and find Mags Carter making the plans and taking most of the screen time. A few say Marcus and Dom still get strong moments, just fewer than the marketing promised.50
- The cast and its messaging divide players.
- Many of the most helpful negative reviews object to how the game handles gender and sexuality, from its female-led command to Pride banners in the city, and say it doesn’t fit the series. Other players call these choices minor and say the complaints miss the game itself.50
- The combat earns praise even from critics of the story.
- The gunplay, the cover and the new jumping, vaulting and sliding feel like Gears at its best to many players, and the latest reviews say so most plainly.50
- Crashes stop some PC players.
- Players describe crashes several times an hour, freezes in matches and shader compiling that fails outright, high-end machines included. They come up less often in the latest reviews.50
- Horde Siege keeps players coming back.
- Players call the new co-op mode fun and replayable. Fans of classic Horde find it closer to an objective mode and miss choosing their own maps and modifiers.50
- Long-time fans miss series staples.
- Chainsaw duels, meat shields, grenade tagging, most executions and private lobbies are absent, and some players say that leaves the game feeling unfinished.50
Themes raised
| Theme | Most helpful, of 79 | Latest, of 34 |
|---|---|---|
| Story and characters | 49 | 15 |
| Representation and messaging | 47 | 9 |
| Combat and gunplay | 27 | 12 |
| Performance and stability | 25 | 8 |
| Campaign pacing and design | 22 | 11 |
| Visuals, sound and atmosphere | 16 | 10 |
| Features from earlier games | 13 | 3 |
| Horde Siege | 7 | 8 |
| Versus and online play | 10 | 4 |
| Price and value | 8 | 2 |
Since then
What players say
Players praise the speed and handling and split on the roguelite campaign. Fixed controls, limited podracing and the price led the launch-week complaints, and the latest reviews are much kinder.116
Read in full
We read every one of these reviews on 10 October 2026 and judged each by what it says.
- The racing itself wins players over.
- The sense of speed, the handling and the crashes earn praise in both samples, and some say the racing alone is worth it.116
- Fixed controls drove refunds.
- Keys can’t be rebound on PC, and players with disabilities or injuries say they can’t play the default layout. Others ask for wheel and flight-stick support.116
- Podracing fans feel short-changed.
- Players who came for the pods find them limited to arcade, online and a few campaign events, with no pod career and little customisation.116
- The roguelite campaign divides players.
- Some find the runs addictive, with progress carried between them. Others find the upgrades shallow and the hub between races little more than a menu.116
- Rubber-banding spoils races for some.
- Launch-week players describe opponents that catch up instantly after a boost. The latest reviews don’t raise it.116
- Many find it thin for the price.
- Players count few tracks, planets reused in reverse and a short list of podracers, and suggest waiting for a sale.116
Themes raised
| Theme | Most helpful, of 80 | Latest, of 34 |
|---|---|---|
| Handling and speed | 42 | 17 |
| Roguelite campaign | 33 | 9 |
| Content and customisation | 32 | 5 |
| Story and presentation | 28 | 9 |
| Podracing | 22 | 10 |
| Controls and remapping | 30 | 3 |
| Multiplayer and modes | 21 | 5 |
| Price and value | 21 | 2 |
| Performance | 16 | 1 |
| AI opponents | 7 | 0 |
Since then
What players say
Players call it the best Hellraiser adaptation and praise its atmosphere and performance. Combat and enemy behaviour draw the most criticism, and a few players hit crashes or fell through the map.89
Read in full
We read every one of these reviews on 10 October 2026 and judged each by what it says.
- It feels like Hellraiser.
- The films’ tone, the Cenobites, Pinhead’s voice and the uncensored gore win the most praise, and many call it the best adaptation of the series. Fans recommend it even where the gameplay is rough.89
- It runs well for most players.
- Players report smooth frame rates on high settings, handhelds included.89
- Combat is the weak point.
- Players find the melee clumsy, the guns light and the enemies inconsistent at spotting them. Fans of the fights point to the puzzle box’s powers and the finishers.89
- There’s more sneaking than the trailers showed.
- Players who expected a fast action game found long stealth sections and chases. Others like the mix.89
- Most find the length fair for the price.
- Players finish it in 9 to 11 hours and mostly call $39.99 a fair price. Those who hesitate want a longer game or a New Game Plus.89
- A few hit serious bugs.
- Some players fell through the map, lost progress to a crash or got stuck. These reports are few, and they stop progress when they happen.89
Themes raised
| Theme | Most helpful, of 75 | Latest, of 35 |
|---|---|---|
| Faithfulness to the films | 29 | 13 |
| Combat and enemy AI | 32 | 8 |
| Visuals, sound and atmosphere | 32 | 7 |
| Gore and adult content | 28 | 10 |
| Technical performance | 27 | 5 |
| Story and characters | 12 | 7 |
| Inventory and resources | 10 | 3 |
| Price and value | 10 | 2 |
| Stealth and chases | 9 | 3 |
| Length and replay | 7 | 2 |
Since then
What players say
Players praise Norgan, the harder combat, the story and the loot. Enemy variety and the lack of new vocations draw the complaints.137
Read in full
We read every one of these reviews on 14 October 2026 and judged each by what it says.
- Players say it fixes the base game.
- Most call it the expansion Dragon’s Dogma 2 needed, with harder enemies, a clearer story and a reason to chase better gear. Many credit Kento Kinoshita, who directed the first game’s Dark Arisen and returns here, and want him on the next game.137139
- Norgan rewards exploring.
- Players praise the snowy region’s dense, connected map, its caves, ruins and weather, and its music. Several find it bigger than they expected from an expansion.137
- Fans welcome the difficulty.
- Enemies hit harder and take longer to kill, and Hard Mode, added in a free update alongside the expansion, gives veterans the challenge the base game lacked. A few find the final fights tedious.137138
- The relic loot keeps players farming.
- Gear with random stats and new skills gives a reason to keep fighting. Players like the new transmog option too, though it unlocks late, at the end of a quest chain some find tiresome.137138
- Enemy variety is still the weak spot.
- Players keep meeting goblins, bandits, wolves and saurians, and many of the new monsters are pale variants of old ones. Several also hoped for new vocations.137
Themes raised
| Theme | Most helpful, of 78 | Latest, of 37 |
|---|---|---|
| Compared with the base game | 43 | 7 |
| Difficulty and Hard Mode | 34 | 11 |
| Norgan, exploration and music | 33 | 14 |
| Story and characters | 25 | 10 |
| Loot, relics and transmog | 24 | 10 |
| Enemy variety | 21 | 10 |
| Vocations and skills | 13 | 9 |
| Performance | 13 | 1 |
| Size and value | 12 | 7 |
| The returning director | 8 | 3 |
Since then
What players say
Players praise the birds, aquariums, building tools and animals. Bugs, a struggling Franchise mode and gaps in the roster lead the complaints.134
Read in full
We read every one of these reviews on 14 October 2026 and judged each by what it says.
- Most fans of the first game call it an upgrade.
- Players with hundreds of hours in Planet Zoo praise the easier paths, the foliage and terrain brushes, livelier animals and many small fixes to building and management.134
- Birds and aquariums are the highlight.
- Fully flying birds, aquariums and the new Wildlife Reserves win the most praise, and several call it the best-looking zoo game they have played.134135
- Bugs drive the negative reviews.
- Players report animals boxed and unboxed in a loop, keepers and guests stuck on paths, aquariums that won’t fill and crashes that lose progress. Many who hit them ask others to wait for patches and say they’ll change their review once fixed.134
- Franchise mode struggled on launch day.
- Players met connection failures and a crowded animal market, and find progress slow because many animals unlock only through Career mode or a higher zoo rating.134
- The roster leaves gaps.
- Players miss staples from the first game such as the cheetah, the kangaroo and the sea lion, and find the Americas and Australia thinly covered. Many expect paid packs to fill them.134
- Menus and maps divide returning players.
- Several find the new interface slower, with a pop-up for every shop price and full-screen trading and research screens. Some notice maps that reuse the same scenery across continents.134
- It asks a lot of the graphics card.
- Many run it smoothly on high settings, while others see 30 to 45 frames per second on top cards, flickering detail and blur when zoomed out. A few found it looked flat until they fixed the resolution it chose on first launch.134
Themes raised
| Theme | Most helpful, of 80 | Latest, of 40 |
|---|---|---|
| Compared with the first game | 39 | 18 |
| Bugs and crashes | 38 | 14 |
| Birds, aquariums and reserves | 23 | 8 |
| Visuals and animals | 22 | 6 |
| Building and path tools | 19 | 12 |
| Franchise and other modes | 19 | 7 |
| Performance | 19 | 6 |
| Animal roster | 15 | 8 |
| Menus and management | 15 | 5 |
| Price and value | 6 | 2 |
Since then
What players say
Players praise the setting, the parries and the bosses. Delayed enemy attacks, short stamina, crashes on some PCs and missing control options draw the complaints.128
Read in full
We read every one of these reviews on 14 October 2026 and judged each by what it says.
- The setting wins players over.
- A plague-ridden Napoleonic Europe, twisted creature designs and the art direction draw the most praise. Many compare it to Dishonored and BioShock built around a soulslike’s structure.128
- Most enjoy the parrying, and some find it unreliable.
- Landing a parry and a finisher is the moment players mention most. Its critics point to enemies that hold a swing and then snap into it, attacks that reach further than the weapon, and stamina that runs out after three or four swings.128
- It’s easier than the demo.
- Players who tried the demo find the full game smoother and its opening gentler, after One More Level reworked combat, bosses and performance from demo feedback. Newcomers to the genre call it hard but learnable.128129132
- Performance depends on the PC.
- Many report smooth frame rates, on Steam Deck as well. Others hit crashes at launch or when loading a save, stutter in busy fights and a long black screen the first time it starts.128
- Players want more control options.
- Toggle sprint, button remapping on controllers and a wider field of view are the common requests, and for a few players their absence is enough to advise against it for now.128
Themes raised
| Theme | Reviews, of 82 |
|---|---|
| Combat, parrying and stamina | 36 |
| Performance and crashes | 28 |
| Setting, art and atmosphere | 27 |
| Difficulty | 18 |
| A soulslike in first person | 11 |
| Price and value | 10 |
| Controls and options | 9 |
| Changes since the demo | 7 |
| Story | 5 |
| Exploration and level design | 5 |
Since then
What players say
Players praise the gunplay, the levels, the second hero and the enemy roster. Slowdown in the Nurgle levels and a sequel some find too close to the first draw the complaints.146
Read in full
We read every one of these reviews on 16 October 2026 and judged each by what it says.
- Fans of the first game call it a better sequel.
- Players point to more weapons, more enemies, allied troops and stronger levels, and many say it fixes what bothered them in Boltgun. A few find it too close to the first game to feel new.146149
- The new map wins over returning players.
- The automap and the optional navigation guide end the wandering that some disliked in the first game, and the levels feel more open and vertical. A handful find them more linear, with secrets that are too easy to spot.146149
- The Sister of Battle doubles the campaign.
- Nyra is faster, with her own weapons and armor that recovers, and many plan a second run as her to see the branching levels they skipped. Some find Malum slower and weaker than in the first game and want him tuned.146
- Warhammer 40,000 fans love the detail.
- All four Chaos factions, named enemies and Death Korps of Krieg fighting alongside you earn steady praise. Vashtorr, the recurring boss, is the one foe some find tiresome.146149
- The shooting and the music carry the action.
- Players call the gunplay crunchy and fast, and Mick Gordon’s final boss music is a favorite. A few want weightier sound effects.146148
- The Nurgle levels slow some PCs down.
- Most report smooth play, handhelds included. Some see the frame rate fall the longer they play the Nurgle levels, even on high-end PCs, and a few meet dead enemies still walking or shots passing through walls.146
- Some want options back.
- Players ask for the HUD and crosshair settings of the first game, a way to quiet the servo skull, and co-op now that there are two heroes.146
Themes raised
| Theme | Most helpful, of 77 | Latest, of 30 |
|---|---|---|
| Compared with the first game | 59 | 17 |
| Gunplay, weapons and movement | 29 | 7 |
| The two heroes | 27 | 5 |
| Levels, map and secrets | 21 | 1 |
| Enemies and bosses | 17 | 3 |
| Music and sound | 15 | 3 |
| Warhammer 40,000 detail | 14 | 2 |
| Branching missions and replays | 11 | 1 |
| Performance and bugs | 9 | 3 |
| Price and value | 6 | 4 |
Since then
What players say
Players praise the combat, the whip and the art. Launch problems, a divisive soundtrack and a design far from Symphony of the Night lead the complaints.142
Read in full
We read every one of these reviews on 16 October 2026 and judged each by what it says.
- Series fans are split on how much it feels like Castlevania.
- Many longtime fans welcome a return that carries the series forward with new ideas. Others find it closer to Dead Cells and Hollow Knight than to Symphony of the Night, and miss hearts, item drops and a shop.142
- The combat and the whip win most players over.
- Players praise fast, fluid fights, seven distinct weapon types and swinging across rooms on the whip, which several say changes the game once it unlocks after the first boss. Some find the whip’s targeting unreliable, especially with a mouse.142
- Launch problems drive many of the negative reviews.
- Some players met a black screen on start, mostly with high refresh rate monitors or V-sync turned off, and Konami’s 16 October update improves it without a full fix yet. Others report stutter, frame drops on Steam Deck, few graphics settings and no ultrawide support.142144
- Most admire the art, and some wanted it darker.
- The painterly backgrounds and boss designs draw wide praise. A few miss pixel art or a grimmer gothic look, and some lose track of enemies in the effects during busy fights.142
- The soundtrack divides fans.
- Some call the music superb. Others miss the bold, melodic themes the series is known for and find many tracks too ambient or repetitive.142
- It asks a lot, and the runbacks wear on some.
- Most find the bosses fair once their patterns click. The complaints center on long platforming rooms over spikes, trap rooms and save points far from the bosses, which make every death cost a walk back.142
Themes raised
| Theme | Most helpful, of 78 | Latest, of 40 |
|---|---|---|
| Compared with earlier Castlevanias | 43 | 21 |
| Combat, weapons and movement | 36 | 11 |
| Launch problems and performance | 35 | 16 |
| Art and visuals | 29 | 10 |
| Music | 28 | 4 |
| Exploration and platforming | 28 | 9 |
| Difficulty, save points and runbacks | 24 | 6 |
| Story, writing and voices | 15 | 1 |
| Controls | 11 | 3 |
| Price and value | 6 | 3 |
Since then
What players say
Players praise the restored skits, the combat and the built-in boost settings. The new font, the upscaled art and the missing co-op draw the most complaints.210
Read in full
We read every one of these reviews on 27 October 2026 and judged each by what it says.
- The restored skits are the main draw.
- Camp skits cut from the original English release are back and fully voiced. Players say they deepen the cast and make a replay worthwhile.210
- The combat has aged well.
- Players find the fast, side-on battles satisfying once learned, with positioning, party roles and mystic artes that still impress.210
- Players set the pace themselves.
- Experience and gold boosts, encounter rates and objective markers can each be switched on or off. With those built in, players call the paid level DLC pointless, and some call it pay to win.210
- The pixel art and the music hold up.
- Many players find the 2D art and Motoi Sakuraba’s soundtrack as charming as they remember.210
- The touch-ups draw the most complaints.
- Players dislike the new font, the smoothed backgrounds and the upscaled cutscenes, and some think the intro was touched up with AI. A setting brings back the original graphics.210
- Co-op didn’t come back.
- Players who hoped to fight alongside friends, as in the PlayStation release, find the remaster single-player only, and several ask for co-op in a patch.210
- The controls feel clumsy in places.
- Talking to people and picking things up takes precise positioning, and some find the left stick loose and keyboard combinations awkward.210
- Some dungeons and minigames drag.
- Players call some puzzles and minigames tedious, and achievements tied to minigames add grind for anyone chasing every one.210
Themes raised
| Theme | Most helpful, of 72 | Latest, of 36 |
|---|---|---|
| Nostalgia and classic feel | 31 | 14 |
| Boost options, DLC and price | 24 | 10 |
| Voice acting and dub | 23 | 7 |
| Visuals, music and remaster art | 23 | 10 |
| Restored skits | 22 | 9 |
| Combat | 20 | 10 |
| Story and characters | 18 | 12 |
| Controls, bugs and performance | 17 | 6 |
| Dungeons, minigames and grinding | 10 | 4 |
| Co-op | 6 | 1 |
Since then
What players say
Players praise the classic feel, the turn-based battles, the look and the music. A thin story and heavy guidance draw the most complaints.176
Read in full
We read every one of these reviews on 26 October 2026 and judged each by what it says.
- It feels like classic Final Fantasy.
- Players call it the return to the older games they wanted, with turn-based battles, a world map to explore, classic summons and music from the original games.176
- The HD-2D look and the music win wide praise.
- The pixel art with modern lighting draws praise in review after review, and many single out the soundtrack.176
- Visions make party building deep.
- Players enjoy equipping Visions of heroes from earlier Final Fantasy games and planning their party around them, and they find the turn-based fights reward that planning.176
- The story is the weak point.
- A minority find the plot predictable and the writing thin next to the older games, even among players who recommend it.176
- Some find it explains too much.
- The most helpful review and a few others say objectives are spelled out at every step and tutorials keep coming, and they want the game to trust them more.176
- Builds run into tight limits.
- One Vision slot and two accessory slots per character frustrate some players, and attuning Visions across the party takes grinding.176
Themes raised
| Theme | Most helpful, of 75 | Latest, of 32 |
|---|---|---|
| Nostalgia and classic feel | 43 | 16 |
| Combat and difficulty | 31 | 6 |
| Visuals, music and voice | 26 | 8 |
| Visions and party building | 19 | 4 |
| Brave Exvius | 14 | 3 |
| Story and writing | 12 | 3 |
| Content, exploration and grind | 9 | 4 |
| Price and monetisation | 3 | 5 |
| Guidance and tutorials | 3 | 1 |
| PC and technical | 2 | 2 |
Since then
What players say
Players praise the campaign, the story and DMZ, and complain about the launcher, the anti-cheat’s BIOS check and the price for a campaign alone.170
Read in full
We read every one of these reviews on 21 October 2026 and judged each by what it says.
80 most helpful reviews, from early access
64of 80 positive
64 positive 5 mixed 9 negative 2 off-topic170
- The campaign is the best in years.
- Players rank it with Modern Warfare (2019), and some above it, for its pace and the variety of its missions. The graphics and the loud, close-up gun audio add to the praise.170
- The story lands.
- Players find the dialogue believable and the characters well drawn, and the ending of the Task Force 141 story moves many of them.170
- DMZ is winning players over.
- Players who’ve tried the extraction mode call it a lot of fun, and praise enemies that notice them and react.170
- The launcher gets in the way.
- The game starts through the Call of Duty HQ hub, which restarts it when you switch modes and groups achievements from several games. Players ask for a standalone app.170
- An anti-cheat check locks out some PCs.
- Some PCs with TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot switched on are told to update their BIOS before playing online. Players whose motherboard maker has no newer BIOS yet are asking for refunds.170
- Some find $69.99 a lot for a campaign.
- Before multiplayer opened, several buyers found the full price hard to justify for the campaign alone.170
Themes raised
| Theme | Most helpful, of 78 | Latest, of 34 |
|---|---|---|
| Campaign | 68 | 23 |
| Story and characters | 41 | 4 |
| DMZ | 16 | 11 |
| Multiplayer, from the beta | 21 | 4 |
| Graphics and audio | 19 | 2 |
| Performance and stability | 14 | 2 |
| Price and editions | 11 | 3 |
| Gunplay and combat | 10 | 2 |
| Launcher | 8 | 0 |
| PC requirements and anti-cheat | 4 | 3 |
Since then
What players say
Players praise the fluid, flashy combat, the bosses, the weapons and the art. A long shader compilation, PC glitches and a challenge many find too low draw the complaints.182
Read in full
We read every one of these reviews on 29 October 2026 and judged each by what it says.
- The fights look like a martial arts film.
- Players praise fast, fluid combos, parries that flow into counters and boss attacks with animations of their own, and many rank the combat with the best they’ve played since Sekiro.182
- Bosses and weapons keep it fresh.
- Bosses make players learn and adapt, and a wide range of weapons, each with its own moves, invites them to experiment with builds.182
- Many find it too easy.
- Players who expected a hard game say the long combos seem to play themselves and parries come too easily, and some find little risk even on Hellwalker. Others say Hellwalker’s bosses punish button mashing and take several tries.182
- Players place it nearer Devil May Cry than Dark Souls.
- Most see a fast hack and slash in the line of Devil May Cry, Ninja Gaiden or Black Myth: Wukong, and many welcome an action game they can enjoy without a soulslike’s pressure.182
- Shader compilation is the first hurdle.
- The first launch spends 20 minutes or more compiling shaders for several players, and some had to sit through it twice. Once it finishes, many find the game runs smoothly.182
- Many PCs run it well.
- Players report steady frame rates from older cards such as the RTX 2060 and RX 570 on lower settings up to high-end machines, and on Linux.182
- Some PCs hit glitches and crashes.
- Players report stutter, broken sky and hair textures and crashes, and several turn off ray tracing to stop light flickering in sunlit areas.182
Themes raised
| Theme | Most helpful, of 62 | Latest, of 26 |
|---|---|---|
| PC performance and shader compilation | 38 | 10 |
| Combat | 34 | 10 |
| Compared with other games | 21 | 10 |
| Art and visuals | 16 | 4 |
| Difficulty | 16 | 2 |
| Story, cutscenes and music | 7 | 5 |
| Weapons and bosses | 8 | 2 |
| Controls and camera | 4 | 3 |
| World and exploration | 2 | 4 |
| Price and value | 4 | 0 |
Since then
How to read it
Players only.
- All reviews, First seven days and Latest seven days show the share of PC buyers’ reviews, in every language, that recommend the game. We work out each share ourselves from the individual reviews.
- Days are counted in UTC. Day-by-day counts include keys activated from other shops, so they can differ from All reviews by a point or two.
- A game whose first days fall before 4 October shows no first week, since our day-by-day counts start there.
- What players say and Read in full come from our own reading of each game’s reviews during October, each review read through and judged by what it says. The samples are small, so we give counts.
- Sales appear only when the studio announces them or a named firm estimates them.
- We never use critic scores or press coverage.
Sources
- 30Steam: Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve, user reviews and review history (opens in a new tab) Accessed 29 Sept 2026
- 31Bandai Namco Entertainment: Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve takes flight today (early access, launch date and the Deluxe Edition) (opens in a new tab) Accessed 29 Sept 2026
- 41Bandai Namco on Steam: Ace Combat 8 passes a million copies sold, 9 October (opens in a new tab) Accessed 10 Oct 2026
- 50Steam: Gears of War: E-Day, store page and user reviews (opens in a new tab) Accessed 10 Oct 2026
- 51Xbox on Steam: Gears of War: E-Day is available now, 6 October (opens in a new tab) Accessed 10 Oct 2026
- 89Steam: Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival, store page and user reviews (opens in a new tab) Accessed 10 Oct 2026
- 90Saber Interactive on Steam: Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival is out now, 8 October (opens in a new tab) Accessed 10 Oct 2026
- 116Steam: Star Wars: Galactic Racer, store page and user reviews (opens in a new tab) Accessed 10 Oct 2026
- 117Secret Mode on Steam: Star Wars: Galactic Racer is out now, 6 October (opens in a new tab) Accessed 10 Oct 2026
- 128Steam: Valor Mortis, store page and user reviews (opens in a new tab) Accessed 14 Oct 2026
- 129One More Level on Steam: Valor Mortis is available now, 13 October (opens in a new tab) Accessed 14 Oct 2026
- 130One More Level on Steam: the price of Valor Mortis and its Deluxe Edition, 17 September (opens in a new tab) Accessed 14 Oct 2026
- 132One More Level on Steam: responding to feedback from the demo, 9 August (opens in a new tab) Accessed 14 Oct 2026
- 134Steam: Planet Zoo 2, store page and user reviews (opens in a new tab) Accessed 14 Oct 2026
- 135Frontier Developments on Steam: Planet Zoo 2 is out now, 13 October (opens in a new tab) Accessed 14 Oct 2026
- 137Steam: Dragon’s Dogma 2: Dark Arisen Expansion, store page and user reviews (opens in a new tab) Accessed 14 Oct 2026
- 138Capcom on Steam: Dragon’s Dogma 2: Dark Arisen out now, with Title Update 4.0, 9 October (opens in a new tab) Accessed 14 Oct 2026
- 139Capcom on Steam: a Q&A with director Kento Kinoshita and producer Naoto Oyama, 31 July (opens in a new tab) Accessed 14 Oct 2026
- 142Steam: Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse, store page and user reviews (opens in a new tab) Accessed 16 Oct 2026
- 143Konami: Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse official site, release date, platforms and editions (opens in a new tab) Accessed 16 Oct 2026
- 144Konami on Steam: notice on the black screen with high refresh rate monitors (Ver. 1.1.3), 16 October (opens in a new tab) Accessed 16 Oct 2026
- 146Steam: Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun 2, store page and user reviews (opens in a new tab) Accessed 16 Oct 2026
- 148Auroch Digital on Steam: Boltgun 2’s launch date, Mick Gordon and Vashtorr, 27 August (opens in a new tab) Accessed 16 Oct 2026
- 149Auroch Digital on Steam: what’s new in Boltgun 2, 23 September (opens in a new tab) Accessed 16 Oct 2026
- 170Steam: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4, store page and user reviews (opens in a new tab) Accessed 21 Oct 2026
- 171Activision, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4, official site (opens in a new tab) Accessed 21 Oct 2026
- 172Steam: AION 2, store page and user reviews (opens in a new tab) Accessed 21 Oct 2026
- 176Steam: Final Fantasy Resonance, store page and user reviews (opens in a new tab) Accessed 22 Oct 2026
- 177Nintendo: Final Fantasy Resonance (opens in a new tab) Accessed 22 Oct 2026
- 182Steam: Phantom Blade Zero, store page and user reviews (opens in a new tab) Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- 210Steam: Tales of Eternia Remastered, store page and user reviews (opens in a new tab) Accessed 27 Oct 2026