How we actually review a game

People sometimes ask how long we spend on a review, and the honest answer is: as long as it takes to have a real opinion. For a short adventure that might be one evening. For a strategy game with a campaign, it's been weeks.

We start by playing like a normal person would — no guides, no cheats, just downloading it and seeing how it treats a newcomer. The first hour tells you a lot about whether a game respects your time.

Then we dig in. We finish what we can, test the systems the game is proud of, and note where it drags or frustrates. Only after all that do we talk about a score, and we argue about it more than you'd think.

The number at the end is subjective, and we don't pretend otherwise. What we promise is that it's informed. Nobody here scores a game they haven't properly played, and nobody gets paid to nudge a rating.