How our scores actually work

People ask what separates a 4.2 from a 4.6, and the honest answer is: judgment, informed by a lot of hours. We do not use a rigid checklist that spits out a number, because that tends to reward games for ticking boxes rather than being good.

Instead each reviewer plays the game thoroughly, writes the review first, and only then settles on a score that matches the tone of what they wrote. If the text says a game is fun but flawed, the number has to agree.

A score is one reviewer's verdict on one game at one point in time. Patches change things, and tastes differ. Read the words, not just the digits — that is where the real information lives.

We keep the scale honest by reserving the top end. If everything scored 4.8, the number would mean nothing.