How We Actually Test the Games We Review

People sometimes ask how long we play before publishing, and the honest answer is: until we have something real to say. For a small puzzle game that might be a couple of evenings. For an RPG it can be weeks.

The first thing we do with any game is cut the connection. If it still works, it stays. If it throws up an error, it's out — simple as that.

We take our own screenshots, finish the tutorials, and push past the honeymoon phase where everything feels new. A lot of games are charming for an hour and hollow by the third, and that's exactly what we're trying to catch.

Ratings come last, after we've talked it over as a team. A number is never the point — the paragraphs are where the real review lives, and the score is just shorthand.