How we rate
Four criteria, fixed weights
Every ride is scored the same way, by the same people, after the same minimum time. The number at the top of a card is a weighted average, not a feeling.
The three-week rule
Two of us play each game on fresh, free accounts on a normal live server for at least three weeks, visiting the way a working adult would: a few short sessions a day. Where a game runs in rounds, we play far enough into a round to see how it ends. The third reader does not play; they check the notes against each other and against the game’s own documentation.
The criteria
| Criterion | Weight | The question we answer |
|---|---|---|
| Time | 35% | Does a ten-minute visit move you forward? Are timers pacing or pressure? Does a day off cost you? |
| Fairness | 30% | How far does a free player get, and does paying buy convenience or victory? Are prices and odds shown plainly? |
| Depth | 20% | Is there still something to learn in week three? Do alliances, trade or competition create real play with other people? |
| Polish | 15% | Does it load fast, run in the four major browsers and stay readable on a laptop screen? Is the interface honest about what it is doing? |
Each criterion is scored out of ten independently by both players. The verdict is the weighted average rounded to one decimal. Bands on the cards are shorthand: a Season pass is 8.5 or above, a Day ticket 7.8 to 8.4, a Single ride 7.0 to 7.7. Anything below 7.0 is not published.
The paid week
After the free period one of us spends a fixed amount — roughly the price of a cinema ticket where we live — the way a typical player would, and records what it bought and how far it moved the account. That week feeds the fairness score. We do not print prices, because they change by region and by sale.
Queue time, thrill, height
The small facts on each card are ours. A visit is how long a useful check-in took us by week two. Visits is how many a day kept the account moving without waste. Thrill is how exposed you are to other players: Calm means nobody can touch you, Some risk means you can lose something, Competitive means you are racing people. Height is who we think the ride suits.
Re-tests and removals
Rides are re-tested when a game changes its shop, ships a major update or when readers report something material. A ride is taken down if it breaks an entry rule, drops below 7.0 or its community shrinks to the point where the multiplayer stops working. Changes are dated on the card.
Independence
Affiliate links carry the sponsored attribute and are added after a verdict is locked. Publishers have no editorial input. If you think a card has something wrong, tell us and we will look again.