Every Game Informer 10/10 Score
A 10/10 score is an honor we at Game Informer don’t bestow often, but it’s a big deal when we do. It involves careful consideration and conversation with the other editors, ensuring that it’s not a number we hand out lightly. Across our outlet’s entire history, only a few dozen games have been awarded the score, and they’re included in this easily accessible list.
However, there are also some fun “almost” 10s throughout Game Informer’s history. By scouring through the magazine archive, we uncovered a handful of instances where 10s were sort of handed out that make for interesting edge cases.
The Games That Almost Got 10s
The Games That Almost Got 10s
The most common instances of “almost” 10s were in Game Informer’s early days. For the first nine years of the magazine’s lifespan, each game had three reviewers whose scores would be averaged into one “bottom line,” which is generally recognized as Game Informer’s final score. Even then, individual reviews were broken down into numbered scores across five categories (Concept, Graphics, Sound, Playability, and Entertainment), so it was extremely difficult for any game to get a 10. It would need to get perfect (or near-perfect) scores across the board from three separate writers. This, as far as we can tell, never happened.
However, there are instances where one of the three writers scored the game a 10. In issue 3, editor Marianne Morgan gave 10s to Lemmings (SNES) and Shatterhand (NES). In issue 6, Ed Martinez awarded a 10 to Out of this World (SNES). Finally, in issue 40, Paul Anderson gave Super Mario 64 a 10. If they had been the sole reviewers, like most outlets have now, these games would all have 10s, but the other editors’ scores ultimately pulled the average down. The only one of these games close to a 10 was Super Mario 64, which scored a 9.75.
Another edge case comes in issue 43 from October 1996, in a now-retired Classic GI segment on “The Mascot Wars,” chronicling the rivalry between Mario, Sonic, and the then-new Crash Bandicoot. In it, the writer quickly scores the mainline entries of each mascot’s games and gives Super Mario Bros., a game that predates Game Informer by several years, a retroactive 10. It’s far from an official score, however – not only does the game not go through the traditional, rigorous review process, but the list also includes scores inconsistent with the outlet’s published scores. Super Mario 64, for example, is incorrectly given a 9.5.
GI Classic struck again in October of 2000. In issue 90, they revisited Super Mario World, which launched just a few months before the first issue of Game Informer, and gave it a 10. This instance is more formal than before, part of a monthly section fully dedicated to retro reviews, but it’s still abnormal. It was only one opinion, it lacks a byline, and is generally formatted differently than a standard review.
If we want to reserve the “first” title for a game to receive a 10 upon release, that honor goes to Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2, which we reviewed in the very next issue, 91. It happens to coincide with an overhaul of Game Informer’s design and structure, with a new logo and a new review process. Each game now receives a primary review and a “second opinion,” which is also scored, but only gets a paragraph or so of text. Category scores are also no more, replaced with short blurbs breaking down the writer’s thoughts on the subject. There were far fewer barriers to score a 10/10 now, and the staff wasted no time doling one out.
There is also one instance of a game receiving a score higher than a 10… though it was an April Fool’s joke. In issue 84, a made-up game called Virtua Laundromat 3: Rinse Cycle for the “Mega Dreamblast” (a parody version of the Sega Dreamcast) scored a 10+. Published in April 2000, this was just seven months before the actual first 10/10 score.
For all 32 of our 10/10 scores, along with the issue each was published in, you can check out the list below. To see them in their original print layouts, you can access most of them* in the Game Informer magazine archive by making a free account and clicking right here.
*(Note: Our free magazine archive includes issue 368 and earlier. To read newer issues, including Astro Bot and Hades II, you can subscribe to Game Informer here.)
Every Official Game Informer 10
Every Official Game Informer 10, In Chronological Order
1
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2
“Very few perfect scores have ever been given out by Game Informer, and I’ve never scored anything a 10, but games just don’t come better than this.” – Jay Fitzloff
2
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
“If there is a birth of the next generation of gaming, it is here with this title.” – Matthew Kato
3
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
“If every other publisher in the country has been waiting for Rockstar and Grand Theft Auto’s reign of chart dominance to come to an end, or wishing that GTA III would prove to be a fluke hit – they better be ready to wait another year.” – Matt Helgeson
4
Metroid Fusion
“From beginning to end, Metroid Fusion is everything you could want in a Game Boy Advance title – high-powered original content that surpasses the old 8-bit and 16-bit games that they are derived from.” – Andrew McNamara
5
The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
“The Wind Waker blows every Zelda game out of the water and stands as the video game event of a lifetime. It’s an absolute necessity for anyone who considers themselves a gamer.” – Andrew Reiner
6
Grand Theft Auto III/Vice City (Double Pack)
“Yes, Halo is more refined and Zelda is more ingenious, but only Grand Theft Auto III and Vice City has that genre-busting, nonlinear sensibility that the development world is trying to catch up with.” – Matt Helgeson
7
Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal
“After a long and successful history, Insomniac Games has finally created its masterpiece, a tour de force that is the zenith of a trio of titles that I feel should be held up in action/platform history alongside the original Super Mario Bros. trilogy on the NES.” – Matt Helgeson
8
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
“San Andreas breaks the video game mold and emerges as something far greater. This is more than a game. This is entertainment at its best.” – Andrew Reiner
9
Halo 2
“Simply put, Halo 2 is by far the greatest first-person shooter the console world has seen to date.” – Andy McNamara
10
Resident Evil 4
“There are no flaws in Resident Evil 4. It is the greatest horror game to date. I never thought that a game, or movie for that matter, could deliver pulse-pounding action in such an awe-inspiring way.” – Andrew Reiner
11
God of War
“While playing God of War, I honestly found it difficult to resist the urge to simply genuflect and be humbled to be in the presence of such digital divinity, this god among games.” – Joe Juba
12
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
“The debate that has waged for decades over which Zelda game should stand as the series’ best will at long last come to a satisfying conclusion, as this is unquestionably the greatest Zelda yet.” – Andrew Reiner
13
BioShock
“It’s ingenious, enthralling, and a masterpiece of the most epic proportions.” – Andrew Reiner
14
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
“Everything has come together brilliantly, from the nonstop intensity of the offline campaign to the endlessly replayable multiplayer offering. Simply put, Call of Duty 4 is one of the absolute best games to grace any platform to date.” – Adam Biessener
15
Grand Theft Auto IV
“Grand Theft Auto IV doesn’t just raise the bar for the storied franchise; it completely changes the landscape of gaming.” – Andrew Reiner
16
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
“As the crowning achievement of the series’ 20-year history, Hideo Kojima’s final Metal Gear Solid title may not be what you expect, but it is everything you could hope for in a video game.” – Joe Juba
17
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
“Uncharted 2 is a ringing testament to the power of both games and storytelling. It pulls you in, keeps you engaged, and concludes with a thunderous bang.” – Andrew Reiner | Full Review
18
God of War III
“Not even in my wildest dreams could I have imagined such a powerful, cinematic, and breathtaking conclusion to the saga of the Ghost of Sparta.” – Joe Juba | Full Review
19
StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty
“This is a sublimely engineered game with a simple, elegant core design and all of the rough edges ground away.” – Adam Biessener | Full Review
20
Batman: Arkham City
“Arkham City not only lives up to the standards set by Arkham Asylum, it bests its predecessor in every way and stands tall as one of Batman’s greatest moments.” – Andrew Reiner | Full Review
21
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
“As what’s likely to be the last major Wii release from Nintendo, Skyward Sword is a fitting finale for the console. This is the first game I’ve played that delivers on the promise sparked by that initial Wii remote showing.” – Phil Kollar | Full Review
22
Mass Effect 3
“I guided Shepard across three massive games spanning over 100 hours, and feel BioWare has delivered one of the most intricately crafted stories in the history of the medium.” – Andrew Reiner | Full Review
23
BioShock Infinite
“No matter how many parallel realities I ponder, I cannot imagine one in which BioShock Infinite is not among the best games I’ve played.” – Joe Juba | Full Review
24
The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds
“This isn’t just a tribute; as amazing as A Link to the Past is, I can’t think of a single thing A Link Between Worlds doesn’t do better.” – Dan Ryckert | Full Review
25
The Last Of Us Remastered
“If you never played The Last of Us at all, this is absolutely the way to do it. But be careful – you’ll never want to go back to the PS3 original again after reveling in all the improvements.” – Tim Turi | Full Review
26
Overwatch
“Blizzard has taken its masterful art of polishing and perfection to the team shooter, and things will never be the same.” – Daniel Tack | Full Review
27
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
“I was entranced by this version of Hyrule, and it surprised me at nearly every turn, from its wealth of discoveries to the way it shuns the established tropes of previous Zelda games. It represents a profound new direction for one of gaming’s best franchises and a new high point for open-world interactive experiences.” – Kyle Hilliard | Full Review
28
Red Dead Redemption II
“The up-close portrayal of the outlaw Van der Linde gang’s unraveling is a compelling companion story that blends seamlessly with the original game, and depth and breadth of the open world is a technical triumph that every gamer should experience.” – Matt Bertz | Full Review
29
The Last of Us Part II
“I can safely say this is the best narrative game I have played. I felt the loss. I felt the confusion. It is a game that turned me inside out with each twist of the screw.” – Andy McNamara | Full Review
30
Elden Ring
“Elden Ring represents a truly amazing combination of various game elements that all come together to create something fascinating, special, and unforgettable. Elden Ring isn’t just the best game this year; it’s one of the best games ever made.” – Daniel Tack | Full Review
31
Astro Bot
“Astro Bot has always been good at propping up its contemporaries, but the adorable little robot can now proudly stand beside the PlayStation icons it so fondly celebrates.” – Marcus Stewart | Full Review
32
Hades II
“Hades II is the pinnacle of the roguelike genre, a position I previously granted its predecessor, but one that its sequel has handily earned.” – Charles Harte | Full Review
To read these reviews in their original print format, you can make a free account and browse the Game Informer archive right here. To read issues published since our relaunch, you can subscribe here.
