The First 'Scorn' Reviews Have Arrived, And Feedback Is Mixed So Far

Update (Fri 14th Oct, 2022 11:45 BST): When we first published this article, we only had a couple of reviews to analyse, but now the embargo has officially dropped, and the first Scorn reviews are finally hitting the web in numbers!

The "mixed" feedback that we talked about earlier this week is still present here though, as the critics seem divided on their opinions of Scorn. Some are giving it great scores, others are giving it terrible scores, and everyone else is sitting somewhere in the middle.

Here at Pure Xbox, we gave Scorn a "Good" 7/10 in our review, calling it "a memorably gruesome puzzlebox adventure". We've included a brief snippet of our review in the roundup below, along with various other verdicts.

If you're playing Scorn on Xbox Game Pass, don't forget to check out our full Scorn walkthrough guide, which includes everything you need to complete all the puzzles in the game. It's already live right now!

Let's take a look at some reviews, shall we?

VG247 (4/5)

"In truth, Scorn doesn’t tell a particularly fascinating story, but it hardly matters; the way in which it’s told is done to perfection, and provides an incredibly refreshing horror experience that truly gets under your skin."

The Guardian (4/5)

"Scorn is an incredibly evocative work of art and the things it evokes are so unpleasant I had to ration it out in hour-long sessions throughout a week of play."

"A revulsive but rewarding nightmare."

IGN (7/10)

"Scorn is a relentlessly unsettling delve into a surreal, macabre world of alien mystery, but the scariest thing about it is the dreadful combat."

Pure Xbox (7/10)

"Scorn may make a few missteps here and there, with some short-lived but shoddy combat sequences and puzzles that grow a little repetitive as the game reaches its climax, but none of this really takes away from the artistic achievement at core of this adventure."

Windows Central (7/10)

"Scorn presents one of the most visually striking and untouchably atmospheric game worlds in recent memory. Ebb Software also admirably challenges horror gameplay conventions and profoundly examines humanity's insatiable desires. Unfortunately, the crawling pace might deter players from seeing it through."

Eurogamer (3/5)

"I love Scorn for its atmosphere, its light-touch storytelling, its world-building, and confident hands-off puzzling. It's just a shame those wonderful attributes are a tad undermined by that measly save system and tedious combat."

VGC (2/5)

"Scorn has one of the most beautiful worlds you'll see in a game (if you can see beauty in the grotesque). It's just a shame that world is also home to a frustrating puzzle-heavy adventure filled with aimless wandering."

GameSpot (4/10)

"There's simply too much in Scorn that works to push you away from it rather than pull you deeper into it, making even its relatively brief adventure a difficult one to suggest you give your time to."


The Metacritic rating right now sits at 71 based on just over 30 reviews for the PC version, so some of these lower-scored reviews haven't brought down the average too much. Still, it seems like a polarising game for sure!

Scorn has finally arrived for Xbox Series X|S, PC and Xbox Cloud Gaming today, October 14th. The horror title has also hit Xbox Game Pass on day one, so you can always try it out for yourself if you're a Game Pass subscriber!

What do you think to these early reviews of Scorn? Let us know down below.