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We Happy Few
Critics Consensus (Skip It)
We Happy Few is ambitious and stylish, but moment-to-moment gameplay is lackluster, tedious, and boring.
Game Info
We Happy Few is the tale of a plucky bunch of moderately terrible people trying to escape from a lifetime of cheerful denial. Set in a drug-fuelled, retrofuturistic city in an alternative 1960s England, you’ll have to blend in with its other inhabitants, who don’t take kindly to people who don’t abide by their not-so-normal rules.
0%
Recommended
0%
Average Score
Total Reviews: 90
RELEASE DATES:
GENRES:
- RPG, Adventure
DEVELOPER(S):
- Compulsion Games
PUBLISHER(S):
- Gearbox Publishing
SERIES/FRANCHISE:
- n/a
GAME MODES:
- Single player
Where to Play
WHERE TO PLAY
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RATING & REVIEWS
Ratings & Reviews
90
Critic Reviews
63
Average Critic Score
Where to Play
CRITIC REVIEWS
All reviews are from professional critics. Learn more about the critics VSG aggregates.
High Score
90%
Median Score
65%
Low Score
20%
Gary Bailey (God is a Geek)
[Date Unavailable]
5/10
“Perhaps given another few months, We Happy Few could have been great, but as it is it’s simply a missed opportunity.”
Colm Ahern (VideoGamer)
[Date Unavailable]
4/10
“While We Happy Few’s story contains some genuinely wonderful twists and turns once it gets going, it’s dragged down by frustrating survival systems, shoddy combat, and an empty world.”
Chris Moyse (Destructoid)
[Date Unavailable]
5/10
“We Happy Few is unique. It features gorgeous environments, great music, twisted humor, and a magnetic story. It deserves praise for those aesthetics. But the game is what matters, and it is sadly lackluster in that regard, with bad combat, mundane stealth, and endless, frivolous mechanics. By choosing the fastidious “micro-management” path, We Happy Few distracts far too much from its true potential as a dystopian gaming classic. And that’s the biggest downer of all.”
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Score Ranges
Read the Reviews (90 total)
| Outlet | Author | Score | Date | Quote | Read |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 33bits | Roberto Pineda | 60 / 100 | 08-14-2018 | Compulsion Games has been a victim of its own ambition. Behind a look capable of conquering the most painted, there are problems that are difficult to solve. Developments that change course often fail to come to fruition, and We Happy Few fails to convey to us what it intends to be. Poorly executed identity and mechanical problems, hidden by a disturbing smile. Sometimes, the good things are not always inside and, as it can happen with some people, the most satisfactory thing we have found does not lie beyond a beautiful wrapping. | Read review |
| ACG | Jeremy Penter | Not Recommended | 08-09-2018 | Video Review | Read review |
| Atomix | Alberto Desfassiaux | 68 / 100 | 08-14-2018 | A great idea with a pretty mediocre execution. We Happy Few is an original game with a great story, but it’s problems in game mechanics, makes it a forgettable title. | Read review |
| Attack of the Fanboy | Kyle Hanson | 3.5 / 5 stars | 08-09-2018 | We Happy Few is a game of high highs and low lows. It’s certainly far from perfect, with questionable stealth mechanics, sometimes derivative gameplay, and a lack of polish that intrudes on the fun. However, it also offers a totally unique world full of interesting characters and places. | Read review |
| AusGamers | Kosta Andreadis | 7.1 / 10 | 08-20-2018 | And a willingness to stick with a severely flawed release to experience a fascinating tale of regret, shame, and addiction that’s full of ambition, charm, and memorable detail. | Read review |
| BaziCenter | Sina Golab Zade | 6 / 10 | 08-08-2018 | We Happy Few tries to combine a dystopian story with a survival gameplay, but these aspects don’t quite work together and sometimes even step on each other’s toes. Also the execution of the game as a whole, leaves a lot to be desired. | Read review |
| Bazimag | Hossein Sadri | 4.4 / 10 | 08-23-2018 | If you can afford to play all of the great games coming this year as well as indie titles, you should also play We Happy Few in order to understand how games should not be. Experiencing this title will give you a clear understanding of the distinction that exists between a masterpiece and a disasterous product. | Read review |
| CGMagazine | Zubi Khan | 6.5 / 10 | 08-09-2018 | We Happy Few is a game that deserves some more time to improve. As it stands, it offers some truly interesting characters in a well realized and intricate story, that unfortunately have been hampered by an overall unpolished feel. | Read review |
| Chicas Gamers | Igone Martínez | Not Recommended | 08-22-2016 | This is a preview of the preliminar version. I lose saves more than once times, the idea is great, the gameplay, original but bugs that make the game unplayable ruin all your good qualities. | Read review |
| COGconnected | Patrick Anderson | 70 / 100 | 08-13-2018 | It’s hard to criticize a game that offers so much originality, humor and satirical atmosphere. We Happy Few, unfortunately, lets its narrative and characters get bogged down in a desperate and, at times, tedious struggle to survive the game’s brutal environment. | Read review |
| Cubed3 | Chris Leebody | 9 / 10 | 10-28-2018 | The thing most sought after in gaming is uniqueness. Players seek it out via emotes and customisation, while developers seek it out via their creations. We Happy Few is truly unique and the only game that feels somewhat relatable is Dishonored due to general gameplay. Aside from that, the world, back-story, main story lines, characters, and overall feeling of helplessly trying to survive in a society of psychopaths is one of a kind. Whether interest lies in the survival horror genre or the first-person action adventure, this is a title that delivers an amazing and heart-pounding 25+ hours. It’s also noteworthy that a sandbox mode is coming to the game, but as of release it is not an available option. Hopefully, that means a lot of content post release. | Read review |
| cublikefoot | Chase Ferrin | 3.5 / 10 | 08-10-2018 | We Happy Few simply has too many technical issues to warrant a recommendation. Sure, the story and aesthetic may be cool, but the game falters in just about every other department. Bugs, performance issues, boring quests, annoying mechanics, etc. | Read review |
| Destructoid | Chris Moyse | 5 / 10 | 08-09-2018 | We Happy Few is unique. It features gorgeous environments, great music, twisted humor, and a magnetic story. It deserves praise for those aesthetics. But the game is what matters, and it is sadly lackluster in that regard, with bad combat, mundane stealth, and endless, frivolous mechanics. By choosing the fastidious “micro-management” path, We Happy Few distracts far too much from its true potential as a dystopian gaming classic. And that’s the biggest downer of all. | Read review |
| Digiato | Mehrshad Moradzadeh | 65 / 100 | 08-17-2018 | We Happy Few is a disappointment from Compulsion Games. It has a world including lots of potential but the result has ruined the complete experience. It doesn’t worth $60 and I can call it a Failure. | Read review |
| Digital Chumps | Michael Mays | 8.5 / 10 | 08-19-2018 | We Happy Few is a great game that has the potential to be an excellent game with a few tweaks here and there. | Read review |
| Digitally Downloaded | Matt Sainsbury | 4 / 5 stars | 08-16-2018 | There’s not much wrong with We Happy Few that can’t be fixed with some patches, and regardless of what happens there, the game has a narrative that is brave, intelligently crafted, and so incredibly poignant. | Read review |
| DualShockers | Lou Contaldi | 4.5 / 10 | 08-27-2018 | There’s no doubt a ton of positive elements to We Happy Few, but it seems like a fantastic world clouded over by overzealousness on the part of Compulsion Games. While they should be lauded for their hand in crafting a world that I wanted to dissect every inch of, too much of the game feels like filler for its own good. Perhaps with a little Joy, We Happy Few could be more palatable to modern audiences. | Read review |
| Easy Allies | Michael Huber | 3 / 5 stars | 08-16-2018 | We Happy Few’s disturbing dystopia is held back by half-baked concepts and tedious combat. | Read review |
| EGM | Emma Schaefer | 6.5 / 10 | 08-13-2018 | Compulsion Games transformed its randomly-generated, survival game into the dystopian narrative everyone asked for, but those randomized elements are still holding We Happy Few back from reaching its full potential. The twisted tale of a society addicted to its own Joy is lost underneath an endless hunt for bobby pins and scraps of cloth. | Read review |
| Eurogamer | Edwin Evans-Thirlwell | Not Recommended | 08-09-2018 | An ambitious, stylish and savage takedown of British hubris, but clunky crafting, collecting and combat make for a somewhat dull game. | Read review |
| Game Informer | Brian Shea | 7.8 / 10 | 08-09-2018 | We Happy Few delivers an intoxicating experience, rife with dark mysteries to unravel and exciting missions to complete, but some annoying mechanics and scarce resources keep it from reaching greatness | Read review |
| Game Revolution | Mack Ashworth | 3 / 5 stars | 08-09-2018 | In its launch state, however, We Happy Few pleases the eyes and ears, but much like the fictional drug it features, the Joy is great… until it wears off. | Read review |
| Gameblog | Julien Inverno | 5 / 10 | 08-15-2018 | If the pop, British and psychedelic universe, inspired by Brazil, Nineteen Eighty-Four and Brave New World, proposed by Compulsion Games is surprising and offers a very immersive story, the mechanics of survival game and crafting ruin the plot of the game, giving an unpleasant feeling of a mutant game, too dispersed for his own sake and suffering from many technical problems. | Read review |
| GameCrate | Nate Hohl | 8.3 / 10 | 08-13-2018 | I enjoyed my time with We Happy Few mainly because it both respected my time as a gamer, and also immersed me in an fascinating world that was driven by an equally fascinating backstory. The game’s potential may get a little tripped up on the technical front, but if you can look past the occasional unloaded texture or random loading screen, you’ll find that Compulsion Games’ latest was well worth the three-year wait. | Read review |
| Gamefa | Mohammad Aria Moghaddam | 7.5 / 10 | 08-14-2018 | We Happy Few is a unique game with beautiful art style, deep story and nice level design, but it could be way more of a ” just good game” if it wasn’t for many technical issues and some confusing gameplay elements that disappoint you at some point. But I must say that in the end, We Happy Few is a game that worth your time because of its uniqueness in story-telling and its amazing art style. | Read review |
| GameGrin | Calum Parry | 7 / 10 | 08-11-2018 | Aside from the immersive introduction, We Happy Few eventually becomes a chore more than an intense survival experience. One had only hoped, that the game became a linear experience akin to BioShock than the tacked on survival game it really is. | Read review |
| GamePitt | Rob Pitt | 8 / 10 | 08-25-2018 | We Happy Few is a perfect example of a game with a great premise and setting yet it fails at the last hurdle. Technically, the game feels like it could have done with a few more months of polish here and there. It would have been better if the developers had ironed out some of the more serious memory issues which cause the framerate drops and occasional crashing the further into the Acts you get. That being said, if you can look past the issues then you’re left with a really interesting and unique game which perfectly represents an alternative 1960’s British City. | Read review |
| GamePro | Florian Zandt | 76 / 100 | 08-13-2018 | Who endures crafting tricks and small quirks, gets with We Happy Few great characters and a great story, which is thoughtful. | Read review |
| Gamers Heroes | Blaine Smith | 6 / 10 | 08-09-2018 | If you can see past the casually designed mechanics and truly immerse yourself in the environment and narrative aspects of We Happy Few, there’s plenty to see here. Unfortunately for those probing a more wholesome experience, We Happy Few falls short. | Read review |
| Gamersky | 北方凛 | 7.3 / 10 | 08-19-2018 | We Happy Few has an interesting storyline and attractive background settings, and the duration of the game is far beyond my expectation. But still, too many bugs make this game look terrible, and the mission design is not that rational. | Read review |
| GameSkinny | Ty Arthur | 9 / 10 | 08-09-2018 | There may be a few rough spots here and there, but the polished interior just beneath the surface of this stealth/horror/survival mashup is very bright indeed. | Read review |
| GameSpew | Chris McMullen | 6 / 10 | 08-09-2018 | If you’re prepared to stomach the game’s less appetising sections, you’ll still get a little Joy out of We Happy Few. | Read review |
| GameSpot | Alessandro Barbosa | 4 / 10 | 08-10-2018 | We Happy Few’s borderline broken systems and unremarkable quest design make it an unentertaining slog through an intriguing world. | Read review |
| GamesRadar+ | Rachel Weber | 4 / 5 stars | 08-09-2018 | I’ll play more polished, bigger and more bombastic blockbuster games this year, but We Happy Few will stay with me long after its quests are over. | Read review |
| Gaming Nexus | Nicholas Leon | 6.5 / 10 | 09-17-2018 | The ideas of power, giving in to hegemonic cycles just to feel safe, and other gameplay systems are unfortunately overshadowed by the technical hiccups found in the game’s software. It’s a shame, because this game could have been good. | Read review |
| GamingBolt | John Cantees | 6 / 10 | 08-13-2018 | We Happy Few features one of this year’s most interesting settings but fails to fill it with quality gameplay most of the time. | Read review |
| GamingTrend | Lawrence Le | 65 / 100 | 08-09-2018 | We Happy Few is an ambitious open-world survival game that does not benefit from being one. Tedious exploration courtesy of poorly-designed environments and underdeveloped survival mechanics detract from an otherwise strong main adventure. Charming presentation, colorful writing, and powerful environmental storytelling are highlights that are unfortunately eclipsed by a shallow open world. | Read review |
| GBAtemp | Pranavsingh Dhunnoo | 7 / 10 | 08-20-2018 | We Happy Few isn’t a bad game on its own. If you can overlook some of its overused elements, you will find an original FPS with a gripping narrative, if you dedicate enough time. | Read review |
| GearNuke | Khurram Imtiaz | 6 / 10 | 08-17-2018 | Despite carrying an interesting premise, especially for its story, We Happy Few falters due to the lack of overall polish. It suffers from terrible performance and clunky combat controls while the focus on putting as many survival mechanics in a single-player story ends up making it look like a product that lost its identity. | Read review |
| Geek Culture | Si Jia | 7.3 / 10 | 08-20-2018 | Pulling off a rich, expertly-weaved narrative for a dystopian title is no mean feat, and the team at Compulsive Games managed to do so. Buoyed by beautiful visuals but brought down heavily by combat mechanics and the hefty price tag, it would perhaps be more accurate for We Happy Few to be titled We Okay Few instead. Steam sale anyone? | Read review |
| Generación Xbox | Alberto Rocha | 7 / 10 | 08-12-2018 | We Happy Few is an excellent story, and a fantastically imagined world, set in a game with many problems. | Read review |
| God is a Geek | Gary Bailey | 5 / 10 | 08-13-2018 | Perhaps given another few months, We Happy Few could have been great, but as it is it’s simply a missed opportunity. | Read review |
| GRYOnline.pl | Krzysztof Mysiak | 6.5 / 10 | 08-19-2018 | We Happy Few Has such a cool atmosphere, interesting world and clever story that is can easily be considered “an heir to BioShock”. In that case why did the developers opt to fill the game with tons of ludicrous content and made the player chase butterflies for dozens of hours? The world should be smaller, the gameplay better and the game shorter. A bit of a letdown. | Read review |
| Hardcore Gamer | Sam Spyrison | 3 / 5 stars | 08-09-2018 | Much like Contrast before it, We Happy Few shows off plenty of potential with its original and engaging world from a team whose passion and heart clearly shines through. | Read review |
| Hobby Consolas | David Martinez | 72 / 100 | 08-16-2018 | We Happy Few delivers a great story, with a perfect setting in an alternate sixties Britain and some easter eggs for fans of classic sci-fi literature. Sadly, missions are too similar and there are some technical issues in combat, loading times and survival mechanics. | Read review |
| IGN | Brendan Graeber | 7.3 / 10 | 08-10-2018 | We Happy Few’s focus on story over survival is a good choice, and at its best when dropping bombshells of truth that the drugged people of Wellington Wells have tried so hard to ignore. In its Early Access, I felt like wandering between procedurally-generated islands to stay alive wasted the intriguing setting and premise of its opening act. Now, exploring segments designed to reveal We Happy Few’s secrets are both fun and rewarding. Although survival and crafting are fairly manageable, running through randomly generated towns, streets, or abandoned fields unfortunately shows that We Happy Few can’t hide from the ghost of its own past, no matter how much Joy you take. | Read review |
| IGN Italy | Francesco Destri | 7.6 / 10 | 08-13-2018 | We Happy Few must clash with a gameplay that doesn’t fascinate too much, but plot, settings and longevity are more convincing. | Read review |
| IGN Spain | Juan García | 6.5 / 10 | 08-16-2018 | An interesting world and basic idea that lacks polish and uses a couple of game mechanics that feel too old to still be entertaining. | Read review |
| Just Push Start | Mark Fajardo | 4.5 / 5 stars | 08-12-2018 | We Happy Few could’ve been a great or at least interesting experience but fails to meet any of the promise. | Read review |
| Metro GameCentral | GameCentral | 4 / 10 | 08-13-2018 | A joyless and confused mix of BioShock, Fallout, and Rust that wastes its intriguing setting on repetitive action and tedious survival mechanics. | Read review |
| MonsterVine | Diego Escala | 2 / 5 stars | 08-31-2018 | At the end of the day, We Happy Few neither succeeds as a survival game nor as a plot driven adventure game. | Read review |
| New Game Network | Stephen LaGioia | 59 / 100 | 08-29-2018 | We Happy Few contains moments of enjoyment and artistic brilliance, but they are short lived, and | Read review |
| NoobFeed | Bogdan Robert Mateș | 60 / 100 | 08-12-2018 | We Happy Few hides nuggets of narrative gold at the end of tiring sequences of gameplay. | Read review |
| OnlySP | Richard Flint | 4 / 5 stars | 08-26-2018 | Currently, the graphical hindrances do not derive from the overall enjoyment of the game. Compulsion Games is continually working to iron out the issues and provide a smoother running experience. Despite some minor problems, the game is an overall joy to play and well worth a playthrough for RPG fans or any gamer in need of a well-written bash. | Read review |
| PC Gamer | Tyler Wilde | 60 / 100 | 08-10-2018 | A jog-fest with sluggish combat and inconsistent stealth, but a story that will pull you toward the end anyway. | Read review |
| PC Invasion | Raymond Porreca | 5 / 10 | 08-09-2018 | Although We Happy Few makes a strong first impression, it’s hampered by half-baked gameplay systems and a lack of crucial quality-of-life features. | Read review |
| PCGamesN | Jack Yarwood | 5 / 10 | 08-09-2018 | There’s a brilliant game that mixes peril with colourful exploration inside We Happy Few, but it’s buried under flawed systems and bugs | Read review |
| Player2.net.au | Dylan Burns | Not Recommended | 08-30-2018 | Perhaps time will iron out many of the issues as this still feels like a living document being tweaked by the creators. But as a paid game at retail, it’s just not good enough to recommend. | Read review |
| PlayStation LifeStyle | Blake Grundman | 5.5 / 10 | 08-13-2018 | I genuinely appreciated what We Happy Few was trying to accomplish. Its unique perspective to storytelling and compelling setting kept frustrations at bay for far longer than they had any right to. I even think that the game has the potential to course-correct though their future DLC. However, this doesn’t change the fact that the game has serious issues that make this full retail release feel more like a second round of Early Access. I cannot in good conscience encourage anyone to purchase the game in its current state. It would be best to revisit the game in a few months to see if things have improved. Now if you will excuse me, I have to pop a pill and pray to God that my entire memory of this game will just go away. | Read review |
| PlayStation Universe | John-Paul Jones | 6.5 / 10 | 08-12-2018 | Encompassing a brilliant and inventive setting that is let down by half-baked systems and a lack of polish, We Happy Few is heavily flawed though still ultimately enjoyable adventure romp. | Read review |
| Polygon | Colin Campbell | Recommended | 08-09-2018 | We Happy Few is uncomfortable, uncanny and brilliant | Read review |
| PowerUp! | Leo Stevenson | 2.7 / 10 | 09-17-2018 | We Happy Few is a bad indie game masquerading as an AAA title. It’s not worth your time, nor your money. Avoid at all costs. | Read review |
| Press Start | Brodie Gibbons | 5 / 10 | 08-21-2018 | After being revealed to a reasonable amount of fanfare, it’s fair to say that We Happy Few is one of the year’s biggest disappointments. Though there’s a lot of the BioShock fingerprint evident here, this lineage isn’t ever lived up to. The story, characters and the character of the world itself are positively to die for and exist as the game’s few triumphs. It’s a beautiful disaster of a game and was perhaps too ambitious for a developer so green as bugs, frustrating A.I. and a slipshod procedural generation robs We Happy Few of any chance it had to be great. | Read review |
| PSX Brasil | Leonardo Cidreira | 40 / 100 | 08-26-2018 | It is undeniable that We Happy Few is one of the biggest disappointments of this year. Its flaws go far beyond simple technical problems, and completely destroy the experience the game attempts to build. This is unacceptable when we take into account the fact that the game was launched at full price in its basic version, a price equivalent to that of a blockbuster from studios like Activision. | Read review |
| Push Square | Graham Banas | 5 / 10 | 08-16-2018 | We Happy Few isn’t bad per se, but it’s a very near miss, as the game comes right up to the brink of collapsing in upon itself from its many missteps. The game offers such an intriguing backdrop for its world, and really grand art, that whenever it’s more focused and non-procedural, it’s a grand old time. These spikes of enjoyment are however far too infrequent given the scale and running time of the title, often times leaving you floundering amid strong art direction and music without a real desire to actually play what’s on offer. | Read review |
| Rectify Gaming | Unknown | 7 / 10 | 08-19-2019 | Compulsion Games’ second major project was released to an indie horror gaming community that antcipated more than it got. We’re not mad, “We Happy Few,” we’re just disappointed. | Read review |
| Screen Rant | Rob Gordon | 3.5 / 5 stars | 08-09-2018 | We Happy Few releases on consoles and PC on August 10. | Read review |
| SECTOR.sk | Branislav Kohút | 7.5 / 10 | 08-27-2018 | Retrofuturistic England and Joy-obsessed world is interesting place. Well, with some bugs and some defects. if you don’t mind, Take Your Joy! | Read review |
| SelectButton | Kevin Mitchell | 6 / 10 | 08-15-2018 | We Happy Few combines survival mechanics with a deep and thoroughly enjoyable narrative, but technical hiccups hamper the experience. There was a bit too much reliance on stealth, giving a one-dimensional gameplay sensation, but thankfully you don’t have to confront to that type of approach (although things are harder if you don’t). Side missions help give life to the charming and witty characters you’ll come across but are entirely optional if you want to play through the main narrative. The technical shortcomings and terrible frame rate are disappointing, along with some annoying missions, but with a deep and thrilling story, I was able to look the other way on some of the glaring issues, as none that I encountered were game breaking in any way. It is just a shame that Compulsion Games didn’t remove the boring open world sequences and focused even further on tightening up the narrative experience. | Read review |
| Shacknews | Brittany Vincent | 8 / 10 | 08-08-2018 | If you’re as terrified of a dystopian society as I am but also endlessly fascinated by it, then We Happy Few is for you. Just be sure not to forget your Joy! We wouldn’t want you labeled as a Downer, now would we? | Read review |
| SomHráč.sk | Monika Erősová | 70 / 100 | 09-10-2018 | We Happy Few isn’t the next BioShock, but if you’re a fan of post-apocalyptic or dystopian settings and complex stories, it has something to offer. Too bad about the technical issues and overblown price. | Read review |
| Stevivor | Steve Wright | Not Recommended | 08-09-2018 | I can’t help but think that early access has potentially soured the experience for those who were as excited for this game years and years ago as I was. If you’re in that group, I implore you to give the game another try — it’s certainly worth reconsidering. | Read review |
| TechRaptor | Alex Santa Maria | 6.5 / 10 | 08-09-2018 | We Happy Few has a pristine narrative vision, but it feels layered on top of a wholly different game. Much like the famous visage of the Wellington Wells citizenry, the story is a mask that tries to hide a buggy open world and needless procedural generation. | Read review |
| The Digital Fix | Tom Bedford | 7 / 10 | 08-27-2018 | While it has one of the best game worlds ever envisioned, We Happy Few stumbles over painfully simplistic gameplay and several major bugs. | Read review |
| The Escapist | Anthony John Agnello | 4 / 5 stars | 08-29-2018 | It calls up any real experience of anxiety lickety split. But the threat’s easy to escape and even easier to forget. The difference between a great idea and a great story is subtle, but important. | Read review |
| The Games Machine | Roberto Turrini | 6 / 10 | 08-27-2018 | We Happy Few is a game with an excellent narrative incipit, unfortunately limited by the open world size, mechanics, control system and AI. | Read review |
| The Jimquisition | Jim Sterling | Not Recommended | 08-14-2018 | Nothing short of a mega patch will fix everything truly messed up about this game. If you can imagine a game bug, any game bug, We Happy Few probably has it. | Read review |
| The Outerhaven Productions | Karl Smart | 1 / 5 stars | 08-24-2018 | We Happy Few is a game that promises to be one hell of a good story drive ride from start to finish, but what we got was something that is so full of bugs and crash issues that it completely ruin the experience. Frankly We Happy Few needed to spend more time in development than it does being played. When something like this starts on Kickstarter, sometimes it just need to stay there. We Happy Few’s story is a highlight and should be an animated film more than a less-then-playable video game. | Read review |
| TheSixthAxis | Jason Coles | 6 / 10 | 08-09-2018 | There’s a huge amount of potential in this dystopian 1960s drug trip, but ultimately it starts to feel frustrating quite quickly. Every time We Happy Few draws you in with an interesting tidbit about the world or the character you are playing as it’s scuppered by the systems fighting against you. It just becomes frustrating and makes a potentially immersive experience an irritating exercise in dealing with the game mistaking your intentions. Much like the dystopian world in which it is set, We Happy Few never feels quite right. | Read review |
| Thumbsticks | Tom Baines | 2.5 / 5 stars | 08-28-2018 | We’re not saying that We Happy Few is all style and no substance, but have you seen how bloody stylish it is? | Read review |
| Too Much Gaming | Carlos Hernandez | 7 / 10 | 08-08-2018 | The combination of tension, exploration, intrigue, and survival made for an strong artistic foundation for Compulsion Games to build their story upon. They’ve created something special here, and I hope they continue to do good story work going forward. We Happy Few’s stealth and combat, on the other hand, needed more work. While the game encourages you to seek out additional playthroughs, they only serve to cast a harsh light on the fundamental mechanics. And that’s a bitter pill to swallow. | Read review |
| TrueAchievements | Rebecca Smith | 3 / 5 stars | 09-02-2018 | It’s a world to which you want to return, but it’s also a world that throws up a new problem with every visit. With several patches, this game could be a fun experience, but right now it can often be an exercise in frustration. | Read review |
| Twinfinite | Zhiqing Wan | 3 / 5 stars | 08-09-2018 | After completing all three story acts, I found that I enjoyed the journey the game took me on, but I was also overwhelmingly relieved that it was finally over. At the end of the day, We Happy Few leaves me feeling conflicted. | Read review |
| USgamer | Caty McCarthy | 2.5 / 5 stars | 08-09-2018 | There’s a lot to like about We Happy Few, with its unique psychedelic dystopian setting and well-developed story, but it’s the moment-to-moment action that crashes down on you like a bad dose of Joy. So-so survival elements, the lack of mission variety, frame rate issues, prolific bugs, and tedious stealth and combat will make you want to cook up some Joy for yourself, so that maybe you too can forget the bad stuff and remember only the bright side of things. | Read review |
| VGChartz | Jackson Newsome | 5 / 10 | 08-10-2018 | As it stands, the game’s early comparisons to BioShock were far too kind, and I would not recommend We Happy Few to anyone. | Read review |
| Video Chums | Tyler Hall | 5.8 / 10 | 09-07-2018 | We Happy Few is an ambitious title with an interesting premise but it fails to deliver on the things that make a video game fun to play. | Read review |
| VideoGamer | Colm Ahern | 4 / 10 | 08-20-2018 | While We Happy Few’s story contains some genuinely wonderful twists and turns once it gets going, it’s dragged down by frustrating survival systems, shoddy combat, and an empty world. | Read review |
| We Got This Covered | Todd Rigney | 3.5 / 5 stars | 08-09-2018 | We Happy Few doesn’t always come together to form a cohesive video game experience, but its story and art direction are nothing short of fantastic. Had the developers dumped the stealth and survival mechanics, I’d love this game to death. | Read review |
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