Best for load times
Ghost of Yōtei
5.0 feature score
Highest scored product for this feature based on supporting review evidence.
Best Video Games for load times
load times Decision Dashboard
Safest pick
The Last of Us Part II Remastered
4.8 feature score
Balances feature score, supporting reviews, and overall product strength.
Most evidence
Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced
4 supporting reviews
Has the broadest review evidence for this feature.
Best overall product
Hades II
4.5 overall score
Strongest overall product among items with scored evidence for this feature.
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Load times are one of the clearest technical wins, with reviewers calling travel and boot-to-game transitions near-instant.
Pros: movement feel, environmental detail
Cons: puzzle design, age appropriateness
Load times were praised as quick or lightning fast in the reviews that mentioned them opinionatedly.
Pros: animation quality, sound design
Cons: difficulty balance, AI behavior
Load times receive a perfect single-review score for near-seamless transitions between menu, cutscenes, and gameplay.
Pros: animation quality, facial animations
Cons: quest design, AI behavior
Load times were praised as very short, supporting quick play and smooth traversal between moments.
Pros: gameplay mechanics, world interactivity
Cons: economy and resource balance, enemy variety
Load times were praised in preview coverage as quick, matching the strong Switch 2 performance profile.
Pros: visual effects quality, environmental detail
Cons: AI behavior, level design
Load times had limited positive evidence, with scenes transitioning without a loading delay.
Pros: side character depth, visual effects quality
Cons: user interface design, handheld play suitability
Load times receive explicit praise for being very fast.
Pros: core gameplay loop, controls responsiveness
Cons: mission design, learning curve
Load times and fast-travel speed are praised as quick and convenient.
Pros: world-building, art direction
Cons: mission design, stealth mechanics
Load times are praised as fast or nearly nonexistent, with some arcade versions noted as quicker than console versions.
Pros: emotional impact, sound design
Cons: cross-play support, boss design
Load times were consistently praised as much faster and a clear quality-of-life upgrade.
Pros: core gameplay loop, level design
Cons: family friendliness, puzzle design
Load times/install flow receive limited but strong praise for launching quickly before full install completion.
Pros: open-world design, replay value
Cons: dialogue quality, writing quality
Load times had limited but strong evidence, with Digital Foundry praising nearly instant transitions.
Pros: value for money, fun factor
Cons: map and navigation design, side character depth
Load times are praised as fast or essentially instant, even when reviewers note the old area-transition structure remains.
Pros: world interactivity, sandbox freedom
Cons: crash stability, learning curve
Load times received limited positive evidence around seamless battles and lack of loading transitions.
Pros: protagonist appeal, art direction
Cons: camera behavior, tutorial quality
Load-time impressions are very positive because several reviewers noted seamless docking or no loading screens entering cities.
Pros: core gameplay loop, visual effects quality
Cons: monetization fairness, microtransaction impact
Load times were praised in both scored references for being almost instantaneous when the game ran well.
Pros: world-building, world interactivity
Cons: enemy variety, stealth mechanics
Load screens were rarely a major complaint, and one review praised the minimal loading between areas.
Pros: world-building, frame rate stability
Cons: companion AI, upgrade system
Load times receive a positive note from one Switch reviewer who says they did not take too long.
Pros: graphics quality, environmental detail
Cons: bug frequency, dialogue quality
Load times were generally praised or acceptable where seamless region transitions and reduced loading were noted.
Pros: art direction, cross-play support
Cons: dialogue quality, monetization fairness
Load times ranged from extremely quick in stronger versions to sluggish on base PS4 hardware.
Pros: movement feel, art direction
Cons: platforming precision, writing quality
Load times are mixed: one PS5 review complained about frequent loading, while another praised quick next-gen loading.
Pros: controls responsiveness, movement feel
Cons: tutorial quality, animation quality
Load times are a platform caveat, with Switch 1 specifically called out for longer loading.
Pros: skill tree depth, dialogue quality
Cons: emotional impact, economy and resource balance
Reviewer evidence is mixed: load times drew both praise and caveats across 1 review(s).
Pros: level design, replay value
Cons: stealth mechanics, save system reliability
Load times were criticized by one reviewer as long enough to worsen stealth retries and experimentation.
Pros: soundtrack quality, fun factor
Cons: checkpoint system, family friendliness
Load times were a recurring platform concern, especially on Switch, though one review balanced the initial wait against smooth movement after loading.
Pros: accessibility options, protagonist appeal
Cons: frame rate stability, polish
Load-time evidence was mixed-to-negative because shader precompilation was called long or repeatedly required on launch.
Pros: controls responsiveness, onboarding experience
Cons: crash stability, grind level
Load times drew criticism where character switching inserted a 10–15 second screen that broke the moment.
Pros: environmental detail, cross-save support
Cons: writing quality, enemy variety
Load times are a consistent negative where mentioned, especially around lobbies and match transitions.
Pros: movement feel, world-building
Cons: save system reliability, mission variety