IGN: 4/10
Crime Boss: Rockay City is an overambitious ball of air on every front, from its moment-to-moment sloppy gameplay to its largely abysmal voice acting – the worst of which feels like spliced single takes with errors intact.
NME: 4/10
A subpar shooter that’s diminished by money spent on licensed music and stunt dubbing, Crime Boss might be the year’s biggest “if only” because you can see some great ideas scrapped by a poor writing, dismal shooting, and a game that feels like all its money was spent on Chuck Norris one-liners instead of making the game stand on its own without those issues. Disappointment.
TheGamer: 4/10
Crime Boss is a game at war with itself. All three modes offer something, but none of them do their specific job as well. Meanwhile, the characters and writing surrounding these missions feel painfully stuck in 2011. And the customization is either limited or haphazard in a way that feels like you’re never quite in control. your load.
GGRecon: 4/10
Crime Boss Rockay City is a cautionary tale of how to budget a video game effectively, and a prime example of how games should feel and play well above all else. There are some great ideas buried deep within this game, and the roguelike/Payday combo is a genuinely new concept that I’d like to see explored in a more focused project. However, using a voice cast of Hollywood talent past their prime is a choice that adds nothing to the game, and it’s not enough to distract me from the superficial gameplay that was already much better a decade ago.
Metro Game Central: 3/10
An unlikable, repetitive and bland clone of Payday that wastes its celebrity-filled cast on an equally poor script.
Game Inform: 3/10
Crime Boss: Rockay City is proof that star power isn’t everything. In fact, it’s a reminder that a celebrity cast doesn’t do anything for a game when there’s nothing interesting or fun to back it up. When end-of-run bugs appear, Crime Boss is miserable, but even when running a bug-free mission, I witness a painfully boring view of organized crime. At its best, Crime Boss works – I can fire weapons at enemies, empty bank vaults and warehouses for loot, watch cutscenes with recognizable faces and voices, and grow my empire – but it never captures my attention in a meaningful or memorable way. Instead, it pushes me further and further, leaving me with no desire to return to Rockay City.
Hardcore Gamer: 7/10
If you like 90s rogue-like games and crime movies and don’t mind the repetitiveness, Crime Boss: Rockay City might be for you. But those who think it can be a Payday or GTA clone, it’s not completely one or the other.
Everyeye.it: 7/10
If the developers keep their promise to release new free content and fix some issues, the Brno-based studio’s first work could carve out a small place in the gaming landscape, also thanks to its affordability.
Spazio Games: 6.8/10
Despite its many flaws, Crime Boss Rockay City is often fun and will have you wondering what would have happened if you had decided to approach things differently. Unfortunately, the game doesn’t feel that polished, and aside from a few technical issues on PC, its structure doesn’t give enough credit to some of its great design ideas.
SECTOR.sk: 6.5/10
Crime Boss aims to be majestic, but the game doesn’t do that very well. It’s not exactly bad, but despite trying to be pompous, it feels very cheap. The idea is good, but the execution leaves much to be desired. On the other hand, the game is suitable for beginners in the cooperative action genre.
GameStar: 6.3/10
If you’re expecting a new Payday here, you’re bound to be disappointed. Crime Boss: Rockay City has a lot of cool features and cool ideas, but most of them only go through with the grudging.
Reverse: 6/10
Rockay City has something interesting about its new campaign structure, and its modest price currently reduced to $31.99 makes it a real bargain. But there’s not enough to understand that this justifies anyone staying for more than a random night with buddies. The whole thing is clearly a loving homage to the glory days of ’90s action movies, but the tone-deaf execution misses the mark. But how long can that hold your attention when your multiplayer gaming time is much better spent elsewhere?
GamingBolt: 5/10
Crime Boss: Rockay City gameplay is marred by myriad bugs, dull, boring gameplay, and a severe lack of fun despite its best attempts to have GTA presence and Payday mechanics, both of which are much better games.
GameSkinny: 5/10
Crime Boss tries to piece together a bunch of identical procedurally generated content with a few Hollywood faces and call it a video game, but ends up being nothing much at all.
Comicbook.com: 5/10
Crime Boss: Rockay City isn’t a terrible game, but it’s a game that fails to even scratch the surface of its own potential. Sometimes mediocrity is worse than bad, especially when all of the game’s most unique concepts seem half-baked and the core gameplay experience is average at best. For a game that draws immediate parallels to other highly successful co-op crime games, Crime Boss fails to stand out and tries to disguise that with gimmick-y Hollywood performances.
Gamereactor UK: 5/10
For anyone looking for a glitzy 90s-inspired Payday (because there’s enough heist that I want to compare the two) that doubles down on its first-person action shooter gameplay, then this will at least give you a few hours of fun before you want to spend your time on something with more longevity.
Screen Rating: 5/10
In its current state, Crime Boss: Rockay City looks like a low-level wannabe criminal trying to get rich quick on a street populated by multiplayer shooters who are already doing better.
Shacknews: 5/10
If the thought of playing a shooter crammed on a modern edition of Drug Wars full of pseudo-ironic stunts and roguelike gimmicks sounds like a good time, I’ve got a game for you. The only game for you, really. All snark aside, I don’t think I’ve ever played a game like Crime Boss: Rockay City. It’s a massive swing and a big miss, with enough force to break the sound barrier while the ball stays in the receiver’s glove. It’s neither a cynical company like Sharknado, nor a low-budget dud that you’d expect to see a crew of robot puppets heckle. It’s weird, loud and strange. Frankly, I’m surprised Christopher Walken didn’t show up.