# OpenCritic Game Reviews Scraper (`parseforge/opencritic-games-scraper`) Actor

Scrapes OpenCritic browse lists for game titles, aggregated critic scores, recommendation percentages, platforms, and release dates. Returns each game as one flat row.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/parseforge/opencritic-games-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [ParseForge](https://apify.com/parseforge) (community)
- **Categories:** E-commerce, News, Other
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $19.00 / 1,000 result items

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).

# README

[![ParseForge](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ParseForge/apify-assets/main/banner.jpg)](https://apify.com/parseforge?fpr=vmoqkp)

### OpenCritic Game Reviews Scraper

**Scrape game reviews, critic scores, and recommendations from OpenCritic, up to a million games per run.** Every game comes with its aggregated score, percent recommended, platforms, and release date. No API key required. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.

OpenCritic aggregates critic reviews into a single score, but browsing hundreds of game pages by hand is slow. This Actor reads the public browse lists directly, sorted by score, release date, or popularity, and returns each game as one flat row. You get the data you need for market analysis, backlog tools, or recommendation engines without writing a single scraper.

| Who uses it | What they scrape OpenCritic for |
|---|---|
| Game publishers | Benchmark their own titles against competitors by critic score and recommendation rate. |
| Market analysts | Track which genres and platforms are receiving the highest critic praise each quarter. |
| Deal hunters and price-tracker builders | Enrich game price data with critic scores to highlight quality bargains. |
| Backlog app developers | Populate a game database with critic consensus to help users prioritize what to play next. |

### What it does

This Actor collects OpenCritic game entries from browse lists and returns each one as a flat row with its aggregated score, recommendation percentage, platforms, and release date.

- 🏆 **Sort by score:** Pull the highest-rated or lowest-rated games first, from the full OpenCritic catalog.
- 📅 **Sort by release date:** Collect the newest releases or build a historical timeline of game launches.
- 🔥 **Sort by popularity:** Get the games generating the most discussion and traffic on OpenCritic right now.
- 🔢 **Capped collection:** Set a hard limit from 1 to 1,000,000 games so a single run fits your time and storage budget.

Results export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML, or straight from the API.

### What you can do with OpenCritic data

**📊 Build a critic-score leaderboard.**

A gaming news site runs the Actor weekly sorted by score to publish an updated list of the top 100 highest-rated games of all time.

**🎮 Enrich a price tracker with review data.**

A deal-finding service scrapes OpenCritic scores and recommendation percentages, then joins them to price data so users can filter for highly-rated games on sale.

**📅 Monitor new release reception.**

A market analyst runs the Actor sorted by release date every Monday to compile a report on how the past week's launches are scoring with critics.

**🔍 Research a genre or platform.**

A publisher collects the full browse list sorted by popularity, then filters the dataset locally to see which RPGs on PC are dominating critic attention.

### Why choose this scraper

| | What you get |
|---|---|
| **One flat schema** | Every game is a row with the same columns, ready for a database or spreadsheet. |
| **No API registration** | Reads the public browse feeds. No OAuth, no app approval, no rate-limit headaches. |
| **Three sort orders** | Score, release date, or popularity. Pick the one that matches your question. |
| **Runs on Apify** | Schedule it daily, run it once, or call it from your own app via the API. |

### How it compares

This Actor focuses on high-volume browse list collection with three sort orders, while the alternative also opens individual game pages for extra detail fields.

| Feature | ParseForge | OpenCritic Game Reviews & Scores Scraper |
|---|---|---|
| Scrapes browse lists | Yes, with sort by score, release date, or popularity | Yes |
| Scrapes individual game detail pages | Not listed | Yes |
| Sort by popularity | Yes | Not listed |
| Configurable max items per run | Yes, 1 to 1,000,000 | Not listed |
| Returns recommendation percentage | Yes | Not listed |

### Configure the run

Drive the Actor by choosing a sort order and a maximum number of games. Sorting runs first, then the Actor stops once it hits your cap. The Input tab lists every parameter.

A first run with the defaults:

```json
{
 "maxItems": 10
}
```

A larger pull:

```json
{
 "maxItems": 200
}
```

### Pricing

Pay-per-result: **$0.021 per result** collected. You pay only for the results written to your dataset.

| Results collected | Approximate cost |
|---|---|
| 100 results | $2.10 |
| 1,000 results | $21.00 |
| 10,000 results | $210.00 |

New Apify accounts start with $5 in free credit.

### Free users

Free-plan runs return up to 10 results as a preview. [Upgrade your Apify plan](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp) to collect up to 1,000,000 results per run.

### Run it

1. [Create a free Apify account with $5 in credit](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp).
2. Open the [OpenCritic Game Reviews Scraper](https://apify.com/parseforge/opencritic-games-scraper?fpr=vmoqkp).
3. Set your inputs and any filters, then click **Start**.
4. Export the results as CSV, Excel, JSON, or XML from the **Dataset** tab.

Run it programmatically through the [Apify API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2) (`run-sync-get-dataset-items`) or the [ApifyClient](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js) for JavaScript and Python.

### Use with AI agents (MCP)

Give an AI agent live access to OpenCritic through the Model Context Protocol. Add the Actor to Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client:

```bash
claude mcp add --transport http apify "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=parseforge/opencritic-games-scraper"
```

Then prompt it in plain language to run the scraper and read back the results.

### Troubleshooting

**Why am I getting fewer results than my maxItems setting?**

The Actor stops when it has collected the number you set or when it reaches the end of the browse list. If OpenCritic has fewer total games than your maxItems value, you will get all of them and the run will finish normally.

**The run failed with a timeout error.**

A very large maxItems value can cause a long run. Increase the run timeout in your Apify actor settings, or reduce maxItems and run the Actor more frequently.

**Some games are missing a score or show a zero.**

OpenCritic displays a score only after a game has received enough critic reviews. Newly listed games or very obscure titles may not have a score yet. The Actor returns whatever OpenCritic shows.

**The data looks different from what I see on the website.**

Scores and rankings update continuously as new reviews are published. A run captures a snapshot at that moment. Run the Actor again to get the latest values.

**I got blocked or received an error from OpenCritic.**

Apify's platform rotates IPs and manages request rates automatically. If you still see blocks, try reducing your maxItems or spacing out your runs. Contact Apify support if the issue persists.

### FAQ

| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Does this scrape individual game detail pages or the browse list? | It reads the browse list pages. You get the summary data shown on the list: title, aggregated score, percent recommended, platforms, and release date. It does not open every game's detail page. |
| What exactly is in the 'score' field? | It is the OpenCritic aggregated critic score, typically a 0-100 number that averages all the individual critic reviews collected for that game. |
| Can I filter by platform or genre before scraping? | The input schema does not include platform or genre filters. The Actor pulls the global browse list sorted by your chosen order. You can filter the resulting dataset locally by platform or genre after the run. |
| How many games can I get in one run? | You set the maximum with the 'maxItems' field, anywhere from 1 to 1,000,000. The Actor stops cleanly once it reaches that number. |
| Do I need an OpenCritic account or API key? | No. The Actor reads the publicly accessible browse pages. No login, no API key, no registration of any kind is required. |
| What export formats are supported? | You can export your dataset from Apify in CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML. The Actor itself returns the data in the standard Apify dataset format. |
| Can I schedule this to run automatically? | Yes. Apify supports scheduled runs. You can set it to run daily, weekly, or on any cron schedule you need. |
| Does it collect user reviews or only critic reviews? | It collects the aggregated critic data shown on the browse list: the critic score and the percentage of critics who recommend the game. It does not collect individual user reviews. |
| What is the 'percent recommended' value? | It is the percentage of critics who recommend the game, as reported by OpenCritic. A game with a 90% recommended rate was endorsed by 9 out of 10 critics. |
| Is the data returned in real time? | Each run reads OpenCritic live, so you get the scores and rankings as they exist at the moment the Actor runs. |

### Related actors

Browse the full [ParseForge collection](https://apify.com/parseforge?fpr=vmoqkp) for more scrapers.

🆘 **Need help?** Email parseforge@protonmail.com with your run ID, your input, and what you expected.

⚠️ **Disclaimer.** This Actor is unofficial and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by OpenCritic, LLC. It collects only publicly available data. You are responsible for using the collected data in compliance with the source's terms of service and applicable data-protection laws, including GDPR, CCPA, and PIPL. Do not use it to collect personal data unlawfully.

# Actor input Schema

## `sort` (type: `string`):

Sort

## `maxItems` (type: `integer`):

How many games to collect per run.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "sort": "score",
  "maxItems": 10
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "maxItems": 10
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("parseforge/opencritic-games-scraper").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = { "maxItems": 10 }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("parseforge/opencritic-games-scraper").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "maxItems": 10
}' |
apify call parseforge/opencritic-games-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,parseforge/opencritic-games-scraper"
        }
    }
}

```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/gTUntRIIpxx1gUfkR/builds/YI1Hd013uxiZsQQCo/openapi.json