Early Reviews Suggest Code Violet, PS5’s First Exclusive of 2026, Is a Disaster

If 2026 was supposed to start strong for PS5 exclusives, it didn’t quite land that way.
The first console-exclusive release of the year has arrived, and early reactions haven’t been kind.

As reported by PlayStation Lifestyle, Metacritic shows three published critic reviews, all landing at 40 out of 100, which puts the game firmly in disappointing territory. Over on OpenCritic, the story is similar. While it has a slightly wider pool of reviews, the average score still hovers around the same mark as Metacritic.

Code Violet, a third-person action horror game, launched with a lot of curiosity around it. The reason: dinosaurs, survival mechanics, and a clear nod toward a long-forgotten PlayStation classic many still miss. That promise doesn’t seem to hold up in practice, at least according to early reviews.

Outlets reviewing the game have pointed to clunky controls, uneven pacing, and technical rough edges. The survival horror tension it aims for reportedly collapses once combat and traversal come into play. That’s a tough pill to swallow, especially for a PS5 exclusive which was promised for superb visuals and nostalgic expectations.

When multiple review platforms speak similarly, it usually tells a clear narrative. The game is reportedly “a big mess,” as it doesn’t deliver what it promised.