Metacritic's 2025's Worst Games: A Tale of Disagreement and User Scores
The holiday season brings a plethora of Top-10 lists, and Metacritic's annual ranking of the worst video games of the year is no exception. However, this year's list has sparked debate among gamers and journalists alike, with differing opinions on which game deserves the title of the year's worst.
Metacritic's criteria for this year's list were straightforward: any game with at least four reviews from 'professional critics' (read: gaming journalists with no actual gaming experience) was eligible. This led to a unique selection of titles that might surprise even avid gamers.
The top of the list is dominated by Fast & Furious: Arcade Edition, Scar-Lead Salvation, QUByte Classics: Glover, and Ambulance Life: A Paramedic Simulator, each with a modest 44 points. Tamagotchi Plaza and Gore Doctor follow with 43 and 40 points, respectively, while Spy Drops rounds out the top five with 39 points.
However, when we shift our focus to user scores, the list takes a dramatic turn. MindsEye, an action-adventure game from Build a Rocket Boy, takes the dubious honor of being Metacritic's Worst Game of 2025 with a mere 28 points. This is despite the game receiving 42 positive reviews from less than 4,000 Steam players, indicating a stark contrast between professional and user opinions.
The rest of the list, when considering user scores, is a familiar face-off. EA Sports College Football 26, Madden NFL 26, Tales of the Shire, Sid Meier's Civilization VII, Destiny 2: The Edge of Fate, Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour, EA Sports FC 26, and Football Manager 26 all fall within the bottom 10, with scores ranging from 2.6 to 4.4/10.
Interestingly, Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, with a score of just 1.6/10, takes the title of the worst-rated game of 2025 among players. This places it among the Top-50 worst-rated games of the past quarter century, below titles like CoD MWIII, Battlefield 2042, Fallout 76, NBA 2K20, Overwatch 2, and even Concord.
So, which list do you trust more? Do you agree with Metacritic's professional critics or the opinions of regular players? Share your thoughts and let's discuss the games that truly deserve the title of the worst in 2025! Don't forget to explore our other content, including breakdowns, the latest news, and more, across our various social media platforms.
