Everywhere you look, enthusiasts are quick to share their rankings of the top games of 2025. However, what of the stinkers, the underperformers? It's time to take a few moments to honor the absolute worst games of the year, based on the critical consensus on Metacritic. Could each of these games truly as terrible as their scores suggest? Here is the list.
10. Welcome Tour for Switch 2
Aggregate Score: 54/100, User Score: 3.4/10
The early response to this tech demo were colored by its $9.99 price tag, with many feeling cheesed off it wasn't a bundled game like competing console launches. Reviewer sentiment spanned a wide spectrum, from harsh disappointment to slightly kinder reviews that noted the delightful software itself. In spite of the debate, the title proved to be a surprisingly robust seller during its launch month.
9. Rennsport
Aggregate Score: 53/100, User Score: 3.2/10
Presented as "not just a racing game," this driving sim from studios in Germany and Poland was met with pretty unanimous reviews. The consensus was that the game was lacking in nearly every way, particularly in a year filled with high-quality racing titles. In the eyes of critics, this sputtering stinker was better off left on the shelf.
8. Bubsy's Purrfect Collection
Metascore: 53/100, Audience Score: 8.6/10
To begin with: the awkward punctuation is a notable point of contention. This collection of SNES and PS1 platforming games features a "attitude"-filled feline known for non-stop hacky one-liners. Reviewers noted that these games were not good to begin with and feel dated with age. The notably positive user score remains a baffling anomaly to the critical reception.
7. Hunter x Hunter: Nen x Impact
Aggregate Score: 53, User Score: 3.5
This *Hunter x Hunter* fighter encountered widespread disappointment from both professionals and the dedicated community. Complaints centered on a thin character selection and a dearth of gameplay modes. User reviews was notably harsh, with some expressing a wish that the title's poor performance would be a warning for future projects.
6. Neptunia Riders Vs Dogoos
Aggregate Score: 51, User Score: 5.3
Hailing from the niche Hyperdimension Neptunia series, this bike-riding title tasks players with rounding up slime-like creatures. Reviewers felt that its effort to recreate a rolling-collection experience was unsuccessful, coming across as more of a quick spin-off than a meaningful addition to the franchise. Its brief runtime combined with a premium price was criticized.
5. Captain Blood
Aggregate Score: 50, Audience Score: 5.3
This title is a piece of lost media from the Xbox era, finally released after nearly two decades in legal limbo. The team behind it consciously chose to preserve the game as an authentic product of its time, accepting that contemporary players might criticize its dated design. As such, many reviews remarked that the tale of its journey was more interesting than the game itself.
4. Salvation
Metascore: 44, Audience Score: 2.4
This anime-art third-person shooter inspired by games like *Returnal* failed to impress with critics. Frequent criticisms included repetitive adversaries, samey environments, and a snoozy narrative. A much-criticized system involving the character's attire was universally disliked and detracted from the game's potential charm.
3. Ambulance Life
Metascore: 44, User Score: 4.9
Imagine the tense surgery games of the past, then remove the compelling story. That, according to reviews, is essentially *Ambulance Life*. Critics found the emergency response sections to be monotonous, and the treatment of its subject matter was criticized as being insensitive. The overall experience was deemed a missed opportunity.
2. Tamagotchi Plaza
Metascore: 43, Audience Score: 5.8
This new direction for the classic virtual pet formula makes the franchise into a town-management title. The result, per critics, was a unsatisfying collection of simple minigames that very soon became boring. Some reviews went so far as to declare it one of the worst titles available on its platform, noting a profound lack of satisfying gameplay.
1. MindsEye
Aggregate Score: 37, Audience Score: 2.5
Arriving as a blockbuster GTA-style title from a team featuring well-known figures, *MindsEye* was a catastrophic disappointment. Reviews universally panned its poor shooting mechanics, boring plot, and a host of technical problems. Critics found it to be a regression compared to decades-old games in the similar style. Amidst the scathing reviews, a tiny number of positive user reviews found fun in the experience, providing a rare vote of confidence.
