2025 has been an outstanding year for video games, with countless studios delivering ambitious projects and unforgettable experiences. But even in a year packed with hits, not every release can land on its feet.
As we approach the end of the year, it’s the perfect time to look back at the titles that missed the mark—not to revel in their shortcomings, but to understand where things went wrong and how future games can avoid repeating the same mistakes.
So, if you’re wondering which titles might be worth sidestepping, or you’re simply interested in how the year’s disappointments stacked up, here’s a closer look at the ten lowest-rated video games released in 2025.
Top 10 Lowest-Rated Games Released In 2025
This roundup is based entirely on Metascore ratings from Metacritic. To qualify, a game must have launched in 2025 and earned at least seven critic reviews. Keep this in mind with the entries.
10. Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour
Metascore: 54
Kicking off the list is Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour, a title many argue feels more like a paid tech demo than a traditional game. Designed to highlight the capabilities of the Switch 2, it delivers a handful of fun minigames and some neat insights into the system’s new features.
The real sticking point is value. Fans questioned why this wasn’t bundled for free with the console, similar to Astro’s Playroom on PS5. As a paid standalone release, it’s tough to recommend—and that ultimately lands it among 2025’s lowest-rated titles.
9. RENNSPORT
Metascore: 53
On the surface, RENNSPORT presents itself as a competent racing sim, with sharp handling, impressive vehicle audio, and a decent variety of tracks. But it doesn’t take long to notice that it lacks the depth and breadth offered by its biggest competitors.
That shallow content offering raised major concerns when the game launched at a premium price point. Compared to titles like Gran Turismo, RENNSPORT feels more like a paid demo than a full-featured racing experience, a perception that heavily contributed to its low reception.
8. Bubsy In: The Purrfect Collection
Metascore: 53
There was never much working in favour of Bubsy In: The Purrfect Collection to begin with. While the compilation itself is competently put together and preserves the classic Bubsy titles accurately, the core problem remains: the original games were never particularly good.
The collection is almost too faithful, offering little to make the experience more palatable for modern players. Despite some welcome extras and accessibility options, you’re still left with four games that range from mediocre to outright bad. As a preservation effort, it’s honest—but that honesty is exactly what lands it as one of 2025’s lowest-rated titles.
7. Hunter x Hunter: Nen x Impact
Metascore: 53
Fans of Hunter x Hunter may appreciate seeing the series make its fighting-game debut, but that doesn’t mean Nen x Impact escapes criticism. There’s the outline of a solid fighter beneath the surface, yet too many shortcomings get in the way.
A thin character roster, underwhelming single-player offerings, and a clunky multiplayer experience all chip away at its potential. Unless you’re a dedicated fan of the franchise, there are far stronger fighting games worth your time.
6. Neptunia Riders VS Dogoos
Metascore: 51
If Hunter x Hunter caters to committed fans, then Neptunia Riders VS Dogoos is strictly for the diehards. With a brief three-hour campaign, frequent glitches, and a host of technical issues, newcomers are unlikely to stick around long enough to see what the wider series has to offer.
It’s a shame, because there are fleeting moments of the familiar Neptunia charm and playful silliness that fans love. But the lack of substantial content—paired with a price tag that feels far too high—ultimately drags the whole experience down.
5. Captain Blood
Metascore: 50
If this were the early 2000s, Captain Blood might have been a bit of a cult favourite. But two decades on, it’s far harder to overlook its flaws—and it’s clear why it ranks among the lowest-rated games of the year.
The gameplay quickly becomes repetitive, the audio feels unfinished, and the overall lack of polish drags the experience down significantly. If you’re craving a PS2-style hack-and-slash, this might scratch that itch, but ironically, many games from that era still hold up better than this modern attempt.
4. Scar-Lead Salvation
Metascore: 44
It’s obvious that Returnal heavily inspired Scar-Lead Salvation, which makes it all the more disappointing that it fails to capture what made the PS5 exclusive so compelling. Instead, the result is an uninspired roguelike weighed down by clunky animations and limited enemy variety.
The odd choice to have the protagonist lose clothing as they take damage makes the intended approach pretty transparent. Unfortunately, even the game’s attempts at sex appeal can’t quite mask the frustrations lying beneath the surface.
3. Ambulance Life: A Paramedic Simulator
Metascore: 44
Simulators are always a difficult genre to judge; they’re either the cream of the crop or a downright mess. Unfortunately, Ambulance Life might just fall into the latter, as it’s one of 2025’s lowest-rated games.
The game aims to recreate the intensity of emergency response work, but it stumbles in almost every area. In the end, you’re more likely to save a life by avoiding the game than you are playing it.
2. Tamagotchi Plaza
Metascore: 43
Everyone loves a Tamagotchi—or at least they used to. After spending time with Tamagotchi Plaza, that nostalgia might fade fast. What made Bandai Namco’s virtual pets so charming back in the day is almost entirely absent here.
There’s simply not much to do. The world you explore feels dull and empty, and the minigames offer little in the way of fun or purpose. Much like the old digital pets themselves, this is one you might want to quietly put away and forget about.
1. MindsEye
Metascore: 37
Oh, MindsEye, where did it all go wrong? With Leslie Benzies—a former Rockstar veteran—at the helm, expectations were sky-high. Fans hoped he would take everything he learned from one of gaming’s most influential franchises and push the genre into bold new territory.
Instead, what arrived was a launch mired in chaos. Riddled with bugs and technical issues, MindsEye was barely playable for many. And even if you look past the performance problems, the uninspired gameplay and flat narrative leave you wondering why the project was greenlit in the first place.
That’s the definitive list of the 10 lowest-rated games—according to Metacritic—that were released in 2025. Do you think some of these games were too harshly rated? Share your thoughts in the official Insider Gaming Discord.
For more Insider Gaming content, check out our ranking of the Far Cry series, as well as our ranking of every Battlefield title.
