Metacritic reveals the worst video games of 2023

Although we’ve had a year filled with great games, we’ve also seen many arrive with a sting of disappointment. Some, like Lord of the Rings: Gollum, you may have already heard about, while others might have come and gone without hitting your radar. If you’re interested to know which games didn’t quite make the cut this year, Metacritic has listed the ten worst video games of 2023 — as long as they were reviewed by at least seven “professional critics.”

2023 has been a phenomenal year for the best Xbox games, with titles like Baldur’s Gate 3, Starfield, Diablo 4, Alan Wake 2, Cocoon, and more arriving on the platform. But as with all good years, there were also a number of bad eggs.

• 10 — Gargoyles Remastered
• 09 — Loop8: Summer of Gods
• 08 — Gangs of Sherwood
• 07 — Hellboy: Web of Wyrd
• 06 — Crime Boss: Rockay City
• 05 — Testament: The Order of High-Human
• 04 — Quantum Error
• 03 — Greyhill Incident
• 02 — Flashback 2
• 01 — The Lord of the Rings: Gollum

It comes as no surprise that Daedalic Entertainment’s The Lord of the Rings: Gollum has nestled into first place here, as it was hit with extremely low scores from critics when it launched. Here on TA, it currently holds a user rating of 1.6/5 stars and only 11 of the 1,520 TrueAchievements members to have started it have managed to stick with it long enough to unlock all 36 The Lord of the Rings: Gollum achievements.

But what was the worst game you played from this year’s releases? Let us know in the comments below. And if you need to wash the taste of the bad games out of your mouth, our list of the best Xbox exclusives has your back.