2022 has been a fantastic year for gamers, with countless incredible titles released across every platform, from PC to Playstation 5, Xbox to IoS and beyond. Some games, however, while loved by critics, haven’t done so well in the eyes of the people who really matter: the players.
RELATED:10 Highest Rated New Game Releases Of 2022
Metacriticis one of the most reliable places to find accurate game ratings as it shows not only the critics' score (from 1 to 100) but also a user score (from 1 to 10). In a perfect world, these scores would always match up, but this year has seen some pretty large disparities between the two.
10Victoria 3 - Metascore: 83 User Score: 4.7 (PC)
Victoria 3is a strategy sim from developers Paradox Studios which is only available on PC and covers a 100 year period from 1836 to 1936. It allows players to control anyone of 100 countriesthat existed at the time. An ambitious offering with the deep annuls of history to draw on for its lore, critics had generally great things to say about the game. Unfortunately, most players didn’t agree, with ‘generally unfavorable’ reviews from 85 users, meaning thatVictoria 3scores just a 4.7 on the user score scale.
RELATED:Mistakes Everyone Makes When Playing Victoria 3Take these ratings with a pinch of salt, though, as a game which was anticipated for a long time is never going to please everyone, and critics have scored the game highly based on its merits, of which there are plenty. Commonly reported problems include UI issues and unpopular changes to the warfare system.
9FIFA 23 - Metascore: 77 User Score: 2.2 (Playstation 5)
TheFIFAgames have often drawn fire from fans in recent years for appearing to be simple reskins of previous entries without any meaningful change to gameplay or mechanics, andFIFA 23is no different. The PS5 version is the middle ground in terms of review scores, althoughFIFA 23scores poorly on every platform. The game hasn’t been out for long, so there may yet be hope in the form of future updates.
Users’main issues with the gameappear to be the lack of major updates to gameplay, while not improving on any of the reported problems with last year’s entry - poor graphical performance and server issues chief among them. Critics seem to like the game, however, with a respectable 76 rating on PS5.
8Call Of Duty Warzone 2.0 Metascore: 79 User Score: 2.9 (Playstation 5)
Call Of Duty Warzone 2.0is the free to play addition to this year’sModern Warfare 2remake, and arguably one of the most anticipated games of the year. The previous Battle Royaleentry was hugely popular with players, with FPS enthusiasts and casual gamers alike taking to the franchise’s unique take onthe BR genre.
This year’s title,Call Of Duty Warzone 2.0, scores a poor 2.9 from user reviews, but a strong showing from the critics with 79. Fans of the franchise seem to be fairly happy overall with the gameplay, and most of the negative reviews focus on things like crashing, bugs, lag etc., as being the source of players' disappointment. This means that with a few quality of life fixes, the game’s rating could well go up in the future.
7Overwatch 2 - Metascore: 79 User Score: 1.5 (PC)
Overwatch 2is developer Blizzard’s follow up to 2016’s original FPS team based shooter,Overwatch.Available on most platforms, the new game sees some new heroes such as Junker Queen and Sojourn join the returning cast of characters, but fans aren’t too happy with the game. Scoring a decent 79 from critics, the contrasting user scores add up to a truly awful 1.5.
It’s not just the PC version taking fire either: with the game being available on almost all major platforms, the user scores for every version are terrible. Major complaints from gamers aboutOverwatch 2includepoor weapon balancing, issues with server queuing and the removal of fan favorite maps.
6Tactics Ogre: Reborn - Metascore: 86 User Score: 4.8 (PC)
Tactics Ogre: Rebornis a strategy RPG that has roots dating back over 25 years. A re-released version of the original 1995 Japanese classic from the Super Nintendo, the game largely won over critics. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for most of the User reviews on Metacritic, who scored the game a 4.8 on average.
This is largely due to complaints of the game not being updated enough, which for a rerelease of such an old game, might be forgiven. A lot of the more recent reviews are also largely positive, praising the game’svoice acting and turn based combat, among other things. As this version was only recently released, there could still be a resurgence in appreciation for this old classic.
5Gran Turismo 7 Metascore: 87 User Score: 2.1 (Playstation 5)
Billed as a return to the franchise’s roots,Gran Turismo 7left rather a lot to be desired at launch, with itsextensive use of microtransactionscausing fans to engage in some review-bombing to vent their disappointment. This accounts in part for the poor user score of just 2.1 the game currently holds on Metacritic. Players were unhappy with the seemingly ‘pay to win’ model the game was employing, with many cars being locked behind paywalls.
Other common complaints focused on multiple server issues and problems with the game being always online. It does seem as though things have improved somewhat in recent updates, though, with one user review writing thatGran Turismo 7is now heading in ‘the right direction’.
4GTA V - Metascore: 81 User Score: 2.6 (Playstation 5)
Grand Theft Auto Fivewas released to critical acclaim all the way back in 2013. It broke many records and won high praise from gamers and critics alike. Unfortunately, the enhanced edition update, released for next gen consoles this year, was not met with the same fanfare.
While still maintaining a strong Metascore, the user reviews tell a different story of the rereleased version, citing zero real improvements and a host of new bugs that left fans disappointed in Rockstar Games' seemingly endless support for the title and branding it a cash grab.Grand Theft Auto Fiveitself still remains one worth playing, however, with the original version seeing much higher user scores and a Metacritic ‘Must Play’ badge.
3F1 22 - Metascore: 79 User Score: 3.3 (Playstation 5)
F1 22 isEA Sports' latest installment in the Formula One franchise. It was received well by critics but drew criticism from fans for including features such as customizable living spaces (as a way to include microtransactions) and not fixing long known bugs. Players also complain that the AI is unpredictable and inconsistent when racing and that the inclusion of supercars/ sports cars in the game goes against the majority of fans' wishes.
RELATED:The Best Visual Novels On SteamDespite these issues,F1 22does still manage to win favorable reviews from critics on all platforms, so perhaps there is something here worth players' time.
2NBA 2K23 - Metascore: 78 User Score: 4.8 (Playstation 5)
2K Games Basketball titleNBA 2K23lets gamers play as their favorite real life NBA and WNBA teams and compete in a career mode that sees them try to win championships and showcase their talent. While being generally well liked by gaming critics, the title has drawn fire for not being true enough to what fans wanted, and microtransactions.
NBA 2K23has a user score of just 4.8 for the Playstation 5 version of the game, with players complaining that the title lacks any meaningful updates from previous years and that while still being a good game, it appears recycled and repetitive.
1We Are OFK Metascore: 75 User Score: 2.9 (PC)
We Are OFKis an interactive story based adventure from Team OFK that follows the main character Itsumi as she pursues her dream of making music in LA. While the critical reception to the title has been generally positive, players have had other reactions. The main complaint from users is thatWe Are OFKis not actually a game at all, but ratheran interactive story.
While this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, some gamers reacted poorly and suggested the game’s beautiful graphical style would have been better put to use in another format. Whatever its flaws as a game though, fans and critics seem to agree thatWe Are OFKis gorgeous.
