The Worst Game Ever Made According to Metacritic Is Only the Worst by Technicality

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Everyone has different opinions on the worst game ever made, but Metacritic has a clear answer – and it might surprise you. According to the website, the title of “Worst Game Ever Made” goes to Family Party: 30 Great Games Obstacle Arcade, a poorly-made Wii U game. With a Metascore of just 11, it’s at the very bottom of Metacritic’s rankings. Interestingly, Family Party is considered the worst game almost by accident – it’s more a case of being exceptionally bad than intentionally awful.

Believe it or not, Family Party: 30 Great Games Obstacle Arcade has become the lowest-rated game on Metacritic, but not because it’s exceptionally bad. It actually took the title because Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing no longer appears in Metacritic’s rankings. Originally, Big Rigs had a low score based on just five reviews. Metacritic now requires at least seven reviews for a game to be officially ranked, meaning Big Rigs was removed. So, Family Party is technically the worst-rated game, but only because the truly worst game was disqualified—and it only missed the requirement by a few reviews.

Family Party: 30 Great Games Obstacle Arcade Is Currently the Worst Game Ever Made, According to Metacritic

I remember getting Family Party: 30 Great Games Obstacle Arcade back when the Wii U first came out in 2012! It was made by Art Co., Ltd. and published by D3Publisher. Basically, it was trying to be the next Mario Party – a fun, easy game for the whole family to play together. But instead of focusing on boards and stuff, it was all about quick, silly mini-games that were mostly obstacle courses. You used both the Wii Remote and the GamePad, and it was perfect for just picking up and playing with friends and family. It wasn’t a super deep game, it was all about having a lot of different things to do and being accessible for everyone, which I really liked!

What Family Party: 30 Great Games Obstacle Arcade Offers

  • 35 OBSTACLE-BASED MINI-GAMES across worlds, despite the title mentioning only 30.
  • CHALLENGE MODE, where players compete through themed sets of mini-games.
  • FREE PLAY MODE, where players choose up to 10 mini-games to play freely with no score goals.
  • MULTIPLAYER SUPPORT, where up to four local players can play together.
  • MIXED CONTROL SCHEMES that use both Wii Remote and Wii U GamePad controls.
  • UNLOCKABLE CONTENT, where winning in Challenge Mode unlocks additional characters and mini-games.

Why Family Party: 30 Great Games Obstacle Arcade Ultimately Failed

Unfortunately, Family Party: 30 Great Games Obstacle Arcade wasn’t well-received. Critics found the gameplay frustrating and difficult to control, and many of the games used outdated motion controls that felt clumsy and weren’t enjoyable.

A recent, amusing user review on Metacritic for Family Party: 30 Great Games Obstacle Arcade simply states, “I haven’t played it, but with 30 games, you can’t go wrong!”

Reviewers found the mini-games to be simple, repetitive, and unengaging. The game also suffered from technical problems and felt visually outdated for the Wii U. Poor voice acting and sound design made the experience even less enjoyable. Compared to popular party games like Mario Party and Nintendo Land, it didn’t measure up. These issues led to a very low Metascore of 11, placing it among the worst-rated games on Metacritic. It was briefly saved from being the absolute lowest-rated title by the game Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing.

Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing Is Still Considered Worse

Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing is a truck racing game played from a third-person perspective. Players choose one of four semi-trucks and compete in long-distance races across various American-style environments. Instead of racing laps, players follow a series of checkpoints to beat an AI opponent. The game features open-ended tracks that allow for off-road driving and exploration, and a career mode connects the races as you progress.

Why Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing Ultimately Failed, Despite Seeing Recent Success on Steam

The game Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing has a strange history. Although it was once considered one of the worst games ever made – earning the lowest score on Metacritic – it’s now surprisingly popular on Steam. With a ‘Very Positive’ rating from over 500 users, its current reception seems to clash with the initial critical response from 2003. However, the positive Steam reviews are mostly ironic; players are actually praising the game because of its many bugs and technical problems, treating them as a unique feature. This was precisely why Big Rigs failed when it first came out – the few critics who reviewed it didn’t see these issues as something to enjoy.

  • NO COLLISION DETECTION, so vehicles and objects don’t block or interact with the truck at all, letting you drive through buildings, terrain, and obstacles.
  • INACTIVE AI OPPONENTS, meaning the computer-controlled truck doesn’t move during races, making competition meaningless.
  • BROKEN PHYSICS SYSTEM that fails to simulate gravity or realistic movement.
  • UNLIMITED REVERSE ACCELERATION, which causes the truck to gain speed endlessly when driving backward, even reaching absurd values that exceed known physical limits.
  • CHECKPOINT COMPLETION GLITCH, where traveling at extreme speeds triggers all checkpoints simultaneously and the game marks the race as complete.
  • “YOU’RE WINNER!” MESSAGE, a grammatically incorrect victory screen that always pops up regardless of actual racing performance.
  • VERTICAL AND OFF-ROUTE MOVEMENT, where the truck can climb steep inclines or leave the road without consequence, thanks to broken collision and physics.
  • MISSING OR INCOMPLETE TRACK DATA on some routes, which can lead to non-functional levels or crashes.

Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing’s Metascore Is Even Lower Now

Soon after it was released, Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing became infamous for receiving the lowest score ever on Metacritic, starting at an 8. Surprisingly, the game’s Metacritic page is still active, and now shows an even lower score of 6 after a review from Multiplayer.it following its Steam release last year. Despite this, it only has 6 critic reviews total. Unless it receives one more (which is unlikely), Family Party: 30 Great Games Obstacle Arcade will remain the officially lowest-rated game on Metacritic.

The title of ‘worst game ever’ isn’t based on a general consensus, but rather on how Metacritic defines it. Currently, Family Party: 30 Great Games Obstacle Arcade has that label simply because it meets the site’s requirements for review counts – it’s not necessarily worse than other notoriously bad games. Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing actually has a lower score, but doesn’t have enough reviews to qualify. Therefore, Family Party is considered the worst by default, mainly because it was the last one ‘standing’ after Metacritic updated its rules.

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2026-01-30 16:05