The 5 Best Video Games, According To IMDb (& The 5 Worst)

Video games have been a booming industry for decades, going from the fringe in the 1970s to some of the most high-profile pieces of entertainment in the entire world. The industry is driven by innovation, constantly seeking to outdo itself in terms of the experiences its games provide to players.

However, not all of the final results are equal. IMDb’s database has 30,606 titles in its catalog, all of them ranked based on user reviews. So, which ones are the most game-changing, according to the site, and which ones are the absolute bottom of the pack?

Best Video Games

5. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (2015) – 9.6

2015’s The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is the third main installment in CD Projekt Red’s Witcher adaptations, which began in 2007 and was based on Andrzej Sapkowski’s fantasy novels that were incredibly popular in Poland. The video game franchise, and this entry in particular, catapulted the series to international stardom.

The Witcher 3 actually contains three entries on IMDb: one for the main game, and entries for “Hearts of Stone” and “Blood and Wine” expansion packs, respectively. All three scores and rankings average out to 5th with a score of 9.6. That’s an incredible bar to maintain for three releases.

4. Mass Effect 2 (2010) – 9.6

The Mass Effect games had a compelling storyline and graphics that looked incredible on 7th-generation consoles, but its most notable feature was allowing players to select Commander Shepard’s gender, and having full voice performances for a male and a female Shepard.

The 2007 first game’s sequel blew all expectations out of the water, earning Mass Effect 2 widespread acclaim from critics and gamers alike. It was, in fact, this high bar that definitely contributed to the disappointment at Mass Effect 3‘s ending. However, for the fans who ranked it on IMDb, this game’s quality was unaffected by the third’s ending.

3. God Of War (2018) – 9.6

There are great reasons to look forward to 2022’s God of War sequel, but that anticipation wouldn’t exist had 2018’s God of War not been such a monumental success in the first place. A reboot of the series that began in 2005, God of War 2018 moved the main character Kratos from a world of Greek mythology (one that he destroyed at the end of 2010’s God of War III) to a realm of Norse gods.

The game sees Kratos as a father and follows him and his young son Atreus as they travel on a journey to spread his dead wife’s ashes. With powerful themes about parenthood, loss/grief, and trauma, God of War 2018 told one of the most impactful video game stories of all time.

2. The Last Of Us (2013) – 9.7

Once production on Uncharted 2: Among Thieves wrapped in 2009, Naughty Dog split into two teams: the first would develop the guaranteed success of 2011’s Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception. The other team would work on a new idea, a post-apocalyptic survival game. There was no telling how it would do.

As it turned out, however, The Last of Us became not only Naughty Dog’s best game on IMDb, but the second-highest-rated video game of all time on the site. The story of a man escorting a young girl across a ruined America because she could save the world has turned into a game that will rightfully never be forgotten.

1. Red Dead Redemption 2 (2018) – 9.7

It seems 2018 was the best year for video games, at least according to IMDb, because not only did the God of War reboot release in April, but Red Dead Redemption 2 came out in October of that same year. To say that this game redefined what the medium could do would be an understatement.

Rockstar’s best games are defined by their ability to meld open-world exploration with intimate storytelling. Red Dead Redemption 2‘s great characters, topped off by player-character Arthur Morgan, set against a massive and detailed open world make the game truly extraordinary.

Worst Video Games

5. Ride To Hell: Retribution (2013) – 1.3

First intended in 2009, Ride to Hell: Retribution‘s setup was inspired by biker movies and Sons of Anarchy, although the Sons of Anarchy inspiration came about only after the show debuted and became a massive success.

Initially intended to come out in 2009, Ride to Hell: Retribution was released the same year as The Last of Us changed gaming, but if anything, Ride to Hell did the exact opposite. A pain to play through, Ride to Hell also possesses an absolutely terrible story. It’s the lowest-rated game released in the 21st century, which is even sadder.

4. Action 52 (1991) – 1.3

Action 52 gets it name because, according to its IMDb description, players could have “the action at [their] fingertips with 52 games built into one NES cartridge.” What came as a result, however, was a buggy mess that exceeded even the notorious E.T. game (1982, 1.8/10)’s terrible performance.

What Action 52 turned out to be, in reality, was a complete sham created to take advantage of gamers who didn’t yet have an internet that would warn them of the absolutely awful product that they were about to buy. Now, the game lives on in gaming lore.

3. Plumbers Don’t Wear Ties (1994) – 1.3

Classified as a “comedy, romance” by IMDb, Plumbers Don’t Wear Ties was made during the first wave of full-motion video games, where live-action footage was used as part of gameplay. However, to use the word “gameplay” with this title seems like giving it too much credit, especially considering all but the opening of the game is told through still images.

Trying to be a dating simulator, the game has genuinely nothing to recommend it. Although the acting can at times rise to The Room levels of bad, the game isn’t enjoyable like the Tommy Wiseau disasterpiece. It’s just completely grating.

2. Criticom (1995) – 1.2

Science fiction is one of the oldest video game genres, and it was due in no small part to the first gamers being computer programmers who had a love for the genre and incorporated it into their work. However, Criticom, an early PlayStation 1 game, is the best example of how to totally ruin a great premise.

Criticom is a fighting game with 8 characters of different backgrounds all interested in a mysterious crystal. Trying to ride off the back of Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter, Criticom only managed to anger gamers who were excited by the premise.

1. Sunday Funday (1995) – 1.2

If 2018 was IMDb’s highest-rated year in gaming, then 1995 is definitely its worst, considering both Criticom and this game, Sunday Funday, were released that year. According to a GameFAQs review, Sunday Funday was the last game released for the NES, which could partly explain why it turned out so poorly.

However, the game is also a rip-off of skateboarding titles of the era, except it has an evangelical twist: the skateboarder is trying to ride to Sunday School. Although one bold user gave it a 10, 16 others gave it a 1/10, with three more rating it 3 or below, garnering the game this “coveted” spot.

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