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Only seven individual console titles scored 90 per cent or higher on Metacritic in 2013 – by far” the lowest number in a single year since the last-gen consoles arrived.
When PC and handheld games are added into the mix the total reaches 18, matching 2012.
PlayStation formats were the best performing overall, with PS4 games averaging 73.4 per cent and PS3 70.1 per cent, with the consoles claiming one and four 90+ rated games respectively. The overall PlayStation average was 70.1 per cent, slightly down from 2012’s 70.3 per cent.
Xbox One averaged 67.7 per cent with no 90+ games while Xbox 360 averaged 66.9 per cent and claimed three 90+ games. The overall Xbox average was 66.9 per cent, down from 2012’s 69.5 per cent.
Wii U did well averaging 72.6 per cent with three 90+ games, which is up on 2012’s 68.6 per cent average. PC games, meanwhile, averaged 69.1 per cent – that’s down from 2012’s 70.3 per cent average.
As for the handhelds, Vita averaged 71.6 per cent with no 90+ games while 3DS averaged 69.1 per cent with two 90+ titles. Both machines saw average scores improve year-on-year from 69.7 per cent and 66.2 per cent respectively.
It’s no surprise to see Grand Theft Auto V emerge as the highest-rated game of the year with scores of 97 per cent on both Xbox 360 and PS3.
It’s joined in the 90+ club by The Last of Us, BioShock Infinite, Super Mario 3D World, Fire Emblem Awakening, Rayman Legends, Fez, Flower, The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds and Wind Waker HD, Spelunky, Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons and DOTA 2.
The worst rated games of the year included the console version of Farming Simulator 2013, Walking Dead: Survival Instinct, Ride to Hell: Retribution, X Rebirth and Pokemon Rumble U.
The full report can be found here.
