Metacritic’s 2025 Algorithm Shake-Up: Why Game & Movie Scores Are Suddenly Changing

Metacritic has released a fresh wave of score data for the back half of 2025, and it’s already reshaping the conversation around the year’s standout games, movies, TV series, and albums. Below is a sector-by-sector snapshot of what’s trending on the influential review-aggregation site—and why publishers, studios, and fans are scrambling to capitalize on rising Metascores. Games: Surprise Indies Crash the AAA Party According to Metacritic’s mid-year rankings, Nintendo’s The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition still commands the overall 2025 leaderboard, but several smaller projects are closing in. Phoenix Springs, a hand-painted narrative mystery, has edged past high-budget shooters to post a 92 Metascore, while Icebound, a roguelike survival title built by a three-person Icelandic studio, holds an impressive 90. The latest Top 10 list compiled by Forbes places both indies alongside expected heavyweights such as Rockstar’s Red Dead Redemption III and Square Enix’s Final Fantasy XVII, proving critical acclaim is no longer monopolized by blockbuster budgets. Movies: Fall Release Calendar Packs Prestige Punch Metacritic’s just-updated release schedule shows an unusually dense cluster of prestige dramas and franchise finales hitting theaters every Friday from mid-October through Thanksgiving. Early festival critics have already propelled Viola Davis–led legal thriller Hung Jury to a 94 score, making it the best-reviewed wide release of 2025 so far. Meanwhile, Marvel’s Secret Wars Part 1 enters November with cautious optimism after unusually strong preview buzz—something the studio hasn’t enjoyed since the Infinity Saga. TV: October Premieres Signal a Genre Shake-Up On the small screen, Metacritic’s “October TV Preview” is headlined by Tim Robinson’s absurdist workplace comedy The Chair Company and HBO’s It: Welcome to Derry. Both pilots landed in the high 80s, suggesting that 2025’s TV landscape will continue to blur the lines between horror, satire, and prestige drama. With streamers hunting for awards-season momentum, a high Metascore now directly influences global marketing spend and renewal odds. Music: Latin Pop and Post-Punk Dominate Bad Bunny’s experiment in jazz-tinged reggaeton, DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS, still rules Metacritic’s 2025 album chart with a near-unprecedented 95, but UK outfit Heartworms has closed the gap with Glutton for Punishment (91), the year’s highest-scoring post-punk release. Analysts note that labels increasingly time deluxe-edition drops to coincide with the weekly refresh of Metacritic averages, hoping an extra review or two will nudge an 89 into the coveted 90-plus “Universal Acclaim” bracket. Why the Scores Matter More Than Ever Developers and producers admit Metascore is now baked into revenue projections, despite mounting criticism that the numerical fixation can stifle creativity. A widely shared GamesHub essay argues that “Metacritic-induced hype is sucking the fun out of the gaming industry,” pointing to launch-day review bombing and investor overreactions when scores dip below 80. In response, some studios have begun pre-briefing critics earlier and expanding review-copy access to mitigate abrupt score swings. SEO Angle: What Fans Are Searching For Search volume around “Metacritic best games 2025,” “highest Metascore movie,” and “albums above 90 Metacritic” spiked 300 % after last week’s data refresh. That traffic surge coincides with fans hunting for purchase guidance ahead of the holiday season. Expect further spikes when Metacritic drops its annual “Best Of” roundups in December—historically the site’s most-linked pages and a gold-mine for affiliate sales. Bottom Line From surprise indie breakouts to Oscar-bait dramas, a strong Metascore in late 2025 can still make or break a release. Whether the industry’s reliance on that single number is healthy remains hotly debated, but for now, creators chasing critical consensus—and audiences eager for quality filters—continue to keep Metacritic at the center of the cultural scoreboard.