We have already discussed some of the most important games of 2025, so now it is time to look at the underrated ones. Every year, the video game industry is growing with new ways to approach game development, which is leading to a surplus of amazing game releases.
Naturally, not all of them get to shine bright in the limelight. So we have taken up the duty to find and recommend a few of these hidden gems which released this year.
2025 Games That Are Underrated
Absolum
Absolum’s biggest fault was releasing in the same year as one of the best rogue-like franchises made a comeback with its new sequel. We are, of course, talking about Hades II, which is an incredible title and has been nominated for awards this year on several occasions.
However, let that not take away your attention from one of the most underrated releases in the genre this year. Absolum comes from the same developers who helped bring to life SEGA’s Streets of Rage 4.
This time, it’s an original IP set in a dark fantasy world that seeks to combine the good old side-scrolling beat ’em up genre and rogue-likes. We are happy to report that Absolum does a wonderful job at this, and you should definitely check it out.
Shinobi: Art of Vengeance
Speaking of SEGA, they came out with another classic side scroller this year, continuing the trend of outsourcing development of new entries for some of their old IPs.
Along with Koei Tecmo’s Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound as well as Ninja Gaiden 4, SEGA celebrated the year of Ninja by releasing a new entry in the Shinobi series.
The company went back to the game’s Genesis console roots with a full-blown, hand-crafted 2D art style, created by the incredible people at Lizardcube. Shinobi: Art of Vengeance is definitely one of the most underrated game releases of 2025.
Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon
2025 has been a great year for RPGs in general, with one of the biggest indie titles from the genre winning Game of the Year. But it, along with some other releases such as Elder Scrolls: Oblivion Remastered, has also stolen the spotlight from a few incredible titles.
Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon is one of many examples of games that have become underrated releases of the year. With a fantasy setting and gameplay design clearly inspired by the Elder Scrolls titles, this one should be on your list of games to check out next.
Eternal Strands
When the Creative Director of the Dragon Age franchise went on to announce his new game, Eternal Strands, everyone was super excited. But standing now, when 2025 is about to end, we can confidently say that people forgot about this game.
Eternal Strands is one of our picks for underrated games of 2025. The title plays like a third-person action game in a fantasy setting. Players get fantastical abilities to manipulate elements, which is the crux of this game’s main combat system.
FBC: Firebreak
Everyone is already familiar with Remedy Entertainment’s game worlds, spanning from Control to the multiple game award-nominated Alan Wake franchise. FBC: Firebreak is a title that sought to take us back to this universe.
Unfortunately, it did not turn out to be as popular as the other games by the developer. The major reason could be that Remedy fans are more into single-player storytelling experiences, while FBC: Firebreak is a multiplayer PvE shooter experience.
But that should not let the game be sidelined; it is one of our picks for underrated games this year. Especially if you are a fan of Control, as the events in this game are set six years after the events of the first game.
RAIDOU Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army
We know that remastered releases should not be considered in lists discussing important games from a year, but we have good reasons to consider RAIDOU Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army.
Atlus is one of the most popular JRPG developers of the current era, with its crowning jewel being the Persona franchise, which falls under the Megami Tensei umbrella series. The Raidou games are a part of the same franchise.
But the original releases never took off back in the PlayStation 2 era. Fast forward to 2025, and now Atlus finally re-released the game with updated visuals, new gameplay systems, almost refreshing it into a brand new game. This is definitely one of the games from this year that you should look out for.
Lunacid – Tears of the Moon
Lunacid was a godsend title for the niche fans of dungeon crawlers back in 2023. It perfectly emulated FromSoftware’s old games, such as the King’s Field series. But why are we bringing it up in 2025, you might wonder? Well, there has been a follow-up release this year.
Tears of the Moon is the new title for the game, which is based on the same ideas from the original game. But this time, it is a free-to-play title that is as close and authentic to the old King’s Field games as we can get.
Because the game was made in the King’s Field – Sword of the Moonlight official game maker toolkit, which was released back in the 2000s. If you ever wanted to get into these games, then this is as underrated and authentic as things can get.
Sword of the Sea
Giant Squid is a developer known for making some of the most visually stunning indie experiences in recent decades. Games such as Abzu and Journey are praised by many but played by few. In 2025, they are back again with an underrated masterpiece.
Sword of the Sea is their next big entry in the video game scene. This time it’s about exploring desolate landscapes on a hoversword, set in a fantastical world. Players take control of Wraith, the main character, as this game seeks to combine snowboarding game mechanics in a fresh style.
The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy
It’s a shame considering how 2025 has been a great year for new JRPGs, but almost all of them turned out to be underrated. Swept away from the limelight because all eyes are on Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.
The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy is one such game that failed to get everyone’s attention. Even though it is probably one of the biggest releases in the niche RPG community, from the minds of Kazutaka Kodaka and Kotaro Uchikoshi.
The game boasts over a hundred different endings with an enormous amount of replayability that should be right up every JRPG fan’s alley.
AI LIMIT
What is there even left to talk about the souls-like genre that hasn’t already been said? It is one of the most popular sub-genres of action games that was born out of FromSoftware’s Souls franchise.
Naturally, in the last few decades, we saw a plethora of games inspired by the genre suddenly spring up. AI LIMIT is one of those games which released this year, the only highlight being that it remains very underrated for the kind of experience it is offering.
This game can be summed up in three words: ‘anime Dark Souls‘. But with its own flair of action, without completely relying on the dodge roll pace of the genre.
