One of the Worst Video Games Ever Made is Coming to Steam

I can’t believe I’m writing this in 2025, but yes, one of the worst video games ever created is coming to Steam. And no, I’m not talking about Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing. That re-release is already out. No, we’re talking about a 3D platformer that’s so awful, it’s on the Wikipedia page for “List of video games notable for negative reception.” That’s right, baby. Bubsy 3D is on its way to Steam. You’ll soon be able to play Bubsy 3D on PC, officially. And maybe on your Steam Deck too. Potentially.

‘Bubsy 3D’ on your Steam Deck? Dear God

In June 2024, the world got its first teaser for Bubsy in: The Purrfect Collection, a Bubsy retro games package in conjunction with Limited Run Games and Atari. We already knew the Bubsy collection was set to come to Steam, along with Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. But specific details on the re-release’s full repertoire remained minimal. Granted, The Purrfect Collection‘s Steam Store listing always included Bubsy 3D screenshots, so Bubsy 3D coming to Steam was pretty much already guaranteed. But now? Bubsy 3D on Steam is as official as it gets. We now know the full list of games in The Purrfect Collection, and one of them is, in fact, Bubsy 3D.

You’ll be able to stream Bubsy 3D on Twitch from your PC, or hop on a Discord call and show off your sick moves while trying to 100% The Purrfect Collection.

Expect to cry, scream, and break your controller. Bubsy 3D is a terrible platformer. In his overview of the game, Nitro Rad describes controlling Bubsy as a hot mess. Enemies are incredibly difficult to avoid and maneuver around. Platforming is awkward and based around “tank controls,” and every single level is just incredibly confusing to navigate. The music is annoying, and the colors are garish. Bubsy doesn’t stop talking in an incredibly unnerving voice… must I go on?

“Worst thing I’ve ever put myself through,” Nitro Rad said. “The amount of frustration I was experiencing while playing this game has never been matched. I mean, I’ve beat some pretty bad games before. I think when it comes to bad games, I can probably power through pretty much anything. But the amount of stress this game had me under is just… Jesus Christ!”

There’s a Reason why it’s awful

As for why Bubsy 3D is such a bad platformer? The game launched in November 1996, just two months after Super Mario 64 hit U.S. shelves. As Nitro Rad and other games critics have pointed out, Bubsy came about during the first half of the 1990s. At that time, developers were still grappling with 3D movement in the genre. Many of the greatest 3D platformers of the 1990s only dropped toward the tail end of the decade. Like Spyro the Dragon, Donkey Kong 3D, and Banjo-Kazooie.

Meanwhile, everyone near and around the genre was experimenting. Sonic Team launched NiGHTS into Dreams in summer 1996. Which took on a 2.5D approach with a set course along with a (relatively minimal) amount of fully 3D open-ended maneuvering. The ill-fated Sonic Xtreme, originally intended as Sonic’s official jump to 3D platforming on the Sega Saturn, was also filled with various experimental design approaches. These included limited platform-oriented level designs alongside a fully maneuverable boss battle arena. Sonic Adventure, this was not.

is there a doctor in the house?

Bubsy 3D‘s development started right during this time period in spring 1995. When the entire gaming world was still “solving” 3D platforming. Honestly, my heart breaks when I hear about Bubsy creator and producer Michael Berlyn seeing Mario 64 at the Consumer Electronics Show and immediately realizing, “That’s it. Back to the drawing board.” Berlyn was cooked. But he realized in that moment that there was nothing his team could do except “do the best that we can to make [Bubsy 3D] as good a product as we can with the limits that we have.”

Now, don’t get me wrong. There are many issues with Bubsy 3D, as Nitro Rad properly discussed. And Bubsy‘s contemporary Crash Bandicoot, which began development in fall 1994, successfully created a 3D platforming formula with far more cohesion and skill than Bubsy 3D could ever muster (Crash‘s initial release was in September 1996, another nail in the coffin for Bubsy). But I can’t fault Bubsy 3D too hard, even if its team was imperfect. The game came out at the wrong place, at the wrong time, right when Nintendo, Naughty Dog, and others provided the entire industry with a blueprint for 3D platforming. The game simply looked awful compared to its competition.

Of course, I invite you to try the game out for yourself when Bubsy in: The Purrfect Collection launches on Steam later this year. Or at least, get ready to see your favorite VTubers pull their hair out as they try (and fail) to get through the game. Seriously, it’s not great.