Because it wasn't as good as the last ones.

recently they've been getting some horrendous user scores though. i wonder if that will change.

If you talk about 2K17, thats actually highest rating PS4 sports game, so my point still stands.

fixed it. Feel free to edit it, and change scores/include more substantial links if you like. Going camping with family that randomly showed up out of town. Unexpected, but that's life. 

I clearly bolded your comment about 2K18.

You have no point mate, sports games can get up to 10 points higher then Mario Tennis.

Critics seem meh on this one. Wonder why.

i guess the story mode was a bit lackluster and really just featured some good, although short-lived challenges. Nintendo is also sitting on a day 1 update to fix online connectivity issues in online mode

I really don't get this bias for Nintendo stuff that people like to claim, especially for the big Nintendo games like BotW and Odyssey. It's just asinine. Not every Nintendo game has been praised to the heavens. Star Fox Zero scored a 69 on Metacritic. No one was saying "Oh Miyamoto made and it's been a while, so let's give him a pass." If they are really good, reviewers will say as such. If not, they will say as such. Of course there are some that will lie about their feelings about certain games, but it doesn't always revolve around Nintendo.

I was also talking about 2K18 for PS4, it has score 80 score.

I have point, clear fact is that sports games usually don't get great scores but you keep ignoring that fact, fact that highest rating PS4 sports games has 88 score (and we talking only about one game with that score) proves that.

78 is good score in any case, but for sport game and Mario Tennis games that quite good score.

When you were that age there only was one game and nothing else to do other than trying to master it. A lot of (most?) people just don't seek challenge from a game and rather have a simple and relaxing experience. And why would you bother if there are a billion other things that are more entertaining and easier?

There are ten times more people playing games now than when you were young. Maybe kids didn't become that way, but were always exactly that? Maybe gaming was a niche just because of needlessly hard to play games?