Metro GameCentral video games preview of 2020 – release dates for every new game

Cyberpunk 2077 – a big game in a big year (pic: CD Projekt)

2020 has one of the busiest springs ever for new games but when exactly is the likes of Final Fantasy 7 Remake and Cyberpunk 2077 out?

For years now the Christmas rush has been getting less crowded and more and more games have been coming out in the first half of the year instead, but things are getting really crazy in 2020. Final Fantasy 7 Remake, Cyberpunk 2077, Marvel’s Avengers, and The Last Of Us Part 2 are all contenders for the biggest and most anticipated games of the year and they’re all out in the first five months. As well as a bunch of other great looking games.

We know much less about the second half of the year, which is of course dominated by the release of the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. It’s worth bearing in mind though, that new consoles generally only have a dozen or so games released in their first year, of which only a handful are any good – so most of this year’s best games are likely to be current gen releases.

How many of those might also become cross-gen remains to be seen, but so far only Ubisoft has announced that their new games will be coming out on both sets of formats.

Confirmed video games for 2020

11 February – Ori And The Will Of The Wisps (XO/PC)
One of the last big Xbox One exclusives and the long-awaited follow-up to what remains one of the best Metroidvanias of the generation. There’s no clue yet if it’ll also be released on Switch.

14 February – Dreams (PS4)
The game creation tool from the makers of LittleBigPlanet has been in beta for a long time but February is the official launch date when everyone will be able to play it.

3 March – Final Fantasy 7 Remake (PS4)
Fans have been waiting for it for generations and now the first chapter of the Final Fantasy 7 Remake is almost here, and set to be one of the biggest games of the entire year.

13 March – Nioh 2 (PS4)
Considering how little of it has been seen in public we worry there’s going to be a delay here. But we hope not as the original is the best Dark Souls clone around.

19 March – PC Engine CoreGrafx Mini
It may not be the most famous retro format but we’re greatly looking forward to this new mini console featuring classics from Castlevania: Rondo Of Blood to Splatterhouse.

20 March – Doom Eternal (XO/PS4/NS/PC/Stadia)
It suffered a huge delay until this spring but the sequel to the Doom reboot was already looking great last summer and hopefully is even better now. A remaster of Doom 64 is being released at the same time.

20 March – Animal Crossing: New Horizons (NS)
This was also meant to be out last year but is now the only major game Nintendo game with a firm release date. Given how well suited the ultra cute life simulator is to the Switch we’re sure it’ll be huge.

24 March – Bleeding Edge (XO/PC)
The next game from Ninja Theory is not Hellblade 2 but this multiplayer-only, melee-focused multiplayer game. It’s looking pretty good too, with betas already available if you’re interested.

March – Half-Life: Alyx (VR)
Believe it or not there is a new Half-Life game out this year, but it’s not Half-Life 3. It’s a VR-only game set before the events of Half-Life 2 but whether it’ll still provide some sort of closure remains to be seen.

3 April – Resident Evil 3 (XO/PS4/PC)
Everyone knew it was coming but perhaps not this soon. After the amazing Resident Evil 2 though the sooner the better, especially as it has a brand-new multiplayer component as well.

16 April – Cyberpunk 2077 (XO/PS4/PC)
CD Projekt’s follow-up to The Witcher 3 is another massive release for the first half of 2020 and from everything that’s been seen so far it seems impossible the first person sci-fi role-player will disappoint.

24 April – Predator: Hunting Grounds (PS4)
This promising looking asymmetric multiplayer game has survived Disney’s buyout of 20th Century Fox, although no one seems to know what happened to the planned Alien game.

28 April – Gears Tactics (PC)
We’re not sure why this isn’t also on Xbox but it looks like a decent XCOM clone, at least in terms of the turn-based combat – we haven’t seen any sign of a meta strategy level element as well.

April – Minecraft Dungeons (XO/PS4/NS/PC)
Microsoft’s first big action spin-off for Minecraft is looking pretty good, with no requirement that you know or care about the main game – as long as you’re up for some multiplayer dungeon-crawling.

15 May – Marvel’s Avengers (XO/PS4/PC/Stadia)
Square Enix’s mix of superhero brawler and Destiny style multiplayer experience still has some questions to answer but was looking surprisingly good in the early playable previews.

29 May – The Last Of Us Part 2 (PS4)
The hits just keep coming in 2020, and there seems zero chance that this won’t be both a critical and commercial darling. But will there be a PlayStation 5 remaster this year as well?

May – Fast & Furious Crossroads (XO/PS4/PC)
Since Project CARS developer Slightly Mad Studios are making it there’s every reason to hope this might be the first good Fast & Furious game. And if not, well… we’ve lived this long without one.

Spring – Grounded (XO/PC)
The Outer Worlds developer Oblivion change gears with a multiplayer survival game where everyone is shrunk down to the size of an ant. So even if the game’s no good at least the setting’s different.

Spring – Dying Light 2 (XO/PS4/PC)
Techland has been taking a long time over this sequel but it does look a significant advancement on the first, with a better script, better gameplay, and a very malleable branching narrative.

Q2 – Empire Of Sin (XO/PS4/NS/PC)
Doom creator John Romero returns with… an XCOM clone set in Prohibition Chicago. That’s not what you’d expect from him but from what we saw it’s looking pretty good.

Q2 – Disintegration (XO/PS4/PC)
One of the co-creators of Halo is looking to make this the next big multiplayer game. We’re not sure it’s going to dethrone Fortnite but the squad-based tactical elements are interesting.

Summer – Ghost Of Tsushima (PS4)
Sony’s last big PlayStation 4 exclusive now has at least a vague release date, although we’ve still seen relatively little of its grounded, historical-based samurai action.

Christmas – Xbox Series X
There’s no exact release date for either new console yet but if they follow tradition they’ll both be out in November, at almost exactly the same time.

Christmas – PlayStation 5
When Microsoft or Sony will announce a release date is impossible to say, but there’s a good chance it’ll be at dedicated events in the spring or early summer.

Christmas – Godfall (PS5/PC)
The first PlayStation 5 game to be seen in public is published by Gearbox, not Sony, and is also on PC. But that’s about all that can be divined about it at the moment, beyond a vague fantasy setting.

Christmas – Halo Infinite (XO/XSX/PC)
Clearly intended to be the Xbox Series X’s biggest launch exclusive, and yet at the moment we know virtually nothing about it. But you can expect that to change very quickly once Microsoft’s marketing gets going.

Christmas – Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 (XSX)
Also introduced as a launch game, although plans do change. Its trailer at The Game Awards was certainly highly impressive in terms of graphics, even if we know nothing about the story yet.

2020 – Watch Dogs Legion (XO/PS4/XSX/PS5/PC)
After disappointing sales for The Division and Ghost Recon Breakpoint, Ubisoft delayed the new Watch Dogs to sometime later in 2020. Although it always looked more promising than either of those games.

2020 – Psychonauts 2 (XO/PS4/PC)
One sequel we’ll only believe when we’re actually playing it (although technically we have seen a hands-off) demo, it’s staying multiformat despite Microsoft having bought developer Double Fine.

2020 – Rainbow Six Quarantine (XO/PS4/XSX/PS5/PC)
Rainbow Six in space seems a really odd way to go with the franchise, but we’ve never had a serious, grounded space marine game, so maybe this will be it. It’s not replacing Rainbow Six Siege though.

Also confirmed for 2020: 3 Jan – Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training For Nintendo Switch (NS), 17 Jan – Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot (XO/PS4/PC), 17 Jan – Tokyo Mirage Sessions ♯FE Encore (NS), 28 Jan – Warcraft 3: Reforged (PC), 4 Feb – The Dark Crystal: Age Of Resistance Tactics (XO/PS4/NS/PC), 4 Feb – Zombie Army 4: Dead War (XO/PS4/PC), 28 Feb – Marvel’s Iron Man VR (PSVR), 31 Mar – Persona 5 Royal (PS4), 24 Apr – Trials Of Mana (PS4/NS/PC), 5 May – Maneater (XO/PS4/NS/PC), 19 May – Wasteland 3 (XO/PS4/PC), Q2 – Phantasy Star Online 2 (XO), mid-2020 – Tell Me Why (XO/PC), Q3 – Outriders (XO/PS4/PC), Autumn – Axiom Verge 2 (NS), Autumn – Dungeons & Dragons Dark Alliance, 2020 – Evil Genius 2: World Domination (PC), 2020 – Kerbal Space Program 2 (XO/PS4/PC), 2020 – Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga (XO/PS4/NS/PC), 2020 – Microsoft Flight Simulator (XO/PC), 2020 – No More Heroes 3 (NS), 2020 – Oddworld: Soulstorm (XO/PS4/PC), 2020 – The Settlers (PC), 2020 – Spelunky 2 (PS4/PC), 2020 – Streets Of Rage 4 (XO/PS4/NS/PC), 2020 – Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 (XO/PS4/PC), 2020 – Bravely Default 2 (NS), 2020 – The Dark Pictures Anthology: Little Hope (XO/PS4/PC), 2020 – Deadly Premonition 2: A Blessing in Disguise (NS)

 

Possible video games for 2020

Everwild
Rare’s mysterious new game is presumably a next gen release, although they haven’t really said anything about it yet. The fact it was announced at all though may imply it’s out sooner rather than later.

Bayonetta 3 (NS)
It’s a long time since we’ve heard anything about the new Bayonetta, but then when it was announced in 2017 work hadn’t really started yet – so there’s a chance it’ll be finished this year.

Babylon’s Fall (PS4/PC)
PlatinumGames’ other big action title also went dark for a long time, before more news was promised this summer. With luck that’ll be a prelude to an autumn release.

Horizon Zero Dawn 2
Sony has never announced a sequel but there hasn’t been a peep out of developer Guerrilla Games for years now and Horizon Zero Dawn 2 as a PlayStation 5 launch title would make a lot of sense.

Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild 2 (NS)
There’s no official word on when the unnamed follow-up will be out but most rumours point to sooner than you’d think, as Nintendo has been doing a lot of hiring for it lately.

Overwatch 2
Of all the big BlizzCon announcements this year, Overwatch’s sequel seems the most likely to come out first, as it uses a lot of the same tech as the original – although 2020 is probably still 50/50.

Assassin’s Creed: Ragnarok
Rumours of a Norse setting seem an odd choice given the success of God Of War but whatever the setting, a new Assassin’s Creed of some sort is due out this year.

 

Unlikely video games for 2020

Elden Ring (XO/PS4/PC)
Given it’s supposed to be out on current gen formats we would say the chances of a 2020 launch were good, but since nothing has been seen of it since its announcement that’s currently hard to imagine.

Fable 4
That the developer behind Forza Horizon is working on a new Fable is an open secret but there’s no way of telling when it’ll be out, but nothing so far points towards it being an Xbox Series X launch title.

Dragon Age 4
Given the difficult couple of years BioWare has had it’s hard to predict what they’re up to at the moment, but nothing points towards an imminent release for a new Dragon Age. Or Mass Effect for that matter.

Metroid Prime 4 (NS)
Given the whole project was restarted from scratch only a year ago it’s far too early to expect a release date this year. We wouldn’t even bet on seeing any footage.

Beyond Good And Evil 2
Whatever’s going on with Michel Ancel’s sequel it’s clearly not happening very quickly, and with so many other Ubisoft games being delayed recently it seems unlikely it’ll be out this year.

Diablo 4
It’s probably not that far off, but a 2020 release for Diablo 4 is not something we’d bank on. There’ll probably be an alpha or beta though, before a 2021 launch.

Starfield
There’s a good chance we might get a first look at Bethesda’s next role-playing game this year, but considering nothing has been seen so far a 2020 release seems very unlikely.

The Elder Scrolls 6
Since Bethesda has already said the sequel to Skyrim won’t be out until after Starfield there’s zero chance of it appearing this year.

GTA 6
A new Grand Theft Auto is already overdue, but the question now is what do Rockstar do about the new consoles? At the very least they’ll want GTA Online on them, but will it be a port, an upgrade, or a full sequel? Maybe we’ll find out in 2020, but it’s unlikely to be out this year.

 

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The white smoke has cleared and revealed another episode of the GIANT BOMBCAST! We discuss the upcoming game releases of 2020, video game themed classes, and our favorite crimes!

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Metro GameCentral video game review of 2019 – a year in waiting

This year has really all been about next year (pic: Microsoft)

GameCentral offers a retrospective of 2019 in gaming and looks forward to what can be expected in 2020 from Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony.

We’ve all seen this happen before. As soon as it becomes clear that next generation consoles are imminent, the big gaming companies suddenly clam up about their future plans and it’s left to leaks and guesswork to determine what’s actually happening. There was plenty of that in 2019, although Microsoft revealed slightly more than Sony, with a glimpse of what the Xbox Series X looks like and the implication that its launch games will include Halo Infinite and Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2.

All we know for sure about the PlayStation 5 is its name, but that won’t last once Sony puts its marketing machine into gear – probably starting with some sort of reveal event in the early spring. A few years ago, many would’ve predicted that this would be a very different kind of console unveil and perhaps the end of traditional generations. But it’s becoming increasingly clear that that won’t be the case, not this time.

Streaming is clearly the future of gaming but the faltering start for Google’s Stadia, and Microsoft’s very cautious approach with Project xCloud, suggests that it’s not yet ready for the big time. 2020 may well reveal other big name companies (Amazon has certainly been rumoured as being interested) joining the race to become the Netflix of gaming, but everything in 2019 suggests that will be a battle for another time.

In terms of the quality of its games, 2019 will not go down as a particularly remarkable year. We’ve already named Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice as our game of the year, but even it, and other top games such as Astral Chain and Apex Legends, are variations on well-worn themes. A lack of new ideas has been a problem for mainstream games all generation but if there’s any appetite to change that amongst the big publishers they’re now leaving it to the next generation to make their move. Although, predictably, the majority of next gen games known or rumoured about so far are sequels.

While it’s relatively easy to predict what Microsoft and Sony will be up to next year, Nintendo is, as always, another matter entirely. They only have one big name game confirmed for 2020 (Animal Crossing: New Horizons) and that’s only because it got delayed, so what the new year holds for them is very hard to guess at. Especially as the likes of Bayonetta 3 and Metroid Prime 4 may still not have been in the oven long enough to release next year.

Some rumours suggest Zelda: Breath Of The Wild 2 will be out sooner rather than later, but then rumours also suggested that the imagined Switch Pro would be released, or at least announced, this year, and that obviously never happened. Nintendo has frequently talked about the Switch lasting longer than normal for a console but whether they really mean that remains to be seen, as Nintendo has always proven perfectly happy to change previously stated plans if they think it’s for the best.

We’re also yet to see Nintendo’s response to the rise of streaming, although they have already streamed Switch games in Japan – so they’re obviously not blind to its importance. Neither are Sony and yet their plans are almost equally opaque, especially after the shock announcement that they would be using Microsoft technology (although very much on a corporate level and nothing to do with the Xbox division). PlayStation Now has only been a mild success at best, but it’s unclear whether Sony will admit that and launch a brand new service or just try and improve what they already have.

Indeed, it’s very hard to judge what Sony’s attitude is at the moment on anything. In previous generations they’ve frequently been accused of arrogance, even during their struggles with the PlayStation 3, but one of the secrets of the PlayStation 4’s success is that they’ve been able to control their vanity and avoid any serious PR disasters or hubristic mistakes. Will that continue with the PlayStation 5 or will they underestimate a clearly resurgent Microsoft?

Rather than how many teraflops the PlayStation 5 is pushing that may well be the most important question to be answered next year: will Sony pursue the same basic approach they’ve used this generation, or will their attitude be very different?

It’s not as if Microsoft’s plans are crystal clear either, as while they have been relatively humble about the Xbox One’s failings that’s not something they’ll want to dwell on. And although they’ve been making headlines these past few years about buying up developers, to bolster their first party studios, very few new games have been announced so far. More importantly, there’s the problem that everyone they’ve bought has been from North America or the UK.

Microsoft’s great failing, since their very first console, has been its inability to engage Japanese audiences or developers (or indeed anyone not in America or the UK). Every new generation they talk about working more closely with a wider range of developers, but it’s never happened and there’s no obvious reason to think that will change this time. Microsoft needs to get away from the stigma of being seen as the ShooterBox and just releasing the odd game from Rare is not nearly enough.

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But perhaps the most positive thing about 2019 is that all three console manufacturers are in a very healthy position at the moment. The Switch and PlayStation 4 are amongst the most successful consoles Sony and Nintendo has ever made and Microsoft has clearly been preparing for this new generation for a very long time. It’s entirely possible for all three companies to be successful at the same time, which is exactly what happened last generation, and that would be the best outcome for gamers too – ensuring each company pushes the others towards making the best games and hardware they can.

Whether that’ll be evident in 2020 is difficult to say – the new consoles aren’t likely to come out before November and launch games can often be underwhelming – but gaming has an exciting future ahead of it and 2020 will be the first real glimpse of what it looks like.

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The worst video game disasters of the decade – Reader’s Feature

Wii U – not Nintendo’s finest hour (pic: Nintendo)

A reader explores the most disappointing aspects of the last 10 years of gaming, from the PlayStation Classic to the Wii U.

Whilst I always look forward to the end of year (decade?) summaries and the best of lists to argue over, I thought I would offer an alternative perspective. Below are a few of my own, randomly selected ‘worst ofs’ from the 2010s:

PlayStation Classic
I’m all for retro. I think the recent spate of mini consoles has generally been of an excellent quality and offering an easy solution for those of us that want easy access to many of the classics from yesteryear. Except for the PlayStation Classic.

I wrote in recently, commenting on how Sony failed to generate consumer enthusiasm for this, despite the success of Nintendo’s mini offerings, but a combination of questionable game selection, poor emulation, and lack of analogue sticks has led to a real stinker of a console. One that can’t be given away on Gumtree in exchange for a couple of mince pies.

Sequels
What are we up to now? Far Cry 17? Modern Warfare 59? The economics of producing AAA games means that publishers are understandably not prepared to take risks, but it is depressing when many of this generation’s new titles have been genuine classics.

If FromSoftware relied on sequels there would have been no Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice or Bloodborne. Whilst Naughty Dog pushed out a number of Uncharteds, only when they branched out into a new world did The Last Of Us make its impact on gamers. I don’t expect the trend for sequels to change into the next generation, but I do look forward to any new genuinely new games that are released.

Microtransactions
Throw in season passes, pre-order bonuses, and loot boxes. I’ve reached a point of acceptance that this is an inevitable approach for publishers to recoup the cost of development (and occasionally make obscene amounts of profit) but, to me, this has been the biggest scourge on gaming in the last 10 years.

From including free-to-play mechanics in full priced releases to the blatant gambling mechanics aimed at fleecing real world money from the young or vulnerable, publishers have repeatedly shown there is no depth to which they won’t crawl to relieve you of your money.

Wii U
Oh, the poor, poor Wii U. Unloved, largely forgotten, often ridiculed. Nintendo’s biggest misstep of the 2010s gave us years of keyboard business analysts shouting about how this was Nintendo’s inevitable demise, how they should become a software developer only (incredibly espousing the Sega model as one to follow!) and simply make their games available for all platforms. Losing everything that makes them unique along the way.

I loved the Wii U. On my own. Holding the tablet-cum-controller thingy gently on my lap. It was daring and different and utterly neglected. That the Switch has been so thoroughly embraced was to a significant degree based on the gaming foundations of the Wii U: Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Splatoon, Mario Maker, Zelda: Breath Of The Wild, and more. Fantastic experiences that started life on the Wii U.

I don’t grieve for its premature death, all the great consoles are put out to pasture at some point. It’s the shortened life and unfulfilled potential that I mourn for. Now, if anyone wants me I’ll be playing one of my many Virtual Console games. Sniff. I’m not crying, you’re crying. Sniff.

By reader ProEvoSan78 (PSN ID)

The reader’s feature does not necessary represent the views of GameCentral or Metro.

You can submit your own 500 to 600-word reader feature at any time, which if used will be published in the next appropriate weekend slot. As always, email gamecentral@ukmetro.co.uk and follow us on Twitter.

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Metro GameCentral Best Video Games of the Decade – from Super Mario to God Of War

The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild – a great game, but is it the greatest? (pic: Nintendo)

GameCentral names the best video games of the last 10 years, including The Legend Of Zelda, Bloodborne, Portal 2, and more.

As if trying to decide the best games of the year wasn’t difficult enough, the fact that it’s also now the end of the decade (depending on who talk to – we’re certainly not getting into the argument of when it officially begins) means it’s incumbent upon us to also try and create a list of the best games of the last 10 years. An almost impossible task given the vast stretch of time and the fact that so many great games have almost no point of comparison.

And yet at the same time we’re pretty happy with our final top 10, even if there are lots of classic games we’ve had to leave out. Many have described this as a new golden age for video games and looking at the best of the last 10 years it becomes hard to argue against that. Although we didn’t want to get into the whole issue of the decade’s most ‘influential’ games, which is a very different question as to which are simply the best.

These are the games we enjoyed playing the most, so while Roblox or Fortnite may have been more successful that doesn’t necessarily imply anything about their quality. There are, obviously, hundreds of amazing games we’ve had to leave out but those closest to making the cut include The Witcher 3, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Undertale, NieR:Automata, Skyrim, Astro Bot, Splatoon 2, and Wolfenstein: The New Order.

 

10. God Of War (PS4)

Perhaps the most fascinating thing about Sony’s soft reboot of God Of War is that it wouldn’t have been nearly as effective if protagonist Kratos hadn’t been such an obnoxious sociopath in the earlier games. But time changes everything and the new game portrays his slow migration from monster to positive role model astoundingly well. Kratos’ story arc, and that of the other characters, is handled superbly, and all while being part of an action adventure that’s more than good enough to stand on its own merits.

God Of War also represents the most effective use of what’s come to be known as the Sony formula, with much better action than The Last Of Us and storytelling that, if only because of the more open-ended structure, feels as if it gives more agency to the player. The fact that it’s intended as the start of a new trilogy makes the prospect of the PlayStation 5 launch all the more enticing.

 

9. Mass Effect 2 (360/PS3/PC)

A lot can change in a decade and no one knows that more than developer BioWare. Today they’re in the precarious position of just coming off twin flops Anthem and Mass Effect: Andromeda, but back in 2010 they were in the middle of their greatest achievement to date: the Mass Effect trilogy. But even without the controversies over the third game’s ending it was always the second one that was the best – which was surprising really because in terms of plot it was really more of a side story.

The overall lore was never the most important element in Mass Effect 2 though, but instead the relationships you had with your crew; where romance was often an option but so too was simply being a friend who would listen or offer advice others would not dare to give. With its fair share of cornball sci-fi elements, and the option to play as an increasingly more amoral character, the end result was a near perfect mix of space opera, action role-playing, and virtual socialising.

 

8. Portal 2 (360/PS3/PC)

With the announcement of Half-Life: Alyx for VR headsets the prospect of new games set in the Half-Life/Portal universe is once again a reality. But it’s Portal that’s going to be the hardest act to follow. The originals managed to catch lightning in a bottle twice in a row, which was especially hard for the sequel which was many times longer than the original and had a greatly expanded cast.

But it all works superbly well, with one of the best scripts in gaming and some equally wonderful celebrity voice-acting. But none of that should take away from the fact that Portal 2 is also a fantastically clever puzzle game, that somehow manages to find the perfect balance of difficultly where it’s a genuine challenge but there’s still no overt hand-holding. If there is ever another game then great, but Valve are going to struggle to ever top this.

 

7. Bayonetta 2 (Wii U/Switch)

Traditional action games have almost become an endangered species over the last decade. Not in the general sense, of course, but most action titles today are either multiplayer games or feature some kind of role-playing element. But Bayonetta 2 (and its predecessor, released in 2009) are good enough that they, together with the more recent Devil May Cry 5, have been able to hold the fort all on their own.

PlatinumGames has put out some great games this decade, but Bayonetta 2 has been the purest distillation of their talents so far, with a combat system that is superficially easy to pick up but subject to layers upon layers of additional depth, the more you learn the intricacies and unlock more moves and weapons. The bizarre plot and storytelling don’t do much to enhance the experience but Bayonetta herself is one of the best new characters of the modern era and due to make a very welcome return in Bayonetta 3.

 

6. Ultra Street Fighter 4 (360/PS3/PS4/PC)

We were unsure whether to include Capcom’s seminal fighting game in this list or not. Not on the basis of its quality but because the original edition came out in 2009. Ultra Street Fighter 4 though, which contains all the major DLC released for the game, came out in 2014, and since it remains the most important fighting game of the last two generations it seemed right to include it.

In many ways an expanded remake of Street Fighter 2, the fourth game revived the whole genre and effectively saved it from extinction. Although it’s much better now than it’s given credit for, Street Fighter 5 failed to follow up that success, with a poor launch and a lack of content, but every successful one-on-one fighter today owes that fact to the success of Street Fighter 4 and its elegantly simple but endless entertaining combat.

5. Divinity: Original Sin 2 (XO/PS4/NS/PC)

The best role-playing game of the decade does not come from any franchise you would normally expect but instead little-known Belgian developer Larian Studios. The true heir to Baldur’s Gate and the computer role-playing games of the 90s, Original Sin 2 is a staggering work of interactive fiction, with so much depth and flexibility it feels like almost anything is possible. Its world is one of the most interactive in all gaming, not just in terms of objects but the characters you meet and how you influence them, whether through the XCOM-inspired combat or simply talking to them.

From the character creation tools to the split-screen multiplayer (except on Switch), the game is impossibly generous in term of its features and yet still manages to have surprisingly witty and accessible dialogue. Original Sin 2 is an incredible achievement and it’s going to be fascinating to see what the same team does with Baldur’s Gate 3.

 

4. XCOM 2 (XO/PS4/PC)

Although most of the games in this top 10 got a 10/10 score that doesn’t mean any of them are perfect, but if not for some performance issues on consoles XCOM 2 comes extremely close. Mind you, so did the original reboot, which also mixed top-level strategy with fast-paced, turn-based combat in a game whose infinite permutations ensure a completely different experience no matter how many times you play through its campaign to free the Earth from invading aliens.

But it’s not the depth of options that’s impressive about XCOM 2 but the fact that they never overwhelm what is a remarkably easy game for new players to get into. At a basic level the combat is no more complicated than pointing and shooting and the strategy level decisions open up slowly enough that you move from equipping soldiers to autopsying aliens to researching killer robots and it all seems like second nature. Expansion pack War Of The Chosen is equally good, and adds even more depth to what is undoubtedly the best strategy game of the decade.

 

3. Bloodborne (PS4)

If there’s one thing this generation has not been good at it’s introducing new IP. Almost everything, good or bad, has been a sequel or licensed game and yet some of the few exceptions have become amongst the most influential games of the decade. FromSoftware’s Dark Souls series inverted everything anyone thought they knew about video game difficulty and how far people were willing to push themselves if the game itself justified the effort. But it is the slightly more action-orientated Bloodborne that is so far the pinnace of From’s achievements, with absolutely peerless world-building and level design that draws you into a nightmare world that constantly evolves into something more and more terrible.

And yet always you’re given just enough hope that you can keep one step ahead of the game, with a combat system that, like the game world itself, proves to be far more varied and versatile than you first assume. Bloodborne is difficult, but only in terms of the amount of concentration and forethought it requires – raw skill is not really the issue. There’s been little sign of a sequel but if new game Elden Ring manages to be even half as good it’ll be a very special game indeed.

 

2. The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild (Wii U/Switch)

When a franchise has been going for 30 years and is already established as one of the most critically acclaimed video games series ever, a complete reinvention from the ground-up is the last thing you expect. But Breath Of The Wild is the most daring game Nintendo has ever made and it’s a gamble that pays off in every way imaginable. It not only reinvents Zelda but the whole concept of open world video games, while at the same still maintaining a very clear evolutionary connection with the original NES game.

Despite the massive size of the world map there’s something new to see and do around literally every corner, and yet the game is entirely non-linear and allows you to explore and experiment however you want. The lack of hand-holding is remarkable for a modern game in such a big name franchise, but the overwhelming feeling in Breath Of The Wild is one of freedom and it’s as exhilarating in the first few hours as it is hundreds later. Like all the games in our top four, a good argument can be made that it’s the best game ever made and almost makes you pity Nintendo for taking on the challenge of making a sequel.

 

1. Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Wii)

Not only is it near impossible to compile a top 10 list of games of the decade but even once you do that you have to decide something almost equally divisive: which is best, Super Mario Galaxy 1 or 2? But the answer has to be the sequel, which somehow manages to make the original feel safe and unambitious by comparison.

Abandoning any attempt at coherence or storytelling its only mission is to entertain in the most imaginative and unpredictable ways possible, with a new idea on almost every level. Super Mario Galaxy 2 is pure interactive entertainment, that tries to ensure every moment, every action, and every button press is enjoyable in its own right. Combined with the equally inventive stage and boss design, and one of the greatest soundtracks of its generation, Super Mario Galaxy 2 is the best game of the decade and one of the best video games ever made.

 

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Metro GameCentral Video Game Awards – The Best of 2019

Resident Evil 2 – award-winning horror (pic: Capcom)

Nods for the best graphics, storytelling, soundtrack, and more are all up for contention in the annual Metro video game awards.

2019 might not be going down in history as a standout year for video games but it hasn’t been any kind of disaster either, with plenty of difficult decisions required for our Top 20 of the year. By comparison, our yearly awards aren’t designed to celebrate the entirety of a game, but one particular element that they do very well – even if it’s at the expense of others. Although this year all the winners are great games in their own right. Well, except for the winner of the worst game of the year award…

 

Best Visuals

Luigi’s Mansion 3 (Nintendo Switch)

This has always been an award for artistic, rather than technical achievement, which is why it’s often won by indie games that try to do something other than the usual photorealistic replication of the real world. But technical competence is important, and in both senses Luigi’s Mansion 3 manages to be the best looking game on the Switch. In fact, it’s so far beyond things like Pokémon and Fire Emblem it feels like it’s on a different system, with gloriously emotive cartoon animation and some great lighting effects.

It also features some of the most destructible scenery of any game this generation, which is odd as most of it doesn’t have much gameplay purpose. But describing Luigi’s Mansion 3 as an interactive animated movie really doesn’t feel like hyperbole, and shows just what can be done with the right artistic and technical expertise on even modestly powered hardware.

Runner-up: Resident Evil 2 (XO/PS4/PC)

 

Best Innovation

Baba Is You (NS/PC)

We’ve given this award to both hardware and software in the past but, again, it’s most commonly indie games that win – and none more deservedly so than Baba Is You. Its premise is that you can manipulate the game world by switching around the little three-part sentences that describe each stage. Change Rock is Push to Rock is You and suddenly you are the rock, or take out the stop from Wall Is Stop and suddenly you can walk through it.

You’re not just changing the world but the internal logic of the game, in a way that’s reminiscent of basic programming but feels much more organic and gamified than other attempts at the same idea. It all works brilliantly well and helps create one of the best games of the year.

Runner-up: John Wick Hex (PC)

 

Format of the year

The one format that never disappoints

PC

Unlike previous years there’s no clear stand out in terms of the various formats this year, a sign perhaps of the imminent replacement of the Xbox One and PlayStation 4. Nobody had a bad year, although a number of the Switch’s more prominent releases – such as Fire Emblem: Three Houses and Pokémon Sword/Shield turned out to be good rather than great.

And so the PC wins essentially by default, although there were a number of excellent exclusives this year, including Total War: Three Kingdoms, Sunless Skies, John Wick Hex, Devotion, and Asgard’s Wrath. No matter what happens to consoles the PC is always a safe pair of hands and that’s been proven yet again this year.

Runner-up: Nintendo Switch

 

Remake of the year

Resident Evil 2 (Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC)

Thank goodness we already had this award category from previous years, or it would look like we invented it just to lavish more praise on Resident Evil 2. Not that it doesn’t deserve it. The Resident Evil 1 remake from 2002 is still one of the best ever but this reimagining of the PS1 sequel with an over-the-shoulder Resident Evil 4 style view works perfectly.

The graphics are phenomenal but what’s most impressive about it, and runner-up Link’s Awakening, is that the underling level design, structure, and even some of the puzzles are still exactly the same as they were in 1998. As a result of this anticipation for Resident Evil 3 is already off the scale – and frankly any other Capcom classic of the era (we are so hoping for Dino Crisis).

Runner-up: The Legend Of Zelda: Link’s Awakening (Nintendo Switch)

 

Best Music

Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown (Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC)

A relatively serious combat flight sim might not seem the obvious place to find the soundtrack of the year but the one for Ace Combat 7 is absolutely superb. In terms of not only the overall quality but how well it fits the setting and themes of individual missions. It also wins on sheer quantity, with over 100 separate tracks that genuinely seem to get better the further you get into the game.

Calm and precise when you’re in the tutorials, the music builds in tempo the bigger and more desperate the combat gets. And although you also wouldn’t expect a flight sim to have boss fights, Ace Combat 7 absolutely does and the music for them is especially glorious. With one of the best VR modes ever seen the whole game is sadly underrated and desperately deserving of more recognition.

Runner-up: Sayonara Wild Hearts (PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and iOS)

 

Best Storytelling

A Plague Tale: Innocence (Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC)

2019 has not been a banner year for storytelling in games but there have still been some standouts, including Life Is Strange 2, Sunless Sea, Knights And Bikes, and A Plague Tale: Innocence. None of them are high profile but A Plague Tale did do much better than expected and was rightly nominated at The Game Awards. As the title hints it’s set during the time of the Black Death, but the atmosphere is more Lovecraftian than purely historical, with Medieval France overrun with almost demonic-like rats.

The story and graphics are highly compelling but it’s the portrayal of the game’s child protagonists, particularly the sweet-natured Hugo, which is the highlight. The game is full of horrors, both man-made and otherwise, but it’s its ability to show the goodness in humanity, as well as the bad, that elevates it above the cynical norm.

Runner-up: Knights And Bikes (PS4/PC)

 

Worst game

Turok: Escape From Lost Valley (PC)

We do feel slightly guilty about this award ‘winner’, as it’s an indie game and no doubt subject to a tiny budget and equally small development team. But Universal Studios were involved as a publisher, so there must’ve been some amount of budget sloshing around, and it’s also hard to feel quite so forgiving when the Turok: Dinosaur Hunter franchise is being dragged through the dirt once again.

The game looks like a cute little adventure game but it’s actually a painfully difficult arcade title, with controls and a camera angle that make the precise movement and reactions required absolutely impossible. The whole thing seems to have been designed to look cute and absolutely nothing else, and you’d certainly gain more entertainment starring at the screenshots than you would playing it.

Runner-up: Contra: Rogue Ops (Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and PC)

 

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Giant Bombcast Game of the Year 2019: Day Five Deliberations

The final day is here! Many games will enter, but only 10 can leave. Which one will reign supreme?

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Clocker

Father and Daughter solve puzzles in time.

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The best VR games of 2019 – from Asgard’s Wrath to Vader Immortal

Oculus Quest – part of an important year for VR (Pic: Oculus VR)

GameCentral takes a look back at the last 12 months in virtual reality, with games ranging from Ace Combat 7 to Boneworks.

Despite a lingering sense that VR is a medium yet to hit its full stride, this year has seen good indicators that it’s heading in the right direction. The launch of the excellent Oculus Quest, with its absence of set-up, and freedom from cables or the need to own a PC, is the first move towards mass market acceptance.

Of course, what VR really needs is games, and there have been some great ones this year, from the physics-based mastery of Boneworks, to the Bond-esque thrills of Blood & Truth. Half-Life: Alyx may not be here until 2020, but there’s no shortage of stuff to play while you wait.

 

Asgard’s Wrath for Oculus Rift (Oculus Studios)

You’re the newly minted Norse god of animals, which means that as well as going about the business of being a deity you can also possess heroes and transmute animals into handy support troops.

The first and final levels cast you as a god, but the middle four have you participating in human form, backed up by whichever animal followers you’ve chosen to bring along. And with each saga clocking in at five or six hours, there’s plenty of mythological meat to get your teeth into.

Mixing magical and melee combat with delightfully brain-tickling puzzles, it has side quests, secret and main dungeons to explore, and a AAA story with a level of polish that remains all too rare in VR.

 

Blood & Truth for PSVR (Sony Interactive Entertainment)

From the people who brought you GTA-lite The Getaway and the London Heist portion of PlayStation VR Worlds, Blood & Truth is a sublimation of those two games; a London-based gangster shooter that mixes Guy Ritchie-style cockney posturing and James Bond’s impossibly stylish gunplay.

Told in flashback as your former SAS soldier Ryan Marks is interrogated by a CIA agent, it’s a breathless rush between set pieces. Dual-wielding guns whilst diving through windows or setting about baddies on an urban motorway with an automatic grenade launcher, it’s all in day’s work for our boy Ryan.

It may not have much replayability, but is an intense, memorable and unusually cinematic experience, which is about to receive free DLC that adds a virtual DJ booth to play with, and a gun-based rhythm action mini-game.

 

Sairento VR for HTC Vive, Valve Index, Oculus Rift and PSVR (Mixed Realms)

Sairento VR’s set-up is extremely simple: you’re a cyber ninja deploying a dizzying array of weapons to take down a series of foes hurled at you by an errant AI.

That weaponry includes ninja standards like katanas, swords, and throwing stars, while also spinning in sniper rifles, SMGs, and plasma weapons, with most available for dual wielding. It goes further though, giving you the wire-fu skills of a movie ninja, complete with bullet time and back-flips off pieces of scenery.

The combination of all that empowers you to play exactly as you like, letting you take on its hugely compelling arenas at the difficulty level you want and with the weapons you enjoy, all of which are unlocked right from the start. It’s hugely addictive.

 

Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown for PSVR (Namco)

Building on Namco’s arcade dogfighting heritage, Ace Combat 7 is easily the best of the series, and although only a tiny sliver of it is playable in VR, it’s such a visceral pleasure you can’t help but wish there was more.

With its own discrete set of unlockable planes, each of the three VR missions in Ace Combat 7 tells its own miniature story set in a visually distinct play area. Moving from a tropical archipelago to a huge plateau with ground forces mounting an attack, and finally a mountainous region with snowy valleys and ruthless air defences – each arena requires its own tactics and selection of missiles.

Perhaps the most impressive thing though, is how little nausea the game causes, despite all the barrel rolls and plunging loops. It’s consistently thrilling throughout, especially if you have a flight stick to hand. A PC version is allegedly in the works for 2020.

 

Boneworks for HTC Vive, Valve Index, Oculus Rift, and Windows Mixed Reality (Stress Level Zero)

Hailed by some as being a bit like Half-Life, Boneworks’ playful, physics-based levels certainly have something in common with Valve’s all-time classic, even if it lacks the scale, polish and character of those seminal games.

It’s still very good though, its story mode combining elegantly designed puzzles that all have multiple potential solutions, with shooting sections where you gun down a selection of computer-controlled troops.

The solid, weighty items you find in its world may not always fit together quite as planned, leading to moments of irritation, but it’s an illuminating signpost to the next level of VR gaming.

 

Ghost Giant for PSVR (Thunderful)

Set in a world of Animal Crossing-style polite, village-dwelling creatures, you’re a large, friendly ghost whose job it is to help the animals with their problems.

As in Moss, you loom over events in the story, the tiny characters gazing up at you in awe as you move large pieces of scenery or gently yank the roof off a building to make sure its inhabitants are doing okay.

Although the animals are cute, they suffer from familiar problems. Some are sad or depressed, others have social difficulties, and it’s that constant hint of darkness that makes it feel all the more human, relatable, and at times quite moving.

 

No Man’s Sky: Beyond for HTC Vive, Valve Index, Oculus Rift & PSVR (Hello Games)

Following a launch that remains famous for all the wrong reasons, No Man’s Sky has fought a valiant rearguard action with a succession of free updates that have made it live up to every one of the occasionally hubristic-sounding promises of Hello Games’ founder, Sean Murray.

Its most recent update brought the dream ticket, though: you can now finally explore No Man’s Sky’s vast and glittering multi-verse in VR. It’s not a partial port either, with every single aspect of the game now fully immersive and available to VR players.

Yes, it’s still a little burry, especially on PSVR, but the sheer scale and wonder of a galactic-scale simulation in which you can take off from and land on any moon or planet remains mind-blowing.

 

Vader Immortal: A Star Wars VR Series for Oculus Quest (Disney Interactive Studios)

If you grew up with Star Wars there is a 100% chance that you have at some point imagined what it would be like to inhabit that galaxy, with your own lightsaber on your belt and the Force powers of a Jedi Knight at your disposal.

The Vader Immortal episodic trilogy seeks to fulfil that wish, placing you in the lava-strewn depths of the planet Mustafar in a lethal battle of survival with Luke’s dad and his legion of Stormtroopers.

From the buttons you push, to the lever to send your ship into hyperspace, or using the Force to grab a downed trooper’s gun in mid-air and standing saber-to-saber with Vader himself, there has never been a more convincing way of actually being in Star Wars.

 

Trover Saves The Universe for HTC Vive, Valve Index, Oculus Rift, and PSVR (Squanch Games)

Whether or not you find Trover Saves The Universe funny will largely depend on your liking of Rick & Morty, a show also written and voiced by Justin Roiland. If you’re a fan, the chances are this will have you crying with laughter.

Putting you in the floating armchair of a Chairorpian, a species physically unable to stand, your mission is to recover your two dogs, which have been stuffed into the baddie’s empty eye sockets. You do that by controlling Trover, a foul-mouthed and unwilling puppet who does all your fighting using what is effectively a stubby lightsaber.

It’s not a particularly challenging game, or a very long one, but if you’re on the right side of its humour, it’s amongst the funniest games ever made, albeit one that is under absolutely no circumstances suitable for children.

 

Skyworld for HTC Vive, Valve Index, Oculus Rift, Windows Mixed Reality, and PSVR (Vertigo Games)

Played on a circular table that you spin around to get a closer look at any part of the battlefield, Skyworld is a table-top war game in VR, where your troops attack, defend and capture while you watch.

Using a slowly refilling mana bar like Clash Royale’s, you wait for enough magic to build up before dropping units onto the field. Unlike Supercell’s game, you give them an initial path to follow, after which they’re on their own and will fight enemies or attack the opponent’s castle depending on what they bump into.

The pretty-looking interface occasionally gets in the way of the sometimes rather simplistic action, but other than that it’s a fun and well-balanced attempt at bringing tabletop games to life in VR.

 

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Giant Bombcast Game of the Year 2019: Day Four Deliberations

The list is done, the time for casual talk is through. Time to dole out awards, including Best Story, Best Music, Best Style, and Cool Multiplayer Thing!

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The 13 Biggest Video Game News stories of 2019

New consoles are always big news (pic: Microsoft)

2019 saw two new console reveals and Google enter the games industry, but what were the other big stories and how will they impact 2020?

The fact that next gen Xbox and PlayStation consoles were announced this year did not come as a surprise to anyone. These things are always open secrets, and most of the hard information still comes from leaks rather than official announcements, but the launch of the new formats next year will, as always, change the face of gaming.

But there were other stories and trends that will also have almost as much impact, including the increasing weaponisation of influencers as marketing tools and what might finally be some level of synergy between Hollywood and the games industry…

1. How to make a successful video game

It’s always good to see a major publisher making the effort to push a new IP, especially when it turns out to be a great game like Apex Legends. But watching EA promoting Apex Legends was a fascinating instruction in how the modern video games business work. Developer Respawn only started teasing the game a day before its launch, before paying 100 influencers (including Ninja, who was allegedly paid $1 million for his efforts) to stream the game. The end result was 1 million players in eight hours and 50 million in a month.

But while still successful now, once the influencer money ran out interest in the game quickly peaked and Fortnite was soon back on top as the number one battle royale game. Some of that was down to miscalculations with the first battle pass, and Respawn’s refusal to work their developers to the bone, but despite its ongoing success Apex Legends never quite became the next big thing.

2. More a trickle than a stream

At the start of the year Microsoft and Sony were terrified of the prospect of Goggle entering the video game market. But now that 2019 is over, Google’s Stadia is something close to a laughing stock. Not literally, because Google has enough money (if not patience) to throw at the idea until it’s successful, but the lead up to launch was an endless parade of bad press, with Google constantly having to explain that it isn’t the Netflix of gaming and that most of the promised features didn’t actually work. The service itself did, which is the important thing, but with no major exclusives and embarrassments like launching with a two-month-old version of Borderlands 3 they’ve got a lot of work ahead of them convincing people that Stadia is the future of gaming.

3. Successful project

By comparison with Stadia, Microsoft’s Project xCloud (it’s just a codename) was much better received, even though it’s only in beta at the moment and there’s indication of when it’ll transition into a paid-for service. The reasons for Microsoft’s warmer reception is pretty straightforward, and a lesson to any company looking to launch a new console or service: it’s all about the games.

Announcing that Project xCloud would work with all Xbox Game Pass titles instantly made it more interesting than Stadia, especially given how many more titles have been added to Game Pass over recent months. Not promising features that never materialised also helped and whatever else happens with the next gen Xbox it’s clear Project xCloud already has a bright future.

We know what the PS5 dev kit looks like, but what about the consumer version? (pic: Twitter)

4. The one to beat

Since they weren’t at E3 (which started a snowball effect that could finish off the expo for good), Sony chose to unveil the PlayStation 5 in a Wired article in April, although at first they wouldn’t even confirm it’s name. There were some vague tech specs though (since augmented by various leaks and patent discoveries) but officially we know next to nothing about the console, other than it will support backwards compatibility and that Sony are initially aiming their sights at hardcore gamers.

That won’t last, but clearly Sony has a backlog of news to unveil at some point in 2020 – probably fairly early on in the spring. Although it’ll also be interesting to see what plans they may have for streaming, as although they’ve recently given PlayStation Now a power-up they’ve also teamed up with Microsoft, of all companies, for what’s presumed to be their equivalent to Stadia and Project xCloud.

5. What’s in a name?

A new console announcement is always going to be the biggest news of any given year, and in 2019 we had two. Project Scarlett, as it was known at first, was revealed at E3 in June, although as with Sony the tech specs have so far been kept very vague – with most information coming through leaks.

The new console got a second surprise unveiling at The Game Awards in December, revealing an usually vertical design and the instantly controversial name of Xbox Series X. The fact that Microsoft had to issue a statement a few days later, to clarify the name, shows they’ve learnt little about giving their consoles sensible monikers, but the trailer for Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 was impressive enough to suggest everything to do with the console itself is looking very promising.

6. Death and rebirth

Fortnite has been the biggest thing in gaming for two years now, but what goes up must come down and by the spring the chinks in Fortnite’s armour were beginning to show. In-game sales were down and the honeymoon period was clearly over. Something had to be done and whatever you think of the game it’s impossible not to be impressed by Epic Games’ attempts to combat the inevitable decline in interest.

The first pushback was the hugely successful Fortnite World Cup in July, but the main event of the year was the complete destruction of the original Fortnite map, whose death throes attracted an audience of millions and left many more frantic when the game was down for several days – before being reborn as Fortnite: Chapter 2. There’s evidence that in-game sales quickly began to drop again, but you can’t say that Epic hasn’t been putting in the effort to keep Fortnite relevant.

7. Apple Arcade

Although it hasn’t got nearly as much traction amongst hardcore gamers as the news over Stadia and Project xCloud, the most successful new service launch of the year has been Apple Arcade on iOS. For just £5 a month you get access to over 100 titles, all of which are guaranteed to be microtransaction free.

It’s a fantastic service, at least as good as Xbox Game Pass, and something Apple is planning to spend $500 million on overall. Whether they’ll ever start to push more console style titles, and offer a more direct rival to the other streaming services, remains to be seen but on the basis of Apple Arcade you’d have to say they’re welcome to try.

One of many pro-democracy images created by fans that features Overwatch’s Mei (pic: u/galoder)

8. A Blizzard of anger

Most video game controversies are pretty insular affairs and usually revolve around things like publishers do something anti-consumer or games not working properly. But one of the biggest news stories of 2019 revolved around some very serious real-world issues, after a Hearthstone player was banned for making comments supporting the pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong.

Blizzard’s unapologetic response to the aftermath caused protests of its own amongst fans and even employees, until eventually they at least partially gave in. At the height of the controversy Chinese Overwatch character Mei was being widely used by activists in Hong Kong, although many ordinary gamers seemed to forgive Blizzard remarkably quickly, in their excitement over announcements for Overwatch 2 and Diablo 4 at Blizzcon a few week later.

9. Influential value

As if the early success of Apex Legends wasn’t illustration enough of how important influencers are to video games companies the rush to poach popular streamers from Twitch started to involve some serious money by the end of 2019, starting with Ninja.

Some reports suggest that Microsoft may have paid over $50 million for Ninja, even though, in terms of audience numbers, Mixer is only a minnow compared to Twitch. Shroud and Ewok quickly followed but while Dr. Disrespect and others vowed loyalty to Twitch, YouTube and Facebook Gaming also made moves for other prominent figures – a trend that is certain to continue in 2020.

10. Epic rap battle

One of the more unsavoury stories of the year involved a nasty war of words between Fortnite publisher Epic Games, Valve, and their various ‘fans’. The new Epic Game Stores launched in December 2018 and quickly tried to establish itself by signing up exclusive deals with various PC games, with one report suggesting they paid £8.38 million for Control alone.

This led not only to Epic’s Tim Sweeny quarrelling with Valve but getting involved in an embarrassing rap battle with an angry fan. Inevitably it was gamers who took things the furthest, with death threats aimed at anyone that dared sign a deal with Epic, including obscure indie title Ooblets. All over the fact that games they probably had no interest in were being sold on a different online store.

Detective Pikachu – a video game movie that doesn’t suck (Picture: Warner Bros/Pokemon Company)

11. Interactive movies

By the sheer law of averages it had to happen sooner or later, but 2019 saw the release of the first genuinely good (or at least mostly good) video game movie, in the form of Pokémon: Detective Pikachu. It was only a minor hit, but it did segue into complaints about the hilariously awful Sonic The Hedgehog trailer, where the main character seemed to have been designed as some sort of nightmare-fuelled monster instead of a cute blue hedgehog.

For once fan complaints had a positive effect and all concerned agreed to delay the game and create a new design with help from an artist that worked on Sonic Mania.

12. Hollywood synergy

After decades of talk about video games and movies melding into one – that clearly was nothing but talk – it did actually start to happen this year. Not only with the promise of good video game movies but Hollywood stars appearing in video games and actually making an effort with their performances.

Not only was there Death Stranding with Norman Reedus, Mads Mikkelsen, and Léa Seydoux but Keanu Reeves being in Cyberpunk 2077 was one of the biggest stories of E3. And then there was George R. R. Martin working on FromSoftware’s Elden Ring, which leaked before the news was made public but seemed so unlikely most people didn’t believe it.

13. Get Dexit done

The sad thing about compiling a list of the year’s most important stories is that it’s easy to spot the biggest ones because they’re the ones that involve death threats. Pokémon Sword and Shield might seem like a bright, cheerful game but its fans were furious that it didn’t include every single pokémon – as previous games have – a process they referred to as Dexit.

The game attracted an unusual amount of pre-release heat for the decision, with developer Game Freak clearly unused to dealing with that level of vitriol. Although their standoffish approach eventually proved to be the right strategy, as despite all the complaints the game immediately went on to become the biggest Switch launch ever and the second biggest Pokémon game in its history.

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