Doom Eternal shouldn't be in that picture, not after what they did to Samuel Hayden's backstory and Vega's voice
Game of the Year is probably Genshin Impact. I don't play it, but I see a lot of people talking about it and streaming it
Worth mentioning Control's dlcs Foundation and AWE, Ghost of Tsushima and WoW Shadowlands as well
liquidflower
Worth mentioning Control's dlcs Foundation and AWE, Ghost of Tsushima and WoW Shadowlands as well
Yeah but Ghost of Tsushima is not a computer (PC) game….If it was though, it'd be my 1st choice no doubt.
Other than that, I didn't particularly like anything on PC from this year. So, no vote for me.
Lots of decent retro re-makes (EG. Halo and C&C) but otherwise, I'd tend to agree… nothing in 2020 on PC that made me sit up and say WOW.
As to DOOM Eternal. Preferred DOOM 2016 myself. Don't know why they thought it necessary to add all the jumping bits myself (a couple were VERY infuriating).
Lets hope 2021 is a better year all round.
All I've bought this year is WoW's Shadowlands expac. nothing else of interest to me. Nothing else on the horizon either, except Elder Scrolls 6 and, that horizon is very, very distant, assuming it is ever going to happen at all.
Ha ha, I only ever play Solitaire so for me this year & every other year the best game has to be SOLITAIRE!
Rule the Waves 2
An excellent expansion of the original naval management and warfame sim to cover many more years, planes, missiles, etc.
Seen as I haven't played anyway new games from this year, Red Dead 2 as I bought it this year! 300+ hours so far, great game.
I actually didn't find any of the released games of this year for anythign really good at all, all the games I play has been released in the years before, and when it get to it, it is only a handfull of games from the previous years that I play.
My problem with games especially after 2007-8ish…. is mostly, they give a very little actual entertainment… they are boring… very very short lived… the idea of AAA titles, is a mere slideshow and and show off that is very very short, and when released it is only half games at best… how funny it may sound… you end finding Indie games of better value and more content and other none AAA projects having actually more gameplay value overall.
It is sad to think about, it is sad that video games for the Console/PC/Mac world really is dwindling and going downhill for the quick bucks… instead of going for the longhaul really really nice, well made and programmed games, that probably could bring in more value to the companies that anything actually entirely hyped up does.
StarCraft, Half-Life/Counter Strike, Quake, Civilization I,II,III is among some of the very few game series that actually is successfull… and if you add in MMORPG… FFXIV, WoW, EvE, and before that the epic Niche MMORPGs that defines the genre the best.
With all this going downhill entering more pop culture, than something lasting to play we can blame the consoles partly… but it would be better putting the blame directly on the game companies, for not developing or demanding a port of games that fitst all models and by that way dictating how it should work…. first of all both Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo and PC/MAC all need games to play on their machinery, if the game companies picked up the actual glove and decided we are going to do it like this, then the rest would just follow in nicely.
However… the Consoles and PC is getting much more alligned today compared to previous generatiosn of consoles… so if we got any luck, we may run into the next actually golden era of games again.
Some really odd comments in here!
I played and enjoyed Division 2, currently playing AC Valhalla and looking forward to CyberPunk… With the customary COD game over the Christmas.
Agree re Doom - the 2016 was better… Dont mind admitting I found this years version incredibly difficult!
Have to say I really didn't like Doom Eternal one bit. Played about an hour and then uninstalled it so quite thankful I didn't pay for it and was playing via Game Pass.
I did REALLY enjoy Mafia : Definitive Edition as it took the original and stayed true to that game but improved it in every way.
Consoles it has to be said Ghost of Tshushima is truly inspiring and I have sunk countless hours into it.
Well….
I'd certainly offer Cloudpunk as one of the best games.
Never thought I'd like it and was expecting the voxel graphics to really get on my nerves, but something in the back of my mind made me just give it a try anyway.
I enjoyed that one so much that, after my third playthrough, I actually took the time to write letters of thanks to the developers and some of the voice actors.
Not something I'd normally do, or have really ever done, but I really felt they deserved some kind of recognition. I've since been banging on about it and recommending it highly to all my friends.
If you go by the numbers then surely it has to be cyberpunk…..
In all honesty I can't think of any game this year that has been ‘good enough’ for me to grab or even stands out. Hell I haven't even bought cyberpunk yet and that looks really good but I wait for a while before buying to miss release day bugs (seems to be a lot considering the delays supposedly for ‘bug fixing’ etc) and get some proper reviews etc.
Flight Simulator 2020 was the standout game for me. In some respects it's still a work-in-progress, but what Asobo have achieved so far in mapping most of our planet is already mightily impressive. The level of detail of the planes is staggering, and the weather engine is superb too.
Cyberpunk looks pretty amazing too, but I can't really give that my vote as I haven't played it yet.
Looking back, I haven't bought a single game this year. I've got a huge back catalogue to play through, and nothing except maybe Hades caught my attenion this year
I'd agree that not many AAA games have been stand outs (too early to tell on Cyberpunk,) in fact the closest to a ‘big studio’ game I enjoyed is Crusader Kings 3. That said, MS Flight Sim and Half Life Alyx get honourable mentions for the technical achievements even though the former is (to me,) dull to play and the latter trying to prop up a dying format.
I have enjoyed smaller games, Spiritfarer, Hades, Kentucky Route Zero (hey, they only finished it this year,) In Other Waters & Deep Rock Galactic.
If I had to pick one, it'd be Hades.
I've not had chance to play much this year but I'd say deep rock galactic and Hades have had the most recommendations from friends.
Having played transistor and bastion by supergiant games, I think I'll pick up Hades at some point.
zugged2
Rule the Waves 2
Their aggressively backwards DRM turned me off it entirely, I won't engage with that attitude.
On the positive side: Crusader Kings is amazing, really incredible depth and flexibility to it; really requires the player to accept some kind of… randomness? Bad luck? Willingness to let the game systems play out for better and worse, and enjoying the stories it generates.
F1 2020 is probably the game I've played most and I couldn't justify it, that game is misery. Doom Eternal just feels like more Doom 2016 and I was pretty bored of the grinding repetition of that by the end of it. Cyberpunk looks like a hot mess, Spelunky 2 is a worse version of a great game, and anything else I can't even remember.
I'd bet that Control DLC is great, given the exceptional original game, but I haven't gotten to it yet.
According to my playtime on Steam, Destiny 2 has taken most of my gaming up.
I've yet to launch Cyberpunk, waiting until I've got enough spare time to actually invest more than an hour here or there to see if I like it. Which tends to be my issue with most games, the first hour either piques my interest or I put it down and rarely go back into it.
gotta say it- half-life alyx hands down as far as i`m concerned, tried some of the very disappointing remasters- which were far from masterful- and have found nothing really compelling otherwise, sadly.
As per a lot of the comments above, didn’t find 2020 to be the greatest year for new games. Most of my PC gaming time was invested in Ace Combat 7, Flight Sim 2020, Forza Horizon 4, Call of Duty - alongside shorter stints with C&C remastered, Control, Witcher 3, Assassin’s Creed Black Flag, Unreal Tournament, Gears of War 5 (Campaign replay).
Beyond the PC, I’ve been really impressed with the Quest 2 headset, where alongside all the popular quick-fix games everybody plays (Beat Sabre, Pistol Whip, Star Wars: Vader Immortal, RoboRecall, etc), there’s some real Indy gems like “In Death: Unchained” which has become one of my favourite adrenaline rush experiences - and it’s seen some great & frequent updates that have put AAA games houses to shame. The game’s archery/adventure premise is simple, but each session is rewarding and intense with plenty of options to mix up the control scheme if you prefer smooth locomotion over teleportation to get around the procedurally generated levels.
Half Life Alyx.
Just wish I had a bigger room to play it in. Thumped the wall a couple of times :D
With my flavor, to my knowledge no interesting game was launched in 2020.
Satisfactory early access.
and probably the cyberpunk 2077 - probably because unfortunately I have no time for playing games and wont check it until next year. I was anticipating the game therefore it lands as my second choice :)
If we are talking about games that have had some cultural impact, surely ‘Among Us’ ?
Out of the games that released this year I would say Mafia definitive edition deserves some attention as I had a lot of fun with that game, great story, the game mechanics such as shooting and driving are tight enough, graphics are beautiful, it did feel a bit short as a linear story game and also on the flip side it could have benefited from having more to do in the open world, but it was still a great experience overall.
Now what I really want to say is CyberPunk 2077 - it is my new favourite game right now, but it is early days and there is still a lot of dev work to be done to it for me to be able to officially declare it best game, maybe next year…
I'm trying to remember if I even bought any games this year. FS2020 and Cyberpunk are going to become great games I'm sure, but they're not yet (or I don't have the hardware yet). The only other game is Ori and the Will of the Wisps, which I can run, I just haven't bothered to buy it yet, that's the closest I can get!
I can understand the love for FS2020 and Cyberpunk, but there were some other new niche releases this year that were excellent. The one game I spent the most time on was Snowrunner. The environment, driving physics and vehicles are top notch. It's bit of a grind to make progress, but it's a very relaxing game to play. Automobilista 2 and the GT4 pack for ACC were both excellent.
Star Wars Squadrons, and even though I haven't bought it yet - Command and Conquer Remastered looks like an awesome blast from the past.
My time at Portia. fun, beautiful and positive to play.
Not impressed with Cyberpunk 2077. Doom Eternal was lame as hell also. So my vote is for Godfall.
Half Life Alyx or SuperHOT Mind Control Delete for me
I've only been playing game pass games this year so no comment…
Star Citizen, although it might not apply because its not really a full game yet.
But no other game has that immersion. Bugs and all I still have more fun and awe there.
The game I spent most of my time on is ESO (Elder Scrolls Online). Very enjoyable and able to play with other members of the family even though we all live remote from each other. The only frustration is that it is very buggy and crashes a lot..
Hades.
I wish I could say the same for Cyberpunk or anything else, but nothing else had that “tied up in a bow” feeling of a perfect product that entices you to play more. Every aspect from the gameplay to the adaptive experience, the art, the music, the story, the voice acting is top notch. A lot of games start harder than they'll be later, or introduce a hidden scaling that makes ranking up pointless, but Hades has a few ways to cleverly switch things up and also a system that's completely out in the open and under the player's control. I had it on Early Access so I played it for over two years. Most years' big games, I barely want to play once.
The last game I really played was Just Cause 4. Recent games aren't that much fun to me. I like amazing graphics and physics, but I don't want it to feel too much like real life. With games getting more life like, all the death and murder are too depressing/horrifying, so either make shooters less real or make the purpose of the game more fun. That's just me, everyone else can enjoy their COD/counter strike or whatever, it's just not my style anymore. I'd play WoW but you can only do that for so many literal years of your life.
Baldur's Gate 3 but its not really a complete game yet. All the AAA games were rubbishrubbishrubbishrubbishe this year, as they have been for the last few too.
I did finally buy a VR headset in the Quest 2 so I'm loving that. The last time I tried VR was the CV1 and that was a massive disappointment compared to this. Shooters are actually fun and not making me sick after 15 minutes.
Also, Cyberpunk is the biggest letdown ever. Crazy hype train but its as shallow as Outer Worlds and has even worse combat… I can't even be bothered to play any more
MrD
I'd play WoW but you can only do that for so many literal years of your life.
I did enjoy WoW Classic for a while, a fun trip down memory lane with all the rock hard levelling.
For me it's Deep Rock Galactic.
During lockdown been playing with a couple of long-time friends and we tend to prefer co-op games. Deep Rock is very good for this and is more interesting than a standard shooter with the exploration of the caverns, and a nice dose of comedy with the boss' messages.
Minecraft Dungeons was imo the best game in 2020. So much fun for diablo and minecraft fan (me) when get them to combined.
For me personally it was SnowRunner. Ive never before played that kind of game so it was very refreshing and surprisingly held my attention for a long while. It gets even better playing coop with friends.