2020s in video games

The 2020s is the sixth decade in the industry's history. The industry remains heavily dominated by the actions of Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft, but it remains unforeseen how their dominance will be affected by cloud gaming and smartphone and tablet market. Virtual reality headsets are expected to become more popular over the course of the decade.^[1] The industry was heavily impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The ninth generation of video game consoles went on sale, beginning with the Xbox Series X and Series S and the PlayStation 5.^[2] Notable games released in the 2020s included Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Doom Eternal, Final Fantasy VII Remake, The Last of Us Part II, Ghost of Tsushima, Fall Guys, Hades, Genshin Impact, It Takes Two, Forza Horizon 5, Horizon Forbidden West, Elden Ring, Stray, God of War Ragnarök, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Baldur's Gate 3, Super Mario Bros. Wonder, Marvel's Spider-Man 2, Alan Wake 2, Tekken 8, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, and Grand Theft Auto VI.^[3][4] Game development companies have come under increasing criticism for "crunch" practices, forcing workers to work long hours in the build-up to release.^[5]

Consoles of the 2020s

Eighth generation consoles (2012–present)

The eighth generation of video game consoles, including the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, remain in widespread use. Cloud gaming services like Google Stadia and Amazon Luna are also part of the eighth generation. The Xbox One and Nintendo 3DS were both discontinued in 2020 with the Stadia also shutting down in 2023.^[6][7][8]

Ninth generation consoles (2020–present)

The ninth generation of video game consoles has begun in the 2020s, with the release of the Xbox Series X and Series S and PlayStation 5 in 2020. The ninth generation offers faster computation and graphics processors, support for real-time ray tracing graphics,^[9] output for 4K resolution, and in some cases, 8K resolution, with rendering speeds targeting 60 frames per second (fps) or higher.^[10] Internally, both console families introduced new internal solid-state drive (SSD) systems to be used as high-throughput memory and storage systems for games to reduce or eliminate loading times and support in-game streaming. Standalone virtual reality headsets have also emerged with new entries in the Meta Quest line, HTC Vive XR Elite, and Apple Vision Pro all being introduced in the decade.^[11][12][13]

History

At the beginning of decade many events were severely impacted by the coronavirus pandemic of 2020 through 2022.^{[14][15][16][17][18][19]} One early example in 2020 was the cancellation of that year's edition of E3.^[20] Summer Game Fest would emerge as a successor to E3, as the brand was retired in 2023.^[21][22]

Notable video games of the decade

Notable franchises established in the 2020s

• Cyberpunk 2077 (2020)
• Deathloop (2021)
• Elden Ring (2022)
• Fall Guys (2020)
• Genshin Impact (2020)
• Ghost of Tsushima (2020)
• Hades (2020)
• Hi-Fi Rush (2023)
• Inscryption (2021)
• It Takes Two (2021)
• Kena: Bridge of Spirits (2021)
• Returnal (2021)
• Stray (2022)
• Tunic (2022)
• Unpacking (2021)
• Valorant (2020)

Notes:

• ¹Game franchises that also accompany major film or television franchises.
• ²Game franchises that are considered spin-offs of previously established franchises.

Highest-grossing games

In popular culture

Film

Films based on video games in the decade include:

• A trilogy of films (2020, 2022, 2024) based on Sonic the Hedgehog.^[23]
• Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle (2020), based on the Pokémon franchise.
• Monster Hunter (2020), based on the Monster Hunter franchise.
• Mortal Kombat (2021), based on the Mortal Kombat franchise.
• Werewolves Within (2021), based on Werewolves Within, a 2016 multiplayer social-deduction VR game.
• Deemo: Memorial Keys (2021), based on the rhythm game Deemo.
• Dynasty Warriors (2021), based on the Dynasty Warriors franchise.
• Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City (2021), based on the Resident Evil franchise.
• Uncharted (2022), based on the Uncharted franchise.
• Gran Turismo (2023), based on the Gran Turismo franchise.
• The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023), animated film based on the Super Mario franchise.
• Tetris (2023), a biopic will explore the rights battle that surrounded Tetris.^[24]
• Five Nights at Freddy's (2023), a supernatural horror film based on the Five Nights at Freddy's franchise.

Television

Television series based on video games in the decade include:

• Dota: Dragon's Blood (2021), animated series based on Dota 2.
• Arcane (2021), animated series based on League of Legends.
• Cyberpunk: Edgerunners (2022), animated series based on Cyberpunk 2077.
• The Cuphead Show! (2022-present), animated series based on Cuphead.
• Tekken: Bloodline (2022), animated series based on the Tekken series.
• Sonic Prime (2022), animated series.
• The Last of Us (2023-present), live-action series based on The Last of Us.
• Fallout (2024-present), live-action series based on Fallout

Hardware timeline

The following gallery highlights hardware used to predominantly play games throughout the 2020s.

• 
  Quest 2 (2020)
• 
  Xbox Series S (2020)
• 
  Xbox Series X (2020)
• 
  PlayStation 5 (2020)
• 
  Nintendo Switch OLED (2021)
• 
  Steam Deck (2022)
• 
  PICO 4 (2022)
• 
  Asus ROG Ally (2023)
• 
  Apple Vision Pro (2024)

Notes

References

Further reading

This page was last edited on 10 May 2024, at 04:16