Written by Sasha Thomas
As cities open and lockdowns lifted, it is worth mentioning how the dawn of the pandemic seemed uncertain and dismaying. But as with all things that take time, the different phases of quarantine have significantly shaped our lifestyles, regularising our lives to routines from home. While everything seemed apocalyptic and the world overwhelming, gaming companies paved the way for coping with the new normal. With the low price of free, several online games have become an enormous hit among us (pun intended).
Last year five games topped the lid of expectations:
- Houseparty:
Initially introduced to this social networking service by our squad, there was a time when most of us couldn’t get enough of the application. The platform that enabled group video chat with up to eight participants, Houseparty gained popularity as many countries went into lockdown in the pandemic’s early stages. Users received notifications when friends were online and available, which honestly may not have been the best feature for people always online. The app also had other popular games such as QuickDraw, Chips & Guac, and trivia games that could be played with friends in a video chat. Quick Draw emulated the good old Pictionary, only online, while Chips and Guac closely resembled Cards against Humanity. It was downloaded more than 17 million times in March 2020, winning an award for “Breakout of the Year.”
After reports of the app hacking users’ other applications and personal information, Houseparty soon became irrelevant. Still, Houseparty denies hacking rumours, says the platform is safe, and never sold user data.
2. Animal Crossing:
This social simulation video game series was developed by the Japanese multinational company Nintendo. A player assumes a character that moves to a deserted island after purchasing a getaway package from Tom Nook, a villager, along with a debt to pay off. In real-time, players are allowed to explore and decorate their island as they please. The game’s goal, if any is to upgrade your house and pay off your debt with each upgrade, develop the island into a community of animal villagers and achieve a 5-star island rating.
From the franchise that could turn homeownership from a dream into virtual reality, the relaxing, casual game gave players a replacement for the social life they were deprived of. The game skyrocketed in popularity for many players at home as a light-hearted distraction. Besides the game’s escapism aspect, the upbeat feeling combined with the game’s nostalgia had kept players, old and new devoted.
3. Fall Guys:
Fall Guys had taken the internet by storm since its inception in early August 2020. Sixty players with jelly bean-like characters are thrown into a series of mini-games that will slowly knock players out over five rounds of a fifteen-minute game until one player is left standing. Not requiring knowledge of any advanced game theory or language, the game appeals universally to a massive player base. The battle royale game developed by Media Tonic had an active player base of 1.5 million players in just 24 hours.
Based on the early Wipeout TV show, Takeshi’s Castle, the game is simple, big, bright, colorful, and always high speed. A party game for people who’ve watched game shows where contestants have to make it to the end of absurd and comical obstacles whilst you daydream about how you would’ve been an internet sensation playing it. The light-hearted, fun game flipped the switch on what gamers are supposed to be enjoying this monsoon.
4. Valorant:
Introducing the game developed and published by Riot Games after 6 years of development, this game became one of the most played games in the year 2020; Counter Stri…, Valorant!
Valorant is a 5v5 character-based, tactical FPS where precise gunplay meets unique agent abilities. Teams take turns as either the attackers or defenders in a best of 25 rounds. Attackers carry a spike, a bomb to one of several designated bomb sites on any of Valorants maps, plant it and hopefully blow everyone up. Meanwhile, the defenders divert the attackers’ ambitions by preventing them from planting the spike or diffusing it once they do. The game is much more than a deathmatch as it requires a good amount of tactics as well as a clear understanding of your weapon. The race to the coveted 13th victory is pulse-pounding and gratifying amid spectacular tensions created by the rattle of distant gunfire.
While Riot has promised that their game will have a better anti-cheat system and almost no peeker’s advantage, its biggest problems are still both of those things. Hitting record-breaking numbers after its first day on closed beta, it boasts of a minimum PC requirement of i3–370/HD3000, 4G RAM and a 7/8/10 Windows. It is also one of the few multiplayer games, with a server in India, which will be shared with our neighbours from Srilanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Maldives.
Apart from the insulting public display of KDA(Kill/ death/assists ratio), Valorant provides a lot to its fans, from having agents with varying personalities and abilities to boasting an easier learning curve.
Other noteworthy mentions that remained a classic this year were Skribble.io, the online drawing game which gained popularity owing to its similarity to Pictionary that hit close to home for many.This thinking game is not for the weak hearted who draw stick figures and make terrible guesses exceeding the word count.
It is, although, for folks who have an artistic flair and a sharp mind to make a good judgement of atrocious sketches. We also have Ludo King, the Indian online ludo. Ludo King is a local online multiplayer ludo. The earliest version of the game created in India dates back to the 6th century. The fun, exciting game is best suited for friends and family as a gleeful diversion from being quarantined together.
Coming to the biggest hit last year was a game that provided an opportunity for players to socialize with others online while remaining socially distanced. A low cost, zero video game literacy online activity to make you realize that all your friends are nothing but big fat phonies.
5. Among Us:
A social deduction game developed by American game studio Innersloth that stayed well under the radar until this year, is centred on a thrilling experience that allows for insidious tactics, plot twists, and vicious betrayal.
With the mechanics borrowed from the popular party game, Mafia, players each take on one of two roles, an Imposter or a Crewmate. Four to ten multi-colored ‘crewmates’ are tossed into one of three maps. Skeld, the classic spaceship map that everyone swears is the only one etched into their brains, Polus and Mira HQ. Crewmates scatter around in an attempt to complete all the tasks before getting graphically decapitated at the hands of your so-called ‘buddy,’ while Imposters attempt to employ convincing covers like vents, sabotage, and self-reports.
Simply a good game doesn’t necessarily guarantee success as the added psychological factor of figuring out who the imposter is becomes a source of tremendous entertainment in the age of dank memes and dark content.
In September alone, YouTube announced that Among Us related videos had gained a collective four billion views. The 10,000 plus IQ game had also seeped into internet culture with an enormous number of relatable memes on Reddit and Instagram. Whether fussing about your ignorance fixing lights or about bird brains who call for an emergency meeting when you’re nearly done with your tasks, the fad was raging the internet.
For a very long time, the game wouldn’t reach more than 30–50 players due to its poor release. What also contributed to the game blowing up was how chaotic this year has been for everybody. It offered an alternative to monotonous life and an escape for everyone who had been cooped up for months.
Apart from the obvious benefits of games being fun, stress-relieving distractions that improve your visual-spatial skills, games have also been a huge blessing to introverts and gawky individuals alike. Extroverts don’t have to abstain from socializing either as next to all online games have a platform to express your lively personality. All in all online games fostered a sense of community and togetherness by helping us cope with the shared pain of being confined at home.
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