Top 8 Gaming Trends to Watch Out for in 2020

In the past few years, the gaming industry has evolved in leaps and bounds. With better internet connectivity, faster processors, and advanced technologies like VR and AR, the gaming experience has reached new heights. And now that most people are not leaving their homes due to the Coronavirus outbreak, people are involved in gaming more than ever.

As we reach halfway through the year 2020, there have been already a significant number of trends in the gaming industry. However, if you want to know about the top trends in this year’s gaming industry, you have come to the right place. Here are the top 8 gaming trends to look for in 2020.

More growth in AR gaming

It has been several years since we have been introduced to augmented reality gaming. Be it Pokemon Go or Knightfall – AR technology has made gaming more fun. However, it hasn’t stopped there. As technology evolves, the opportunities for AR gaming are also growing simultaneously. In fact, Google and Apple are already investing significantly in AR technology.

It is the interactive and immersive nature of the Augmented Reality technology that makes these games so unique. While the older games like Pokemon Go and Ingress are still quite popular among the users, there are several new ones as well that are gaining a lot of attention right now. Minecraft Earth, Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, Ghostbusters World, etc. are some of the notable ones.

Streaming gets more popular

For gaming fans, the live streaming of online games has become a new trend. With the increasing popularity of streaming services like Twitch, Alphabet, and Mixer, live broadcasting of gaming sessions is going to gain more popularity in 2020. Last year, Twitch generated a revenue of over $1.5 billion by broadcasting user-generated content.

Gamers love to watch their favorite personalities play particular games in a fun way for hours. And with the increasing number of world tournaments of popular games, these live streaming platforms are witnessing significant growth in the number of users. In fact, there is already a viewership war going on between Twitch and Mixer. Facebook has also introduced a similar streaming app under the name “Facebook Gaming”.

More franchises to go mobile

Popular battle royal games such as Player Unknown’s Battleground (PUBG) and Call of Duty (COD) have already surprised the gaming fraternity by releasing the mobile versions of their games. Seeing their popularity, a lot of other franchises are also working on taking their games from PC or consoles to mobile devices.

The whole process can be a bit challenging for developers. The trend suggests that there will be significant growth in the launch of mobile versions of popular games in 2020 and the upcoming years. However, it is not a new trend. Over the years, gaming companies have transitioned from console or PC gaming to mobile. Need for Speed, Minecraft: Pocket Edition, etc. are proof of that.

Cross-platform play to become more popular

A lot of gamers often use different devices to play games. While the ardent gamers love to play on PCs or consoles, they often tend to play on tablets and smartphones, depending on whether they are home or traveling or searching for essay writer The problem is that the gamers are now asking for features that can allow them to play the same game on different devices, retaining the game progress.

This has initiated the trend of cross-platform play which is becoming increasingly popular among gamers. While there is still a lot of work left, we can certainly see the growth in the number of cross-platform games. Some of the popular ones are Fortnite, PUBG, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Minecraft, etc.

Smarter controllers

While there is a lot of advancement going around the gaming technologies, we are also going to see smarter game controllers in this. One of the most significant updates that the controllers are going to get is bringing the in-games sensations in the real world. The modern controllers now use a variety of vibrations as feedback to the actions happening in the game. 

Apart from the vibrations, the new gaming controllers are expected to bring lots of other updates to bridge the gap between the virtual and real worlds. Advanced signal processing, headsets, and gamepads are expected to react to produce a reaction to the in-game actions, giving the gamer a more immersive experience while playing.

The popularity of single-player games

While multiplayer games are fun for many, the popular single-player games like Red Dead Redemption 2 and God of War, spell checker is indicating a different trend in 2020. The increasing popularity of such games shows that a lot of gamers enjoy solo adventures at times. Looking at that trend, we can say that there will be growth in the single-player games this year.

There’s no denying that single-player games keep the gamers more focused and allow them to develop a variety of skills which multiplayer games seldom offers. While playing in a team, the role of a player is often fixed, and he/she can rely on the teammates when in trouble. Single-player games are more challenging, and that excites a lot of players.

More improvements in the browser games

The browser games have evolved from mere tools for killing time in the past couple of years. Thanks to the increasing growth of third-party apps and technologies used in making browsers fasters and better, the quality of browser games also went through massive upgrades.

Since these browser games do not require many resources and sync the progress with different devices, these browser games are very likely to gain popularity in 2020 and beyond. One such popular game is “Five Nights at Freddy’s” which you can play on Crazy games. It got a fan remake in VR in 2019 and was released as a Halloween special. However, the trend is still going strong.

PlayStation exclusives are likely to come to PC

A lot of popular games that were only exclusive to consoles are launching their PC versions. In 2019, Halo: Reach became available on Steam. And there are rumors that another popular game, Horizon Zero Dawn, may also come to PC. In summer 2020, Death Stranding will be releasing on Steam. So, it is safe to say that this will be a trend this year.

Xbox has also confirmed that they will be bringing more Xbox exclusive games to Steam. So, it is very much possible that PlayStation is also likely to do the same. Although concrete news is yet to come, the possibilities are high. Several PS4 games are currently playable on PC with an active PlayStation Now subscription. 

In conclusion

Focus on cross-platform games is what is likely to be trending in 2020 and beyond. And while a majority of the popular games become available on different platforms, we may see a massive rise in the popularity of live streaming of games across various platforms. Needless to say, 2020 holds a lot of surprises for gaming aficionados as well as the ones related to the gaming industry.

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