2020, was one of the laziest years of the century, after all, it was the year when the entire planet was put on hold and has left most of us confined in our homes. Thanks to modern technology, we were able to survive one of the most boring and mind-numbing 365 days of our time. As much as we want to keep 2020 a thing of the past, some things are worth looking back to, and one of them is video games. With that said, let’s take a quick look at the top 5 most played video game genres that kept us entertained or for the most part, sane in 2020 based on the global consumer survey by Statista.
First off, the Global Consumer Survey by Statista took place from February 5 to March 19, 2020, and July 13 to August 21, 2020. With that out of the way, check out the list below.
5. Role-Playing (25%)
Role-playing or RPG titles hold the number 5 slot in our list voted by 25% of the respondents. RPGs feature immersive worlds, customization options, colossal world maps, and a diverse populace. RPGs often come with lengthy and intricate narratives that require hours of exploration. Subgenres of Role-Playing include ARPG, MMORPG, Roguelike, and Tactical RPG.
4. Adventure & Shooters (32%)
The number four on our list is the adventure genre, which for those who are not entirely familiar is made up mostly of single-player games. Some of the most notable subgenres of Adventure include Text adventures/interactive fiction, Graphic adventure (Point-and-click adventure games, Escape the room games, Puzzle adventure games, Narrative adventure games, Walking simulators), Visual Novel, and Interactive Movie.
Shooters, on the other hand, is a subgenre of action games. However, due to the vast number of titles under shooter, the subgenre was counted off as a separate genre.
3. Casual (36%)
Sitting on the third spot is the Casual Genre, preferred by 36% of the survey’s respondents. Casual games are the exact opposite of hardcore games. Some of the most iconic attributes of a casual game include simple, fun, and easy to learn gameplay, user-friendly controls/interface, short burst or level-based structure, etc. Most casual games are developed for mobile devices.
2. Strategy & Action Adventure (38%)
Just like the number 4 on our list, the second spot is shared by two genres namely Strategy and Action-Adventure. The strategy genre of video games is made up of titles that focus on planning and skillful thinking to defeat. These games require skills to complete and require superior tactics along with flawless strategic execution.
Action-adventure as the name suggests combines the elements of adventure and action in one complete package. Subgenres of Action-Adventure include Survival Horror, Beat em’ Up, Platform, Battle-Royale, Survival, third-person, hero, etc.
1. Action (41%)
And finally, at the top of our list, the Action Genre voted by 41% of the respondents. The Action Genre, for the most part, is one of the biggest genres in video games. This genre makes up of both single-player and multiplayer games. Examples of single-player games under this genre include Survival Horror like Granny and Open-World games like Genshin Impact.
Multiplayer games like fighting games like Mortal Kombat and Battle Royale titles like Garena and PUBG Mobile are also part of this genre. To that end, what were the games that kept you sane in 2020, if you have something in mind; feel free to share it in the comments section below.
