Honestly, looking back at the games of the year 2020, it feels like a fever dream. We were all stuck inside. The world was falling apart, and suddenly, we were all obsessing over digital turnips and high-stakes revenge plots. It was a weird time. But it was also a massive year for the industry because it wasn't just about escaping reality—it was about how games became the only reality that felt controllable.
Remember the Animal Crossing: New Horizons boom? That wasn't just a game launch. It was a cultural phenomenon that saw everyone from your little sister to your local congresswoman building virtual islands. It basically saved our collective sanity for a few months. But 2020 wasn't just cozy vibes; it was the year of the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X launches, which, let’s be real, were almost impossible to actually buy thanks to the chip shortages and scalper bots.
The Heavy Hitters That Defined the Conversation
When people talk about the best games of the year 2020, The Last of Us Part II usually dominates the room. It was polarizing. Some people loved the brutal, uncompromising look at cycle-of-violence themes, while others were genuinely upset by the narrative risks Naughty Dog took. Neil Druckmann and his team didn't play it safe. They killed off a beloved protagonist early and forced you to play as their killer. That kind of storytelling doesn't happen often in AAA gaming. It swept the awards, taking home Game of the Year at The Game Awards 2020, but it also sparked a discourse that hasn't really died down even years later.
Then there was Hades. Supergiant Games basically perfected the roguelike genre. Before Hades, roguelikes were often seen as niche or too punishing for the average player. But by weaving Greek mythology, incredible voice acting, and a "just one more run" gameplay loop, they created something that appealed to everyone. It was the first time an indie game truly felt like it was standing toe-to-toe with the $100 million blockbusters and winning.
👉 See also: Grand Theft Auto Games Timeline: Why the Chronology is a Beautiful Mess
A Ghost in the Moonlight
While The Last of Us was breaking hearts, Ghost of Tsushima was giving us the samurai epic we’d wanted for decades. Sucker Punch Productions took a risk moving away from their Infamous roots. It paid off. The game was stunning. Instead of a cluttered HUD with mini-maps and waypoints, you followed the wind. It was organic. It felt like a love letter to Akira Kurosawa films, and honestly, the "Legends" multiplayer mode they added later for free was a masterclass in how to support a single-player game post-launch.
The Multiplayer Explosion and Social Gaming
We can't talk about 2020 without mentioning Among Us and Fall Guys. Technically, Among Us came out in 2018, but it didn't "exist" for most people until the lockdowns hit. Suddenly, every Twitch streamer was playing it. It was the ultimate social deduction game. It turned friends against each other in the best way possible. It proved that you don't need 4K graphics or a massive budget to capture the world's attention. You just need a solid hook and a way for people to talk to each other.
Fall Guys brought that "Wipeout" energy to the battle royale genre. It was colorful, chaotic, and frustrating. It was the perfect antidote to the gritty, military shooters that usually dominate the space. It’s kinda funny how these two games, built on such simple premises, became the pillars of the year's social interaction.
✨ Don't miss: Among Us Spider-Man: Why Everyone Is Still Obsessed With These Mods
The Cyberpunk 2077 Elephant in the Room
We have to talk about it. Cyberpunk 2077 was supposed to be the game of the decade, let alone the year. The hype was deafening. CD Projekt Red was the industry darling after The Witcher 3. But when the game finally dropped in December 2020, it was... a mess. On consoles, it was borderline unplayable. Sony actually pulled it from the PlayStation Store. It was a massive wake-up call for the industry about the dangers of over-promising and the reality of "crunch" culture. While the game has been "fixed" now with the Phantom Liberty expansion, its 2020 launch remains a cautionary tale that still gets cited in boardrooms today.
Why 2020 Changed the Industry Forever
The games of the year 2020 didn't just entertain us; they shifted the business model. We saw the true power of subscription services. Xbox Game Pass started looking like the best deal in gaming, especially when people were tightening their belts. We also saw the rise of the "forever game." Titles like Genshin Impact launched in late 2020 and proved that high-quality, free-to-play gacha games could find a massive audience in the West.
- Accessibility became a priority. The Last of Us Part II set a new gold standard for accessibility settings, making it possible for legally blind players to complete the game.
- Indies went mainstream. Hades and Spiritfarer showed that emotional, tightly scoped games could compete for the top spots.
- Remote development is hard. The delays we saw in 2021 and 2022 were all rooted in the struggles developers faced during 2020.
It was a year of contrasts. On one hand, you had the quiet, meditative gardening of Animal Crossing. On the other, the high-octane demon-slaying of Doom Eternal. Doom Eternal was a masterpiece of "push-forward" combat. It forced you to be aggressive. If you ran out of ammo, you didn't hide; you sawed a demon in half to get more. It was stressful, loud, and brilliant.
🔗 Read more: Why the Among the Sleep Mom is Still Gaming's Most Uncomfortable Horror Twist
Looking Back at the "Lost" Gems
Not everything was a blockbuster. 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim was one of the most complex, rewarding sci-fi stories ever told in a game, but it flew under the radar for many. It mixed side-scrolling adventure with real-time strategy, and somehow, it worked. Then there was Half-Life: Alyx. Valve finally returned to the Half-Life universe, but they did it in VR. It remains the "killer app" for virtual reality, even now. If you haven't played it, you’re missing out on the most immersive environment ever built.
The legacy of these games is everywhere. You see the influence of Hades in almost every modern roguelite. You see the influence of Ghost of Tsushima's minimalist UI in open-world games that followed. And you definitely see the industry being more cautious about release dates after the Cyberpunk disaster.
If you're looking to revisit this era, don't just stick to the winners. Go back and look at the weird stuff. Play Umurangi Generation, a photography game about the end of the world that felt strangely prophetic. Check out Paradise Killer, an open-world murder mystery with a vaporwave aesthetic that is just... cool. 2020 was a year where gaming became more than a hobby. It was our social club, our travel agency, and our therapy.
Actionable Steps for Gamers Today
If you want to truly appreciate how far we've come since the games of the year 2020, here is how to dive back in properly:
- Play the "Director's Cut" versions: If you haven't touched Ghost of Tsushima or Death Stranding (which had its PC/updated peaks around then) lately, the PS5 upgrades are transformative. The haptic feedback on the DualSense controller adds a layer of immersion that wasn't there at launch.
- Compare the Cyberpunk Experience: If you haven't played Cyberpunk 2077 since its buggy 2020 launch, download the 2.0 update. It is fundamentally a different game now, and seeing that evolution is a lesson in game development itself.
- Dive into the Indie Backlog: Games like Hades and Spiritfarer are frequently on sale. They run beautifully on handhelds like the Steam Deck or Nintendo Switch, which is honestly how they were meant to be played.
- Watch the Documentaries: Search for "the making of" videos for The Last of Us Part II or Hades (the Noclip series is excellent). Understanding the pressure these teams were under during a global pandemic adds a whole new level of respect for the final products.
The year 2020 was a turning point. It proved that gaming is the most resilient and versatile form of media we have. Whether we were venting frustrations in Doom or finding peace in Animal Crossing, these games met us exactly where we were. They still do.