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[tryDEATH]

As I was just going through some OT's on here, for some reason it dawned on me that 2020 felt like a year stacked with amazing games. So, I looked to see what actually released this year and what else is planned. I was genuinely taken aback at the sheer number of great games that have released this year and will be coming in the next few months.

Running down the list of games you got hit after hit that encompass all sort of games. From new to beloved classics the list basically covers all genres and devices, which leads to me to believe that 2020 is truly the greatest year in gaming ever.

I will list of some of the hits from each month and you decide for yourself if you believe 2020 is the greatest year in gaming.


Jan. / Feb. / Mar. /Apr.
Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire
Warcraft III: Reforged
Dreams
Ori and The Will of the Wisps
Nioh 2
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Doom Eternal
Half-Life: Alyx
Resident Evil 3 Remake
Final Fantasy VII Remake
XCOM: Chimera Squad
Gears Tactics
Streets of Rage 4


May / June / July / Aug.
Deep Rock Galactic
Minecraft: Dungeons
Phantasy Star Online 2
Valorant
Command & Conquer Remastered Collection
The Outer Worlds
The Last of Us Part 2
Ghost of Tsushima
Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout
Microsoft Flight Simulator
Wasteland 3

Sep. / Oct. / Nov. / Dec. [Exciting games to come]
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2
Crysis Remastered
Mafia: Definitive Edition
Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time
Star Wars: Squadrons
Watch Dogs Legion
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War
Yakuza: Like A Dragon
Assassin's Creed Valhalla
Cyberpunk 2077
+ All the games that are supposed to be launch titles for Next Generation that don't have definitive launch dates yet.


I am certain I am missing a few more games especially on the Nintendo side as I am not familiar with their games too much, but as you can see the list is extensive. It really has been a great year for quality remasters especially for turn base games and even the MMO crowd got a bit of love with WoW and PSO2.

Let me know what you think and if you disagree what year do you believe was the greatest year in gaming?

P.S. If there is already a similar thread please feel free to delete this one.

 

[Dark Star]

Every year of this gen has been pretty awesome TBH. I got a PS4 in 2015 and it's been a total rollercoaster for releases since then at least (bloodborne, mgsv, etc). Always something great to look forward to IMO.

I agree 2020 has been surprisingly great for gaming.

I think 2018 was solid af too with titles like rdr2, god of war, spiderman, detroit become human, hitman 2, shadow of the tomb raider, etc.

2017 had some GOTG contenders as well like breath of the wild, horizon zero dawn, re7, nier, wolfenstein 2, the evil within 2, cuphead, hellblade, prey, nioh, etc, etc.

can't forget 2016 either : doom, titanfall 2, uncharted 4, dishonored 2, dark souls 3, inside, deus ex mankind divided, the division, hitman, the witcher 3

 

[Alan Wake]

For me 2020 has been one of the most disappointing years in... years. I had hoped Halo Infinite would make up for that somewhat, but that's obviously not happening.

 

[bender]

A lot of solid releases this year but very few games have blown me away. Some of my favorites: Nioh 2, Animal Crossing, Curse of the Moon 2, Resident Evil 3, THPS 1-2, Fall Guys. While certainly not a bad year, it will definitely be one of the more forgettable from this generation.

 

[MightySquirrel]

CyberPunk 2077 might still save this year after all.

 

[Rickyiez]

Greatest gaming year in history ,
Warcraft III: Reforged

 

[Griffon]

Not even close.

 

[xpresstuning]

It's been a normal year, slightly below average concerning quality releases. I don't view most of your examples in a positive light (Reforged?), so i completely disagree with you.

If you want an example of an incredibly good year in gaming, check what came out in 1998 and 2004. 2007 was quite spectacular.

If i had to make one choice, it would be 2004. That's the greatest year that video games have ever had.

 

[Soulblighter31]

Pillars of Eternity came out like years ago. You're just putting every platform under the sun together there. This has been a pretty shitty year as far as im concerned.

PC Gaming in 1998 will just never be matched, in history. PC Games were forming and defining genres that year left and right, like no other year or other platform has ever done, in the entire history of the medium, by a huge margin.

Just think at this one side. In 1998, Unreal put the Unreal Engine in the world and Epic saw there is a market for engine licensing. Try to sync that - unreal engine and everything ever made on every version of it, came out of 1998's pc gaming.

Not to mention Half Life shifting the way the entire industry makes games. Starcraft giving birth to e-sports. Thief creating the modern stealth genre. You just cant match that with a bunch of games that just come and go.

 

[anothertech]

Plus a new gen launch year.

2020 is certainly not a boring year, lolol

 

[Knitted Knight]

It has been a great year so far if you're a PlayStation Stallion.

FF7R
Nioh II
TLOU II
Ghost of Tsushima
Fall Guys..

Must have console unless you like the waiting game.

 

[Alan Wake]

On a positive note, I've had some time to dig into my backlog this year and finally finish some games that have been put on wait. Detroit: Become Human is actually my GOTY. Or... BacklogGOTY.

 

[Knitted Knight]

On a positive note, I've had some time to dig into my backlog this year and finally finish some games that have been put on wait. Detroit: Become Human is actually my GOTY. Or... BacklogGOTY.

Been hearing this from so many people... really making me want to play it at some point.

 

[Alan Wake]

Been hearing this from so many people... really making me want to play it at some point.

I assume it's a pretty divisive game. It's still the same Quantum QTE formula as Heavy Rain but it's so much better in every regard. The story is actually better than I expected and I cared for the characters more than I ever did in TLOU2. It has some very memorable scenes, and it got pretty emotional at the end, tbh. You should check it out.

 

[Danjin44]

So.....no 13 Sentinels and Sakuna in upcoming list?

 

[Codes 208]

I’ll gladly take 2004, 2007, and 1998, 2017, over this ho-hum year.

actually I’d even take 2018 if not just for MHW and GoW. this year has been pretty boring honestly.

 

[PendekarRajawali]

Is this another Halo Infinite thread?

 

[FromDuskTillGameOver]

Many say 2004, but i think it was 1998

How dare you comparing this year to one of them!

 

[fran.fernandez]

Thank you sony

 

[Perrott]

Sorry but the greatest year in gaming was 2015:

Jan./Feb./Mar./Apr.
Resident Evil: HD Remaster
Dying Light
Life Is Strange
Resident Evil: Revelations 2
The Order 1886
Helldivers
Olli Olli 2: Welcome to Olliwood
Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number
Ori and the Blind Forest
Cities Skylines
Bloodborne
Pillars of Eternity
Axiom Verge
Mortal Kombat X

May/June/July/Aug.
Not A Hero
Splatoon
Project CARS
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Heroes of the Storm
Her Story
Batman: Arkham Knight
Rocket League
Rare Replay
Until Dawn

Sep./Oct./Nov./Dec.
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
Mad Max
Destiny: The Taken King
Super Mario Maker
SOMA
Undertale
Forza: Motorsport 6
Halo 5: Guardians
Call of Duty: Black Ops 3
Assassin's Creed: Syndicate
Fallout 4
Rise of the Tomb Raider
Need For Speed
Starcraft 2: Legacy of the Void
Star Wars: Battlefront
Rainbow Six: Siege
Steamworld Heist
Xenoblade Chronicles X

 

[rofif]

lol it's a shit year.
2011 was the greatest. Dark Souls, Portal 2, Skyrim, Saints row 3, Battlefield3, Gears3, Unchated3, Dead Space2, Crysis2, Witcher2, Rage, LA Noire. Even Duke Nukem Forever was released in 2011 lol.

 

[GymWolf]

It was a good year, not near the best years tho.

 

[German Hops]

1998 still takes the cake, Die Jungen.

 

[xpresstuning]

You could argue for a number of years. 1996 was no slouch either. 2007. 1993. It depends how many quality games released that year, how many reached the awareness of consumers/developers to cause massive influence and how many are designed so well that they are enjoyable today. That's how i decide a good year.

Pondering this further, i think it really is either 1998 or 2004. The amount of quality games that left a massive influence on the industry and changed the landscape which released in 1998 and 2004 is a remarkable achievement that i don't believe will ever be surpassed.

1998
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Tekken 3
Half Life
Unreal (the Unreal Engine itself - what this engine did for the industry cannot be understated)
Panzer Dragoon Saga
Radiant Silvergun
Spyro the Dragon
Gran Turismo
Metal Gear Solid
Grim Fandango
Thief: The Dark Project
Baldur's Gate
Resident Evil 2
Starcraft (E-Sports basically exists because of Starcraft)
Fallout 2
Xenogears
Final Fantasy Tactics
Parasite Eve
Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six
Star Ocean The Second Story
Suikoden II

2004
Half Life 2
GTA: San Andreas
Halo 2
Doom 3
Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines
Painkiller
Far Cry
Burnout 3: Takedown
Unreal Tournament 2004
World of Warcraft
Rome: Total War
Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
SMT III: Nocturne
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
Ninja Gaiden
The Sims 2
RollerCoaster Tycoon 3
Pikmin 2
Viewful Joe & Viewful Joe 2
Paper Mario The Thousand Year Doom
Splinter Cell Pandora's Tomorrow
Star Wars KOTOR II
Fable

These are just highlights. If i had to scrub all the way down to the bottom of the barrel, i could make a list of at least 70 games worth playing in 1998 and 2004.

 

[Nico_D]

This year has been pretty average so far, maybe slightly below. Different tastes.

What's personally telling is that the last three or four months I have been playing old games and remasters as not much has piqued my interest in new releases.

 

[Shubh_C63]

I don't even know what happened to me in 2020.
All these games, all this free time and I only kept playing Destiny or watching old tv shows.

 

[tryDEATH]

I checked out some of the years people have mentioned particularly 98' and 04' and they are phenomenal years I played more than I initially though I had, but I think the nostalgia bias is a bit strong especially for the 98' games the sequels to many of those games are the better entries, obviously you can't ignore the fact that those titles that created legendary series, but as a game by game quality I think it falls a bit short.

04' certainly has some mega hitters in gaming history, but that year was extremely back loaded and made for a rather lackluster first three quarters of the year, before ramping up the insane line up.

20' to me just seems like a year of just hits that have followed one after another leading up to the huge climax that with be the launch of next generation. Unfortunately we did have Halo drop out of this year, but I still think the games we will get for the launch will be phenomenal and rivaling 04' at least.

 

[Starlight Lotice]

2020 is the best year (according to OP) yet Nintendo have only released Animal Crossing with remasters coming in Pikmin, Mario etc?

I think 2020 will be an interesting year for the PS4's swan song of course since a lot of Developers are wrapping up games for it (and we will get some great games), but it won't be the GOAT. Maybe the GOAT final years or something.

 

[xpresstuning]

I checked out some of the years people have mentioned particularly 98' and 04' and they are phenomenal years I played more than I initially though I had, but I think the nostalgia bias is a bit strong especially for the 98' games the sequels to many of those games are the better entries, obviously you can't ignore the fact that those titles that created legendary series, but as a game by game quality I think it falls a bit short.

04' certainly has some mega hitters in gaming history, but that year was extremely back loaded and made for a rather lackluster first three quarters of the year, before ramping up the insane line up.

I agree, the reason why i hold '98 close to being the best year is because of influence mostly and being the starting point of many legendary IPs that have formed well known franchises. As a game by game quality, it does fall short, especially in 2020. But, the existence of E-Sports and the Unreal Engine can be attributed to 1998, and that is something to behold.

Now 2004 falls in a totally different ballpark, and is the reason why it is my absolute best year in all of gaming. Most of those games are incredibly enjoyable to this day for reasons i don't feel like going into as that's off topic, and there's a shit load of them. I acknowledge that considering how spread the release dates are is a valid point to make, but personally i don't view it as important.

 

[butane bob]

If you've been playing for a while, 2020 is one of the worst years in gaming. There's hardly been any actual new games/ideas, just sequels, remakes and committee driven homogenised cinematic open world garbage we've played a hundred times already. Just look at 1994 or 1998 if you want to see what an actual good year looks like.

 

[Chiggs]

I swear to God, you people that keep making these threads are like those sad sons of bitches that sit at bars and tell the same fucking stories over and over again.

And it’s 1998.

 

[kunonabi]

I cant say i agree considering I've only bought 3 games all year and there are only like 4 more I might pick up later. It's been painfully weak as far as I'm concerned but a lot of that has to with Nintendo completely phoning it in.

I think 1999 is still tops for me.

 

[Fake]

2020: The Greatest Year in Gaming history:

- Warcraft III: Reforged

 

[sncvsrtoip]

lou2 is briliant, got is good and we have cyberpunk later this year so yeah, very good but I remember 2004 half life 2, far cry, doom 3, san andreas...

 

[nkarafo]

I stopped at Warcraft III Reforged. Why would you even mention that if you were to convince people about your premise.

Also, you are wrong.

 

[Kagoshima_Luke]

2020: The Greatest Year in Gaming history.

 

[MrFunSocks]

Nah, not even close.

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

Man, what the hell are you talking about?

 

[Yoboman]

Great year. Its no 2001 or 1998 though

 

[Vawn]

2017 was the best year this gen for me.

Mario Odyssey
Nioh
Octopath Traveler
Horizon Zero Dawn
Nier Automata
Resident Evil VII
Breath of the Wild
Xenoblade Chronicles 2
Cuphead
Hollow Knight
Uncharted Lost Legacy
Gravity Rush 2
Divinity OS 2
Prey

 

[Yoboman]

lou2 is briliant, got is good and we have cyberpunk later this year so yeah, very good but I remember 2004 half life 2, far cry, doom 3, san andreas...

2004 was phenomenal, Doom 3 sucked though. Halo 2, MGS3, World of Warcraft, MGS3, Ninja Gaiden, UT2004, Dragon Quest VII, Metroid Prime 2, Riddick, Burnout 3, Katamari Damacy

Simply incredible

Edit: forgot KOTOR 2, Splinter Cell 2, Viewtiful Joe, Pikmin 2, Sly 2, Rome Total War, Ratchet 3, Jak 3, Fable, Sid Meier's Pirates

What a year

 

[Pagusas]

Another vote for 1998. Just too damn good a year.

 

[sncvsrtoip]

2004 was phenomenal, Doom 3 sucked though

graphics was jaw droping for 2004 and I liked it

 

[Yoboman]

graphics was jaw droping for 2004 and I liked it

It was such a disappointment. Graphics were great, but it wasn't the best game

Still I do miss the days of top tier single player FPS on PC

 

[sncvsrtoip]

It was such a disappointment. Graphics were great, but it wasn't the best game

Still I do miss the days of top tier single player FPS on PC

I remember when I launched demo on my ti4200, was running like shit but in my mind it was like prerender cinematic quality haha, good times

 

[Esppiral]

Lol no.

 

[ShirAhava]

Game wise this year isn't even worth mentioning

The top releases in 2020 would be a below-average month in 1998.

 

[sncvsrtoip]

Game wise this year isn't even worth mentioning

The top releases in 2020 would be a below-average month in 1998.

I would say average of 2020 would blow everything from 98 but times are different and it's hard to surprise with anything

 

[Ellery]

Too early to tell. What we have seen so far was amazing, but there are still many great games left in this year and Cyberpunk 2077 is the first and biggest that comes to mind.

Who knows we might get some PS5 surprises or other games that don't have a concrete release date yet?

I think 1998 is still my favorite year, but might be nostalgia.

 

[Walter Matthau]

Only time will tell. Plenty of games are "good" and receive positive reviews, but it's the best games of the year that really define it for years to come.