Any industry experiences difficult times. Even so, it's very rare that almost every industry imaginable experiences difficulties at the same time. It's hard to think of a game studio that hasn't been impacted by the ongoing pandemic, as developers around the globe have had to adapt to making games from home. There have still been some smash hits this year, whether it's some of Nintendo's latest releases or Microsoft and Sony's big releases, but despite a lot of the adapting the world has had to do, a tide of development complications hang over The Game Awards 2020.
This year's Game Awards are getting very close. On the one hand, it's a positive moment for gaming: after a difficult year for the community, players, critics, and developers can come together to appreciate 2020's best games. On the other hand, the way that The Game Awards play out this year could make or break next year's game environment. Fans of many franchises and genres need something to look forward to after 2020's difficulties. The Game Awards is traditionally a great venue for companies to announce new projects since there's so many players and big names in game development in attendance. The question is, how much is there to announce for 2021?
A Long, Quiet Year
2020 has been an uncharacteristically, almost unsettlingly quiet year for the gaming industry itself (if not exactly for all games). That's because COVID-19 shut down many of the traditional venues for getting game news out, as E3 2020 was cancelled over early concerns about the virus, leaving many potential announcements stranded. Over the summer, Sony and Microsoft still assembled independent digital conferences that revealed major games like Spider-Man: Miles Morales and Halo Infinite. However, other big companies like Nintendo had a serious drought of announcements that it has emerged victorious over, and on top of that, the cancellation of physical events makes things much harder for smaller or indie companies that don't necessarily have the resources to hold conferences.
With other traditional mediums out of order, a lot of onus is on The Game Awards. Unlike E3, The Game Awards has had many months to prepare for a digital conference. The hope, then, is that games that would've been announced throughout this year will get a chance to be revealed at The Game Awards. There might be a lot of games that would've gotten announced this year that had to be delayed by difficult working conditions. Even if they've been pushed back by many months, they could now be presentable in time for The Game Awards 2020.
Setting Expectations
There's been more than enough public delays to set the tone for 2020. Halo Infinite was delayed very quickly after its announcement, Cyberpunk 2077 has seen multiple setbacks over the year, and so on. The hope is that games that would've otherwise been revealed at conferences and events around summertime have had enough time to reorganize that they can make an appearance at The Game Awards. At this annual ceremony, the reveals are always as noteworthy as the awards themselves. Just last year, Microsoft unveiled the Xbox Series X at The Game Awards.
The reveal of the Xbox Series X at Game Awards 2019 also says a lot about how the ceremony can help define the next year of gaming. Once the Xbox Series X became public, it was clear that 2020 would be the battlefield for next-gen gaming, and The Game Awards 2020 can do for 2021 what the 2019 ceremony did for 2020. If it manages to make some groundbreaking announcements, it'll prove that the industry is still moving at full steam, or at least as fast as it can, and it'll give fans optimism after such a rough year. The Game Awards are always a great way to end the year, but 2020's ceremony might mean more for gaming's future than its past.
The Game Awards 2020Â airs on December 10, 2020 at 4:00 PM PST.