Gaming through the Pandemic
Let’s talk about a bright spot in the global pandemic that has brought joy and connection to billions of people: games.
A bright spot during the pandemic created joy and connection for billions of people: games.
Almost a year ago, my last blog posts were about the pandemic, which was at its earliest stages at the time; I covered the 2020 Game Developers Conference (GDC) and the general sense in the community that it ought to be canceled (it was, soon after) as well as how entrepreneurs ought to think about business as we struggled to get through it.
Looking back, there’s a lot to be learned from all of this, and we’ll be talking about the lessons for decades. There has also been incredible pain: families who have lost their loved ones, survivors who suffer with chronic after-effects, the financial wreckage that has affected so many, and the psychological pain of social isolation.
I asked my friends on Facebook how they used games to cope with the pandemic, and I was blown away by what I heard from people. Game revenue has increased dramatically during the pandemic, but what I wanted to learn was whether games had been able to fill the social void that was created by the lockdown. For many people, it did.
Improved Family Time
A number of people told me that games — both tabletop as well as videogames — provided their families with more opportunities to improve their relationships.
This also matched my own experiences; I learned a lot about what videogames my own kids enjoy, and we also used tabletop games as a break from screens. Below are my kids being introduced to Magic: the Gathering.
Multiplayer Gaming
Online games with multiplayer aspects became a way for people to connect with each other — offering not only fun, but a means of socialization, cooperation and competition. Esports was highlighted as an additional avenue for social interaction.
Zoom as a Gaming Platform
Video teleconference software — Zoom in particular — became a means of playing board games, while retaining the social aspects of in-person play. Dungeons & Dragons also came up a frequent.
Here’s an awesome video that highlights how Death by Consensus is playing via Zoom:
Improved Mental Health
Quite a few people wrote about how games were a mental-health lifeline during the pandemic.
Animals
Nintendo reported sales of 31 million units of Animal Crossing. It has become a pandemic phenomena. The cozy, chill gameplay came along at just the right time for so many people, as have other games based on collectible animal companions like Animal Jam.
Intergenerational Gaming
I’m always impressed by the powers of games to cross generations. My kids could care less about my music preferences, but they are very interested in playing games with me. Other people saw the same:
Virtual Reality
Like Animal Crossing, having access to better Virtual Reality (VR) platforms seems to have come along at the right point. A number of folks are experiencing VR for the first time — not only the immersion of it, but the social connections it can nurture. Isn’t that the real reason Facebook bought Oculus? The Oculus Quest 2 seems to be working for many people.
Classic Games
Some of the most classic games have also seen a resurgence during the pandemic. Queen’s Gambit, the hit Netflix series that half the world binge-watched in 2020, helped fuel a new generation of chess players at a time when some people had more time available to learn to play.
Wasn’t for everyone
Although many people found or renewed their love of gaming during the pandemic, it is important to note that this wasn’t the case for everyone. Some people found that it drove away existing groups, reminded them of themes they were trying to escape (such as tuberculosis in Red Read Redemption 2). Others found new avenues for expression during the pandemic instead.
(Thank you for the last comment, Heather. I miss Game of Thrones Ascent, too.)
Personally: I played Last of Us and Last of Us Part 2 during the early weeks of the pandemic, despite it being set in a world that has been devastated by a pandemic. It had one of the best stories I’ve ever experienced in a game, and let me forget the reality of coronavirus for a while.
3D Printing for Games
One very unique response I received was from someone who honed their 3D printing skills during the pandemic. Here are some of his Warhammer figurines:
My own
As noted above, I played through Last of Us and Last of Us 2. Beyond that, I’ve spent most of my time with Ghosts of Tsushima, Darkest Dungeon, Crusader Kings and Stellaris. Family moments have been Overcooked (PS4) and introducing them to Magic the Gathering (tabletop). My kids adore Roblox, Minecraft and Among Us and playing with our Oculus Quest 2. We’ve also been playing a lot of board games throughout the year — we are homeschooling them, and board games have been incorporated into the curriculum.
When we look back at the pandemic, there will be a lot to be angry and sad about. But we may also regard it as a time to learned to interact with each other via technology that accelerated our ability to connect, empathize and enjoy each other more.