Discovering the Best Genre-Busting Video Games

Sometimes a video game won’t just transform its own brand or franchise, it redefines an entire genre of titles. Whether it’s a case of cementing features that already existed within a genre in some shape or form, or comprehensively changing the way that gamers look at an entire genre, there are some video games that have revolutionized and reshaped genres to provide a new dimension to the gaming world.

The most common video game genres and formats

According to Statista’s recent breakdown of the most popular video game genres among American gamers based on 2017 sales, more than a quarter (25.9%) were made on shooter titles. This was closely followed by action (21.9%) and then sport (11.6%) and role-playing games (11.3%). The data suggests that video gamers across America crave fast-paced gaming action, with even sport games offering heart-pounding thrills against the ever-intelligent console AI or human players online.

Nevertheless, every so often, a video game is released that successfully manages to blur the lines between the traditional genres, creating their very own niche and setting new expectations among gamers for developers and publishers to meet. This article is designed to shine a spotlight on the biggest and best genre-busting video games that retuned the core elements of role-playing games (RPGs) and traditional turn-based games.

The new era of open-world RPG titles

Historically, an RPG on a video game console would have had a largely linear storyline. In Japanese video games especially, there used to be very little control over characters, such as the freedom to visualize your own character and the paths they could take regarding future missions or levels. However, as time passed, western role-playing games have steadily become less orchestrated and linear, with a greater focus on players’ ability to create and customize characters and plot their character’s own destiny in an almost cinematic or novelistic style.

“Nintendo Switch launch – Zelda breath of” (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0) by Kadath

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was released in March 2017

Consider two of the most recently successful RPGs, Zelda Breath of the Wild and Horizon Zero Dawn and it’s also easy to recognize that the open-world genre has also found its way into the RPG format. The Legend of Zelda was one of Nintendo’s most successful RPG franchises in the days of the N64. Ocarina of Time was the fourth best-selling N64 video game of all time, selling over 7.6 million copies. However, a quick look at the description of Breath of the Wild tells you that it is “a world of discovery, exploration and adventure”. It doesn’t get much more open world than that. As of the end of last year, Breath of the Wild had sold more than 11.6 million copies globally, with critics landmarking its release as the next generation for open-world design.

It’s also important to acknowledge Guerilla Games’ part in the new open-world RPG sub-genre. Horizon Zero Dawn was its first RPG release, adopting its Decima game engine that proved so successful with Killzone Shadow Fall. Critics hailed Horizon Zero Dawn for its open-world capabilities, allowing players to control the lead character, Aloy, in the third person and explore the post-apocalyptic lands overseen by robotic creations. The open-world RPG sub-genre is living proof that RPGs can be just as expansive as other genres.

Taking a risk by blending cards with casino

Another form of video game that has cleverly fused tradition with 21st century freedom is video poker. While purists of Texas Hold’em poker will say that playing poker on a computer screen goes nowhere near to capturing the true essence of poker, the format has become increasingly popular on casino floors in recent years. The accessibility of video poker machines on casino floors, iGaming websites and even on the bar tops of casinos means that lovers of the traditional card game can still get their fix of world-class poker even when they are socializing or having a drink.

Contrary to popular belief, video poker does require an element of strategy and skill to compete against the computer and build the best five-card hand. Although poker purists would argue that video poker pits you against a computer screen rather than human opponents, video poker players still have flexibility with their gameplay by choosing which cards to hold and fold. There is also a string of video poker variants, designed to switch up the way traditional poker players view the game. For instance, the Joker Wild version sees the Joker added into the deck, capable of substituting for all other cards on screen to form winning hands.

When a turn-based game goes fully open

Video game developers have also become more adventurous when it comes to franchises that were historically turn-based. Super Mario was one of Nintendo’s most successful turn-based platform games of all time. However, its developers, Intelligent Systems, dipped their toe into the water of open-world gameplay with the release of Paper Mario on the Nintendo 64. Although gamers still controlled Mario and his friends to solve puzzles and overturn enemies, they also come across non-player characters (NPCs) that can influence the storyline and the way it meanders. Metacritic gave Paper Mario a hugely impressive 93% rating, with many lauding its nostalgic value together with its ambition of blending open-world RPG elements to the platform genre.

The RPG genre was brought to life in 1997 by the original release of Interplay Productions’ Fallout. The original sets the scene of post-apocalyptic California in the mid-to-late 22nd century. The sequel, Fallout 2, featured several game engine improvements, with the NPCs playing more of an impact in the open world and overall game mechanics. However, Fallout 3 was the real breakthrough for the franchise, with its 3D graphics and free-roam gaming world allowing for real-time combat to occur. This heightened the realism of the game’s post-nuclear war era in the wasteland of Washington DC.

As gamers, we should not be afraid of change. These genre-busting video games have helped show the way and underline the possibilities of genre convergence, adding an extra dimension to gameplay. Sub-genres should be embraced, with developers helping to show the way for a game to be whatever it wants to be, rather than being pigeon-holed into an individual category.