If you’re connected at all to the gaming world — either through your kids or as a gaming fan yourself — you probably already know about some of the most popular trends in video games that will give you nostalgia. Old-school video games like Super Mario and The Legend of Zelda from the SNES era are still awesome. You can find snes cheats to make them even more fun if you need help. There is no denying that 2021 is one of the golden years for gaming. So far, many popular video games have come out this year and grabbed millions of players instantly.

Surprisingly, most people who are stuck at home due to COVID-19 are trying out video games for the first time in their lives. And if you are one of those people, then it’s normal for you to search for popular video games to play. Well, you’re in luck, because in this article, we are going to mention some famous video games that you must try out.

• Call Of Duty

A franchise contrived by Activision, it comprises a series of video games, released annually since 2003. It holds a staggering record of 400 million copies of sales, which has logged it into the Guinness World Records for being the best-selling shooter video game series of all times.

The immense popularity can be attributed to the intense gameplay and captivating visuals as the players indulge in a first-person environment to combat enemies and eliminate threats.

The earlier games had the setting of World War II and the Cold War era, both of which portray the dynamics of the relationships that the US had with other countries at that time, which makes it gritty and realistic. Over time, it has evolved to encompass erstwhile uncharted waters of conflicts in futuristic, alien worlds and outer space.

The best games under this banner comprise Call of Duty: Modern Warfare & Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, which have won several accolades for giving a refreshing vibe of competitive gameplay and enhanced combat techniques.

Did you know that the meme →  Press F to pay respect, has its origins in CoD? In Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare’s PC version, the fallen, mighty heroes receive tribute and salute from their compatriots by pressing the ‘F’ key. This has been sarcastically adopted in the meme culture to pay respect to someone derisively.

These games are sure to give you a perfect blend of adrenaline rush and constitute an iconic blend between brilliant technological advancements and art.

• DOTA 2

Defeat of the Ancients 2 (DOTA 2), is a multiplayer battle-royale format game, developed by the videogame company, Valve Corporation (which is famous for producing another very groundbreaking game, discussed later).

Similar to what Valorant offers, there are 2 teams of 5 players each of whom are tasked to protect and defend their camps or bases. These players control a character known as “hero”, who is supposedly very powerful and who all have different styles of play.

Even though the game has a steep learning curve (it’s a little difficult to master), it has been widely acclaimed for its rewarding gameplay and production quality. It has also become one of the most played games on the Steam platform, with over more than 1 million concurrent players at its peak. It has also created a revolutionary change in the esports arena, with dedicated tournaments and commentaries, and huge lumps of rewards for the winners of competitive gameplay. Do you know what’s more interesting? It was also the subject of modern AI experiments, wherein a team of OpenAI Five were able to beat the best human players at the game.

• Counter-Strike

A game that is very fondly remembered by its patrons, it is one of the very first games to have established the genre of a modern first-person shooter game. Initially developed by independent developers, the intellectual rights were bought by Valve for retail production.

Renowned for instituting the practice of dividing into teams of two, the players have to pick either of the two sides: terrorists or counter-terrorists. Based on their respective loyalties, they’re assigned missions such as taking hostages, bombing sensitive locations or defusing the bombs and saving the hostages, around various maps.

Over the years, it has significantly evolved to incorporate innovative matchmaking, sophisticated artillery & weapons, battle royale, arms race, deathmatch among other styles and attributes of gameplay. The most recent version is Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, in 2012, which has garnered traction and an active competitive esports scene akin to DOTA 2. Even today, it continues to sparkle in its unabated success and glory.

• Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas

Even if you haven’t heard of any of the already mentioned games (which is quite unlikely, unless you’re not a millennial), you would certainly be aware of this one. A raving success when it was released in 2004, it redefined the gaming industry with the elements of theatrics, tech and a hitherto unknown open-world simulation with a vast number of liberties being available to the players.

The protagonist, CJ, has to perform operations, tasks and errands (missions) that range from trifling to extremely precarious situations with dire consequences to earn respect. This game is also remarkable for incorporating politics of gang wars, most notoriously Latin American, Hispanic and Black groups clashing amongst each other and for a city based on American cities of Nevada and California. However, it has also raised controversies for racial stereotyping and excessive violence, narcissism and debauchery.

Even with its fallibilities, it has often been dubbed as one of the greatest videogames ever made, and to this day it still basks in the fame of being a trailblazing game. A notable example can be the trend of Tiktok videos and Instagram reels, wherein the creators groove in their own ways to the famous theme music, which plays at the start of the game and missions.

• FIFA:

Remember the adrenaline rush in the prelude to the beginning of a soccer match? The thrills, the anticipation, the jitters — all of it combined which used to make us claw away our nails when we saw our favourite players sweat it out? That is what the FIFA World Cup — a quadrennial tournament — stood for — a grand contest between 32 best nations of football. But, wait, it has a videogame equivalent of its own too!

Conceptualized and implemented by Electronic Arts, it is a series of games based on association football or soccer, in North American parlance. Just like COD, it too has registered itself into the annals of Guinness World Record and has become the best-selling sports video-game series, with sales surpassing 325 million copies. It also shares a fierce rivalry with its competitor, Pro Evolution Soccer published by Konami.

Among all the versions of games, the best one so far is FIFA 10, released in 2010, which scored an impressive 91 on Metacritic’s scale. It has been lauded for improvising the mechanics inherent to football like smooth dribbling, passing and tackling along with refined graphics and a hooking musical score, which made it more realistic and enjoyable to play.

• Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

Another easily recognizable game of the early 2000s, it is sure to make you take a trip down memory lane. With a luscious, culturally rich setting in medieval Persia, in all its elements of grandeur and aristocracy, this game is a visual treat and equally compelling to play. The game plot follows a Prince redeeming himself by undertaking gritty adventures in a fantastical backdrop.

It has received praise for the depiction of Persia, and realistic usages of sword like this mini katana and dagger fighting achieved using rotoscoping. The game’s creators have revealed several inspirations ranging from the fables of One Thousand And One Nights and Raiders of the Lost Ark. The script has some roots in Shahnameh, a work of renowned Persian poet Firdausi. What’s more enthralling is that it also motivated filmmakers to make a movie adaptation of the same name, with Jake Gyllenhal playing the titular character, which received mixed reviews.

Video games have been an integral part of our upbringing and formative years. They may have changed in form and spirit, but the authentic essence remains the same. We hope that this blog proved to be useful. Do let us know your views in the comments!