{"id":332047,"date":"2022-07-03T14:00:45","date_gmt":"2022-07-03T19:00:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jbsgame.com\/?p=332047"},"modified":"2022-07-03T17:58:46","modified_gmt":"2022-07-03T22:58:46","slug":"video-game-genre-mashups-my-favorite-trend-in-gaming-right-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jbsgame.com\/video-game-genre-mashups-my-favorite-trend-in-gaming-right-now\/","title":{"rendered":"Genre mashups are my favorite trend in gaming right now"},"content":{"rendered":"
There are a lot of video games out there in the world. Shooters, platformers, narrative adventures, fighting games \u2014 iconic genres that have almost forty years of precedence to make them what they are today. Various developers and studios have given us some truly amazing entries in all of these genres and many more, but sometimes, I find myself wondering if there’s anything new out there that will shake up the industry. Of course, this is always a silly thought, because people are endlessly creative, especially when it comes to game design. The industry has plenty of answers for keeping things moving forward, but my absolute favorite trend in games right now is genre mashup.<\/p>
That’s right, it’s as simple as taking two game genres and combining them \u2014 but the outcome is almost always effective, giving us a new perspective on some gameplay systems that might have otherwise become a bit tired. Developers have been borrowing design elements from all kinds of games pretty much forever, but it seems like in the past few years, the main conceit of “this game mixed with that game” has become more prominent than ever before.<\/p>
One of my favorite examples of a genre mashup is Mega Crit’s 2017 indie darling Slay the Spire<\/i>. This game has had a chokehold on me<\/a> for over a year now, and in that time I’ve loaded 250 hours into it on my Switch. For those who aren’t familiar, it’s a deckbuilding roguelike, which happens to be two of my favorite genres in the first place.<\/p> <\/p> You completely start your deck over with each run, and getting to know the cards and how to max out your builds makes for a really fun gameplay loop. On their own, both deckbuilders and roguelikes make learning the details of the game mechanics a core part of their design, so putting the two together is a match made in heaven. It’s like peanut butter and chocolate \u2014 two great things on their own make something even better when combined.<\/p> Deadpan Games also has a title coming up this year that I absolutely can’t wait for: Wildfrost<\/i><\/a>. It’s a deckbuilding roguelike, just like Slay the Spire<\/i>, only with an adorable, snow-and-ice theme. I’m honestly super excited to see the combo of these two subgenres becoming more prominent in the games space, because they make for endless fun and replayability.<\/p> Another recent game that’s been getting a lot of love recently is Neon White<\/i><\/a>, Angel Matrix’s new speedrunning FPS puzzle-platformer. It’s such a unique mix of gaming conventions that you have to list at least three different genres in its description, and I think that’s beautiful. Neon White<\/i> has been a standout ever since it premiered back in early 2021, and although I haven’t gotten the opportunity to play it yet myself, from what I hear it’s delivering on everything we could want from its premise.<\/p> <\/p> It’s fast-paced and action-packed, but the game also requires you to think of each level like a puzzle. I love a game that gets me out of my comfort zone, and from what I can tell, Neon White<\/i> will do just that. I’ve caught a few glimpses of my roommate playing, and they told me how much the game is challenging them to try new things and implement strategies that they normally wouldn’t. In the same way that Hades<\/i><\/a> pushed me<\/a> to find a love of real-time combat, they insist that Neon White<\/i> will help me get over my trouble with platforming. Neon White<\/i> wasn’t a game I was expecting to get excited for this year, but it is sitting pretty at the very top of my Steam wishlist.<\/p> Exhibit B: Neon White<\/em><\/h3>
Exhibit C: Eternights<\/em><\/h3>