2018 in video games
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Numerous video games were released in 2018. Best-selling games included Madden NFL 19, NBA 2K19, NBA Live 19, WWE 2K19, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, Marvel's Spider-Man, Red Dead Redemption 2, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Far Cry 5, God of War, Monster Hunter: World, Assassin's Creed Odyssey, Spyro Reignited Trilogy, and Dragon Ball FighterZ.[1][2][3] Games highly regarded by video game critics released in 2018 included Red Dead Redemption 2, God of War, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Marvel's Spider-Man, Forza Horizon 4, Monster Hunter: World, Dead Cells, Return of the Obra Dinn, and Celeste. The year's highest-grossing games included Fortnite, Honor of Kings/Arena of Valor, Dungeon Fighter Online, League of Legends, and Pokémon Go.
Among major trends in 2018 included the explosive growth of battle royale games such as Bluehole's PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds and Epic Games' Fortnite Battle Royale,[4][5] the resurgence of Pokémon Go,[6] ongoing governmental review of loot boxes in light of national gambling restrictions, Sony Interactive Entertainment agreeing to allow cross-platform play between PlayStation 4 and other console users, and the entry of Fortnite-related internet memes into popular culture. With Fortnite's success, Epic was able to establish the Epic Games Store for personal computers as a strong competitor to the dominant but criticized position held by Valve's Steam digital storefront by significantly increasing the revenue split it gave to developers. Additionally, with a number of major sudden studio closures, including Telltale Games, there was an increasing call for video game developers to unionize.[7] A nearly year-long freeze on video game approvals by the Chinese government had a major impact on publishers Tencent and NetEase, and was anticipated to impact future revenues in the industry.[8]
Series with new installments in 2018 include Anno, Assassin's Creed, Battlefield, Bloons Tower Defense, Bayonetta, Bit.Trip, BlazBlue, Bomberman, Call of Duty, Darksiders, Digimon, Donkey Kong, Dragon Ball, Dynasty Warriors, Earth Defense Force, Fallout, Far Cry, Forza, God of War, Hitman, Just Cause, Kirby, Life Is Strange, Mario Party, Mario Tennis, Mega Man, Monster Hunter, Ni no Kuni, Persona, Pillars of Eternity, Pokémon, Red Dead, Sakura Wars, Science Adventure, Shantae, Soulcalibur, Spider-Man, Spyro, State of Decay, Super Smash Bros., The Bard's Tale, The Crew, The Walking Dead, Tomb Raider, Tropico, Valkyria Chronicles, WarioWare, Warhammer, Wolfenstein, and Yakuza.
In addition, 2018 saw the introduction of several new properties, including, Among Us, Astro Bot Rescue Mission, A Way Out, Baldi's Basics in Education and Learning, Celeste, Dead Cells, Deltarune, Detroit: Become Human, Firewall, Frostpunk, InnerSpace, Just Shapes & Beats, Marvel's Spider-Man, Moss, Octopath Traveler, Overload, Paladins: Champions of the Realm, Past Cure, The Persistence, Rust, Sea of Thieves, Subnautica, and Vampyr.
Financial performance
According to industry analysis firm NewZoo, the video game industry was worth $134.9 billion by revenues in 2018, a 10.9% growth over 2017. Of this, 47% of the revenues were generated from mobile gaming, with consoles taking 28% and personal computers taking the remaining 25%.[9] The top five largest video game markets of 2018 were China ($34.4 billion), the United States ($31.5 billion), Japan ($17.7 billion), South Korea ($5.8 billion), and Germany ($5 billion).[10]
According to the NPD Group, total revenue from the video game industry, including hardware, software, and accessories, in the United States grew by 17% to US$43.4 billion, nearly matching revenues for the American film industry for 2018.[11][12] Of that, US$35.8 billion were from software sales, digital content, and subscriptions. Hardware sales, at US$7.5 billion, were up 15% from 2017, as despite the fact that there was no new hardware releases, several system-exclusive titles helped to drive hardware sales.[11]
Licensed merchandise based on video game franchises generated $20.68 billion in 2018 retail sales, a rise of 6.1% compared to 2017.[13]
Highest-grossing games
The following were 2018's top ten highest-grossing video games in terms of worldwide digital revenue (including digital purchases, microtransactions, free-to-play and pay-to-play) across all platforms (including mobile, PC and console platforms). Six of the top ten highest-grossing games are published or owned by Tencent, including the top five titles.
| Rank | Game | Revenue | Publisher(s) | Genre | Business model | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fortnite | $5,477,000,000 | Epic Games (Tencent) | Battle royale, Survival | Free-to-play | [14] |
| 2 | Honor of Kings / Arena of Valor | $2,510,000,000 | Tencent | MOBA | Free-to-play | [15] |
| 3 | League of Legends | $1,900,000,000 | Riot Games / Tencent | MOBA | Free-to-play | [15] |
| 4 | Dungeon Fighter Online | $1,700,000,000 | Nexon / Tencent | Beat 'em up | ||
| 5 | Crossfire | $1,453,000,000 | Smilegate / Tencent | FPS | ||
| 6 | Monster Strike | $1,387,419,755 | Mixi | Physics | ||
| 7 | Pokémon Go | $1,300,000,000 | Niantic / Nintendo / The Pokémon Company | AR | Free-to-play | [4] |
| 8 | PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG) | $1,224,800,000 | Bluehole / Tencent | Battle royale | Buy-to-play / free-to-play | [a] |
| 9 | Fate/Grand Order | $1,200,000,000 | Aniplex (Sony Music Entertainment Japan) | RPG | Free-to-play | [4] |
| 10 | Candy Crush Saga | $1,100,000,000 | King (Activision Blizzard) | Puzzle |
The video game franchise that has generated the highest licensed merchandise sales is Pokémon. Other video game franchises with significant licensed merchandise sales include Sonic the Hedgehog, Mario, Call of Duty, Overwatch, Roblox, Halo, Fortnite and Minecraft.[13]
Best-selling games by region
The following were 2018's top ten best-selling video games by region, in terms of software units sold (excluding microtransactions and free-to-play titles) on PC and console platforms, for the United States, Japan, and Europe.
Top-rated games
Critically acclaimed games
Metacritic is an aggregator of video game journalism reviews. It generally considers expansions and re-releases as separate entities.
| Title | Publisher(s) | Release | Platform(s) | MC score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | Rockstar Games | October 26, 2018 | PS4, XBO | 97 |
| God of War | Sony Interactive Entertainment | April 20, 2018 | PS4 | 94 |
| Celeste | Maddy Makes Games | January 26, 2018 | XBO | 94 |
| Undertale | 8-4 | September 18, 2018 | NS | 93 |
| Super Smash Bros. Ultimate | Nintendo | December 7, 2018 | NS | 93 |
| Forza Horizon 4 | Xbox Game Studios | October 2, 2018 | XBO | 92 |
| Divinity: Original Sin II - Definitive Edition | Larian Studios | August 31, 2018 | PS4, XBO | 92 |
| Celeste | Maddy Makes Games | January 25, 2018 | NS | 92 |
| Bayonetta 2 | Nintendo | February 16, 2018 | NS | 92 |
| Inside | Playdead | June 28, 2018 | NS | 91 |
| Sonic Mania Plus | Sega | July 17, 2018 | NS | 91 |
| Dead Cells | Motion Twin | August 7, 2018 | XBO | 91 |
| Shadow of the Colossus | Sony Interactive Entertainment | February 6, 2018 | PS4 | 91 |
| Celeste | Maddy Makes Games | January 25, 2018 | PS4 | 91 |
| Nier: Automata Become As Gods Edition | Square Enix | June 26, 2018 | XBO | 90 |
| Bastion | Supergiant Games | September 13, 2018 | NS | 90 |
| Monster Hunter: World | Capcom | January 26, 2018 | PS4, XBO | 90 |
| Hollow Knight | Team Cherry | June 12, 2018 | NS | 90 |
| Into the Breach | Subset Games | February 27, 2018 | WIN | 90 |
| Astro Bot Rescue Mission | Sony Interactive Entertainment | October 2, 2018 | PS4 | 90 |
| Bayonetta + Bayonetta 2 | Nintendo | February 16, 2018 | NS | 90 |
Major awards
- Certain award presentations combine these categories.
Major events
| Date | Event | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| January 4 | Video game peripheral maker Mad Catz was re-established. | [26] |
| January 7–12 | The 2018 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) was held in Las Vegas, Nevada. | [citation needed] |
| January 8 | Rebellion Developments acquired Radiant Worlds and rebranded the studio as Rebellion Warwick. | [27] |
| January 10 | The inaugural season of the Overwatch League began. | [citation needed] |
| January 22 | Yuji Naka announced that he joined Square Enix. | [28] |
| February 14 | THQ Nordic acquired Koch Media. | [29] |
| February 20–22 | Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences hosted the 2018 D.I.C.E. Summit and 21st Annual D.I.C.E. Awards at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. Genyo Takeda received the Lifetime Achievement Award. | [30][31] |
| March 9–18 | The 2018 South by Southwest Festival was held in Austin, Texas. | [citation needed] |
| March 19–23 | The 2018 Game Developers Conference was held in San Francisco, California. | [citation needed] |
| March 20 | Vivendi formally ended its attempt to acquire Ubisoft, selling all of its 30 million shares of Ubisoft to other companies, including Tencent. | [32] |
| April 1 | Kaz Hirai stepped down as CEO of Sony Corporation while remaining as chairman of the board, with CFO Kenichiro Yoshida replacing him as CEO. | [33] |
| April 5–8 | PAX East was held in Boston, Massachusetts. | [citation needed] |
| April 21 | Valve acquired developer Campo Santo. | [34] |
| May 14 | Cliff Bleszinski's studio Boss Key Productions closed down. | [35] |
| Bigben Interactive acquired Cyanide. | [36] | |
| May 15 | 2K Games developer Hangar 13 opened a fourth game development studio in Brighton, England. | [37] |
| May 16 | Polish developer People Can Fly opened a new studio in Rzeszów, Poland. | [38] |
| June 1 | Facebook launched Facebook Gaming as a competitor to Twitch. | [citation needed] |
| June 10 | Microsoft announced its acquisitions of Undead Labs, Playground Games, Compulsion Games, and Ninja Theory and the formation of a new studio named The Initiative in Santa Monica. | [39] |
| June 12–14 | E3 2018 (Electronic Entertainment Expo 2018) was held at the Los Angeles Convention Center. | [40] |
| July 11 | Electronic Arts announced its acquisition of Industrial Toys. | [41] |
| August 13 | Crystal Dynamics opened Crystal NorthWest. | [42] |
| August 14 | Sumo Group Plc acquired The Chinese Room. | [43] |
| August 20–25 | The International 2018, a Dota 2 tournament with the largest prize pool in esports history, was held at the Rogers Arena in Canada. | [44] |
| August 21–25 | Gamescom was held in Cologne, Germany. | [citation needed] |
| August 26 | A mass shooting occurred at a Madden NFL 19 tournament in Jacksonville, Florida, with the shooter, a participant in the tournament who lost, killing two people and injuring ten others before committing suicide. | [45] |
| September 18 | Wargaming opened a UK studio | [46] |
| Capcom Vancouver shut down. | [47] | |
| The Nintendo Switch Online service launches for the Nintendo Switch, which allows subscribers to play games online as well emulated games from the Nintendo Entertainment System. | [48] | |
| September 20–23 | The 2018 Tokyo Game Show was held in Tokyo. | [citation needed] |
| The UK's largest games show, EGX was held at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham, England. | [49] | |
| September 21 | Telltale Games announced a "majority studio closure", laying off more than 90% of its staff and cancelling several in-progress games. | [50] |
| September 26 | Sony Interactive Entertainment revises its policy on cross-platform play and allows PlayStation 4 players of Fortnite: Battle Royale to matchmake across all supported platforms. | [51] |
| October 6 | Skybound Entertainment acquires the rights and capabilities to finish off Telltale's work-in-progress, The Walking Dead: The Final Season, after Telltale's shutdown. | [52] |
| November 2–3 | The 2018 BlizzCon was held in Anaheim, California. | [citation needed] |
| November 9 | It was announced video game guide creator Prima Games would be shutting down after 28 years in business. | [53] |
| November 10 | Microsoft announced the acquisitions of InXile Entertainment and Obsidian Entertainment. | [54] |
| December 3 | Starbreeze Studios files for financial restructuring after the commercial failure of Overkill's The Walking Dead. | [55] |
| December 6 | The Game Awards 2018 were held in Los Angeles, California. | [citation needed] |
Notable deaths
- February 7 – Jill Messick, 50, producer of A Minecraft Movie.[56]
- March 3 – David Ogden Stiers, 75, voice actor best known for the voice of Doctor Jumba Jookiba in the Lilo & Stitch franchise.[57]
- May 24 – TotalBiscuit, 33, English video gaming commentator and game critic on YouTube.[58]
- June 18 – Big Van Vader, 63, pro wrestler (cover star of WCW SuperBrawl Wrestling and WWF In Your House).[59]
- July 4 – Ronnie Edwards, 25, content creator MatPat's The Game Theorists.[60]
- August 23 – McSkillet, 18, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive YouTuber.[61]
- September 6 – Burt Reynolds, 82, voice actor known for the voice of Avery Carrington in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.[62]
- November 12 – Stan Lee, 95, comic book writer, editor, publisher, and producer for Marvel Comics. Numerous of his characters have appeared in video games.[63]
- November 26 – Stephen Hillenburg, 57, animator and creator of SpongeBob SquarePants which had numerous video games.[64]
Hardware releases
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| Date | Console | Manufacturer | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 1 | Oculus Go | Oculus VR | [citation needed] |
| May | GPD Win 2 | GamePad Digital | [citation needed] |
| July 20 | Phoenix One | [citation needed] | |
| July 24 | NEOGEO mini | SNK | [citation needed] |
| October 9 | THEC64Mini | Retro Games | [citation needed] |
| October 24 | Atari Flashback 9 | AtGames | [citation needed] |
| November 15 | Atari Flashback 9 Gold | [citation needed] | |
| November 30 | Go! Retro Portable | [citation needed] | |
| December 3 | PlayStation Classic | Sony | [citation needed] |
Games released in 2018
Video game-based film and television releases
| Title | Date | Type | Distributor(s) | Franchise | Original game publisher(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| E-League Australia | January, 2018 | Esports television series | Fox Sports | N/a | N/a | [65] |
| Tomb Raider | March 16, 2018 | Feature film | Warner Bros. Pictures | Tomb Raider | Square Enix | [66] |
| Ready Player One | March 29, 2018 | Ready Player One | N/a | [67] | ||
| Persona 5: The Animation | April 7, 2018 | Anime television series | Aniplex | Persona | Atlus | [68] |
| Caligula | April 8, 2018 | Tokyo MX (Japan) | The Caligula Effect | FuRyu | [69] | |
| Rampage | April 13, 2018 | Feature film | Warner Bros. Pictures | Rampage | Midway Games | [70] |
| Subway Surfers: The Animated Series | June 1, 2018 | Animated series | SYBO (via YouTube) | Subway Surfers | SYBO | [71] |
| Hi Score Girl | July 13, 2018[d] | Anime television series | Tokyo MX (Japan) Netflix (international) |
N/a | N/a | [73] |
| Pokémon the Movie: The Power of Us | July 13, 2018 | Anime film | Toho (Japan) | Pokémon | Nintendo The Pokémon Company |
[74] |
| Uncharted Live Action Fan Film | July 16, 2018 | Independent film | N/a | Uncharted | Naughty Dog | [75] |
| Mega Man: Fully Charged | August 5, 2018 | Animated series | Cartoon Network | Mega Man | Capcom | [76] |
| Noobees | September 17, 2018 | Television series | Nickelodeon | N/a | N/a | [77] |
| Legend of the Ancient Sword | October 1, 2018 | Feature film | Alibaba Pictures | GuJian2 | Gamebar | [78] |
| Ingress: The Animation | October 17, 2018 | Anime television series | Fuji TV (Japan) Netflix (international) |
Ingress | Niantic | [79] |
| Million Arthur | October 25, 2018 | Tokyo MX (Japan) | Million Arthur | Square Enix | [80] | |
| Ralph Breaks the Internet | November 21, 2018 | Animated film | Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures | Wreck-It Ralph | N/a | [81] |
| Yo-kai Watch: Forever Friends | December 14, 2018 | Anime film | Toho | Yo-kai Watch | Level-5 | [82] |
See also
Notes
- PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG)
- PC and consoles (buy-to-play) – $1.025 billion[4]
- PUBG Mobile (free-to-play) – $196.8 million[16]
- Not including PC sales
- Not including digital sales