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PS4 vs Xbox One vs Nintendo Switch – Who Won 2020?

In spite of how terrible the current situation has been all around in general across the world, the one area where this year has gone above and beyond is with video games. Video games as a medium are thriving, with more and more people flocking to them as an escape from the grim and dark reality that the calamitous events of the year have posed thus far – and thankfully, games, in turn, have put their best foot forward, with so many amazing, incredible titles coming out, from all sectors of the industry, and on all platforms, that this has been one of the best years for games in recent memory – definitely among the best ones this last generation.

The true star of the year has been the PlayStation 4; with the console in its final year before it makes way for the next generation PS5, one would expect things to be slowing down now, ceding the limelight to its successor. It wouldn't even have been an unreasonable expectation – last year wasn't the best for the PS4, after all, and it wasn't that much of a stretch to think that beyond the handful of releases Sony had lined up for the console this year in order to ensure that its next generation system would hit the ground running.

The PS5 did in fact hit the ground running. But it as the PS4 where Sony's true prowess as a platform holder was on display, with an inspired slew of releases, from AAA to indie, third party to first party, Japanese to western, multiplatform to exclusive, and any other categorization you might care to come up with. In this, the final year of the console's life as Sony's flagship, it got Nioh 2, Resident Evil 3 Remake, Fall Guys, Yakuza 7: Like A Dragon, 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim, Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time, Assassin's Creed Valhalla, Watch Dogs Legion, Sakura Wars, Immortals: Fenyx Rising, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2 HD, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot, Spelunky 2, Cuphead, Streets of Rage 4, Trails of Cold Steel 4, Call of Duty: Black Ops: Cold War… this isn't counting some great first party releases, from Dreams to Ghost of Tsushima, Spider–Man: Miles Morales to Sackboy's Big Adventure.

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And through all of this, I haven't even mentioned the knockout titles the PS4 got, with the console receiving an unprecedented three 10/10 titles this year – Final Fantasy VII Remake, the first part of Square Enix's ambitious reimagining of their 1997 seminal hit; Persona 5 Royal, the culmination of P-Studio and Atlus' craft, delivering arguably the best RPG of all time, and one of the best games in generation; and The Last of Us Part 2, Naughty Dog's bold and ambitious follow-up to their 2013 classic, which subverted expectations and delivered one of the most daring stories the medium has seen, and one of Naughty Dog's best playing games ever.

The full range of games the PS4 got was truly mind-boggling. It doesn't matter what kind of game you like, the PS4 probably had you covered this year regardless. A year such as this for a single console at any point in time is remarkable, of course – but to deliver such an outing in the console's last year on the market is an unprecedented feat. Going all the way back to the NES, I can't think of a single console or handheld that ever went out on such a high note. Not even the much vaunted PS2 managed this. Truly, this final year firmly cements the PS4's legacy and elevates it to an all time great console.

While the other consoles didn't quite hit these same highs, they had reasonably strong showings in and of themselves. The Xbox One, for example, got some of the strongest games Microsoft's first party has put out in a while, including Ori and the Will of the Wisps (another GamingBolt 10/10), Wasteland 3 (inXile's surprisingly excellent and compelling sequel to the disappointing revival of the classic cRPG), Tell Me Why (Dontnod's excellent and empathetic graphic adventure game that showed them moving from strength to strength), as well as the more disappointing Bleeding Edge and Minecraft Dungeons.

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All of this was in addition to a bunch of great multiplatform games that it shared with the PS4 – Yakuza 7, Watch Dogs, Assassin's Creed, Immortals, Tony Hawk, Crash Bandicoot and Resident Evil. This, of course, isn't even counting some belated releases the system saw this year, such as Yakuza 0, Kiwami, and Kiwami 2. The console certainly had a bit of a blow with Halo Infinite's delay (which also hurt the Xbox Series X, of course), and in general, Microsoft's weakness with first party titles and exclusive third party games (the latter of which, at least, Microsoft is looking to address with the Series X), did mean it wasn't quite as incredible as its rival, but even so, the Xbox One ended on a very strong note this year.

Nintendo had a very quite year in 2020, and while that sort of thing can color perception, they really didn't need to do a lot of talking, because the Switch was firing on all cylinders this year as well. Now, to be fair, it was nowhere near as good a year for it as 2017 or 2019 had been. In fact, this was easily among the worse ones the system has had. But even accounting for that, the Switch actually managed to deliver a surprising number of great games. The star of the year was without a doubt Animal Crossing New Horizons, Nintendo's radical rethinking of their life sim franchise that hit at exactly the right time, giving everyone around the world the escape they needed from COVID-19 and the lockdowns that ensued. New Horizons became a phenomenon, basically becoming the kind of runaway success that we saw with Pokemon GO back in 2016, and probably is responsible for single-handedly propelling the Switch to its meteoric success this year.

Animal Crossing aside, the Switch also saw some other first party titles, including Paper Mario: The Origami King (which was surprisingly great), Mario Kart Live (the augmented reality Mario Kart spin off that gave us the kind of left field swerve we expect from Nintendo at this point), and Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, Clubhouse Games (a pretty easygoing board game collection for the Switch which was perfect for this long summer), C the Dynasty Warriors style prequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Nintendo also re-released a bunch of their older games on the Switch, from Xenoblade Chronicles Definitve Edition, Pikmin 3 Deluxe, and Super Mario 3D All Stars.

Hades

All of this was in addition to a surprisingly strong showing of third party support for the system as well, with games such as Trials of Mana, Kingdom Hearts: Memory of Melody, Catherine: Full Body, XCOM 2, Borderlands; The Handsome Collection, Burnout Paradise Remastered, Need for Speed Hot Pursuit Remastered, Metro Exodus, A Short Hike, Raji, Rune Factory 4, Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin, CrossCode, No More Heroes, No More Heroes 2, Streets of Rage 4, Ori and the Will of the Wisps, and of course, Game of the Year contender Hades (which Switch was actually the only console beneficiary of).

Again, this wasn't the Switch's best year, and Animal Crossing and Hades aside, there weren't any big heavy hitters – but it was a well rounded lineup, and helped bolster the Switch's library further (albeit, of course, it was thoroughly outshone by the PS4, which shone with the brilliance of a thousand suns).

Everyone was a winner this year as far as games go, because each of the three current generation consoles did extraordinarily well, even though the Xbox One and Nintendo Switch were quieter than than the competition (and in the Switch's case, quieter than even its past few years). But once you put aside the console warring that inevitably comes with the territory when discussing games, you will see that what we got this year was one of the strongest outings that this medium as a whole has had – and in the end, what more could you really ask for?

PS5's Price Was Decided In Early 2020, Jim Ryan Reiterates; COVID/ Lockdowns Had No Impact

PS5 Logo

It's been just under a month now since we saw the launch of new consoles. Sony launched their PS5, and it seems to have worked out pretty well for them. While they are out and it's just part of life now, it can be easy to forget that the marketing on both Sony and Microsoft's side was unusual. Without the centralized event of E3 this year, neither company wanted to reveal their prices, which lead to a lot of speculation (and concern) that these new boxes were going to be very pricey. In the end, however, that didn't end up being the case. Considering the world kind of being on fire, and a lot of financial woes in a looming recession, it's also lead to speculation Sony's PS5 probably was going to be more expensive. However, Jim Ryan insists that isn't the case.

In an interview in EDGE magazine (issues 353), Ryan was asked if the price had changed at all due to the pandemic. He said it hadn't. The PlayStation CEO stated they had the price determined by early 2020 (though does not give a month, but it must be very early since the pandemic was affecting things on a global scale as early as March and April). He denies that COVID or lockdowns impacted the decision, saying that it was all about getting a machine out with a price tag they were happy with and had worked to great success for them in the past.

"Our preferred pricing was determined early in this calendar year, pre-lockdown. And we just got on and executed with what we wanted to do.

"No, no, it didn't [change], no. We've been able to launch PlayStation 5 at $399, €399, with all the horsepower and the feature set that the console has, at the same price that we launched PS4 back in 2013. That was important for us, and we're very happy that we've been able to do that. $399 worked very well for us last time round and we'd like it to work very well for us this time round, too."

Ryan has stated roughly the same thing in the past, as well, shortly after the price was officially revealed. There will, of course, be skeptics considering some of the technology powering the PS5, but in the end, it doesn't matter at this point, because the prices are what they are. Now it's just a game of actually getting one.

Cyberpunk 2077's First Update Allegedly Adds Performance/Quality Mode Options To Xbox Series X

We're entering into a new generation of consoles, and I guess it's almost fitting that at the same time we're about to finally see the release of Cyberpunk 2077, a game that we have basically heard about for the entirety of the ending generation. Technically speaking, it's releasing on that ending gen as there will be no native version for either PS5 or Xbox Series X/S next week when the game does launch, but there are enhancements in tow for those playing on the new machines, and today we possibly found out at least one.

As you're probably aware by now, copies of 2077 are out in the wild. While we aren't going to spoil anything, we promise, it does seem the game being out in the wild has given a glimpse of some potential next gen perks. Reddit user scorpo187 says he got his copy of the game early for Xbox. He says that an update has gone live already for the title, and that it helped the game's bugs and some rough performance.

The bigger surprise though is that he says on the Xbox Series X, it also added an option for Performance and Quality modes. There were apparently pictures to prove all of this, but have since been deleted. It's interesting because as of now, CD Projekt RED has not commented on the option being available. Presumably it will also be on the PS5, though no one has come forth to confirm it, and it's rather up in the air if it will exist for the Series S, PS4 or Xbox One. We do have to file this under rumor for the time being considering the source, but nothing here sounds outrageous.

The game is already up for preload on Xbox systems and will be next week for PlayStation systems, with the game unlocking at various times depending on where you purchased it, which you can read about in full through here. Cyberpunk 2077 will release officially on December 10th.

Xbox Series X/S Quick Resume Will Continue To Be Fixed And Improved, Says Microsoft's Jason Ronald

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When it comes to the new generation consoles, one factor that both Sony and Microsoft were harping on hard (Sony, especially) was the move from HDD to SSD. For those who were lucky enough to get any of the three new systems, no doubt you've seen a big difference in your loading times already and on the Xbox you've also got the Quick Resume feature. It's one of those things that you really don't think you'll use much until you have it, especially with Game Pass. However, like a lot of new tech, there are issues. If you recall, Quick Resume was actually disabled in some titles because of technical issues. Well, that's being worked on, along with other improvements down the line.

Xbox Director of Program Management Jason Ronald was on Major Nelson's Xbox Podcast to talk about the future of Quick Resume. He said the team was hard at work fixing the problems that are there, and many of the titles that had Quick Resume disabled have been reenabled. He said Quick Resume is something they'll continue working on, tweaking and improving, based on the feedback they'll get in the future from players.

"We've reenabled Quick Resume for more than 20 Xbox Series X and Series X optimized titles including Gears 5, Yakuza: Like a Dragon, and just this week we reenabled Quick Resume for Assassin's Creed Valhalla, and we're gonna continue to work very closely with partners to make sure that the feature is working as we expect. We'll continue to reenable this for as many titles as we can over the coming days and weeks, and then we're gonna really make sure that players are getting what they expect.

"We're listening to feedback from the community on how gamers want to use Quick Resume. We're really listening to that feedback and some of the feedback that we've heard is the ability to know which games are Quick Resume enabled versus not, or knowing which titles have a current Quick Resume state saved and other ideas that players have."

Quick Resume is definitely a neat feature and as of now there isn't really a similar function on Sony's PS5. Even though the SSD for all three systems are so fast you barely need it, it can cut down time between games even more so. It will be interesting to see what kind of added functions will come down the line.

The Last of Us Part 2 Director Neil Druckmann is Now Co-President of Naughty Dog

With 2020 almost coming to a close (and not a moment too soon), Naughty Dog have announced some high-level changes within the studio. In an update on the developer's blog, president Evan Wells announced that Neil Druckmann – who is the co-creator of The Last of Us, and served as creative director on both games (and on Uncharted 4) – has been promoted to the position of Co-President alongside Wells.

Druckmann had been a Vice President at Naughty Dog for nearly the last three years, and has been at the studio for almost seventeen years in total. How his promotion affects his game development work – what with him likely having more company-wide management to to do with his new position – remains to be seen.

Druckmann's promotion also comes with a couple of other promotions within the studio's structure. Director of Operations Alison Mori and Co-Director of Programming Christian Gyrling have been named as Naughty Dog Vice Presidents.

What the studio is working on next is up in the air right now. It's likely that work on a Factions multiplayer mode for The Last of Us Part 2 is ongoing. Neil Druckmann has also previously commented that the developer's next project could be The Last of Us Part 3, or perhaps a completely new IP.

Batman: Arkham Knight Gets Free Update Out Of Nowhere With Two New Costumes

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Next year we will be returning to the iconic setting of Gotham City with the upcoming Gotham Knights. That game will feature a cast of Batman characters after Bruce Wayne has seemingly been killed in action as they must fight to clean up the chaos in the aftermath. The game is not by Rocksteady Studios, being developed instead by WB Montreal, and is not in the same canon as the popular Arkham series. Despite that, it seems out of nowhere, the last game in the franchise got a quick update.

Rocksteady decided to update Arkham Knight today to give everyone free access to two skins: the Zur En Arrh and Anime Batman. These are not new skins and were originally given out as part of the WBPlay service that was once attached to the game. That service is long defunct, meaning anyone who got the game recently in a sale or via Game Pass or however would have no way to access either of these until this update. It's random, but hey, it's now out there if you want it.

Batman: Arkham Knight released on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC back in 2015. Rocksteady themselves is currently working on Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, which is slated to come out to PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC in 2022.

Everspace 2 – Ruins of the Ancients, Prescott Starbase Details Revealed

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Rockfish Games' Everspace 2 may have been delayed from its early access window (again) but it's seemingly on course for January 2021. In the meantime, the developer has offered new details on some areas that players will explore. One of these is the Ruins of the Ancients, an end-game area with "extra hard challenges and the best loot in the game."

Appearing in Everspace, the Ancients have unique structures on Cephas II, a moon in the Union system. The Ancients won't appear in the early access release but there will be some of their ruins present. The developer even hints at the Ancients being "deeply connected to the established lore" of the game. We'll have to see how that pans out in the sequel.

Another new area in Union is Prescott Starbase. Described as a "highly condensed version of an entire city floating in space," players will encounter a shopping and entertainment area, a harbor district and a black market where freelancers ply their trade. Though it's still a ways from being completed, Prescott Starbase can be explored when early access is live.

After its early access period, Everspace 2 will be available for PC players first with PS4 and Xbox One releases coming later. Stay tuned for more details in the meantime.

Destiny 2 Xur Exotics – Wardcliff Coil, Graviton Forfeit, Citan's Ramparts

Destiny 2 Xur

Xur has returned in Bungie's Destiny 2 with a range of relatively newish Exotics. You can find him in the Winding Cove in the European Dead Zone, where he will remain until the next weekly reset. In terms of weapons, he's carrying The Wardcliff Coil for 29 Legendary Shards.

This Exotic rocket launcher fires a volley of rockets in all kinds of directions and can provide some strong DPS (just don't use it in an enclosed area). It also reloads ammo on pickup. It's not the best Exotic heavy weapon by a long shot but does a decent job. In terms of Exotic gear, there's Graviton Forfeit (Hunter helm), Citan's Ramparts (Titan gloves) and Verity's Brow (Warlock helm), each for 23 Legendary Shards.

Graviton Forfeit increases the duration of invisibility effects and recharges one's melee faster while invisible. Citan's Ramparts allows for shooting through the Towering Barricade though it has less duration and health. Meanwhile, Verity's Brow provides bonus grenade damage and energy when scoring kills with Energy weapons (and even provides increased grenade regen for nearby allies).

Dead Cells Update 21 Alpha is Live, Malaise and Colors Reworked

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Motion Twin and Evil Empire have big plans for Dead Cells in early 2021 when the next paid DLC, Fatal Falls, releases. However, its update for this month is now in alpha and there are some pretty big changes in-bound. Chief among them is a rework of Malaise.

Malaise is a punishing mechanic that appears in the Castle before the final battle – filling up the meter will cause the player to die instantly. In 4/5 Boss Cell difficulty, every enemy can inflict Malaise, making it super frustrating and encouraging players to kite and run away than fight. The new version of Malaise works differently – it fills over time (and pauses in certain rooms) and will make enemies more dangerous when full.

This means they'll deal increased damage, move faster, randomly spawn around the player and even turn into Elites. Depending on the number of enemies alive in a biome, the contamination rate can be slowed. If there are only 10 percent of enemies remaining, then that biome has been "cleansed."

Colors are also being revamped with Mutations like Soldier Resistance and Berserker now scaling with Survival instead of Brutality while Predator, Scheme and Initiative will scale with Brutality instead of Tactics. Certain weapons like the Broadsword, Symmetrical Lance, Rhythm n' Bouzoki and more now longer have "red" scaling while other like the Flashing Fans don't scale from Tactics. There's quite a lot to go through so check out the full patch notes here.

In terms of new content, the Katana is finally coming to the game along with a new enemy – the Demolisher – and four new Mutations. Stay tuned for more details on a release date in the coming weeks.

Dragon Age 4 Will Get a "Special Look" at The Game Awards

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Geoff Keighley has announced over on Twitter that Dragon Age 4 will be receiving "a special look" at The Game Awards next Thursday, on December 10. BioWare and EA first announced the next mainline game in the series at The Game Awards in 2018 with a teaser trailer.

Updates on the RPG have been scant since its reveal. BioWare assured in July earlier this year that production on the game was proceeding smoothly, while early development footage and some new details were also revealed the following month.

Reports have also suggested that the game is being built on Anthem's codebase. Allegedly, while the critical path in the RPG will be single player-focused, BioWare have not yet decided what to do with the multiplayer component.

Recently, Dragon Age 4 executive producer Mark Darrah left BioWare (alongside general manager Casey Hudson). In his absence, the development will now be led by BioWare Austin studio head Christian Dailey, while Matthew Goldman will stay on as creative director.

As for when Dragon Age 4 (or whatever BioWare ends up calling it) will come out, no launch window has been announced- but it's not going to be anytime soon. EA has said not to expect the game anytime before April 1, 2022.