The Game Awards 2020: the biggest announcements

The Game Awards are the industry’s yearly celebration of video games — the best and most innovative titles that were released in 2020. Games like Ghost of Tsushima, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and Hades were all up for awards. But one of the things fans look forward to most is the announcements. And this year, there were certainly no shortages there.

(Not to mention, there were plenty of celebrity appearances, too: Brie Larson, Christopher Nolan, Gal Gadot, Tom Holland, and, of course, Keanu Reeves.)

Across the night, a whole bunch of announcements were made. Here are the biggest ones.

A new Super Smash Bros. Ultimate fighter: Sephiroth

Sephiroth will join Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as the third fighter in the Fighters Pass Vol. 2. Six characters in total with join the pass, alongside new stages and music. The full set is expected to be out by Dec. 31, 2021. Arms’ Min Min and Minecraft’s Steve were added previously.

Perfect Dark

Developer The Initiative showcased a cinematic trailer for its new game: Perfect Dark. The game is still in early development, but after seeing these sleek visuals of its near-future world, we’re eager to see more.

Mass Effect

Image: BioWare/Electronic Arts via The Game Awards/YouTube

The last world premiere before the game of the year award was given away was a vague one — for Mass Effect. Before the teaser ended, the screen faded out to a simple message: Mass Effect will continue.

Microsoft Flight Simulator to Xbox Series X

Image: Asobo Studio/Microsoft Corporation

Miss flying? Microsoft Flight Simulator is finally coming to the Xbox Series X in summer 2021. The game was released on Windows PC earlier this year. It looks very good on the console.

Back 4 Blood

Image: Turtle Rock Studios/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment via The Game Awards/YouTube

Wow, that was gruesome! From Left 4 Dead creators Turtle Rock, Back 4 Blood is a very gross (but cool!) video game. There are 20-foot tall zombies! Alongside the cinematic trailer, Turtle Rock also showed off a gameplay trailer, too. The game’s out on June 22, 2021 on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.

Ark 2

Image: Studio Wildcard

Now this was a surprise! Vin Diesel is the star of Ark 2. Wow! Wow. Just watch the trailer for yourself. Following the trailer, a seriously stacked animated series was featured, coming in 2022.

Dragon Age

The last Dragon Age game was released in 2014 — Dragon Age: Inquisition. The next in the series was announced at The Game Awards in 2018, with concept art shown this past year. On Thursday, we got another new look at the upcoming, highly-anticipated game.

New Among Us map

Image: InnerSloth via The Game Awards/YouTube

Though Among Us was released in 2018, it got super popular in 2020. And now, the game’s getting a new map, Airship, which developer InnerSloth showed off at The Game Awards. It should be familiar to Among Us players, but still exciting to learn.

Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout season 3

Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout is getting a third season, and it’s coming to the game on Dec. 15. It’s a seasonal update, with a winter wonderland world, seven new levels, and 30 new costumes. Big Yeetus is still here, too.

Master Chief in Fortnite

In December, Fortnite fans found evidence that Halo franchise star Master Chief would come to Fortnite. Now, developer Epic Games has officially announced it, alongside some other cool items. Get on that warthog and ride. Master Chief is available in Fortnite now, alongside a Halo map, Blood Gulch. Some The Walking Dead characters are coming, too.

We Are OFK

We Are OFK is Hyper Light Drifter co-designer Teddy Dief’s new interactive series. Each week, for five weeks, a new episode will air, allowing players to experience the world as an indie pop group called OFK. The band performed at The Game Awards, and they’ve got a very cool vibe.

It Takes Two

It Takes Two, from Hazelight, is a co-op platform adventure game. It looks very charming, and it’s coming on March 26, 2021.

Season

Season looks incredible. Scavengers Studio revealed its second game, which will be available on PlayStation and Windows PC via Steam. In Season, players will explore a village and record the world’s history before a “cataclysm.” A release date was not given.

Road 96

From the team behind Valiant Hearts, Road 96 is a procedural narrative adventure game. The game’s expected to take on pop culture of the 1990s, but no release date or platforms were revealed for the title.

Open Roads

Gone Home developer Fullbright has a new game on the docket: Open Roads, starring Keri Russel (The Americans) and Kaitlyn Dever (Booksmart). It’s about a mother-daughter journey across “a series of long-abandoned family properties.”

Evil West

Red Dead Redemption 2, but make it dark fantasy. From Flying Wild Hog and Focus Home Interactive, Evil West is a wild west game, but with vampires and other monsters. It’s coming to PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X in 2021.

Endless Dungeon

Sega and Amplitude Studios have a new game called Endless Dungeon coming to both Windows PC and consoles. Apparently it both is and isn’t a sequel to the previous game, Dungeon of the Endless. You’ll need to play the rogue-lite tactical action game to find out, I guess. From the trailer, it’s looking pretty stylish.

The Callisto Protocol

Image: Striking Distance Studios via The Game Awards/YouTube

From developer Striking Distance, The Callisto Protocol is a creepy looking game that’s got some serious Dead Space vibes. And that makes sense, because this is a game from Dead Space developer Glen Schofield. Coming in 2022.

Swedish Chef coming to Overcooked

As always, Swedish Chef is always a Game Awards highlight.