Do Simple Games Have A Place In 2021's Gaming Landscape?

We hope 2021 will be different to 2020. We hope that things will be closer to normal than they were in 2020 and that people can get back to doing the things they enjoy.

Putting hope aside, one thing we know is that people enjoy gaming and this is unlikely to change anytime soon. Different people enjoy playing different games and the current landscape of gaming has a place for titles that are complex and others that are simple.

But are we about to see a shift away from the later type of games? We make our case for why simple games won’t be forgotten in 2021.

What do we mean when we say ‘simple games’?

There are countless games in the world. They come in all shapes, sizes and levels of difficulty — from video games as challenging to play as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles NES classic to casino slot titles as easy to try as Starburst.

When we talk about simple games we’re really talking about those anyone can get on board with, games without complex rules and a drawn out acclimatization process. Titles you can just pick up and play.

You can find simple games at many top sites. Take the one we mentioned earlier: Starburst.

Starburst is available at leading casino sites such as PlayOJO. It’s one of the most popular games and it takes no time at all to learn the basics.

Starburst is an incredibly easy game to play because the aim is simply to match symbols to make winning combinations. You do this by spinning the reels until you’ve got the combination you need. This (and the bright, shiny interface) has helped make it one of the most popular slot games around.

You can try Starburst now at PlayOJO or one of the many other online casinos that offer it.

What exactly is the landscape of gaming in 2021?

Video gaming has long been a multibillion business and it saw impressive growth in 2020. The value of the industry rose from $145.7 bn in 2019 to $159.3 bn an increase of 9.5%. That trend is expected to continue in 2021, with the industry expected to be valued at $175.4 by 2022 (a rise of 9.1%).

What does this all mean? More people than ever will be gaming in 2021.

This shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone because the landscape has been shifted by coronavirus. First, social distancing took away a lot of people’s outdoor and out of home activities. Then lockdown removed almost all of the remaining ones.

While things are shifting (slowly) back to where they were, it’ll be some time until normality returns. Indeed, some nations (like the UK) seem to be stuck in a neverending lockdown.

With this in mind, you can expect the gaming landscape to continue broadening out as new people pick up all sorts of games.

Why simple games do have a place in 2021 gaming

All games have a place in 2021’s gaming landscape. While things may be very different right now, what people want from games haven’t changed. They’re seeking something to occupy their time, to get lost in, to pass the time, to challenge, thrill and entertain them.

Simple games will always have a place in this reality because they’re often pure entertainment. This is because their lack of complexity and quick uptake time means they can be picked up with minimal effort, offering a low barrier to entry that makes them (if anything) more universally appealing than complex games.

We must make one thing clear at this point. We’re not saying simple games will overtake or replace more challenging ones, such as Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice.

Sekiro… is considered such a hard game for a number of reasons but two stand out. Firstly, the more you die the more you spread the Dragonrot disease, reducing the effectiveness of characters as they become ill. Secondly, there’s no end of level order for the bosses. Instead, they appear at random which means you always need to be on your toes. While this adds to the complexity of the game it’s this war of attrition aspect that makes it popular because people stubbornly refuse to be taken down by these game elements.

People will continue to enjoy tough games like Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice at popular digital distribution services like Steam precisely because they’re hard.

No, what we’re saying is that simple games will act as a compliment to their harder peers.

That being said, one of the key gaming trends of 2020 is that older people are spending more time than before playing video games. If this continues then it wouldn’t be unreasonable to expect new gamers to begin by playing simple games, as it’s natural to want to ease yourself into a new activity.

Our conclusion is pretty straightforward. Simple games do have a place in 2021’s gaming landscape and this will continue for as long as gaming remains a thing.

If you’re in need of an activity to occupy your free time while you wait for society to return to normal then you might want to try gaming.

You could start with some online games before stepping up to more complex video games once you feel comfortable doing so.