Popular Video Games to Play with Friends During Quarantine
By: Joseline Hernandez
With everyone stuck at home in quarantine, many have turned to video games to pass the time. “Animal Crossing” for the Nintendo Switch, for example, came out at the perfect time. While players were trapped in their homes at the beginning of the pandemic, they were able to play the game where their character lives on an island with cute animal villagers as neighbors. The interactive nature of the game (players can play with their friends who also have the game and go visit their islands) helped people feel connected. Playing video games with friends and family can bring a positive and uplifting feeling in times of boredom from staying at home all day. Listed below are some of the most popular video games being played during the pandemic.
Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout
By: Jackson Nguyen
“Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout” has become popular during quarantine. Made by Devolver Digital, it was released on Aug. 4 of last year and has made sold over 11 million sales on PC, along with being the most downloaded PlayStation Plus game, according to Gamesradar. It is a battle royale style game where the player competes through 30 rounds of several different types of minigames against 60 other players. This can be done solo or in a party of up to four players, although only one person can ultimately win.
According to Windows Central, the minigames can be categorized in four different ways: races, survival minigames, team minigames and final minigames. Each of these types of minigames eliminates the players that fail in them, with a final minigame at the end eliminating all but one player, who is then crowned the winner. The game also offers in-game purchases for players to customize their bean-shaped characters. “Fall Guys” has been regularly updated with more content, the current update being season 3 with a winter theme.
“Fall Guys” costs $19.99 and can be bought on Steam for PC, or downloaded through the PlayStation Store, etc. It is free with PlayStation Plus.
Phasmophobia
By: Trinity Duran
“Phasmophobia” is a spooky multiplayer game that was released on Sept. 12 of last year by Kinetic Games. This game allows up to four people to play, where players become the ghost hunters investigating different types of ghosts roaming about the maps of the game. The goal is to track down these ghosts without getting caught and to collect three pieces of evidence by using equipment such as the video camera, UV lights and even a blank journal.
The game may seem simple but that is not the case. Players are only given five minutes before the ghosts become aggressive toward them. They must complete their tasks before the timer runs out.
“Phasmophobia” is available on Steam for $13.99 though it is currently only compatible with a PC or a computer that supports Windows 10.
Among Us
By: Ryan Vivar
“Among Us” is considered to be one the most frequently played games during the pandemic. The game is easy to play and even better with friends. “Among Us” is a simple game where a player joins a lobby with up to ten other people and is tasked with finding out which of the other players is the imposter. Crewmates must finish tasks that could lead to a victory as long as too many of them are not killed by the imposter. When an imposter kills a crew member and the body is found, there is a meeting where the players discuss the situation and vote for who they think is the imposter.
“Among Us” is available free on most platforms, and for $5 on the Nintendo Switch. Players from all platforms are able to crossplay with each other.
Genshin Impact
By: Christine Vu
A game that has been taking the gaming industry by storm is “Genshin Impact”. Released last year in September, “Genshin Impact” is a role-playing game, featuring a fantasy open world environment. Players can play with their friends and others online.
Different playable characters are unlocked through wishes which can only be obtained through rewards or in-game currency. Sometimes, players are not able to get the character they want and are forced to work hard to get them. It is a game that captures the interest of players all over the world.
“Genshin Impact” can be played on multiple platforms for free.