Unexplored and Underexplored Game Genres

Games have come a long way from the simple days of Pong, and we’ve been basking in an age where all kinds of gamers can find something that scratches their itch. From mechanically dependent RTS and MOBAs to real time action RPGs and My Summer Car, we’ve had many things to play but there may still be some genres that could use a little more exploring.

Asymmetrical Games

In recent years, games with asymmetrical gameplay have been popping up, but what exactly is an asymmetrical game? It’s when one player might have more or different traits, abilities, or knowledge than another player. Asymmetrical gameplay brings a different type of experience than symmetrical gameplay due to the gap between players.

Of course this is always something that is difficult to balance, but it is because it is complicated that it is interesting. Natural Selection 2 was one of the successful attempts at asymmetrical gameplay, and Nintendo made attempts at asymmetrical games with their Wii U console — one player gaining an advantage with their tablet controller that the other players wouldn’t have.

One of the bigger examples of this type of thing would be Evolve. The playing field for the monster and the hunters are completely different. Each side having different advantages with monsters being able to grow and evolve, but hunters having a number of advantages on top of their varied gear and powers.

Another older, but well known example would be in Left 4 Dead‘s PvP mode, where 4 players can play as the infected against the survivors.

Something with asymmetrical gaming that I would love to see is an RPG, with one player being the antagonist, and set up a campaign or a dungeon and control the monsters that the other players would face.

Or maybe there would be a tower defense with asymmetrical gameplay. One player tries to break into a team’s fortress or the reverse.

Augmented Reality

Pokemon Go blew up when it first released this year, but the popularity of the app seems to have died down a bit since — with 2 million players daily it’s far from dead. Augmented reality games have existed for a long time but Pokemon Go seemed to be one of the first big augmented reality games with a wide appeal.

The idea of augmented reality games is interesting but Pokemon Go left many players wanting more. They wanted an app that was a little more than just opening the app to catch something, and then maybe fighting a gym. An augmented reality game with PvE or actual PvP gameplay would be interesting. Maybe an RPG with augmented reality integration where you could get certain things out in the real world to help you progress.

Virtual Reality RPG

If you’ve watched any anime in recent years or played anything of the .hack series then the idea of a virtual reality RPG has probably crossed your mind. The genre is something that hasn’t been explored yet due to the just emerging virtual reality technology.

RPGs are known for being long extensive experiences compared to many of the demos and short term experiences that are coming out for VR now, but when it comes to stories and characters, RPGs are one of the genres where people get immersed the most. A VR RPG where you can immerse yourself in the story, and the game in first person would probably be a very interesting and mind blowing experience.

Conclusion

There are many types of  game genres that have been explored but there are always itches and urges that need scratching that we might not even know are there. A good example of this would be the Dark Souls/Demon Souls series of games. It scratched an itch for many players that went untapped for years and it’s gone from being a cult hit to being a household name when people talk about hard games.

Just because you don’t know there’s a market there, doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.