5 New IPs Launching in 2020 Destined to Become Major Game Series

2020 promises to be an explosive year for the gaming industry. Not only is the next console generation fast approaching, but there’s also a number of hotly anticipated major releases scheduled to launch — and for once, they aren’t all sequels! Here, we’re going to discuss new IPs we think have a big chance at becoming the next big video game franchises and why.

Cyberpunk 2077

A no brainer to kick things off — Cyberpunk 2077 is already being tipped to become one of 2020’s best-selling games, which is obviously first and foremost paramount to the likelihood of becoming a series. But Cyberpunk 2077’s destiny as a series is secured as a result of more than just its likely commercial success.

Last year during a quarterly earnings call, developer CD Projekt Red outlined its intentions to adopt a dual franchise studio model. Meaning, in the same vein as, say, BioWare with Dragon Age and Mass Effect, the Polish studio is looking toward both its popular The Witcher series and Cyberpunk 2077 to drive revenue going forward.

So the writing is on the wall: unless Cyberpunk 2077 completely bombs it’s absolutely going to get a sequel and could become one of the gaming industry’s marquee franchises.

Gods and Monsters

We know what you’re thinking: How can Gods and Monsters be a likely candidate for a game most likely to become a successful series when we’ve not seen a scrap of gameplay yet? Well, you’d be right in thinking we’re making a big presumption, but you need only to look at history to determine that Gods and Monsters potentially has a big future.

For starters, its concept and design choices are all very in-vogue; a stylized open-world RPG based on famous ancient mythology ticks several important boxes.

Indeed, we’ve seen Nintendo’s Breath of the Wild earn acclaim for a similar art-direction, which more than likely inspired Gods and Monsters’ aesthetic.

What’s more, open-world games are always big sellers, and the team working on the game’s development is the same that brought us Assassin’s Creed: Origins — that is to say, a hugely experienced one that has demonstrated an ability to produce excellent sandbox experiences.

That brings us to our final point: Ubisoft is developing Gods and Monsters, a company with a track record of turning successful games into series. Assassin’s Creed, Watch Dogs, Far Cry, Splinter Cell, Ghost Recon — if Gods and Monsters sells well, you can bet your bottom dollar it’s getting a sequel.

Marvel’s Avengers

Marvel’s Avengers is, of course, already a mega-franchise after years of beloved comics and a movie saga that has become a pop-culture phenomenon. But here we’re talking specifically about Square Enix and Crystal Dynamics’ upcoming action game, which is looking to piggyback on the success of Marvel’s popularity and become the next hot superhero game since PS4 exclusive Spider-Man.

Despite the divisive appearance of its characters –which upset fans for not looking as they do in the movies– and a recently announced delay, we think there’s still every chance that Avengers is destined to go on and become a hallmark series of games for Square Enix.

After all, it would be in keeping with the “Marvel connected universe” design premise, right? Surely Square Enix is looking to build on what it hopes is a successful first Avengers game with a bunch of sequels that introduce new storylines and characters?

It only stands to reason that major players of the video game industry will look to emulate the same strategy as their film counterparts.

Ghost of Tsushima

Ghost of Tsushima appears to have it all — an intriguing story and setting, utterly gorgeous graphics, and a development team with a proven track record of producing brilliant gameplay. And it’s that last point that has us here at Twinfinite so excited: developer Sucker Punch is a master at designing games with superb combat and traversal.

The Infamous series for which Sucker Punch is best known really did play exceptionally well. While its last effort, Second Son, didn’t quite hit the highs of the original two games in terms of a compelling story and characters, it certainly didn’t drop the ball in the gameplay department. Few other sandboxes feel good to traverse around as Second Son’s Seattle.

So we’re expecting big things from Ghost of Tsushima, and we’re confident Sucker Punch is going to deliver. With Infamous seemingly on ice, we’re tipping Ghost of Tsushima to become the developer’s next major IP and one that’ll go on to become a series.

Godfall

Announced during The Game Awards 2019, Godfall is among the first confirmed next-generation games. Both the reveal trailer and a subsequent gameplay leak gives us a pretty good idea of what to expect, but given that developer Counterplay Games is a relative newcomer, we’ll admit that Godfall is the biggest wildcard entry on our list.

Our justification for its inclusion is almost entirely as a result of it being positioned as a launch game. If Godfall arrives on time, in tandem with the next generation, and both looks and runs as capably as we imagine it will, its commercial success is all but guaranteed. Consumers will be looking for tech demos and Godfall might prove perfect to showcase the power of PS5 and Xbox Series X.

All the better, of course, if Godfall plays well, and this is perhaps what will truly determine whether it has a future. We know it’s being designed as a live-service multiplayer experience, so expansions, events, and everything else will see it stick around for some time. But if Godfall establishes itself with a big following, a sequel is inevitable eventually.