The Best Video Game Publisher of 2016

Honorable Mention: Ubisoft

It’s award season here at Twinfinite! Starting with a few runner ups, let’s look back at the best publishers from this year and our 2016 winner!

Not only are most of the games Ubisoft publishes developed in-house, but it’s quite easy to forget just how many games fall under their umbrella. For some time, while the company was putting out pretty solid games, many were worried that they were just stuck in the “annualized games” rut. This year showed and proved that they have a lot more up their sleeves, though.

After skipping out on Assassin’s Creed for the year, many were wondering what the large publisher would possibly fill the space with. The answer was Watch Dogs 2, a sequel to a game not many people liked that showed just how well Ubisoft’s stable of developers listen to player feedback. It was everything that the first Watch Dogs was not, keeping only the very best parts of its predecessor. It opened up its world to player exploration and dialed up the fun factor, providing a much more relatable story and a lovable group of protagonists. It was a solid entry into what had quickly become a shaky franchise, and it was proof that Ubisoft could roll with the punches.

The Division was another example of the publisher listening and having its developers respond. It was a solid release that was soon muddled by bugs and balance issues. With constant support and never-ending communication with fans, the game is steadily improving. That type of dedication to a title, especially one that struggles so hard out of the gates, is not something that should go unnoticed.

There was also a steady string of other enjoyable titles throughout the year across all platforms. Rocksmith Remastered, Just Dance, Eagle Flight, Trials of the Blood Dragon, and Grow Up! are just a few of the solid experiences delivered throughout the year. Ubisoft showed and proved that they can find success without their Assassin’s Creed money tree and a lot of eyes are on them going into the future thanks to titles like For Honor and South Park: The Fractured But Whole.

Honorable Mention: Microsoft Studios

The Xbox One was lacking in major first party exclusives in 2016 with only Gears of War 4 and Forza Horizon 3 leaving large, lasting impressions. Yet even so, Microsoft proved to be a more than capable publisher with some forward thinking that is allowing the Xbox brand to reach a lot more than just those who happen to own one of the company’s home consoles.

Microsoft is really pursuing both the console and the PC market quite vehemently with its new Play Anywhere initiative that sees all Microsoft published video games on the Xbox One and Windows 10. It’s a huge endeavor that is changing the way that the Xbox brand is being viewed since it’s no longer tied to specific hardware. Games like Forza Motorsport 6: Apex, Gears of War Ultimate Edition, Gears of War 4, Forza Horizon 3, Quantum Break, and Killer Instinct: Season 3 helped to give the company a larger footprint in the PC space.

It’s not easy managing where your software is able to be found, with all of the technical challenges that come into play when developing for PC and having to maintain a strong market for your own hardware. It was a risk that not many would take. Yet Microsoft is determined to give fans the freedom of choice in how and where they choose to play, and that is something that is definitely worthy of note.

When you add the focus on the player to the solid lineup that is set for next year (which includes the likes of Scalebound, Halo Wars 2, and Crackdown), it’s clear to see that Microsoft Studios was and is a publisher to watch out for. 

Honorable Mention: Sony Interactive Entertainment

Sony made a lot of moves in 2016 when it came to developing and publishing games. Thanks to the release of PlayStation VR, the publisher was allowed to branch out and offer new types of experiences that really helped to set it apart. They also delivered some of the best triple-A experiences of the entire year, all while juggling several new hardware releases and expanding on services offered to players.

While the company put out titles such as The Tomorrow Children, Alienation, Until Dawn: Rush of Blood, and Heavy Rain Remastered, all of the attention was on Sony’s bigger games of the year: Uncharted 4, The Last Guardian, and Ratchet & Clank. These three exclusive titles proved to be top-notch experiences that each offered something entirely different from one another, showcasing the variety of titles that Sony publishes.

Ratchet & Clank was a family friendly game that was not only fun for children, but fun period. This remake of the original release from the PS2 brought a Pixar quality to the adventure as well as some new content that helped the game standout next to juggernauts such as Dark Souls III. The Last Guardian showed that the nearly decade-long wait for Fumito Ueda’s followup to Shadow of the Colossus would not be in vain. It was a beautiful adventure that put companionship at the forefront as you befriended a massive beast.

Then there was Uncharted 4, showing that there is nothing that Naughty Dog can’t do. Closing a massive, fan-loved series is no small task. Yet the story that saw an older, wiser Nathan Drake in a much more grounded adventure is not one to be overlooked. It added another masterpiece feather to Sony’s publishing cap and is easily one of the best games of 2016.

Sony continued what it does best this year by delivering a diverse lineup of amazing games. If the games in the pipeline are any indication, it looks like 2017 will be the same.

Second Runner Up: Nintendo

Nintendo has had its issues with home consoles in recent years, but the gaming giant still knows how to put out some stellar experiences. A major focus of 2016 for this publisher was Pokemon, seeing as how it was the 20 year anniversary for the highly popular RPG. Free monsters for everyone, a re-release of the original trio of games, Pokemon GO (which Nintendo didn’t publish but certainly benefited from), and what may be the best entries to the core series we’ve seen in over a decade.

To be honest, Pokemon alone is reason enough for many to sing high praise for Nintendo, but the company did a bit more than that to really make its presence felt during the year. Mobile gaming is a giant market, it’s no secret. With Nintendo having arguably the best lineup out of any publisher around, one that is full of classics that have stood the test of time, them hitting the mobile scene was a no-brainer. Finally, after years of keeping all of their properties close to their chest, Nintendo is publishing games on mobile, and so far interest has been very high.

Super Mario Run was downloaded over 40 million times in just a few short days proving that Mario can sell anywhere. Pokemon GO set records and earned Niantic $200 million within a short period of time after the game’s release. If this pattern keeps up, Nintendo’s next two mobile projects, Fire Emblem and Animal Crossing, will make serious waves while also making tons of money. Nintendo is really branching out and that’s a good thing as it has helped the company to reach a much wider audience.

When you take into account the other releases from the publisher this year such as The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess remaster, Super Mario Maker 3DS, and Star Fox Zero, Nintendo had a really strong publishing year in 2016. Let’s just hope it carries over to 2017 with the release of the Switch. 

First Runner Up: Square Enix

Square Enix is another publisher that has had quite the impressive 2016. The company most known for the Final Fantasy franchise stepped it up this year to provide a surprising mix of different types of titles.

The year kicked off with Final Fantasy Explorers, an action RPG with light MMO elements that proved to be incredibly fun. I Am Setsuna was another RPG that really stood out. With the publisher putting out quite a few more modern RPGs in recent years, having a title that hearkened back to the more classic JRPG experiences was a nostalgic breath of fresh air. Then there was Dragon Quest Builders, which is essentially what you get when you take the world of Dragon Quest and drop it into Minecraft. It’s surprisingly fun in how it uses world building and a sort of tower defense makeup alongside classic RPG features to immerse players in its world. A huge surprise was the AAA episodic Hitman. It was a risky approach that ended up being one of the freshest games of the year. Offering up detailed playgrounds with plenty of options for players to enact their assassination dreams. Plus, the timed Elusive Targets proved to be an interesting, yet worthwhile challenge.

However, one of the biggest successes of Square Enix, if not the biggest, was Final Fantasy XV. There was a lot of pressure on the publisher regarding this title that had been in development for over 10 years. The fact that it was so different from all of its predecessors was a worry for many fans, and the delay that came after the company finally set a date in stone didn’t go over too well. However, you have to give it to a company that decided to hold a game back knowing there would be backlash instead of just pushing it out as is and hoping to patch it in time. In the end, we received a Final Fantasy that was indeed different, yet still managed to maintain the spirit of what made the series so great in the first place. 

Winner: Blizzard

First, let’s address the elephant in the room that is Overwatch, which is easily the biggest release of the year. This multiplayer shooter went beyond just being a popular new game and instantly launched an insanely large esport right out of the gate. It’s been quite some time since we’ve seen a game go from 0-100 so quickly, and that’s only a portion of what Blizzard provided in 2016.

When you stop to think about it, the publisher is in charge of several living games that are constantly growing and being updated, and Blizzard made sure to give each one its due diligence. World of Warcraft, the king of all modern MMOs, received an amazing expansion this year in the form of Legion that invited newcomers and long time players to explore the deep lore of the franchise and to quest with legends they’ve only read about. Hearthstone, yet another instant success from the developer/publisher, received the Whispers of the Old Gods expansion as it continues to dominate the trading card space. And even Diablo III got some love in the form of free updates as well as some announcements for future content. Even more impressive is the strong support that StarCraft II is still receiving. New updates that add co-op maps and commanders, and an impressive esports event that saw a $500,000 prize pool for the global final.

Managing a single esport game is difficult enough. It takes tweaking and an open line of communication with the community, yet Blizzard has done it for multiple games without breaking a sweat while also pushing out impressive new content and updating old titles. When you take all of this into account, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Blizzard is indeed the best publisher of 2016.

Congratulations to Blizzard, the winner of our Best Publisher category for 2016! Be sure to visit back this week more award announcements including the big one, our game of the year for 2016! For the full list of award categories for 2016, visit our nomination page here.