When it comes to pop culture influence, some contend that gaming has surpassed music because of the industry’s continued growth. There are many influential video games available today, but only a select few of them have had a significant impact on pop culture, as we will explore below.
Super Mario Bros
Super Mario Bros. has proven to be one of the most significant games if we’re skipping games like Pong and Pac-Man as we move forward a few years. The 36-year-old, still-thriving Mario franchise was created by the behemoth Nintendo, and Chris Pratt will be reprising the role in a future Hollywood production.
The SIMS
Regardless how you feel about The Sims, there’s no doubting that it has had a significant impact on mainstream culture. When the original game debuted in 2000, it was an immediate hit, selling more than 16 million copies—100 times what was anticipated. Since then, the game has continued to produce new material and is currently in its fourth game phase.
Resident Evil
Although Resident Evil wasn’t the first horror game, it is the one that established the genre. There have been numerous follow-up video games, a movie franchise, graphic novels, a brand-new Netflix series, and even a slot game available at top casino bonus sites like Casumo since the game’s initial release in 1996.
Grand Theft Auto III
Up until the 2001 release of Grand Theft Auto III, GTA was a pixelated birds-eye perspective game that was entertaining for a while. Thankfully, the series was revamped and became an open-world game with the third instalment. The open-world mechanics of GTA III also had an impact on how games were developed after that.
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider
While the first Tomb Raider was released in 1996, the game became ground-breaking with its reimagining in 2001 as Lara Croft: Tomb Raider. Hollywood went on to release two blockbuster movies based on the game’s plot with Angelina Jolie playing as the main character. The game series sold 35 million copies all over the world and it is now regarded as one of the main pioneers of the action-adventure genre.
Final Fantasy VII
The game that made Sony’s acclaimed brand famous and expertly captured the spirit of the plot, graphics, and characters was Final Fantasy VII. Now that the game has been updated for contemporary platforms, Lenovo’s gaming Chromebooks users can rejoice. The Kingdom Hearts craze was also created by combining the Disney universe with the Final Fantasy universe.
Call of Duty
Call of Duty certainly wasn’t the first first-person shooter game ever created, but it was the one that elevated the genre. Impressive for an FPS that doesn’t modify its gameplay all that much is the massive popularity and ongoing success of the franchise.
Assassin’s Creed
With the release of Assassin’s Creed, a decade ago, the action-adventure genre received a unique awakening thanks to this game’s smart concept. This game blends historical fiction and characters with real life events and people, opening up a new horizon in the game industry. Hollywood went on to produce a blockbuster movie based on the game.