8 Leftfield Predictions For The Game Awards 2020

2020 has been a bit naff, for all the usual reasons that you already know of by now, but also because the cancellation of events like E3 meant I couldn’t write my leftfield predictions article this year. For 2018 and 2019, E3 was subject to inane rambling and weak attempts at humour, and if I managed to write a third one for 2020, it would have become a tradition. That’s how it works, right?

Thankfully, Geoff Keighley has come in the clutch to produce The Game Awards 2020, a celebration of the best and brightest in games from this trying year, as well as looking to the future to build hype for the biggest upcoming releases. It’s also a bit of a monolith to Geoff Keighley’s ego, but that’s besides the point here. Anyway, there’s an upcoming gaming event, and we’ve had a bad year, so let’s have a bit of fun. Here’s my eight leftfield predictions for The Game Awards 2020.

 

Ape Escape To Be Remade By Bluepoint Games

People who know me, or at the very least, my followers on Twitter, will know that there’s one thing I desire more than anything in this world: a remake of the Ape Escape trilogy. People who play PlayStation will know that there’s one development team who are the masters of remaking Sony properties: Bluepoint Games. The collaboration is there for the taking.

Now, you’re probably wondering why Bluepoint, who are responsible for the remakes of Shadow of the Colossus and Demon’s Souls, two gritty worlds that are presented pretty realistically, would take on the Ape Escape trilogy. Ape Escape is famously vibrant and cartoonish, but if a dark, grim remake of Ape Escape is the only way to make the series active once again, it’s a sacrifice I’m willing to make. Expect main villain Specter to have some plan to sacrifice all the apes to save his long-lost love, or “unite the flame” or something. I don’t know.

 

Newly Announced 2020 Simulator Is Just A Plague Inc. Reskin

In celebration, or maybe as just a warning to never repeat the same mistakes, one of the games that’ll be announced at The Game Awards will be 2020 Simulator. I mean, if we can have games like PC Building Simulator, Cooking Simulator and, of all things, Wanking Simulator, then I guess 2020 Simulator isn’t exactly outside the realms of possibility.

Unfortunately, and perhaps unsurprisingly given the fact that it dares to invoke the name of “The Unholy Year”, 2020 Simulator will become mired in controversy, as it’ll be revealed that the game is just a reskin of Plague Inc. Or Pandemic. Either work in this scenario. Anyway, this year has been shite, wear a mask, next prediction!

 

Josef Fares Fucks The Oscars, But Socially Distanced This Time

It’s a bit of an old favourite joke around these parts, but you remember that time when Josef Fares turned up at The Game Awards to shout “fuck the Oscars” at the cameras while Geoff Keighley slowly died inside in the background? We’re still waiting on a follow-up to that beautiful rant, so what better time than now to revisit the classics.

Josef Fares will show up, complete with piss and vinegar, and just rant for 5 minutes straight on what’s wrong with the gaming industry these days. Unfortunately, due to the combination of the fact that Josef will be wearing PPE and maintaining social distancing from everyone else on set (as he should), no one will know what the hell he’s saying. It’ll be a mess, but it’ll be enough to sustain me through Christmas.

 

Everyone Sacks It Off To Play Cyberpunk 2077 Instead

Small prediction here, but one that’s worth making nonetheless: The Game Awards 2020 is taking place on the same day that Cyberpunk 2077 launches, so let’s just admit to ourselves that we’ll probably be spending the day playing CD Projekt Red’s latest game and sacking off The Game Awards entirely. I don’t care which re-released game will win Fighting Game of the Year, or the various esports awards; I want to be a robot-dude with blade arms.

 

Scott Pilgrim Vs The World Launches Physically, But With A Twist

One game that’s supposed to launch in December but still doesn’t have a set release date yet is Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World: The Game – Complete Edition, which was announced earlier this year. Personally, I feel like the re-release of the famously delisted beat ‘em up will get a release date at The Game Awards, but with some caveats.

One of the big issues with the Scott Pilgrim announcement was the lack of confirmation regarding a physical version of the game, with many refusing to buy the re-release when it could just get delisted again in a few years time. Heck, at least Nintendo had the decency to offer physical versions of Super Mario 3D All-Stars before it gets delisted, but that’s a whole other thing.

Either way, I’m predicting that Ubisoft will finally listen to the concerns of the playerbase, as they’ll announce that Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World: The Game – Complete Edition will receive a physical version – as an arcade cabinet. For the low low price of “a couple of grand at least”, you can be safe in the knowledge that Ubisoft won’t remove the whole cabinet from your house. Not yet anyway.

 

Twitch Chat To Be Neuralyzed Whenever Someone Mentions Elden Ring

Ever since it was announced, it would appear that FromSoftware’s Elden Ring has disappeared off the face of the Earth. It’s not entirely surprising that we haven’t heard much in the way of progress though, considering George R. R. Martin is listed as one of the story’s writers, and he’s clamouring for another reason to stop trying to finish A Song of Ice and Fire.

Either way, I’m not entirely convinced Elden Ring is even real anymore, even if Phil Spencer has said he’s played it. Worse still, I reckon FromSoft are tired of pretending it is real, so their solution is simple: wipe all memory of the game’s existence. Any time someone mentioned Elden Ring in the stream chat, everyone currently watching will get hit with a Neuralyzer from Men In Black, and we’ll forget about that thing ever being a… thingy? What was I talking about?

 

NetherRealm’s Next Game To Be Bugsnax Fighting Game

Considering that Ed Boon, founder of NetherRealm Studios and the man who holds the keys to the Mortal Kombat series, has both liked tweets related to The Game Awards 2020 and revealed MK 11 at TGA 2018, I think we should expect a NetherRealm announcement this year too. However, they’re going to buck tradition.

Instead of announcing the expected Injustice 3, NetherRealm will reveal a Bugsnax fighting instead. Titled “Bugscraps”, the game will see all your favourite characters ripping each other’s heads off with blood splattering everywhere. It is a NetherRealm game, after all. Kero Kero Bonito will be back to perform the soundtrack, which will just be covers of Slayer’s entire Reign In Blood album.

 

DualSense Enhancements Will Tell You Whenever A Game Trailer Is Lying

One of the most revolutionary and much touted features of the PS5 has been the DualSense controllers, particularly with its haptic feedback. Geoff Keighley, keen to make history, will announce that The Game Awards 2020 will be the first livestream to be enhanced by the DualSense’s capabilities.

But how will these enhancements work? The most notable feature will be that the controller will vibrate violently when a game trailer shows footage that is either an outright lie or showcases something that won’t be in the final game. On top of that, the DualSense will light up as a cue to laugh at a cringey, forced joke, and you can even use the in-built mic to yell at everyone on screen like it’s WWE’s Thunderdome.

And that’s my predictions, filled to the brim with cringey, forced jokes, so it’s just as good/bad as The Game Awards anyway. Do you have some “out there” predictions? Fortnite to be cancelled? Bloody Roar reboot? Lycans? Sound off in the comments. 

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