10 Ways Gaming Is Better (And Worse) Than Ever

5. Worse - We're Seeing VERY Little Innovation In Terms Of Genres Or New Mechanics

When was the last time you played a genuinely new genre or idea?

I'll wait.

Even PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds' popularising of the battle royale genre isn't fundamentally "new" - its roots come from other mods also made by creator Brendan Greene.

Indeed, the 2010s and this generation in particular are a far cry from the hotbed of risks and innovations that represented the late 80s, 90s and 2000s. Those decades had everything from new genres left and right (2D and 3D platformers, third-person action, shooters), overhauls of key mechanics (Resident Evil 4's over-shoulder camera, Gears of War's stop n' pop cover system) - even explorations of what it means to control another person in a story (Bioshock's almighty twist, Shadow of the Colossus' final betrayal).

Contrast to where we're at now, and sure, you can say that Hollywood have also ran out of any larger, genre-focused ideas too, but the industry almost feels like its stagnating. Outside of VR - which is yet to have a single "You must play this" game - there's very little in the way of brand new ways to play, with nothing that connotes the wide-eyed, experimental feel of yesteryear.