Technology keeps advancing, bringing new experiences to players each year.
Whether these advancements are the new graphic cards powering the highest end graphics, or the hottest holiday gift of the year, these are our nominations for the Best Technical Innovation of 2020.
[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=best-technical-innovations-of-2020&captions=true"]
Click through the gallery above or scroll down for the full list!
It’s a rare year when we find ourselves talking at length about an innovative new controller scheme and we don’t mean whatever weirdness Nintendo decided to implement. Ultimately time will tell, but so far the PS5’s DualSense seems to offer a robust set of truly next-gen improvements that could humbly revolutionize the way it feels to game. Those who’ve dived into Astro’s Playroom already know the joy of navigating a game that actually utilizes the touchpad in a useful way, not to mention the exponentially wider array of haptic feedback experiences the controller offers.
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/10/27/ps5-dualsense-controller-unboxing"]
Combined with clever use of the DualSense’s on-board microphone and speaker, clinking across a glass surface or getting momentarily electrified takes on a whole new dimension. And already, with major titles like Call of Duty: Cold War, we’re seeing more ambitious integration of the adaptive trigger tech than we ever did for any of the PS4 DualShock’s features. The tactile joy of your controller having a “feel” to it, and one that can change radically depending on the context, is something we hope becomes a staple of gaming, because it would be a shame to see a controller as well-designed as the DualSense go to waste.
For more, check out our full PS5 DualSense review!
Outside of the blazing-fast SSD drive that both new next-generation consoles pack, no feature does more to improve your quality of life experience on the Xbox Series X|S than Quick Resume. It does exactly what it says: it lets you pick up exactly where you left off in roughly half a dozen of your most recently played games. Being able to hop from the end of the Gears Tactics campaign and switch right into Forza Horizon 4, mid-drive, is such a delightful and time-saving feature that no Xbox owner will ever want to be without it on any future Xbox console.
For more, check out our full Xbox Series X review!
It might seem a bit odd to call something innovative based on its price point, but that’s how we feel about Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 3070 graphics card. PC graphics have reached impressive levels in recent years, with high-end cards pushing the boundaries of visual fidelity through 4K, ray-traced gameplay. Until now, however, those high-end graphics cards came with an equally high-end price – if you wanted to play at 4K with a respectable framerate, you needed a $1,200 RTX 2080 Ti.
[ignvideo url="nvidia-geforce-rtx-3070-gaming-benchmarks"]
Nvidia’s new RTX 30-series ups the ante with even more powerful GPUs, but, shockingly, significantly lower prices. Most impressive is the absolutely killer bang-for-the-buck of the RTX 3070, which offers performance on-par with that aforementioned $1,200 RTX 2080 Ti… at only $500. Finally, the highest of high-end graphics are within reach of mid-range PC builders – if you can find one in-stock that is.
For more, check out our full RTX 3070 review!
While some game streaming services will ask you to buy a whole new library of games or pay into a channel of them, Microsoft xCloud is more of value add service. Of course, to even take advantage of it you have to pay for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, but this in itself feels like the best gaming deal in the world that opens up access to collection of games you can play on the Xbox One (X) or Series X|S consoles and PC. This big parade of games in turn are almost all playable from an Android phone and bringing over your cloud saves across all the disparate platforms is easy peasy. The service is only going to get better into next year with Microsoft confirming an xCloud on iOS and PC beta is coming in Spring 2021.
For more, check out our full xCloud preview!
The AR technology that makes Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit work isn’t ground breaking on its own; it’s how well this works as a kart racer that really makes it impressive. The communication between the kart and the Nintendo Switch is clear and significant framerate hiccups or video issues are few and far between. But most impressively, the game manages to integrate iconic Mario Kart powerups and mechanics smoothly.
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/10/16/mario-kart-live-home-circuit-launch-trailer"]
Drifting is well represented on screen and gives your real-life kart a speed boost and a virtual banana peel will stop you dead in your tracks. Kamek will even swoop down to turn everything into Mirror Mode. It was wonderfully disorienting to drive through a reflection of my own home, and clever gimmicks like this added some Mario Kart magic to a mundane room.
For more, check out our full Mario Kart Live Home Circuit review!
[poilib element="accentDivider"]
[poilib element="poll" parameters="id=7e4a4f6d-159b-41ec-95ca-6e22fcd71c85"]
Those are our picks for the Best Technical Innovation of 2020 - let us know in the comments what's on your list that didn't make ours, and be sure to cast your vote for our Game of the Year 2020 People's Choice Award here! You can also vote for your favorite PC Exclusive, the best PlayStation, Switch, and Xbox console exclusives, and the best movie, TV series, and comics of the year!
There are plenty of other awards beyond just the best Technical Innovation! Check out all our platform, genre, and design award nominees - and, of course, our picks for this year’s GotY - below!
Be sure to check out all of our other Game of the Year award nominees as well as our picks for the best movies, TV shows, comics, and anime of 2020!
[poilib element="accentDivider"]
Continue reading...
Whether these advancements are the new graphic cards powering the highest end graphics, or the hottest holiday gift of the year, these are our nominations for the Best Technical Innovation of 2020.
[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=best-technical-innovations-of-2020&captions=true"]
Click through the gallery above or scroll down for the full list!
DualSense Controller - Haptic Feedback
It’s a rare year when we find ourselves talking at length about an innovative new controller scheme and we don’t mean whatever weirdness Nintendo decided to implement. Ultimately time will tell, but so far the PS5’s DualSense seems to offer a robust set of truly next-gen improvements that could humbly revolutionize the way it feels to game. Those who’ve dived into Astro’s Playroom already know the joy of navigating a game that actually utilizes the touchpad in a useful way, not to mention the exponentially wider array of haptic feedback experiences the controller offers.
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/10/27/ps5-dualsense-controller-unboxing"]
Combined with clever use of the DualSense’s on-board microphone and speaker, clinking across a glass surface or getting momentarily electrified takes on a whole new dimension. And already, with major titles like Call of Duty: Cold War, we’re seeing more ambitious integration of the adaptive trigger tech than we ever did for any of the PS4 DualShock’s features. The tactile joy of your controller having a “feel” to it, and one that can change radically depending on the context, is something we hope becomes a staple of gaming, because it would be a shame to see a controller as well-designed as the DualSense go to waste.
For more, check out our full PS5 DualSense review!
Xbox Series X|S - Quick Resume
Outside of the blazing-fast SSD drive that both new next-generation consoles pack, no feature does more to improve your quality of life experience on the Xbox Series X|S than Quick Resume. It does exactly what it says: it lets you pick up exactly where you left off in roughly half a dozen of your most recently played games. Being able to hop from the end of the Gears Tactics campaign and switch right into Forza Horizon 4, mid-drive, is such a delightful and time-saving feature that no Xbox owner will ever want to be without it on any future Xbox console.
For more, check out our full Xbox Series X review!
RTX 3070 - An Affordable High-End GPU
It might seem a bit odd to call something innovative based on its price point, but that’s how we feel about Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 3070 graphics card. PC graphics have reached impressive levels in recent years, with high-end cards pushing the boundaries of visual fidelity through 4K, ray-traced gameplay. Until now, however, those high-end graphics cards came with an equally high-end price – if you wanted to play at 4K with a respectable framerate, you needed a $1,200 RTX 2080 Ti.
[ignvideo url="nvidia-geforce-rtx-3070-gaming-benchmarks"]
Nvidia’s new RTX 30-series ups the ante with even more powerful GPUs, but, shockingly, significantly lower prices. Most impressive is the absolutely killer bang-for-the-buck of the RTX 3070, which offers performance on-par with that aforementioned $1,200 RTX 2080 Ti… at only $500. Finally, the highest of high-end graphics are within reach of mid-range PC builders – if you can find one in-stock that is.
For more, check out our full RTX 3070 review!
Microsoft XCloud
While some game streaming services will ask you to buy a whole new library of games or pay into a channel of them, Microsoft xCloud is more of value add service. Of course, to even take advantage of it you have to pay for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, but this in itself feels like the best gaming deal in the world that opens up access to collection of games you can play on the Xbox One (X) or Series X|S consoles and PC. This big parade of games in turn are almost all playable from an Android phone and bringing over your cloud saves across all the disparate platforms is easy peasy. The service is only going to get better into next year with Microsoft confirming an xCloud on iOS and PC beta is coming in Spring 2021.
For more, check out our full xCloud preview!
Mario Kart Live Home Circuit
The AR technology that makes Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit work isn’t ground breaking on its own; it’s how well this works as a kart racer that really makes it impressive. The communication between the kart and the Nintendo Switch is clear and significant framerate hiccups or video issues are few and far between. But most impressively, the game manages to integrate iconic Mario Kart powerups and mechanics smoothly.
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/10/16/mario-kart-live-home-circuit-launch-trailer"]
Drifting is well represented on screen and gives your real-life kart a speed boost and a virtual banana peel will stop you dead in your tracks. Kamek will even swoop down to turn everything into Mirror Mode. It was wonderfully disorienting to drive through a reflection of my own home, and clever gimmicks like this added some Mario Kart magic to a mundane room.
For more, check out our full Mario Kart Live Home Circuit review!
[poilib element="accentDivider"]
[poilib element="poll" parameters="id=7e4a4f6d-159b-41ec-95ca-6e22fcd71c85"]
Those are our picks for the Best Technical Innovation of 2020 - let us know in the comments what's on your list that didn't make ours, and be sure to cast your vote for our Game of the Year 2020 People's Choice Award here! You can also vote for your favorite PC Exclusive, the best PlayStation, Switch, and Xbox console exclusives, and the best movie, TV series, and comics of the year!
More Game of the Year Awards
There are plenty of other awards beyond just the best Technical Innovation! Check out all our platform, genre, and design award nominees - and, of course, our picks for this year’s GotY - below!
IGN’s Game of the Year 2020
Best Games by Platform
Best PlayStation Console Exclusive
Best Xbox Console Exclusive
Best Nintendo Console Exclusive
Best PC Exclusive
Best VR Game
Best Games by Genre
Best Action Game
Best Action/Adventure Game
- Best Adventure/Puzzle Game
Best Shooter
Best RPG
Best Platformer
Best Strategy/Tactics Game
Best Fighting Game
Best Racing Game
Best Battle Royale
Best Ongoing Game
Best Remake/Remaster
Game Development and Craft Awards
Best Video Game Art Design
Most Impressive Feature
Best Video Game Music/Score
Best Video Game Sound Design
Best Video Game Story
Best Performance
Advancement in Accessibility
Be sure to check out all of our other Game of the Year award nominees as well as our picks for the best movies, TV shows, comics, and anime of 2020!
[poilib element="accentDivider"]
IGN's Best of 2020 was designed by: Lead Design + Art Direction: Justin Vachon Branding + Art Direction: Angela Nguyen Branding + Social Design: Julia Rago Editorial Design: Amanda Flagg Editorial Design: Eric Sapp Motion Graphics: Will Batchelor
Continue reading...