As the years go by, different gaming genres fall in and out of trend. These days, it can often feel like every game in existence has to have some kind of massive open world, regardless of whether or not the game calls for something like that.
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The open world in gaming has become a subgenre in itself to some, but it’s still going strong. With that said, not all genres last forever, and these days, it can feel like some of the most classic game genres have stopped being made altogether. Games do still come out here and there for these genres, they are just generally rare.
10Run And Gun
True run-and-gun games are really hard to come by these days.Cuphead is probably the last major exampleof this kind of game, but with most of the game focusing on boss battles, even that can be said to be a bit of a stretch.
Classics of this genre include games likeContra, Sunset Riders, and theMetal Slugseries. The simple arcade gameplay of the genre might be what caused them to mostly fall out of style, though the odd run-and-gun-style games do rear their heads with some unique twists.
9Shoot ‘Em-Ups
Theshoot ‘em-up genre is a classicstyle of game that saw its prime in the arcade generation. It was easy to throw in a quarter, get a few lives, and attempt to take down as many flying foes as you could to get the highest score possible.
These games are a bit too simplistic these days and often end up being morphed into simulation games to add to the overall experience. These games do still exist to some extent, but those are mostly relegated to bullet hell games that offer an immense challenge to make up for the simplicity of the genre.
8Instrument-Based Rhythm Games
Why this genre has died out isn’t that much of a mystery. The entire idea of playing a rhythm game through an instrument in a game likeRock Bandwas a stroke of genius, but it was an idea that people got tired of pretty quickly.
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It’s likely that these kinds of games are incredibly expensive to make in the first place, and the unique controllers don’t help. Rhythm games will always be popular, but it seems like now is the time for the movement-based rhythm game instead of continued guitar dominance.
7Collectathons
At times, it can feel like 3D platformers themselves are dying out, but what has really died offis the collectathon subgenre. There are a few modern games with collectathon tendencies, but few can match the sheer scope of a classic likeDonkey Kong 64orBanjo-Kazooie.
Mario Odyssey might be the most modern successful collectathon, but even calling that one might be a bit of a stretch when most of your collecting is relegated to moons and little else of note. It’s a classic genre that can fill time with simple fun, but one that has mostly been forgotten.
6Rail Shooters
Why rail shooters are rarely made anymore is pretty obvious. Most systems won’t even support a setup to use a gun as a controller these days.
These were and to some degree still are popular games in arcades, but the concept was mostpopular on the NESand then again on theWii.
It’s hard to justify making a rail shooter when a developer could just make a solid first-person shooter at this point. The bar is so high for first-person shooters that stepping back to an entirely on-rails-style of the game might alienate you from some of your favorite series.
5Side Scrolling Beat ‘Em-Ups
While there is the odd unique beat ‘em-up that comes out on rare occasions, most that come out are remasters or continuations of classic series that receive little attention. The simple action involved in walking to the right and beating up bad guys just fails to capture most players these days.
The nineties were the era of the beat ‘em-up but that was a time when developers were severely limited. These days, developers can make some of the most mechanically complex and rich fighters possible, and with competitive play being so popular, fighting games are the way to go now.
4Text Adventures
If most people were honest, they’d probably admit that they’d rather have a character talking than them having to read text. It’s that very thing that has likely been the thing that caused the death of the text adventure genre.
This was one of the earliest genres of PC gaming, and gaming in general due to the ability to tell fun stories with the use of minimal graphics. The adventure was yours to uncover with various commands, and some of these games could have solid puzzles, unfortunately, you probably like cutscenes a bit more than reading these days.
3First-Person Party-Based RPGs
For a long time, RPGs really tried to emulate the experience of playingclassic tabletop gameslikeDungeons & Dragons, and that’s what led to the creation of the first-person party-based- RPG. You might not have even played any of these relatively rare games.
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This was another genre that was able to be successful because of its limitations, limitations that developers have since blown past. It’s not uncommon for RPGs to be party-based, but adding in first-person to that mix is rare, and that’s because of rich narratives that are created on the regular.
2Arcade Sports Games
There is absolutely no shortage of sports games, especially considering the major sports all receive yearly releases, but arcade action really has taken a back seat. Classics likeNHL HitzandNFL Blitzwere incredible in their time, but probably wouldn’t work as well for modern audiences.
Absolutely bodying an opponent and then being lit on fire while you glide down the ice or brutalizing someone in football is a bit too much for player bases who crave realism. That desire for realistic graphics and mechanics is the death of this and most other arcade-style games.
1Point-And-Click Games
There are tons of incredible point-and-click games with great stories and creative puzzles, but those kinds of games are mostly of a bygone era. The biggest reason is, there’s no point in making a game like that when you could program in some level of movement.
Developing a point-and-click game is pretty simple when compared to the massive undertaking of games these days, and as such, it can be hard to capture the same level of excitement for a wide audience. The genre may mostly be dead, but luckily, you still have all the classics.
