Activision’s riding the gaming nostalgia wave (and it’s working)

Games at Play

Activision’s 2020 lineup has been a pleasant surprise. With remakes and continuations of sagas, fans have had plenty to keep them engaged — especially during the pandemic.

The first Spyro game, Spyro the Dragon, came out in 1998, and sequels followed for 10 years. 2008 marked the last one. Reignited Trilogy came out in 2018, and fans were ecstatic.

The Spyro revival, though, was just the beginning. Crash Bandicoot has been following a similar path. Fans had a ton of content to play with as games came out right and left in the late ‘90s through 2010. Then, 2017 saw the revival of Crash Bandicoot: N. Sane Trilogy.

It’s a complete remaster of the first three games in the series — and a precursor to 2020’s follow-up to the original trilogy, Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time.

Activision also revived the Tony Hawk series. 2015 marked the last big installment, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5, which received less than desirable reviews. However, the 2020 remake, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2, was received much more positively.

For the shooter-based game lovers out there, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare got a revival in 2019. A new game, Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, is dropping on Nov. 13 of this year.

With all the game revivals, reboots, and continuations, Activision is covering its bases in terms of demographics and platforms.