Even though new and unique games come out every year, there is this special category for all the players who love their ongoing game and continue going back to it time and time again.
This is our winner for the Best Ongoing Game of 2020.
Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers
Final Fantasy XIV may have had one of its strongest years following the release of the Shadowbringers expansion in 2019. This year saw the release of a bulk of the post-launch content for last year's expansion that includes some of the best raids in the MMORPG, a massive tie-in with Nier: Automata, and the continuation of the main FFXIV storyline which is proving to be one of the best adventures in the entire Final Fantasy series for newcomers and old-school veterans. With Shadowbringers in particular, FFXIV changed from the MMO with the infamous release, to a must-play for any Final Fantasy fan, and this year has been one massive victory lap for Square Enix and a boon to longtime players. With the Shadowbringers adventure nearing its end, all eyes are on what's next for FFXIV.
For more, check out our full Final Fantasy XIV Shadowbringers review!
See Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers at Amazon
Check out the rest of our favorite ongoing games below!
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Arguably one of the first ongoing games (time traveling aside...), Animal Crossing: New Horizons is officially ongoing now that its most significant seasonal updates are locked behind periodic updates and patches from Nintendo. 2020 was the year that Tom Nook’s janky island scheme dominated our hearts and our minds.
Every month a new slew of critters appear for players to catch and every season a new set(s) of DIYs appear. Holiday events gloriously mark the passage of time with fun tasks to take on, more reasons to talk to your villagers, and (admittedly) a few too many eggs. Plus additional patches have brought some much-needed quality of life updates like island data transfer and storage expansion. Distinct seasons, meaningful updates, and those franchise staple daily chores make ACNH one of the most notable ongoing games of the year.
For more, check out our full Animal Crossing: New Horizons review!
See Animal Crossing: New Horizon at Amazon
Destiny 2: Beyond Light
If Destiny fans had started looking elsewhere for their gaming fun in 2020, Beyond Light offered a terrific reason to check back in with the spacefaring shooter. While this expansion nixed lots of legacy content in the game, it also introduced some compelling new areas and abilities. The new abilities mostly involve Stasis, which allows you to freeze enemies and shatter them like glass (it's quite satisfying).
Though it may be short, the campaign is one of the strongest in the series, complete with a compelling villain in Eramis and run-ins with some of the most beloved recurring characters. Throw in a terrific new raid to offer rewarding endgame content, and you're looking at a fine way for Destiny 2 to ring in its third year of existence. Here's to many more.
For more, check out our full Destiny 2: Beyond Light review!
See Destiny 2: Beyond Light at Amazon
GTA Online
It might be a surprise to see a nominee that's been out for seven years and has crossed three console generations, but Rockstar has continued to feed the thriving community of GTA Online with challenges and content to keep the game alive and strong.
Whether it's the big annual updates - like the upcoming Cayo Perico Heist - or smaller content packs or even just weekly updates, there's always plenty to do with friends in San Andreas. From owning a nightclub to robbing a casino – or using any of the excellent online mods for PC players – or just getting up to illegal shenanigans with friends, the sandbox that is GTA Online is always a good time to play in, and Rockstar has kept throwing new toys in with no sign of stopping.
See Grand Theft Auto V at Amazon
No Man's Sky
Four years later, No Man’s Sky has realized, and perhaps grown beyond, the ambitious promise of its initial pitch. Hello Games has continued to expand and improve upon its procedurally generated universe in 2020 with frequent, content-rich updates. This year alone, the developer reworked its entire networking architecture to support cross-play; added content in the forms of new starships, mechs, and missions; and optimized performance for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. However, it was this year’s Origins update that best exemplifies No Man’s Sky’s ongoing evolution; Origins highlighted Hello Games’ commitment to continued growth by adding millions of new, more diverse planets and extraterrestrial lifeforms, without discarding what came before by preserving all existing user-created content.
For more, check out our full No Man's Sky review!
Those are our picks for the Best Ongoing Game of 2020 - let us know in the comments what's on your list that didn't make ours.
More Game of the Year Awards
There are plenty of other awards beyond just ongoing games! Check out all our platform, genre, and design award winners - and, of course, our picks for this year’s GotY - below!
IGN’s Game of the Year 2020
Best Games by Platform
Best Games by Genre
Game Development and Craft Awards
Be sure to check out all of our other Game of the Year award winners as well as our picks for the best movies, TV shows, comics, and anime of 2020!