Video Game Genres: A Full List Of Gaming Genres • GamePro

As gamers, we’re often pigeonholed into one or two video game genres. So much so, we’ll frequently miss out on other high quality content. But fret not! To help you find your next favourite go-to gaming genre, we’ve spent hours curating this list of popular video game genres with explanations to provide you with a complete glossary of every single video game genre out there right now!

With crossplay gaming the buzz word of the 21st century, many developers have been creating a huge variety of games that are now blend gaming genres together. Gone are the days of linear gaming with new hybrid video games coming thick and fast. It’s like a mad scientist experimenting with wild combos and we absolutely love the variety of video game genres available right now!

Today, we have gaming titles for kids, serious gamers, casual gamers, and even the elderly. Because of this, the popularity of gaming across both age and lifestyle demographics is much wider spread than it used to be and that single fact alone is why gaming has become such big business.

But what about you and your next go-to gaming genre?

If you are a new gamer or seasoned pro who is just looking to expand your choices, our guide to all gaming genres will definitely help you find something new to play. No matter what platform you want to play on there will definitely be a game that will suit your preferences. Whether you are on mobile, console, or PC– allow us to explain each gaming genre before you give them a whirl!

Scroll down to view our entire gaming genre list or simply click on the short links below to skip to the gaming genre that interests you the most. We guarantee there’s something here for everyone!

Here’s a complete list of video game genres to play next:

Keep scrolling to learn more about each video game genre and to also find out what types of games fall under your favourite genre!

First-Person Shooters (FPS Games)

First on the list is probably the most popular game genre of today– first-person shooters or FPS. Because of its popularity, you can play first-person shooters on almost any platform. Whether you are on PC, consoles, or mobile, there is a massive selection of FPS game titles to choose from. One of the games that started the genre is DOOM in the 1990s. Of which, DOOM Eternal which is the most recent release is considered one of the best FPS games on Xbox right now!

The original DOOM game put the genre on the map, which paved the way for the most popular first-person shooters of the present– and what to expect in the future.

First-person shooters are games where you play as if you are seeing the point of the character you are playing. Rather than third-person gaming, you will only see what is in front of you, instead of seeing the character itself with FPS games. Typically, you would see the character’s arms, the weapons they are holding and whatever is within your peripheral viewpoint. When you look down, you would see the character’s lower body and you can look around the surroundings as if you are the in-game character.

Some FPS games like Star Wars Battlefront II give you a third-person option, allowing you to switch from first-person to third-person, depending on your preference. However, the best thing that players love about FPS games is that you can play with your friends– especially now with the addition of online multiplayer modes. Not too long ago, you could only play with your friends using a split-screen or a LAN connection.

FPS games are all the rage since PC and console games like Call of Duty, PUBG & Fortnite are now available on mobile. Although the best experience will always be through playing FPS games with a keyboard and a mouse, playing online on mobile is also available.

FPS Sub Genres List:

FPS games can also be categories by sub-genres depending on which style of gameplay you want to play. The most popular FPS sub genres include:

• #1 Battle Royale
• #2 War Games
• #3 Online First Person Shooters
• #4 Tactical FPS Games

1. Battle Royale

One of the most popular types of first person shooters are Battle Royale’s.

As a fairly recent FPS gaming genre, Battle Royale’s burst onto the scene with Fortnite & PUBG which were closely following by Apex and Call Of Duty: Warzone. Today, there are so many Battle Royale style games it’s impossible to keep up with them all!

In essence, a Battle Royale is a free-for-all type of death match gameplay that you can play solo or within a small squadron. Some Battle Royale games even offer cross-platform gaming, allowing players to use different platforms to battle against one another.

Basically, the goal is to be the last person standing in a chaotic death match amongst all players within the session. If your character dies during solo matches, you will have to join or create a new game. Alternatively, within Duos or Squads matches, your team-mates can often revive you via dedicated revival stations – at their own risk.

2. War Games

Throughout the history of gaming, most war games are either strategy games or FPS. The first-person shooter gaming genre brought some of the best war games, such as Call of Duty: World War II and many more to the fray and these types of games are played by millions of players each day.

War games also fall under strategy games with titles such as Command & Conquer also remaining highly popular amongst video games. However, most war strategy games would most likely fall under the category of “real-time strategy games” with titles such as Red Alert focussing on military strategy and tactics.

3. Online FPS Games

Online FPS games are any multiplayer first-person shooter. Whether you play team mode or single-player free-for-all, it is considered an online multiplayer FPS game as long as you play with other players connected to the internet.

Often now confused with Battle Royale, online FPS games are your traditional first-person shooter multiplayer. Traditional multiplayer first-person shooter game modes such as capture the flag and team deathmatch are very competitive.

In fact, FPS games are so competitive that there are dedicated services to help players boost rankings. Rather than matchmaking with a bunch of randoms throwing games, FPS games such as Valorant have Valorant boosting services that will help you level up quickly by finding likeminded gamers.

4. Tactical FPS games

Home to some of the best eSports clutches, tactical FPS games are games like Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Siege & Valorant, which both involve a ton of tactical combat. There’s very little run and gun here and the onus is definitely on strategy and stealth.

Instead of killing your enemies head-on, you will have to develop strategies to move forward. It involves elements like stealth, saving hostages, diffusing bombs, etc.

RPGs (Role Playing Games)

RPGs or role-playing games are some of the best games you can play alone or with friends.

Although online RPGs are a sub-genre, traditional RPGs are defined by their design, gameplay, and other elements. Some of the most famous RPG titles date back to the 70s, but in our opinion, the best RPGs today are so much better because of the better graphics and longer content– with more enjoyable gameplay elements and mechanics.

An RPG is usually a fantasy game where players play through a story, interact with NPCs (non-playable characters), and explore worlds with huge amounts of lore. Some RPGs require a lot of grinding to power up the character and a knack for exploration to discover what to do next. We have played some RPGs where we get stuck in the game because you really have to understand the story and talk to the right NPCs to keep the plot moving.

Almost every RPG will have the same elements, such as dungeons, the main character with an interesting backstory and unique abilities, a lot of side characters, and big boss fights. RPGs have a lot of sub-genres, such as open-world, sandbox, JRPG, action RPGs, and other genres that are similar to adventure games.

Basically, the goal in RPGs is to complete the story and some side quests– which include defeating bosses and powering up your main character or characters.

RPG Sub Genres List:

RPGs, or Role Playing Games, can also be categorised into sub-genres depending on which type of role playing game you enjoy the most. The most popular RPG sub-genres include:

• #1 Western RPGs (WRPG)
• #2 Japanese RPGs (JRPG)
• #3 Action RPGs
• #4 Sandbox RPGs
• #5 MMORPGs
• #6 Tactical RPGs
• #7 Gacha

1. WRPGs (Western Role Playing Games)

WRPGs or Western RPGs will typically have a fantasy or medieval storyline. Games such as Fable, Skyrim, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, and Mass Effect are classic examples of Western RPGs.

These types of RPGs are significantly different from JRPGs in design, gameplay, and other elements like turn-based combat. The easy definition of WRPGs is role-playing games made in Western countries like the United States and Europe.

While still a role playing game, the character designs, the map and the storyline will often be a tell-tale sign as to whether the game has been made in Western countries.

2. RPGs (Japanese Role Playing Games)

On the other hand, there is another RPG sub-genre called JRPGs– which are Japanese-made role-playing games. Titles like Final Fantasy, Suikoden, Persona, and Pokemon fall under the JRPG umbrella with JPRGs home to some of the best games of all time.

Some elements included in JRPGs that some Western RPGs don’t have are the inclusion of randomly spawning enemies and a massive number of characters with interesting designs and storylines.

Another major difference is that most WRPGs allow you to create a character from scratch, while JRPs give you a well-designed main character, such as Cloud Strife from Final Fantasy VII– which is probably one of the most iconic JRPG characters of all time.

Although some JRPGs like FFXV and FFVII remake are phasing out turn-based combat (a long-time JRPG staple), they are still considered JRPGs because of their creators and other design elements.

3. Action RPGs

Action RPGs are RPGs similar to adventure games. Like many open-world Xbox games, action role players are environments where you can explore and a lot of items scattered on the map to craft items and weapon upgrades. Instead of turn-based combat, action RPGs have a more interactive combat system, which is excellent for people who enjoy modern gaming.

Some Japanese action RPGs include titles from the Yakuza series– which you can also consider a JRPG. For WRPG fans, games like The Witcher III, Monster Hunter: Rise, Skyrim, and Elden Ring fall under the action-RPG category.

4. Sandbox RPGs

A sandbox is where a toddler can play freely, be creative, and be imaginative– hence the creation of the sandbox gaming genre. Some of the earliest sandbox games came out in 1984, namely the game called Elite and the Sims that came out in 1989– which are city-building and tycoon simulation games.

Creative sandbox games include titles like Roblox and Minecraft, which are games enjoyed by kids, teens, and adults alike. These games feature an open world filled with activities and materials for you to build anything you could ever imagine.

Sandbox RPGs, on the other hand, are games that allow you to move freely around the open world. You can explore a well-detailed world and do specific missions on your time with complete control. Some games that fall under this category are GTA games, The Witcher III, Skyrim, Red Dead Redemption games etc. Although, the newer games have more activities than the older ones.

These games allow you to travel across the entire map without doing main missions. Note that the plot will not move without doing the main quests. Still, there are tons of in-game activities you can do to add more playing hours to your run, such as helping town folk, local occurrences, hunting for bounties, monsters, and more.

5. MMORPGs

Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games or MMORPGs like World of Warcraft or League of Legends are role-playing games where you build a character and interact with thousands, even millions of players online. You can team up to raid enemy camps, defeat bosses, and go through the storyline alone or together with your buddies.

Basically, they are like Western RPGs but equipped with co-op modes and a free world, where you can interact with everyone on a single server. Some of the early MMORPG games include titles such as the completely free MMORPG Runescape; which by all accounts is still one of the most underrated games of all time.

6. Tactical RPGs

Tactical RPGs are role-playing games that emphasize the use of tactics, especially in combat. It features a grid in combat mode that allows you to position your characters and defeat enemies using special abilities.

Tactical RPGs are similar to traditional JRPGs’ turn-based combat.

However, Tactical RPGs make use of the area which requires more critical thinking. Games like Fallout, Final Fantasy Tactics, and Valkyria Chronicles would fall under this category.

7. Gacha Games

Gacha games are RPGs that allow you to collect characters through bonus spins or paying with real-world money for a chance to draw more characters, abilities and equipment. Mobile RPGs and MMORPGs usually allow players to collect as many characters as they can for bragging rights and for upgrading their current roster.

Gacha features a toy vending machine mechanic where you wouldn’t know what character you will get when you draw. However, the Gacha mechanic is not only limited to RPGs. Some card-based games like Pokemon, mobile games like Mario Kart Mobile, and even NBA 2K Games implement the Gacha mechanic. Game developers use gacha mode as an excellent way to cash out on players who want to put more money in to get a better chance of drawing rare cards or characters.

Adventure Games

Third on our comprehensive list of video game genres, Adventure games. Often confused, adventure games are kind of like RPGs but different.

However, the only difference is that adventure games have a more linear approach. You will usually have to complete levels and move up until you beat the game. Plus, some of these games have platforming elements and secret stages and hidden treasure chests which promote curiosity and exploration.

There are two types of adventure games; text adventures that require a ton of imagination, and graphic adventures like Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order. Whereas RPG games will often give you much more flexibility, Adventure games will normally pave the way for you and keep you confined to a stricter storyline. There is typically much less grinding here also.

Some of the best adventure video games include:

• The Last Of Us
• Unchartered
• Legend Of Zelda
• God Of War
• Tomb Raider

Simulation Games

We don’t really know if simulation games can prepare you for real-world driving or flying.

But, we can comfortably say that they are hella’ fun! Whether you are playing a car simulation game, helicopter, or plane simulation– all of which are enjoyable to some extent, simulation games serve the purpose of re-enacting what real-life would be like.

The quality of the simulation all depends on the mechanics and graphics and this is where the majority of game development budget will go. From accurate force-feedback on steering wheels to precision weather when flying a plane, every details counts. Whilst most simulation games are very realistic, don’t say we haven’t warned you– just because you can fly a plane in a simulation game doesn’t mean you are fit to fly one in real life!

Simulation Game Sub Genre List:

Simulation games also include sub genres. From managing real life scenarios to optimising fantasy lands, the most popular sub-genres of simulation games include:

• #1 Life Simulators
• #2 City Building Games
• #3 Flying Simulators
• #4 Racing Simulators

1. Life Simulation Games

For some reason, many people like playing life simulation games where you get to play the game of life as a literal video game. These games are quite educational, teaching you the fundamentals such as time management and character traits.

Whether it is a kitchen simulation, a farming simulation like Harvest Moon, or a full-blown life simulation game like The Sims, many people enjoy playing life simulation games. We would also consider the 90s game Tamagochi, where you take care of a virtual pet, a life simulation game as well.

2. City-Building Games

City-building games are not limited to just building cities, building roads, and seeing your AI people live in them. You have to properly execute and manage the cities you build, which gives you a god-like feeling and will make you rethink your existence.

Wait, are we in a simulation game?

Theorising aside, there popular city-building simulations include Sims: City and the Tropico series. There are also Tycoon style games such as Zoo Tycoon or even Rollercoaster Tycoon that essentially take the same premise of re-enacting what life would be like managing these types of attractions.

3. Flight Simulators

Flight simulation games do exactly what they say on the box. You fly planes.

The best flight simulation games are not those that just allow you to pretend to be a pilot but also throw in extremely rate scenarios like tornados or freak weather conditions for you to handle. The onus is very much once more on the mechanics of the game with the best flight simulators delivering precision accuracy so absolutely about every button available on your jet.

Other flight simulators also include war games where you barrel roll and spray your way to victory. While not normally as accurate as real flight simulators, there is so much fun to be had with this type of gameplay.

4. Racing Simulators

This game genre is pretty much self-explanatory. The goal of a racing game is to win the race. Although there is more to it than that, especially with games like Need for Speed or Asphalt, where you need to upgrade your vehicle to get an advantage over your opponents, the main goal is to win.

Racing games have various game modes you can enjoy, such as drift racing, rally, and drag racing but the best racing game modes are those that pit you as a professional racing driver with pure simulation. From managing your tyre wear to pitstop strategies and dealing with fuel, racing simulators are the most advanced simulation games around.

Racing games also have sub-genres, including:

• Arcade racing games like Mario Kart, Sonic Racing, Crash Team Racing, etc.
• Simulation racing like Need for Speed and Grand Turismo
• Futuristic racing games like F-Zero FX, Wipeout, and Powerdome
• Car chasing and battle games like Twisted Metal, Road Rage, etc.

Strategy Games

Strategy games require using intelligent strategies to complete objectives. Whether it means taking over an enemy camp or playing the Queen’s gambit, strategy games are all about your decisions.

One of the very earliest strategy games includes Chess which dates back to the 6th Century AD! More recently, strategy games include Age Of Empires 3 and StarCraft which take the same premise of mind of matter and modernise the hell out of it. Through this concept, RTS games are some of the most enjoyable titles around given that they require a lot of critical thinking to be one step ahead of your opponent until the end.

Strategy Game Sub Genres List:

Strategy games also include a variety of sub-genres. While the premise of the game remains the same, the variety of strategy games is huge. The most popular strategy video game sub genres include:

• 1. Real Time Strategy (RTS)
• 2. Grand Strategy
• 3. Tower Defence Games
• 4. 4X Games
• 5. Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA)

1. Real-time strategy

Real-time strategy games implement gathering resources, and mining for materials to build your base, produce many soldiers and eventually defeat the enemy camps.

With games such as StarCraft and Age of Empires falling under this category, most strategy games will offer players a variety of ways to win. Whether that’s total dominance and obliteration of your enemy or through faith, wealth and popularity.

This lends the real-time strategy genre to a variety of gamers who have a specific way they wish to go about business. As such, the video game genre is highly popular amongst players of all ages.

2. Grand strategy

Grand strategy games are very similar to real-time strategy games, but even bigger.

The major difference between real-time strategy and grand strategy gaming is that the latter requires more critical thinking and strategic advances when defeating the enemy. Quite a large portion of grand strategy games are actually based on real historical events such as games from the Total War franchise and Europa Uneversalis.

Overall, grand strategy games involve managing the economy, research and technology, military control, and everything that it takes to build a nation and win against its usurpers.

3. Tower Defence Games

Tower defence games feature a simple mechanic, which is to defend your base against enemies and swarms of bogeys.

Games like Plants vs. Zombies is considered tower defence game and you will often find these types of games when mobile gaming too. In essence, the AI will release hundreds or even thousands of enemies at you and it’s up to you to prepare for the onslaught.

You will need to develop an effective strategy to defend your fort at all costs. These games will require you to change your strategies as it plays out; requiring fast reflexes and even faster thinking to get the job done.

4. 4X Games

The 4X gaming genre stands for exploring, expanding, exploiting, and exterminating.

With the same mechanics, you need to explore the land, build and expand your civilization and bring your clan to victory through a variety of means. While technically a real-time strategy game, 4X games have a class of their own because they purely focus on those 4 elements and nothing else.

Funnily enough, the game Civilisation IV is an excellent example of the 4X gaming genre.

5. Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA)

MOBA is another strategy sub-genre that was born from World of Warcraft mods like DotA, which led to mobile games like Mobile Legends, Clash of Clans, and more. These strategy games are quite enjoyable as you can battle against other real players instead of bots.

You will be battling on a map with 4 corners, and score as many points as possible to win. Popular MOBA games include Smite, Defense of the Ancients, Arena of Valor, and Heroes of the Storm to name a few.

Sports & Fitness Games

One of the most enjoyable gaming genres you can play with your friends is sports games.

Typically akin to simulating real-life sports, sports games often allow you to play against real AI using your favourite sports team or characters from popular sports like basketball, football, baseball, golfing games and even extreme sports like snowboarding or skateboarding.

You can very often also play with your friends using one screen or play with both your crew and other random players online.

Sports Game Sub Genres List:

Similar to the real world, sports games also have sub-genres that can be played. The most common sub-genres of sports games include:

• 1. Team Sports
• 2. Extreme Sports
• 3. Combat Sports
• 4. Exercise Games

1. Team Sports

Team sports games include games like NBA 2K, Madden, NBL, FIFA, and more. Although the main goal is to score more points than your opponent, these games offer other game modes, such as career modes where you get to play as an upcoming superstar and other online modes where you can play against another person anywhere around the globe.

2. Extreme Sports

Aside from team sports, you can also play some of the most extreme sports and do what you won’t dare to do in real life. Games like Steep, Skate 3, and Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater are some of the most popular extreme sports titles.

3. Combat Sports

Combat sports are games like UFC, WWE, Fight Night, and other organized blood sports. These games can also be considered fighting games, but since they are official sports leagues in the real world, they also fall under the combat sports gaming sub-genre.

4. Exercise Games

When the Nintendo Wii came out, it was all the rage because of its unique mechanics. You can use the Wii’s remote and its motion-sensing capability, you can play simulation sports, which require you to move physically– which is an excellent way to do physical activity while at home. You can play sports like boxing, tennis, baseball, and even archery.

Fighting Games

Another popular genre is fighting games. These are games that we grew up playing, such as Street Fighter, The King of Fighters, Tekken, Soul Calibur, Mortal Kombat, and much more!

Now, there are more mechanics to these games because of 3D-style fighting games like Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm and Dragon Ball Z games– but the main goal is the same, which is to defeat the enemy by draining their HP before they drain your own.

The fighting game genre has evolved significantly over the years with plenty of new mechanics and less reliance upon button bashing. Instead, modern-day fighting games actually revolve more around strategy than they do raw power or speed.

Platformers

Platformers are some of the best games we ever played growing up. In fact, platformers was the most common gaming genre back in the day too!

With the most popular platformers like Super Mario and Donkey Kong, many platformers came out after their market success. Platform games feature vertical and horizontal environments that will require you to defeat enemies, run and jump through obstacles, and even swim and avoid obstacles.

Because people are challenged and love platformers so much, Super Mario Builder is an excellent game to challenge people even further. This game allows you to build the most challenging courses, and you would be amazed by the users’ platform builds online.

Some modern platform games include more elements from action RPGs, such as the new Prince of Persia games, Tomb Raider, and Uncharted. Some games like Ghost of Tsushima include platform elements as well.

Survival & Horror Games

The survival and horror games gaming genre is not for everyone.

Yet, they are highly popular nonetheless and becoming an increasing frequent feature with new game releases. Especially when game developers blend the two together with games such as Dying Light 2.

Learn More: Read Dying Light 2 Review

Survival and horror games primarily serve you with so much pressure to survive, suspense, and of course; ample levels of gore. The very best horror games are those that perfectly balance these components to deliver an experience like no other.

Most survival and horror games have elements of any action RPG or adventure games combined with survival elements, such as stashing items and weapons with limited ammo for survival. These games are quite challenging as you would have to develop strategies to get out alive with your limited supplies. For everything else, you could always just head straight into pure zombie slaughter games when you’re feeling particularly blood-thirsty!

Some of the most popular survival and horror games include:

• Resident Evil
• Dying Light 2
• Silent Hill
• The Last of Us.

Stealth

Games, where you have to move sneakily to kill an enemy or to accomplish a mission undetected, are called stealth games. Of which, the majority of video game genres that involve killing enemies will have plenty of stealth elements embedded within them.

To qualify as a pure stealth game, the game itself must be simpler to play when using stealth rather than direct combat. Else, the game will most like be an Action Role Playing Game or First Person Shooter.

Some of the most popular titles the stealth video genre presents include:

• Assassin’s Creed
• Metal Gear Solid
• Splinter Cell
• Thief Series.
• Dishonored 1 & 2

Interactive Movie

Interactive movies have been all the rage ever since Bandersnatch from Netflix came out. These games are basically movies where you get to make the decisions for the movie characters that will result in different outcomes. It is kind of like watching a movie and playing a game in one– but mostly, you wouldn’t be doing a lot of playing as you would just have multiple choices of decisions to make and watch how it plays out.

Some examples of interactive movie games include:

• Possibilia
• Five Minutes
• Black Mirror: Bandersnatch
• Chatterbox: Escape The Asylum
• A Week In The Life Of Milly

Puzzlers & Party Games

Puzzle games are for people who find thrill in challenging their brains and putting them to the test. Some of the most popular puzzle games include Candy Crush, Bejeweled, Portal, Tetris, Braid, and many more.

Similarly, party games also often involve puzzles or mini-games to compete against your buddies. Games such as Super Mario Party online are highly popular amongst friends and families as a casual experience to play at the weekends.

However, like most other categories on our gaming genre list, puzzle games also have different sub-genres, such as logical games, coding games, physics games, trial-and-error games, and more.

Puzzle & Party Game Sub Genres List:

Puzzle and party games can also be broken down into sub-genres. The most popular puzzle and party game sub genres include:

• 1, Board Games
• 2, Trivia Games
• 3. Casino Games
• 4. Party Games
• 5. Rhythm Games

1. Board & Card Games

Board games are fun to play with a physical board and even virtually on your console, mobile phone, or PC. If you haven’t played Monopoly on console yet, you’re in for a treat as the traditional game you loved so much as a child has been revamped so much!

Similarly to card games such as Solitaire, you can play some of the most popular board games on your favourite gadgets, such as Scrabble, Chess, Monopoly and many more.

2. Trivia Games

Trivia games are another type of brain scratcher. You can play games like Trivia Crack and fight against other people from around the world. You can either choose general knowledge topics, pop culture, history, science, math, and many more.

3. Casino Games

You can play casino games like Poker, Black Jack, Mahjong, Slots, and more with real money or virtual currency. Although playing with virtual currency is fun already, many people like to play with real money to increase the stakes and suspense.

4. Party Games

Party games involve the participation of 2 or more players where the players fight against each other online or on one screen. Games like Mario Party, Among Us, and Overcooked are some of the best party games.

5. Rhythm Games

Rhythm games are excellent games to pass the time. These games require you to press a button or move based on music– and the goal is to keep in time with the beat. Guitar Hero, Rock Band, Cytus, Beatmania, and Deemo are some of the most popular games that fall under this genre.

13. Social Deduction Games

A social deduction game is a game that you play amongst other real people. You will need to interact with them to uncover each other’s hidden roles or team allegiance. You will need to use logic and deductive reasoning to cross out and deduct the possibility of finding out who is who.

If you have ever played Cluedo, this is a classic example of a traditional social deduction game for families. Today, there are many social deduction games with one of the most popular titles being the infamous Among Us, which is often played by streamers on Twitch.

Other games that can be categorised as social deduction include:

• Town of Salem
• Barotrauma
• Deceit
• Garry’s Mod

Educational Games

Although you could argue that all games are educational, there is a specific gaming genre for educational games for students and the art of gamifying education.

All games within this category are specifically geared towards learning and more often than not, aimed towards early learning. Of which, The Oregon Trail is one of the best educational games as it features different game genre elements combined with learning. It is a game that will put the fun in learning for your children, and younger players will definitely enjoy playing it without realizing they are learning too.

Other games that fall under the educational video game genre include:

• The Flame in the Flood
• Overland
• The Banner Saga
• 80 days.
  

AR Games (Augmented Reality)

Augmented reality games are taking the spotlight right now.

These are games where you can use the real world as a significant element of the game. Games like Pokemon Go is one the most popular AR games in recent times. To play Pokémon Go, you will need to go around the city or neighbourhood to loot Poke Centers, fight gym leaders, and capture Pokemon until you catch them all.

The App Store and Google Store have tons of AR games, especially for newer phone models with lidar capabilities and we expect many more to come in the future. The reality of AR right now is that it’s still within it’s infancy and we’re so looking forward to seeing what’s in store for the future!

Most Popular Video Gaming Genres

Now you’ve come to realise just how deep video game genres go, you’re probably wondering which gaming genres are most popular amongst your age range. While there’s no surprised that FPS games are most popular with younger demographics, you’ll be a little shocked to see just how popular certain types of games are with your age range too!

In a global online survey by Statista during the third quarter of last year which asked certain demographics to vote on their most popular gaming genres, here are the most popular video game genres filtered by age:
–  

Game Genre

16-24 

25-34 

35-44

45-54 

55-64

Shooter
60%
57%
48%
35%
21%

Action Adventure
56%
54%
46%
35%
21%

Simulation
39%
38%
32%
24%
15%

Racing
38%
40%
35%
26%
15%

MOBA
36%
36%
28%
20%
–

Battle Royale
36%
–
–
–
–

Sports
34%
38%
33%
23%
15%

Strategy
34%
36%
31%
22%
15%

Puzzle Platform
33%
36%
34%
27%
23%

Action Platform
31%
33%
28%
20%
13%

Fighting
–
34%
28%
19%

Globally, first person shooter and action adventure games are complete standouts as the most popular video games right now. Due to the depth of publishers, (and the fact they they are just brilliant), it stands to reason that these two would top the charts. For virtually all age groups, online shooter games ranked as the most popular gaming genre with only users aged 55-64 years old preferring puzzle platform games.

While younger demographics (ages 16-24) were the single age group to rank Battle Royale’s as their favourite gaming genre, the spread across age groups and gaming genres are very balanced. For example, both young and old demographics almost equally enjoy genres such as MMOPRGs and Simulations.

Video Gaming Genre List Roundup

So there you have it. Our comprehensive list of all video game genres that you can play right now. If you are anything like we were when writing this list, you’ll be already on your way to hunting down games that fall within a genre you have never really explored.

The beauty of gaming truly lies within the variety of games that are available. From games that really champion the storyline to some of the greatest shooters that are all out bloodfests, there literally is something for everyone; no matter your age!

What’s in store for video game genres as we step into a world of Web 3.0 and virtual reality, who knows. But for now, there’s plenty here for you to choose from and month’s worth of playability right here on our list of gaming genres alone!

What’s your most popular game genre? Drop us a comment below with your favourite gaming genre and a short list of which games within this genre you love so much!

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Gaming Genre FAQs

Questions about video game genres? Here’s a list of the most commonly asked questions we receive about the world’s most popular video game genres:

How many types of video game genres are there?

There are over 30 video game genres when you include sub-genres. While some are more popular than others, players can enjoy over 30 different types of video game genres.

What are the most popular video game genres?

• Shooting Games
• RPG Games
• Action Adventure
• Simulation
• Racing
• MOBA
• Battle Royale
• Sports
• Strategy
• Puzzle Platform

The top 10 most popular video game genres are:

What genre is gaming music?

Gaming music is it’s own genre. Whilst most gaming music is influenced by other musical genres, there are more than enough variations of gaming music for this type of music to be classified as it’s own genre.

What is the difference between game type and game genre?

Although sometimes used interchangeably in the industry, there is a distinct difference between game type and game genre in video games. When discussing game story, we distinguish game type as a description of game play, and game genre as a description of the narrative content of the game.