History UsefulNotes / TheNewTens

** The NFL's officiating, already a touchy topic, turned into a serious issue in the decade. In 2012, NFL referees had gone on strike, which prompted the league to use replacement officials, until the aforementioned "Fail Mary" game. But it soared to new heights of infamy in the 2018-19 NFL playoffs, when both the NFC and AFC Championship Games were affected by questionable officiating. In the NFC Championship Game, a case of pass-interference by the Los Angeles Rams, which should have given the New Orleans Saints an automatic first down, got missed, forcing the Saints to settle for a field goal and go into overtime, which the Rams ended up winning. In the AFC Championship Game, the Kansas City Chiefs were hit with a highly specious pass-interference penalty halfway through the fourth quarter when Chris Jones lightly brushed Tom Brady on the shoulder; the resulting penalty helped the New England Patriots drive for a touchdown to take a 24-21 lead, and also ultimately winning in overtime. These events left many people, [[BerserkButton especially Saints fans]], feeling that neither team deserved to play at Super Bowl LIII. On March 27, 2019, the NFL created new rules allowing head coaches to challenge pass-interference calls on both offense and defense, but some think this still isn't solving the problems with NFL officiating.

*** In general, after the middle of 2010's, the Western video game community has increasingly becoming a lot more sensitive towards any kinds of 'employee mistreatment' scandals (one of the most common examples is when the company dares to include crunch time to develop a game) to which they are very likely to condemn video game companies for it, creating controversies after controversies to which any video game companies in the West are more than likely to be condemned to experience a downfall or 'fall from grace', no matter how respected they were before; aside of Blizzard and Konami above (with Konami being [[TokenMinority the sole Japanese company]] considered 'fallen') or the usual suspect Creator/ElectronicArts, occasional targets of this controversies usually include the likes of Creator/{{Bethesda}} or Creator/{{Ubisoft}} or Creator/{{Activision}} (coincidentally, Activision also caught flak with the controversies of Blizzard due to their 2008 merger and Activision being thought to be the ones calling the shots overall). Meanwhile, the Japanese and Asian side, due to ValuesDissonance, do not make an utterly big deal about these things (and in fact, Japan's increasing awareness of the dangers of 'karoshi' caused the government to mark some of their notorious big name companies to do so as 'Black Company' as a warning for job hunters to avoid such fate... and Konami was either not considered one or didn't even reach the top 10 Black Companies)

* On the other side, Creator/DreamworksAnimation's reputation improved with more story-driven, less-jokey efforts beginning with ''WesternAnimation/KungFuPanda'' in 2008 and ''WesternAnimation/HowToTrainYourDragon'' in 2010, however the studio's movies became increasingly intellectual and/or cloying since then, hurting its financial position to the point it almost went bankrupt after a series of failures (Pacific Data was closed in December 2014). DW returned to the old formula with 2015's ''WesternAnimation/{{Home}}'', which became a major commercial hit, as it happened to ''WesternAnimation/KungFuPanda3'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheBossBaby''. The studio itself was purchased by Creator/{{Universal}} for 3.8 billion dollars and they will start distributing their films in 2018. Jeffrey Katzenberg will no longer have control of the studio once the purchase is complete (he will stay at the company as head of Dreamworks New Media). Instead, control will be overseen by Illumination CEO Chris Meledandri.

** The issue came to a head in 2017, when game-changing loot boxes were included in ''{{VideoGame/Star Wars Battlefront II|2017}}'' despite it, like previous examples listed here, already being a full-price AAA title. The backlash against this was so severe that even the mainstream news media outlets had picked up on it, which had the knock-on effect of '''''various World Governments''''' to begin investigating whether loot boxes violated gambling laws. In April 2018, The Belgium Gaming Commission made a ruling that loot boxes are considered gambling and thus effectively banned in Belgium under their gambling laws. As a result many of major video games modified their games that barred microtransactions in Belgium to comply with their gambling laws. Similarly, the Dutch Gaming Authority made a similar ruling effectively banning loot boxes in video games. The United Kingdom also started to query the matter, and after questioning [=EA=] about the systems in Parliament, which led to [=EA=] claiming [[BlatantLies that they call them "surprise mechanics"]] (which went down as well as one might expect), and after opening the query up to the public for feedback, the ''sheer number'' of responses condemning [=EA's=] words and attempted stonewalling got politicians agreeing that, on September 2019, Lootboxes should be regulated like gambling, justifying the decision in this [[https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201719/cmselect/cmcumeds/1846/184606.htm House of Commons Report]] by pointing out that while the actual mental effects of Lootboxes haven't been fully conclusive, the amount of horror stories of kids draining their parents' bank accounts by accident making the news on such a regular basis led them to act on that alone. The report ends with Parliament strongly suggesting in-game measures being put in place in games in the near future.

** The confluence of the #MeToo movement, the aforementioned stricter MPAA guidelines, the move towards big blockbusters, and the general cultural movement away from sex have resulted in nearly all nudity, sexual content and eroticism disappearing from films receiving wide release (being mostly the domain of the odd foreign or arthouse film). Many journalists have written thinkpieces about how modern film is the most [[TamerAndChaster desexualized]] it has been since the demise of UsefulNotes/TheHaysCode in the 1960's.

** By 2015, mobile gaming started to pick up its pace after its decline, using the MOBA as one of its main genre, owing to the popularity of ''both'' ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' and ''VideoGame/{{Dota 2}}'', especially in China. While the mobile MOBA scene started with ''VideoGame/{{Vainglory}} and its touch screen controls, Creator/TencentGames, fresh after buying out Riot Games, had the idea of a MOBA with analog controls and asked Riot Games to port ''League'' to mobile with that format. Riot ''rejected'' the notion, they thought ItWillNeverCatchOn. In the wake of this, Tencent decided to just [[StartMyOwn make their own]] with the help of its subsidiary [=TiMi=] Games, modifying the engines of ''League of Legends'' to fit its vision in mobile format, resulting ''VideoGame/HonorOfKings'', a game that contains extremely heavy Chinese elements, with characters from Chinese history, folklore and mythology (and a few outside). They then internationally ported it as ''VideoGame/ArenaOfValor''. And with their direction, both games took the mobile gaming scene by storm, with many impressed that mobile gaming could go that far. And ultimately, it eventually convinced Riot, despite being late to the party, to finally port ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' into mobile format as ''Wild Rift'' in the next decade.

** Even mobile gaming gets on the MOBA scene with games such as ''VideoGame/{{Vainglory}}'', though that later spiraled out to another beast. Thing is, Vainglory used a traditional MOBA control scheme with touch screen. This was proven to be a decent carryover from normal MOBA to mobile MOBA. But around mid-late of the era, Chinese company Tencent Games (which has bought out Riot Games) unleashed ''VideoGame/ArenaOfValor'', an internationalized version of their local MOBA ''Wangzhe Rongyao'' (translated as ''Honor of Kings'' or ''Kings of Glory''), which provided a pseudo directional pad for MOBA movement and simplified their attack/skill system to facilitate the mobile platform better. While Vainglory still held the throne of mobile MOBA dominance in the west, AOV proved to be a great success in the Asian market (WZRY itself became the top selling mobile game in China); this is also taking factors that WZRY is very Chinese; including characters from Chinese history, folklore and mythology; the international AOV used a Western design while also throwing in characters from the Franchise/DCComics (such as Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman) to appeal to the west. This also sprung in some [[FollowTheLeader 'copycats']], one of them that proved to be a success despite the 'cloning' stigma (and lost lawsuit case) is ''Mobile Legends: Bang Bang''

*** In general, after the middle of 2010's, the Western video game community has increasingly becoming a lot more sensitive towards any kinds of 'employee mistreatment' scandals (one of the most common examples is when the company dares to include crunch time to develop a game) to which they are very likely to condemn video game companies for it, creating controversies after controversies to which any video game companies in the West are more than likely to be condemned to experience a downfall or 'fall from grace', no matter how respected they were before; aside of Blizzard and Konami above (with Konami being [[TokenMinority the sole Japanese company]] considered 'fallen') or the usual suspect Creator/ElectronicArts, occasional targets of this controversies usually include the likes of Creator/{{Bethesda}} or Creator/{{Ubisoft}} or Creator/{{Activision}} (coincidentally, Activision also caught flak with the controversies of Blizzard due to their 2008 merger and Activision being thought to be the ones calling the shots overall).

* But DarkerAndEdgier works also took advantage of the environment: The last ''Film/HarryPotter'' films were noted for being much darker than their source novels, at the same time the {{dystopia}}n ''Literature/TheHungerGames'' and ''Literature/{{Divergent}}'' series replaced vampires and the supernatural as the headliners of YoungAdultLiterature. Some video games (''VideoGame/ModernWarfare'', ''VideoGame/WatchDogs'', ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV'') and TV shows (''Series/BreakingBad'', ''Series/MadMen'', ''Series/BoardwalkEmpire'', ''Series/GameOfThrones'', ''Series/HouseOfCardsUS'', ''Series/{{Homeland}}'', ''Series/TheWalkingDead'') have become notorious for their lack of sympathetic characters or good outcomes. Even fairy tales have gone gritty with such films as ''Film/SnowWhiteAndTheHuntsman'' and ''Film/HanselAndGretelWitchHunters'', two DarkerAndEdgier retellings, while ''Film/DjangoUnchained'' and ''Film/ZeroDarkThirty'' have denounced the [[PoliticalCorrectnessGoneMad inherent climate of political correctness]]. A few reboots have focused on grit in response as well.

* {{Hipster}}-influenced clothing came in vogue in this decade. Ironic glasses, knit caps, scarves, plaid shirts, vintage prints, [[YouGottaHaveBlueHair wacky dyed hair]], obscure and incomprehensible tattoos, just to name a few, stepped to the catwalk.

* 2017 was seen as a renaissance for Japanese video game development and their reception in the West, which coincided with the above stronger interest in japanese media as noted in the anime and manga section above. ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil7'' gained back a major level of prestige amongst fans that were seeing a sharp decline in the franchise's quality over the previous half of the decade, which hit a nadir with ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil6'' and ''VideoGame/ResidentEvilOperationRaccoonCity'', with the 7th given praise as the best in the franchise since the [[VideoGame/ResidentEvil4 the fourth game]]. ''VideoGame/Yakuza0'' and the later released ''VideoGame/YakuzaKiwami'' led to a NewbieBoom for the franchise, having the best sales for the series in the west in its history. ''VideoGame/TalesOfBerseria'' was critically acclaimed as the best in the series since ''VideoGame/TalesOfVesperia'' after a string of many dissapointments amongst the fans. ''VideoGame/{{Nioh}}'', a [[Creator/KoeiTecmo Team Ninja]]-developed project that was infamously stuck in DevelopmentHell since 2004 finally released to a high universal claim as well, garnering the best western sales in the history of Team Ninja's career. ''VideoGame/NierAutomata'' not only managed to make [[Creator/TaroYoko Yoko Taro]] as household name with gamers, but saved Creator/PlatinumGames from the brink of collapse after several bad licensed titles with Activision and the tragic cancellation of ''VideoGame/{{Scalebound}}'' earlier that year. ''VideoGame/Persona5'' became the best selling game from Creator/{{Atlus}} in the company's history, and managed to make an already successful ranchise even more mainstream as a result. The biggest winner, however, was Creator/{{Nintendo}}, whose release of the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch was met with universal acclaim, with ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' being seen as one of the best launch titles in console history, ''VideoGame/Splatoon2'' cementing the ''Splatoon'' IP as one of the company's most lucrative properties, the unanimously well received ''VideoGame/SuperMarioOdyssey'' being further proof that Nintendo's dark days with the UsefulNotes/WiiU were over, and ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles2'' giving Creator/MonolithSoft their big break after years of making [[AcclaimedFlop acclaimed but underperforming games]]. These trends for well recieved and commercially successful japanese games continued into 2018, with titles like ''VideoGame/DragonBallFighterZ'', ''VideoGame/MonsterHunterWorld'', and the remake of ''VideoGame/ShadowOfTheColossus'' among others showed that Japanese gaming has made a true comeback. [[https://youtu.be/_j6ZHkg5BtE This video in particular]] explains this phenomenon. 2019 has only seen this train of success continuing, with ''VideoGame/SekiroShadowsDieTwice'', ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil2Remake'', and ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThreeHouses'' all being acclaimed by audiences and critics, while the successes of ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry5'' and ''VideoGame/AstralChain'' marked a resurgence for the StylishAction genre.

* After seeing a slump during the [[TurnOfTheMillennium latter half of the previous decade]] (with ''WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerb'' being the sole highlight of the period), animated cartoons on TV have taken a noticeable upswing in acclaim and popularity, with shows like ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime'', ''WesternAnimation/RegularShow'', ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'', ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'', ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'', ''WesternAnimation/TheLoudHouse'', and ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'' (the sequel series to ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'') getting critical acclaim and huge fanbases, and Creator/CartoonNetwork is making a comeback after the [[NetworkDecay CN Real]] debacle, not just with some of the aforementioned shows, but also bringing back ''Creator/{{Toonami}}'', which embodied the resurgence of anime among Western audiences. That said, there have still been plenty of series that fared poorly with critics and audiences.

* Rocky Mountain Construction (commonly known as RMC) took the coaster world by storm with their innovative I-Box track in 2011. I-Box allows parks to convert aging wooden roller coasters into extreme wood and steel hybrid coasters featuring inversions and vertical drops, all for a fraction of the cost of a brand new coaster. Ninteen RMC coasters opened during the decade, with their 2018 project Steel Vengeance at Cedar Point widely considered the best roller coaster in the world.

* Rocky Mountain Construction (commonly known as RMC) took the coaster world by storm with their innovative I-Box track in 2011. I-Box allows parks to convert aging wooden roller coasters into extreme wood and steel hybrid coasters featuring inversions and vertical drops, all for a fraction of the cost of a brand new coaster. Ninteen RMC coasters opened during the decade, with their 2018 project Steel Vengeance at Cedar Point widely considered the best roller coaster in the world.

* [[IndieGame Indie gaming]] has garnered widespread popularity due in thanks to the proliferation of the internet, given most of these are [[UsefulNotes/DigitalDistribution distributed online]] and a majority of the industry's revenue comes from downloads, as with thatgamecompany's ''VideoGame/{{Flower}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Journey}}'', initially available on the UsefulNotes/PlayStationNetwork to strong digital sales and critical acclaim and, along with ''flOw'', [[LimitedSpecialCollectorsUltimateEdition eventually rereleased on a one-BluRay disc compilation titled]] ''[[LimitedSpecialCollectorsUltimateEdition Journey Collector's Edition]]''. Creator/{{Sony}} and Creator/{{Nintendo}} show interest in indie video game developers, including thatgamecompany. Indie games, initially known in shareware circles during the 1990s, became increasingly profitable after the late 2000s saw numerous critically praised titles such as ''VideoGame/{{Braid}}''. They came to be characterized as relying on innovative gameplay mechanics and unusual art styles. ''VideoGame/{{Monaco}}'', ''VideoGame/{{Fez}}'', ''VideoGame/PapersPlease'', ''VideoGame/OuterWilds'', ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'', and ''VideoGame/{{Cuphead}}'' won plenty of positive reviews and decent sales for such approaches, but a growing number of developers have also created horror games including ''VideoGame/AmnesiaTheDarkDescent''. By far the most successful of these games is the [[JustOneMoreLevel notorious(ly addictive)]] ''VideoGame/{{Minecraft}}'' created by a Swedish programmer named Markus "Notch" Persson. It uses pixellated graphics, the point is [[WideOpenSandbox you mine blocks and build any imaginable thing out of them]], and you have to defend yourself from hostile monsters by not just finding supplies, but using a shelter made from scratch. It even has been constantly updated by Mojang who ported it to iOS, UsefulNotes/Xbox360, Wii U, and the Google Android. Other notable indie games include the aforementioned ''VideoGame/AngryBirds'' series, ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'', and a pair of unlikely 2014 sleeper hits in ''VideoGame/FlappyBird'' and ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys''.

* [[IndieGame Indie gaming]] has garnered widespread popularity due in thanks to the proliferation of the internet, given most of these are [[UsefulNotes/DigitalDistribution distributed online]] and a majority of the industry's revenue comes from downloads, as with thatgamecompany's ''VideoGame/{{Flower}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Journey}}'', initially available on the UsefulNotes/PlayStationNetwork to strong digital sales and critical acclaim and, along with ''flOw'', [[LimitedSpecialCollectorsUltimateEdition eventually rereleased on a one-BluRay disc compilation titled]] ''[[LimitedSpecialCollectorsUltimateEdition Journey Collector's Edition]]''. Creator/{{Sony}} and Creator/{{Nintendo}} show interest in indie video game developers, including thatgamecompany. Indie games, initially known in shareware circles during the 1990s, became increasingly profitable after the late 2000s saw numerous critically praised titles such as ''VideoGame/{{Braid}}''. They came to be characterized as relying on innovative gameplay mechanics and unusual art styles. ''VideoGame/{{Monaco}}'', ''VideoGame/{{Fez}}'', ''VideoGame/PapersPlease'', ''Outer Wilds'', ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'', and ''VideoGame/{{Cuphead}}'' won plenty of positive reviews and decent sales for such approaches, but a growing number of developers have also created horror games including ''VideoGame/AmnesiaTheDarkDescent''. By far the most successful of these games is the [[JustOneMoreLevel notorious(ly addictive)]] ''VideoGame/{{Minecraft}}'' created by a Swedish programmer named Markus "Notch" Persson. It uses pixellated graphics, the point is [[WideOpenSandbox you mine blocks and build any imaginable thing out of them]], and you have to defend yourself from hostile monsters by not just finding supplies, but using a shelter made from scratch. It even has been constantly updated by Mojang who ported it to iOS, UsefulNotes/Xbox360, Wii U, and the Google Android. Other notable indie games include the aforementioned ''VideoGame/AngryBirds'' series, ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'', and a pair of unlikely 2014 sleeper hits in ''VideoGame/FlappyBird'' and ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys''.

** Starting in 2010, following the [[NetworkDecay CN Real]] [[DorkAge era]], Creator/CartoonNetwork started airing more TV-PG shows such as ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime'', ''WesternAnimation/RegularShow'', and ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'', all three of which were enjoyed not only by older kids, but people who were kids in TheNineties (now college-age or just past it) and TheEighties (now full-grown adults). "Tamer" shows such as ''The Amazing World of Gumball'' and ''We Bare Bears'' have become successful. At the same time, the network launched reboots of ''[[WesternAnimation/{{Thundercats 2011}} ThunderCats]]'', ''Teen Titans'', ''The PowerpuffGirls'' and ''Ben 10''.

** The revival of Creator/{{Toonami}} deserves special mention. An anime and action cartoon [[UsefulNotes/BlockProgramming block]] on Creator/CartoonNetwork whose efforts lead to the last anime boom, it eventually saw its end when the [[NetworkDecay CN Real]] [[DorkAge era]] became prominent[[note]]It could be said that the decline and fall of Toonami was a major cause for the end of the last anime boom, as there was no viable platform for anime of its scope that was able to replace it until its eventual revival[[/note]]. But on AprilFoolsDay 2012, viewers tuned into Creator/AdultSwim expecting to see ''Film/TheRoom'' again -- but instead saw the beloved anime block returning for one night - then after a huge Website/{{Twitter}} [[http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/bring-back-toonami campaign]] by anime fans, permanently on May 26. Out of the gate, it's done its part to help revive anime in the west, as it has cemented such hits as ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'', and ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'' as well as the shows mentioned on this tab, and even turned ''Manga/DeadmanWonderland'' - a program that tanked badly in Japan[[note]]some saying as a result of the above mentioned moe/otaku pandering boom[[/note]] - into a hit with a bonafide fanbase. The block has even rescued shows that were [[ScrewedByTheNetwork screwed by the parent network]] such as the reboot of ''[[WesternAnimation/{{Thundercats 2011}} ThunderCats]]'' and ''WesternAnimation/SymBionicTitan'', though time will tell if either or both shows will eventually see continuation. And perhaps because of this success, they've even gotten the privilege of showing ''Anime/SpaceDandy'' at the same time it is being broadcasted in Japan.

* Depending on who you ask, horror cinema has either undergone a new renaissance or is stuck in a DorkAge. Whereas the previous decade was defined primarily by TorturePorn movies, J-horror remakes, and remakes/reboots of horror franchises from the 1970s and '80s, this one has seen a slew of low-key FoundFootage movies (chiefly in the first half of the decade) and teen-oriented flicks that consist largely of {{Jump Scare}}s. While some of these films have received critical acclaim (most notably the works of Creator/JamesWan, who is considered by some to be this generation's answer to Creator/JohnCarpenter), most have been dismissed by critics who view them as being manufactured, hollow films that fail to leave any sort of lasting impression. On the other hand, the past few years have seen a plethora of smaller, auteur-driven indie horror films such as ''Film/ItFollows'', ''Film/TheBabadook'', ''Film/{{Get Out|2017}}'', ''Film/TheBlackcoatsDaughter'', and ''Film/TheWitch'', all of which have received acclaim for emphasizing smart writing and creepy atmospheres over cheap scare tactics, also capitalizing on a climate of apparent general hysteria not only hitting paydirt, but also making critics notice a genre long snubbed by critical and academic circles. Many of the most commercially successful horror films in this decade came from Creator/BlumhouseProductions, who were able to produce a number of [[Film/ParanormalActivity successful]] [[Film/{{Insidious}} horror]] [[Film/ThePurge franchises]] with most of the films having a rather low budget. The [[Film/It2017 2017 adaptation]] of the Creator/StephenKing novel ''Literature/{{It}}'' became the highest-grossing horror film as well as the third highest grossing R-rated film of all time, while ''Film/BlackSwan'' and ''Film/GetOut2017'' both received Best Picture nominations at the Oscars, a rare feat for the genre.

* The decade was an ''interesting'' one for some veteran companies, with some managing to bounce back from a rocky position and WinBackTheCrowd, and others [[DorkAge entering a downward spiral of bad publicity, losing the goodwill of their fandom]]. Here are some examples:

* Creator/IlluminationEntertainment and Universal's ''WesternAnimation/DespicableMe'' series have also charmed mass audiences, crowding the market even more alongside Warner Bros. Animation Group (''WesternAnimation/TheLegoMovie''), Laika Animation (''WesternAnimation/ParaNorman'') and Creator/IndustrialLightAndMagic[=/=]Paramount Animation (''WesternAnimation/{{Rango}}''). CGI films' international popularity even made titles that weren't huge hits in North America, such as ''WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfTintin'' and the continuing ''WesternAnimation/IceAge'' franchise, into blockbusters -- a sign of the increasing importance of foreign audiences to Hollywood.

** Eastern video games (especially in regards to the {{JRPG}}) have fallen deeply, as the most recent offerings by Creator/SquareEnix, such as ''VideoGame/{{Mindjack}}'' and ''VideoGame/LordOfArcana'', failed to impress a Western gaming community that has written them off, and ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' suffered its greatest failure to date with [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV its fourteenth installment]] (though [[[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXV the following installment]] was heralded as a return to form, and Square-Enix took the criticisms at heart to re-launch the fourteenth installments as slow and steady improvement). While Idea Factory and [[Creator/NipponIchi]] have tried to pick up the slack, they weren't well-received, with the growing differences between Japanese and Western tastes in gaming often cited as an explanation. This is in addition to sites like Polygon and Kotaku publishing articles with an anti-Japan bias, though these have mellowed down over time as other games were well-received. Still, this inadvertently had a chilling effect on games being brought over from Japan, ranging from refusal to localize certain games like ''VideoGame/DeadOrAliveExtremeBeachVolleyball3'' and ''VideoGame/OmegaLabyrinthZ'' to censorship of fanservice content. However, just like anime, Japanese video games are still a formidable force due in part to the resurgence of the {{Fighting Game}} with titles like ''VideoGame/BlazBlue'', as well as the arrival of Nintendo's UsefulNotes/WiiU in 2012 and Sony's UsefulNotes/{{Playstation 4}} later in 2013. While the Wii U did poorly at first, it soon made its mark with a string of strong hit games, and the [=PS4=] has been doing even better. However, the effort is muddled with frustrating issues such as increased censorship of newer [=PS4=] games has proven to have been met with a harsh reception.

** Beginning at the second half of the decade, a small but increasing number of young women have shaved their heads, either partially or [[BaldWomen entirely]], mostly as a reaction to societal conventions about female hair, bar from a number of cases done to support high-profile cases of cancer.

*** In general, after the middle of 2010's, the Western video game community has increasingly becoming a lot more sensitive towards any kinds of 'employee mistreatment' scandals (one of the most common examples is when the company dares to include crunch time to develop a game) to which they are very likely to condemn video game companies for it, creating controversies after controversies to which any video game companies in the West are more than likely to be condemned to experience a downfall or 'fall from grace', no matter how respected they were before; aside of Blizzard and Konami above (with Konami being [[TokenMinority the sole Japanese company]] considered 'fallen') or the usual suspect Creator/ElectronicArts, occasional targets of this controversies usually include the likes of Creator/{{Bethesda}} or Creator/{{Ubisoft}} or Creator/{{Activision}} (coincidentally, Activision also caught flak with the controversies of Blizzard due to their 2008 merger and Activision being thought to be the ones calling the shots overall). For good or bad, [[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment this ain't the place to talk further about it.]]

** It looks like electric cars being commonplace will still be an issue that there is much of a BrokenBase about, especially the FandomHeresy that not ''everywhere'' in the world can support them. This also includes tweets by certain celebrities about the recent 2030/2040 gasoline/diesel bans. However, due to the subjective nature of the topic, [[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment that's all that can really be said on the matter without getting into the intricacies of the complex issues surrounding gasoline/diesel bans and electric cars]].

*** Creator/BlizzardEntertainment, once an iconic and universally loved figure, has started to develop cracks in its image. Aggressive pushes on the e-sports scene appear to have caused the company's focus to become split, and some of its [=IPs=] appeared to stagnate at points, with ''[[VideoGame/HearthstoneHeroesOfWarcraft Hearthstone]]'' and ''VideoGame/HeroesOfTheStorm'' experiencing intervals of little forward development. They also attracted scorn for their forays into mobile games, most notably the infamous ''VideoGame/DiabloImmortal'' reveal at [=Blizzcon 2018=], which didn't sit well with their western player base, who saw this as an abandonment of their established and devoted audience in favour of easy revenue from Asian mobile markets. However, their single most damning moment was an incident with ''Hearthstone'' esports player "Blitzchung", who was immediately banned from a tournament and harshly punished after expressing support for the 2019-20 Hong Kong protests during an interview, along with stream casters who were broadcasting his words. The company's actions quickly garnered attention, and were soon subject to heavy criticism from the public: objections to what was seen as transparent appeasement of Chinese business relations sprouted from many third parties, with several US Congressmen signing a letter of admonishment to Blizzard, and boycotts being called among the gaming community. These events had a lasting effect on the company's reputation, closing the decade at a low point in public perception. Adding a final insult to the injury, the January 2020 remake of one of its classics, ''VideoGame/{{Warcraft}} III: Reforged'', garnered an overwhelmingly negative response[[note]]It is [[ObviousBeta a bug-ridden mess]], lacks features both [[NeverTrustATrailer from its trailer in 2018]] and from the original game, the EULA was updated from the original to give Blizzard exclusive ownership over any and all user-created content (a response to the ''WCIII'' mod ''[[VideoGame/DefenseOfTheAncients DotA]]'' becoming popular enough to become its own separate franchise, which Blizzard didn't have full ownership of due to it originally being a user-created mod), and the original has been merged with the remake, forcing those who already owned the original to contend with the unwelcome changes, to ensure the EULA update can't be sidestepped (keep in mind, the original was released in 2002, and its classic status ensured it retained a devoted fanbase for just over seventeen years before it was merged with the disastrous remake)[[/note]]. P.S: It gets worse for the 2020's.

*** In general, after the middle of 2010's, the Western video game community has increasingly becoming a lot more sensitive towards any kinds of 'employee mistreatment' scandals (one of the most common examples is when the company dares to include crunch time to develop a game) to which they are very likely to condemn video game companies for it, creating controversies after controversies to which any video game companies in the West are more than likely to be condemned to experience a downfall or 'fall from grace', no matter how respected they were before; aside of Blizzard and Konami above or the usual suspect Creator/ElectronicArts, occasional targets of this controversies usually include the likes of Creator/{{Bethesda}} or Creator/{{Ubisoft}} or Creator/{{Activision}} (coincidentally, Activision also caught flak with the controversies of Blizzard due to their 2008 merger and Activision being thought to be the ones calling the shots overall). For good or bad, [[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment this ain't the place to talk further about it.]]

*** HistoryRepeats on Creator/SquareEnix. Their second MMORPG, ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'', released at 2010 and hyped to defeat [[VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft Blizzard's juggernaut MMO]], was released in such a messy state that it costed them so much, putting them in the same place before the merging of Squaresoft and Enix (with ''Anime/FinalFantasyTheSpiritsWithin'') or before ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyI'' was ever released: The company was in a red state. Eventually, Square-Enix pulled the plug of the game by creating a stunningly impressive cutscene that marks the EndOfAnEra and being immersive about it for the remaining players, and then a year later, released ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV: A Realm Reborn'', which addressed ''everything'' about the game, allowing them to recover the damage they did and at least allowed them to release ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXV'' instead of getting the whole franchise killed. This turns out to be a long game: ''FFXIV: A Realm Reborn'' and the dedication for it (many thanks to the director Creator/NaokiYoshida) managed to recover whatever great damage the vanilla version caused and coinciding with Blizzard's more erratic actions (see above), its slow-and-steady approach managed to make their game winning praises everywhere and look poised to take the '#1 MMORPG' spot and fulfilling its mission at last, and also restoring a majority of trust in Square-Enix, and as a bonus, the early release at 2020 for ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIIRemake'' was met with resounding success and praise (as opposed to Blizzard's debacle with the remake of their classic above which was released early in 2020), showing how AAA games are done. If there's anything Square-Enix showed themselves to be good at in this decade, it's that while first impression is very important, what matters ''more'' is how one is willing to admit their mess ups and improve from criticism, even from a rock bottom position.

* Crossovers and GuestFighter concept within video games has became MUCH more common in the latter years of this era. The first phenomenon of this is most probably ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros Brawl'', which included not just Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog, but also [[Franchise/MetalGear Solid Snake]] into the roster. The next Smash Bros game went above that, bringing back Sonic and also adding Franchise/MegaMan, VideoGame/PacMan, [[Franchise/StreetFighter Ryu]], [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII Cloud Strife]] and VideoGame/{{Bayonetta}}. Afterwards, adding GuestFighter from another company in one game became a lot more common and outlandish choices started popping up more. For instance, ''VideoGame/{{Tekken}} 7'' features [[Franchise/StreetFighter Akuma]], [[VideoGame/FatalFury Geese Howard]], [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXV Noctis Lucis Caelum]] and [[VideoGame/TheWalkingDead Negan]]; ''VideoGame/Injustice2'' features the Franchise/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles, ''VideoGame/FightingEXLayer'' featured ''[[VideoGame/FatalFury Terry]] [[VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters Bogard]]'', ''[[VideoGame/DeadOrAlive Dead or Alive 5]]'' bringing in four ''VideoGame/VirtuaFighter'' characters, two more ''VideoGame/NinjaGaiden'' characters to join ''NG'' protagonist and ''[=DoA=]'' mainstay Ryu Hayabusa, plus [[VideoGame/SamuraiWarriors Naotora]] and [[VideoGame/FatalFury Mai]] [[VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters Shiranui]] as DLC, ''DoA 6'' bringing back the ''Ninja Gaiden'' characters and Mai while introducing the latter's fellow ''KoF'' fighter Kula Diamond, and several collaboration projects by gacha games (example: [[LightNovel/TheGardenOfSinners Ryougi Shiki]] appearing in ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'' [[note]]The character is written by the same author responsible for the Fate series[[/note]], ''Series/KyoryuSentaiZyuranger'' and ''Series/SpaceSheriffGavan'' appearing in ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsXOmega'', [[VideoGame/NierAutomata 2B and 9S]] appearing in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyBraveExvius'', and later joined with A2 in ''VideoGame/StarOceanAnamnesis'', while 2B herself would appear alongside [[VideoGame/TheWitcher Geralt of Rivia]] and [[VideoGame/SamuraiShodown Haohmaru]] in ''VideoGame/SoulCaliburVI'' (after [[VideoGame/AssassinsCreedII Ezio Auditore]] appeared in [[VideoGame/SoulCaliburV its predecessor]]), [[Characters/GranblueFantasyEventCharacters a lot of event characters from many other series within Granblue Fantasy, a game that started out as an original setting...]] This is topped with ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'' bringing all of the guest fighters from ''Brawl'' and ''4'' as part of its "[[TheBusCameBack Everyone is Here]]" theme, while also adding Simon and Richter Belmont from ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'' and [[Franchise/StreetFighter Ryu's longtime]] MovesetClone [[Franchise/StreetFighter Ken Masters]], and even more so with the DLC roster bringing in the protagonist of ''VideoGame/{{Persona 5}}'', several from ''VideoGame/DragonQuest'', the return of [[VideoGame/BanjoKazooie Banjo and Kazooie]] to Nintendo consoles, and another guest appearance for Terry Bogard). And beyond the base roster, franchises like ''VideoGame/{{Bomberman}}'', ''VideoGame/VirtuaFighter'', and ''VideoGame/MonsterHunter'' have all been given recognition through [[AssistCharacter Assist Trophies]], and indie icons like [[VideoGame/{{Undertale}} Sans]] and VideoGame/{{Cuphead}} have appeared as Mii Costumes through DLC.

*** Creator/BlizzardEntertainment, once an iconic and universally loved figure, has started to develop cracks in its image. Aggressive pushes on the e-sports scene appear to have caused the company's focus to become split, and some of its [=IPs=] appeared to stagnate at points, with ''[[VideoGame/HearthstoneHeroesOfWarcraft Hearthstone]]'' and ''VideoGame/HeroesOfTheStorm'' experiencing intervals of little forward development. They also attracted scorn for their forays into mobile games, most notably the infamous ''VideoGame/DiabloImmortal'' reveal at [=Blizzcon 2018=], which didn't sit well with their western player base, who saw this as an abandonment of their established and devoted audience in favour of easy revenue from Asian mobile markets. However, their single most damning moment was an incident with ''Hearthstone'' esports player "Blitzchung", who was immediately banned from a tournament and harshly punished after expressing support for the 2019-20 Hong Kong protests during an interview, along with stream casters who were broadcasting his words. The company's actions quickly garnered attention, and were soon subject to heavy criticism from the public: objections to what was seen as transparent appeasement of Chinese business relations sprouted from many third parties, with several US Congressmen signing a letter of admonishment to Blizzard, and boycotts being called among the gaming community. These events had a lasting effect on the company's reputation, closing the decade at a low point in public perception. Adding a final insult to the injury, the January 2020 remake of one of its classics, ''VideoGame/{{Warcraft}} III: Reforged'', garnered an overwhelmingly negative response[[note]]It is [[ObviousBeta a bug-ridden mess]], lacks features both [[NeverTrustATrailer from its trailer in 2018]] and from the original game, the EULA was updated from the original to give Blizzard exclusive ownership over any and all user-created content (a response to the ''WCIII'' mod ''[[VideoGame/DefenseOfTheAncients DotA]]'' becoming popular enough to become its own separate franchise, which Blizzard didn't have full ownership of due to it originally being a user-created mod), and the original has been merged with the remake, forcing those who already owned the original to contend with the unwelcome changes, to ensure the EULA update can't be sidestepped (keep in mind, the original was released in 2002, and its classic status ensured it retained a devoted fanbase for just over seventeen years before it was merged with the disastrous remake)[[/note]].

** [[WesternAnimation/ToyStory Toy Story Land]], which initially opened in the Hong Kong park in 2011, had been added to the Shanghai and Hollywood Studios park in 2018.