As the gaming industry has evolved and changed, it has become apparent that one of the best ways to keep players engaged is to ensure they have a constant stream of content to enjoy. This can be done through consistent free updates like the onesseen inAnimal Crossing: New Horizons, DLC, or even through working with other IPs or brands. Crossovers and collaborations have grown in frequency over the last few years, and 2021 was no exception.
Companies teaming up to allow fans to enjoy both IPs at once has become almost commonplace. Some games,such asFortnite, almost make a market off of collaborations with just about anything it can crossover with feasibly. While other games may not use these special events to make a name for themselves, even the most unlikely of games and brands can shake hands and provide something unique to their supporters together. There were plenty of titles that worked together this year to bring a unique experience to new and mutual fans, and looking back at them paints an exciting future for what might come next year. Here are the best collaborations and crossover of the year, in no particular order.
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Kingdom Hearts x Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
For many years, tons of gamers were split on the idea of Sora fromKingdom Heartsever making his way intoSuper Smash Bros.Where some fans held onto hope, others were certain that copyright and legality restraints would make this a crossover that would never come to pass. Against all of the odds, however,Sora was confirmed to be the last DLC fighter forSmash Bros. Ultimate.
This crossover lets so many incredible fighters fromSuper Smash Bros.interact with Sora, something that may feel like a dream as fans watch Mario, Sonic, Pac-Man, and Sora all duke it out when playing with their friends. With a stage, plenty of great music, and spirits added to the game alongside the Keyblade wielder, the DLC is perfect for almost everyKingdom Heartsfan.How Sora got intoSmashis almost just as incredible as the crossover itself, as it only happened due to a chance meeting at an industry event.
Monster Hunter Rise x Mega Man
Monster Hunteris a series that has kept fans engaged by including other IPs for years, such as the limited-timeMonster Hunter WorldAssassin’s Creedcollaboration questsand more.Monster Hunter Risecontinues this tradition, and one collab mission made a dream for manyMega Manfans come true. The special event mission featuring the 33-year-old franchise starred Rush, Mega Man’s faithful companion as unique layered Palamute armor.
This allowed those willing to kill a few Zinogre to get the reward of having Rush in place of their Palamute companion.He comes complete with Rush Coil, a special bark, and more unique animations to make it, soMega Manfans can finally take Rush with them on all sorts of adventures. This collaboration marked the very first time Rush had ever been a companion to players in such a way, and in that sense, it sits at a very special place in many fans' hearts.
Even though the climate of the gaming industry has changed somewhat, indie games sometimes still find it difficult to reach the same success as their AAA counterparts. WhileSans fromUndertalemay have made it toSuper Smash Bros., the opportunities for indie titles to have crossovers to that degree are few and far between. However, no one said that these games couldn’t take matters into their own hands, and that was exactly whatDead Cellsdecided to do with a special update.
The developer recently teamed up with six other games it shares a certain kinship with, letting other games such asHollow KnightandBlasphemousgather inDead Cellsto offer new skills, weapons, and costumes for players to find. Each one brings something unique to the game and is perfect for showing love to titles who have seen the same strugglesDead Cellshas in trying to stand out amongst the many other games out there. When it comes to indie game collaborations, this one will be a shining example for years to come.
Fortnite x Almost Everything
Fortniteis indubitably the king of crossovers, coming out with so many great ones this year. Sora inSuper Smash Bros.was incredible, but the same can be said fora battle royale game with Naruto, Spider-Man, Rick, Morty, and so many countless others in one big entertainment free-for-all. The sheer number of franchisesFortnitehas managed to crossover with is nothing short of impressive, and definitely deserves a mention.
In 2021,Narutohelped close outFortnite’ssecond chapter.Spider-Man helped jumpstart Chapter 3. TheNarutocollaboration saw the titular character, Sasuke, Sakura, and Kakashi all get skins in their image complete with emotes, then Spider-man gave players the opportunity to web-sling across the island. These new additions have wowed many players across the globe and brings further hype for just who will join the battle royale next year in further unbelievable crossovers.
Pokemon and Oreos
WhilePokemonhas teamed up with food companies for years, the Oreos collab was something special. The collaboration saw Nabisco releasingspecial Oreos with Pokemon on them, but the unique thing was that the cookies featured 16 different Pokemon from the series' eight generations with some supposedly being rarer than others. Anyone who got a pack of cookies was guaranteed to get a Pikachu or Piplup, but only a few would get an Oreo with a Mew on it.
It’s a cute way to capturePokemon’s"gotta catch ‘em all" mantra to having to collect all of the Pokemon, but this led to something almost no one expected:thePokemonOreos themselves were scalped. People bought them in bulk to mark up the cookies and sell them online, even selling certain specific Pokemon cookies separately. The surprise of people treating Oreos the same asPokemoncards will be something people will remember way beyond 2021.
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Sea of Thieves x Pirates of the Caribbean
In recent years, Rare has seen incredible support and success forSea of Thieves, its first-person action-adventure game letting players hunt for treasure and captain their own ship across endless, vast seas. The game had been through many concept phases for years, drawing inspiration fromThe Pirates of the Caribbeanmoviesas well asThe Gooniesduring development. Little did Rare know then that in the future,Sea of Thieves would launch its ownPirates of the Caribbeancrossover expansion.
Sea of Thieves: A Pirate’s Lifegave players its own storycelebrating the two IPs with features built-in so players won’t have to worry about losing their progress to rival pirates. The best part about Disney and Rare working together for this great collaboration is that it was also free to allSea of Thievesplayers. That meant that anyPirates of the Caribbeanfan that wanted to join in the fun due to the perfect collab could do so with ease, which most definitely helps it stand out from the crowd.
In a uniquemultiplayer horror game likeDead by Daylight, updates and content roadmaps of upcoming skins and maps make sense. The way Behaviour Interactive has kept the game fresh has been welcome and kept many players coming back for more, and how it shook hands with Capcom to unite two beloved horror titles in one game was the icing on the cake for many players.
TheResident Evilupdate toDead by Daylightsaw the addition of Leon S. Kennedy and Jill Valentine as Survivors, with new legendary skins in the form ofREfavorites Claire and Chris Redfield. One ofResident Evil’smonsters, Nemesis, was added as a new Killer, and while some fans questioned by Nemesis was chosen, the way his abilities seamlessly meshed withDead by Daylight’splaystyle to bring something new to the table entirely showed just why he was picked out ofRE.It isn’t every day where a simple collaboration elevates gameplay, but Nemesis’ inclusion has done just that.
No Man’s Sky x Mass Effect
In the same vein asDead by DaylightandResident Evilbeing a great collaboration between two fan-favorite horror games,No Man’s SkyandMass Effectcrossing pathsacross their respective galaxies is just as good on the Sci-Fi side of things. The Normandy became a ship players could obtain for themselves in the procedurally generated adventure, and so many fans liked it that the event is currently being rerun as of this writing.
The event definitely brought something unique toNo Man’s Sky, and it serves as one of the many updates to the title that have helped improve the game’s reputation. After years ofnegative reviews, it seemsNo Man’s Skyis finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel with the help of the Normandy makingMass Effectplayers feel a little more at home in their sci-fi explorations.
Destiny 2 x Halo
Bungie celebrated its 30th anniversary this year, and it sought to celebrate it with a bang inDestiny 2. SinceHalois an important piece of the company’s history, the developer did its best to pay homage to its roots and brought back iconic weapons, cosmetic features, and Easter eggs fromHaloas part of its own 30th Anniversary event.
Fans who played the event could get weapons such as the BXR-55 Battler, Half-Truths, and Retraced Path, which are references to theHaloBattle Rifle, Energy Sword, andHalo: ReachFocus Rifle weapons. While there weren’t any fullyHalo-themed armor sets, some referenced the Arbiter’s scales, and one skin even featured the iconicHaloring. Other fan-favorite features and Easter eggs such as “Grunt Birthday Party” and the skulls make a return as well. With everything the Bungie 30th Anniversary pack offered, many of the company’s loyal fans from even back in itsHalodays are sure to be satisfied.
Call of Duty: Warzone x Die Hard
Video games and movies tend to go hand-in-hand. As video games adaptions of movies aren’t as commonplace as they used to be, it seems films like to lend their hands to games instead to lead into some wonderful crossovers, such as the80s Action Heroes event forCall of Duty: Warzonewhich brought two famous movies intoWarzone’sline-up of operators, including John McClain ofDie Hardfame.
Die Hardhad plenty of love and was arguably one of the best things about the collaboration.John McClainmay have been an extremely limited-time offer, but those who purchased him were given the chance to play as him and hear him shout “Yippie Ki Yay” and other iconic lines pulled straight from the movie while visiting Nakatomi Plaza, replicated inWarzone’s map with incredible, intricate detail. The love given toDie Hard, regardless of how much focus the film got during the event, made many fans of both it andCoDvery happy for the time it was present in the game.
