A top 10 of the most mentioned games so far in 2021 has been shared by TitanfallBlog on Twitter with action-RPG Genshin Impact topping the list. Although the actual order may be a bit of a shock, fans could have more or less expected the results. It's important to note that the Twitter data is taken globally which accounts for a few lesser-known Japanese titles that may have come as a surprise to North American fans.

Coming in at number two is Apex Legends. The free-to-play battle royale has seen a recent uptick in popularity since quarantine as players flocked to accessible games, including the announcement of an Apex Legends: Overtime comic miniseries. Animal Crossing rounds out the top three. While New Horizon's popularity may have waned slightly following its absurdly strong release, an enduring loyal fanbase has kept the franchise at the top of Twitter.

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Other games on the list include Minecraft, which likely owes its high amount of mentions to the fact that the game's nature facilitates countless amounts of crossover coverage. A recent example being a player that recreated Elysian Hold from World of Warcraft in Minecraft. Just ahead of Minecraft is, of course, Fortnite, whose popularity can be explained for similar reasons with tons of crossover content being added regularly.

Genshin Impact's appearance at the top of the list can be explained by the game's unprecedented multiple platform success and global appeal. Astute fans will recall Genshin Impact's unprecedented popularity as a mobile release, topping Fortnite Mobile, Pokemon GO, and PUBG Mobilewithout even accounting for downloads of Genshin Impact's Chinese Android iteration. Genshin Impact stands as one of the most successful releases out of Asia to break into the Western market with fans from both regions pumping it to the top of the Twitter charts.

The last three slots are perhaps the most surprising with some fans surprised to not see the Call of Duty franchise cracking into the top ten. A common thread between Ensemble Stars!, Splatoon, and Twisted Wonderland is the on-the-go nature of these games with the group appearing on either mobile or Nintendo Switch. As well, Twisted Wonderland and Splatoon can attribute part of their popularity to their massive backings by Disney, and Nintendo, respectively.

While fans were relatively unsurprised, they did not agree that the rankings pointed solely to a franchise's popularity. The more cynical commenters on Twitter suggested that the relatively high ranking of Apex Legends was due in part to complaints. However, it's difficult to argue the success of any of the franchises that appeared in the top 10 so far.

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