Recently, we have seen many video games and shows explode in popularity due to everyone staying home as much as possible. These pieces of art and entertainment have shattered previous records and are a fascinating byproduct of a fascinating point in history. 

When you think about it- any show that gains momentum recently is bound to break records. After all, it’s the most popular show at the most opportune time- Everyone is home and we all need some entertainment. 

With that said, this article is more of a historical document rather than an in-depth review of these shows and games. Most of these I haven’t seen, but I have seen the overwhelming popularity they’ve had. So here we go, pieces of art made popular by quarantine- or as I’d like to call it, the Entertainment Boom. The time period where everyone consumes more entertainment than ever before, and potentially ever again. 

First off, let’s talk about older shows that recently came back into the spotlight. Everybody has a backlog of shows that they claim they’ll watch eventually. Well, there is quite literally no better time to watch them than now. Shows by HBO have recently been dropped on Hulu, a very wise decision by both companies, as it gives younger viewers a chance to watch some of the best shows of all time. The Sopranos, Silicon Valley, The Wire, Six Feet Under, and of course Game of Thrones. 

However, Netflix similarly added a few classic Nicktoons to their service. Once again, this was a stroke of genius by Netflix as Avatar: The Last Airbender, Invader Zim, and Victorious can now be viewed by a new generation- especially The Last Airbender, arguably the greatest Nicktoon of all time. 

Netflix has clearly been the most popular streaming service throughout this pandemic. Criminal Minds, WACO, Community, and the Office have seen a resurgence in popularity years after release. 

Not to mention that Hulu and Netflix have been dropping some great original shows. Hulu dropped Little Fires Everywhere, quickly getting praise from the internet. Outer Banks became the most popular item on Netflix in just 3 weeks, which absolutely insane to say the least. 

It’s pretty obvious that every streaming company knows that this is the time to strike, so they are feverishly buying properties to make their service better. This is nothing but a good thing for us consumers and has left many of us with too much to watch. 

Now let’s talk about the 10-part Michael Jordan documentary, The Last Dance. This ESPN film was supposed to launch in July, however, ESPN released it early on April 19th. The first episode was the most viewed ESPN documentary to date, and nothing really comes close. Not only did this documentary give people sports content during the pandemic, but it absolutely proves who the GOAT is. 

However, all of those pale in comparison to Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Out of everything in this article, Animal Crossing released at the most opportune time. The game released on March 20th, about a week after England, America, Japan, and Canada began quarantine. By this time, China was already deep into the pandemic. Those 5 countries are huge markets for video games. 

Animal Crossing has always had the reputation of being the series that you can easily dump 100s of hours into, with New Horizons being the biggest game in the series so far. Word quickly spread that this was the game to play during quarantine, and the Switches began flying off the shelves. After only 2 months, the numbers are absolutely mesmerizing. Animal Crossing New Horizons has sold 13.41 million copies to date. In its first 11 days since launch, the game sold over 11.77 million copies! If that wasn’t impressive enough, New Horizons is well past the total earnings from all previous entries in the franchise combined! Let me reiterate- in two months, the game has outsold the rest of the entire series. 

Animal Crossing is now a primary video game series, in the same vein as Mario or Call of Duty. From now on, if an Animal Crossing comes out, we know that it can sell millions of copies, and millions of systems. That is why, in my opinion, Animal Crossing New Horizons is the highlight of the Entertainment Boom. 

Another game that released at the perfect time (March 10th) was Call of Duty: Warzone. Warzone is a battle royale mode for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, which was already the best selling game of last year. It is without a doubt the most popular battle royale since Fortnite’s height in early 2018. Activision has confirmed that the game has 60 million players and that the game has made multiple billions of dollars. It is now on pace to be the best selling game in Call of Duty history. 

These shows and games are poised to set unbreakable records and have kept people smiling during this dark time. Fell free to watch that show or play that game you’ve been putting off for years- who knows how long you’ll have the free time.