Gaming review by: Zamir Shair, PT173, 0068

Review of the Gaming Market

The golden age of video gaming arrived in the 1980s when popular arcade games were released and from then the home console industry
really took off. Gaming technology has come a long way since the early days and continues to develop at a relentless pace. The gaming
industry is worth around USD 250 billion worldwide and has never been more popular. The biggest titles comfortably generate more income
than blockbuster movies. However, the sale of consoles and video games has seen a steady decline in recent years. The gaming world is
changing. Dedicated game consoles are expensive and non-portable so it is not surprising that industry growth is coming from other sources.
Gaming on tablets and smartphones is growing rapidly, as are streaming services and games played through web browsers and social-
networking sites.
Gaming is no longer a hobby exclusively enjoyed by the young. Generations of video gamers have grown up and these parents are now playing
video games with their own children. In addition to this the increased use of smartphones has changed the gaming demographic dramatically. It
is thought that 86% of internet users play games on an electronic device, and nearly every internet user has a smartphone able to run games.
The average gamer age has increased to 37 and just under 50% of the gaming audience is now made up of women. The growth in popularity of
tablets and smartphones means more people are playing mobile games than ever before.
biggest growth of any genre. The top five gaming genres currently
GAMES are:
Today's games are increasingly realistic and technologically 1. Action Games
advanced. They feature richly textured, full-colour graphics,
amazing sound and complex interaction between player and 2. Sports Games
system. There are a huge variety of games available for all 3. Adventure Games
demographics and audiences, including young children and the
elderly. From action adventure games to puzzle games and 4. Battle Royale Games
simulation games to strategy games, there is truly something for 5. Role-Playing Games
everyone. The majority of games are designed to entertain people
Some video games have been criticised for glorifying violence,
but they can also educate, inform, persuade and stimulate the user.
cruelty and crime. There are concerns that children who play
The best-selling games are highly-polished cinematic thrill-rides
violent video games may have a tendency to behave more
that take you on an emotional rollercoaster. Outstanding graphics,
aggressively. This has led to an age rating system being adopted
incredible storytelling and superb voice acting make the experience
by the industry.
similar to watching a movie, the difference being that the gamer
controls the action.
Games are categorised into commonly used game genres which
VIDEO GAME CONSOLES
are mainly based on their gameplay, interaction and category. Video game consoles are a popular and cost-effective form of
Since 2018 simulation, puzzle and strategy games have seen the home entertainment. They require a single purchase with no
additional hardware upgrades. Consoles connect to a TV screen

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Gaming review by: Zamir Shair, PT173, 0068

which displays the graphics and plays the sounds of the game. A services operate on a subscription basis where users pay for
game controller is used to provide input and allows the player to access to the streamed content. As a result gamers can purchase
interact with the video game, typically to control an object or cheaper consoles without a disc drive and use digital cloud gaming
character. Console games often get priority release months ahead services to access content.
of the PC version, or the release is for console use only.
Cloud Gaming
In previous decades consoles were kept in the bedrooms of
teenagers. Times have changed and consoles are now living room
fixtures and are used as much for watching TV as playing games. There are many advantages to cloud
New gaming consoles have the ability to access numerous gaming. For gamers the cost of buying and maintaining a powerful
streaming services and are not just used as gaming devices but gaming computer or game console is removed. Users pay a small
are cutting edge media devices for the whole family. Manufacturers monthly fee to stream content. Keeping the technology up-to-date
are keen to promote their consoles as complete home and future-proof is included in the subscription. Saved data is
entertainment systems which stream films, play live TV, place video stored in the cloud so, providing there is a good internet
calls and browse the internet. These additional multimedia features connection, users can access their games and stored data from
greatly enhance the functionality and everyday use of the game any location. These games can then be played on any device. A
console. disadvantage is backwards compatibility of older games which
cannot be played unless they are re-released digitally. Making past
CLOUD GAMING titles and historic archives available on cloud gaming services may
become an attractive selling point for service providers in the
Cloud gaming is a method of playing video games by accessing future. For publishers and developers cloud gaming eliminates the
remote servers. Games are no longer downloaded and installed on potential for pirating and the need for digital rights management
a PC or game console. The streaming services send gaming (DRM) since users do not actually download the game. It also
information to an app or browser installed on the recipient’s device. helps lower development costs as all players have access to the
The game is stored and played on the remote server but the user same hardware and performance.
interacts with the content locally on their own device. Streaming
We live in a world where social networking and interactive gameplay are now mainstream activities. Video gaming takes place between gamers
all across the world and more people are playing quality games through a web browser or a cloud-based gaming service. It is only in recent
years that hardware has become good enough to deliver high-fidelity content. This, along with the evolution of faster, cheaper and more
accessible broadband connectivity, has made gaming accessible and attractive to more people. As internet speeds and connectivity continue to
get better and cheaper, so too will cloud gaming. With the rapid growth of cloud computing services some believe that the current generation of
home video game consoles may be the last of these devices. Time will tell whether these traditional game consoles can survive.