Gaming is one of the many forms of media that consumers of all ages have gravitated towards for decades. The gaming industry has gone through extraordinary changes over the years and is continuing to evolve due to the advancement in technology just as other forms of media are being affected by this wave. The articles posted for this week’s readings: A Theory of Fun, 16 Trends, and How a Video-game God Inspired a Twitter Doppelganger all highlight major trends and mannerisms that are being seen in the direction that gaming is heading towards in today’s society. Advancement plus innovation on the development end of video games has changed the audience it reaches, the benefits/gains of playing, and how it is generally played.
Video games used to be deemed as something distracting, a concept of fun that would only be relevant to children of young ages. Since the introduction of gaming, along with its progression it is evident that this prior presumption about gaming is incorrect. In fact, video games in today’s society are seen as a complex art form that also carry beneficial values for those involved with them in any way, shape or form. The readings, A Theory of Fun and 16 Trends in particular touch on the perspective of the gaming world as it exists today. In order to understand the grand emergence of electronic games, it is important to understand some of its background. While it seems like American consumers are just beginning to catch on the wave of gaming media as a culture, author Will Wright mentions about the giant influence video games have on the Chinese and South Korean culture. It is in these cultures where video games receive a lot of acknowledgment and praise for the attention it attracts. Mr. Wright touches on how it was in South Korea where the idea of gaming as a spectator sport was first introduced and pretty much how video games from there on out became to be known as more of a social and interactive activity.
Will Wright begins to talk about the evolution of gaming itself; including the different game-play styles, gaming format, and the general makeup of the games themselves. The things he said mirror most of the trends that Keith Stuart and Jordan Webber mentioned in their article 16 Trends. The authors mention the trends that have recently been forming in relation to gaming which include aspects like consumer involvement, gaming formats, approaches for mainstream gaming, gamer involvement, and ultimately what’s the next step for the gaming culture. The move from console games to handheld games is a result of the two influential elements of “platform dancing” and the new gaming format. A big trend we’re seeing now is games being played on various handheld devices, games that are formatted and linked to work with your social media accounts. The new waves of gaming allow for a stronger, consumer-centralized style of gaming; according to the trends, we’re seeing the consumers play a bigger role in gaming than we have ever seen before. Consumers have the ability to manipulate the development of the games, interact directly with the staff, manipulate the game play itself, etc; the possibilities and opportunities are endless thanks to the progression that gaming technology has seen over the past couple of decades. The next phase in the world of gaming is the introduction of the virtual reality game-play which has the potential to break down barriers that already exist in games currently available.
It is vital to realize that jump from console to handheld device gaming has brought forth some beneficial results. One of the major themes behind video games is it’s use as a medium for storytelling, lesson teaching, and other skill enhancement. Video games are also used for educational and health benefits which have been proven by scientific study. More importantly, what we’re seeing with this shift of gaming, as it is mentioned in the article 16 Trends, is the use of video games as a bonding tool. The more time passes the bigger the number of video game participant grow, including those of older ages; which in turn leads to families having an activity to bond over. The other major shift that happened to gaming with it presence on handheld devices is the the connecting of individuals through competition thanks to social media and game designers using it as a format. Overall we’re seeing video games become a much more connective, interactive activity that holds windows of opportunities for success and self expression among individuals.
