Video Game Technology and the Affect on Society
Who would have thought when the Atari VCS (Video Computer System) was introduced in 1977, technology and video games were just grazing the surface of their great potential. Over the next several years Atari began introducing newer models until the most popular, Atari 2600, hit the market. A typical system bundle would consist of a mere cartridge game, the console, two joystick controllers, and a conjoined pair of paddles (Wikipedia). As simple as this system was, it was the beginning of things to come from the video gaming industry. Today, advancements in computer technology have allowed the video game industry to have a significant impact on rising technologies, the booming economy, and the affects on society as a whole.
Ever since video game systems surfaced in the late 1970’s, they have played a significant role in introducing the latest technologies. In the beginning Atari used the most basic technology to produce games that featured poor graphics and game play. Over the next several years Atari maintained at the top of the industry, that is until a Japanese company called Nintendo released the NES (Nintendo Entertainment System) in 1985 (Wikipedia).
With the introduction of the NES, came the beginning of the 8-bit era for video games. This era lasted through the 1980’s until 1990 when another company entered the mix. Sega was one of several companies to produce video game consoles during the 16-bit era. Others included the Super NES, Turbo Grafx, and Neo-Geo. Also during this time was the introduction of handheld video game systems. With 16-bit systems, gamers were finally able to save games, have access to more accessories, and play games with the latest graphic technology. It was not until the mid 1990’s when the 32/64 bit era came around (Wikipedia).
During the 32/64 bit era cartridges became a thing of the past as Sony’s PlayStation, Sega Saturn, and Atari’s Jaguar all began using CD’s. Memory cards were introduced to save games, not just one game, but multiple games on one memory card. Handheld game systems went from black and gray to color also during this time.
This leads us to the most recent systems. During this era we saw companies such as Sega and Atari fall out of competition, and new companies enter making a large impact on the industry. Microsoft was one of these companies that caused quite a stir with the release of the XBOX. Gamers were introduced to the latest technologies such as, internet capabilities, dance pads, incredible graphics, and DVD playability. So as technology has become available, video game systems have adapted to these new concepts to win over gamers everywhere.
By winning over video gamers everywhere, the video gaming industry has helped the booming economy. Cumulatively, more than thirty million gaming systems have been sold in the past two years (Bishop). What have these companies done to create such a market for video game systems? Simple, as computer technology has progressed, the video gaming industry has been able to improve upon the factors of playability, functionality, and sophistication.
Playability can comprise of several aspects of gaming, including storyline, graphic, and speed of the games. When video games originated, game play was very slow and graphics were extremely simple. As years passed, technology grew and companies were able to expand on the playability of the games they produced.
The Atari graphics have been considered some of the most basic of any system. In the mid 80s Nintendo introduced 8-bit video games; during this era was the birth of side-scrolling games. Side-scrolling refers to games in which action is viewed from a side view angle and goals are reached by moving left to right on the screen. Gradually over the years 16-bit, 32-bit, and 64-bit games were developed. Today, PlayStation 2 and Xbox systems have 128 bit games, and processors inside which increase the speed of game play. Graphics and speed have been two of the most important factors gamers look for when purchasing a game system.
The advancement of the speed of video games can be related to the speed of computers. For example, the IBM 386 models run lower than the Dell Pentium IVs. This has been the same situation with video game systems. This is caused by the different types of chips that have been used, as well as, the development of more powerful chips. Current systems, such as the Xbox and PlayStation have 733MHz and 295MHz processors. This is just one example of how newer versions of game systems are improving their playability with regards to speed.
With the continuing development of new technology there is no telling just what the gaming industry can achieve. Every year we see technology at its finest. As the gaming industry progresses through knowledge of computer technology the improvement of playability, functionality, and sophistication have made the video gaming industry more appealing to gamers everywhere, thus creating a booming industry for the economy.
Another way the industry has marketed its product to attract new fan fare is to offer games that appeal to all ages. By doing this not only have they been able to attract young kids, but adults as well. Each game system has their own specialty games that are not available on other systems in hopes to create a fan base for that system. Over the years the PS2 has put out better RPG (Role-Playing Games), such as the Final Fantasy series, to capture that genre of gamers. They also have a larger selection of kids, sports, and action games. XBOX has put out a series of games called Halo that have caused many gamers to by XBOX for that reason only. Game Cube has an advantage over the other systems since they have the “Mario” games exclusive to them. In most industries this would cause one company to be much more successful than the others, but with the video gaming industry, each company has marketed its strengths so well that gamers will go out and by each of the systems to have those exclusive games at their fingertips to play, thus giving more proof to why the video gaming industry has helped the economy increase. The next step to marketing these games is how to convince skeptical parents that video games are suitable for younger ages.
Video game makers are now putting ratings on the covers of video games to help parents distinguish which games are acceptable and which are not. This has helped the industry accomplish this marketing technique towards parents. Game makers are not required to put these ratings on games, but almost all games have them (Massey). Titles can have ratings anywhere from E for everyone to M for mature (Massey). Mature games tend to have violence, foul language, and even in some cases sexual themes. Most games with an M rating will not be sold by retailers to minors to help parents that are looking to have input into games that their kids are playing. By putting these ratings on games, the industry is not only showing a market towards gamers, but for the people that are in their lives. It is amazing how an industry keeps looking for ways to better their sales and market in society.
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