Advancements in Technology and Video Games
Overtime the gaming industry and technology as a whole has become better and better. With the first generation of gaming starting in 1972 with a console called the Magnavox Odyssey by Ralph Baer. This console was only capable of running a game called chase which consisted of two dots chasing each other around a blank screen.(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_generation_of_video_game_consoles).
Fast forward 47 years, you have extreme gaming consoles with great amounts of power such as the Xbox X and the Ps4 Pro. These consoles allow you to play with all types of games and containing almost 1000GB each just within the compact build of the consoles. Technology and gaming has made great strides from that first console in 1972. Also the ability to play with people from all around the world on your console at home is a un-imaginable achievement. If you were to tell Ralph Baer the capabilities of later generation consoles, he probably wouldn’t believe you.
Most Popular Games of 2018
During the year of 2018 gaming became a lot more mainstream with the releases of the very popular games during this year. The most popular game of the 2018 year was Fortnite which peaked around 3.4 million concurrent players. Coming in second was a game released in 2009 called League of Legends. This game still consist of over 81 million active monthly users. The third most popular game of the year was Players Unknowns Battleground. Both 1st and 3rd most popular games were the Battle Royale genre which seemed to take off during 2018 and now still being popular into 2019. The competitive aspect of the games is what drives people to keep playing them because there is a drive to become the best out of the 100 other people in the match and be the last to survive the game. It is the rewarding feeling that players achieve at the end of the game when they are the last one alive that has caused the genre to become so popular. A more recent game to be released was Apex Legends which generated 10 million players in under 3 days. The Battle Royale genre is a growing theme and doesn't seem to be going away anytime in the future.
Cross Platform Gaming
In later generations of consoles a cross platform option has now become a reality. Fortnite being the first to really takeover this option. What cross platform is, is multiple platforms of gaming consoles and devices all playing the same game and together. This was a first in gaming where all PS4 players could all play in the same game as Xbox One players. On the same game there was also Mobile devices and Nintendo devices all playing together. The reason this was a huge deal was because all of the devices are competitors to one another to get players to use their consoles so they could make the most money. When Cross Platform came there had to be huge agreement on allowing the competing consoles to be able to play with each other. With it eventually working out it was a very big deal and made the gaming community more together as a whole.
Xbox Or Playstation?
Another factor in the consoles of this generation is the competition to gain users and players. The main competition being the Xbox One or the PS4 players. Xbox being created by Microsoft and the PS4 being made by Sony already creates a rivalry. “PS4 has sold 75.28 million units lifetime, the Xbox One 36.03 million units” (http://www.vgchartz.com/article/272742/ps4-vs-xbox-one-vs-switch-global-lifetime-salesjanuary-2018/). The amount of units sold can really show the difference in the popularity of the two consoles. With the PS4 selling two times more than the Xbox one, PS4 becomes the highest earning and users console on the market. What makes the PS4 more of popular console is the already large gaming community. If majority of people and friends all play on this console why wouldn't you buy a PS4 over the Xbox if you could play with more of your friends? The competition between the two companies also drives them to make more advancements to the consoles to persuade people to buy their product over the other. Such as Sony now being on to the most advanced console they have released being the PS4 Pro and then Microsoft recently releasing the Xbox X.
Addiction to Video Games
Both of the consoles have provided endless amounts of entertainment for gamers all around the globe. But is the entertainment too entertaining for some people? Some players in todays era will log unreal amounts of hours playing on these consoles due to their addiction of gaming. Instead of getting out of the house and socializing players will sit behind the screen for as long as they are allowed. Some players will be deprived through sleep throughout the week because they do not want to stop playing until nearly three or 4 in the morning. Without the sleep it becomes harder to function throughout the day and also wastes players morning because they begin to sleep in later than they usually would without the entertainment of a console. The addiction to the video games can also lead to the procrastination of work and school and can lead to many more problems down the stretch. One of the solutions to this addiction has been to limit the amount of hour that they should play a day or in a week. Another way would be to make sure only to play when you have everything completed and you truly have some free time to yourself. Ignoring people that want to get out and do something productive so you can continue to game should never happen and it a good sign of an addiction to video games. Gaming is meant for free time and should never come first to other productive activities such as work, school and friends.
