Taking an indirect look at modern gaming’s growth

If you’re long-time gamers like we are, then chances are the reasons you got into this world is because you tried out games when you were young, and found them fun. This direct cause-and-effect type of relationship undoubtedly creates the backbone of modern game engagement, but it’s far from telling the whole story.

Instead, in this article we want to look at some of the indirect ways in which modern gaming growth has been encouraged in recent years, to help in bringing it to the multibillion-dollar industry it is today.

Lower Barriers to Entry

The first few generations of gaming PCs and consoles were notoriously and prohibitively expensive. While this can also prove true today for the upper end of the gaming tiers, base-level interaction is now far easier than ever before. Mobile phones are a prime example of this. As tools that have achieved ubiquity in our daily lives like few others, gaming on mobile is available to practically everyone, with some of the biggest titles on offer for free.

Similarly, desktop PCs also enjoy lower barriers to entry, though they take a different tack. Modern games on PC often require expensive hardware, but unlike consoles, PCs are easily backward-compatible with a library of games going back at least thirty years. Since older games have far lower requirements, this means that even the humblest of modern computers can run an enormous range of classic computer games. They can even emulate some older console easily if players prefer. Whatever the case, this helps draw additional attention to the modern gaming sphere.

Growth of Supporting Industries

Video games have been mainstream for decades, but it was only with the advent of the internet that advertising and supporting industries reached their true potential. From what used to be confined to magazines and occasional tv-spots comes enormous websites and communities built around supporting gaming in all of its many forms.

One of the more popular examples of this can be found in online casino games, a subtype of gaming that sees significant success through its surrounding infrastructure. Easily comparing the likes of deposit matches, free spins, and ratings, these services coexist in a way which aids players, websites and casinos.

Perhaps the most visible form in terms of modern traditional video games can be found on streaming services like Twitch. Originally started as a simple way for people to watch others play, these have evolved to massively boost the popularity of certain games which might go underrecognized otherwise. Sometimes these channels even go as far as to act as viable career paths for some dedicated and entertaining players, or even encourage the creation of certain types of streamer-friendly games.

Whether drawing people in through mobiles, boosting modern popularity through access to older experiences, or leaning on greater supporting infrastructure, a considerable amount of gaming growth is owed to the indirect world. While the exact numbers here are far too nebulous to calculate directly, it’s safe to say that these new methods have brought in millions of players from all over the globe. As we enter the 2020s and brace for the next console generation of gaming, there is little doubt that these examples will continue to play an important ongoing part, whatever path modern gaming takes.

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