The gaming and tech industries cannot really be divorced from each other in 2023. As the playing of games has moved into the digital realm to an ever greater degree, the gaming industry reliance on technology has increased.
Gaming utilises cutting edge tech developments, both in the creation of the actual games and the machines that people play them on. The success of the industry has been built on providing people with ever better games and making the experience of playing them smoother and less problematic.
This year has already brought some intriguing trends, with new technologies moving the games industry forward. We are going to look at what the key ones are in this article.
Mobile
Mobile gaming has been around for a while of course, but it is accounting for a bigger share of the market with every passing year. In turn, that means games developers are producing more mobile-only titles and ensuring that all games are now optimised for the smaller screens of mobiles.
The rise of mobile gaming is proving particularly beneficial for fast games with colourful and simple graphics that suit those screens. That means games such as Candy Crush and online slot ones.
People can now play the latest slots at Bally Casino UK and other digital casinos or by downloading the mobile apps for those casinos. The latter means that the games can be accessed on ultra-portable mobiles at all times of the day.
VR and AR
Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) have links to each other but are not exactly the same. VR tech is about producing a totally simulated digital world that is as three-dimensional and detailed as the real one.
AR tech is about adding digital elements to real-world landscapes. Both are now starting to have big impacts on the games world.
AR began to really take off with the highly publicised launch of Pokemon Go seven years ago and the tech has progressed enormously since then. It has the potential to enhance everything from board games to fantasy ones, by making them more interactive and adding magical elements to everyday surroundings.
VR is even more revolutionary than that. The technology behind it could enable people to play online poker or blackjack or any other game in an ultra-realistic simulation of another planet.
It is the stuff of science fiction, but the latest generation of VR headsets such as the Meta Quest 2 are accessible to almost everyone. Furthermore the rise of this remarkable tech will be helped along by the creation of colocation centres that let gamers rent the bandwidth and equipment they need to play the games.
Artificial Intelligence
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a tech development that everyone is now aware of and talking about. Among the many industries that are being impacted by it is the games one.
Its effects may be controversial in other industries, but for gaming it is mostly seen as positive. The designers of games are deploying AI algorithms during the creation process to a greater extent, with the aim of making them more exciting and immersive.
They do that by creating non-playable game characters that respond to the in-game events with a greater degree of realism. That makes the experience more convincing and less predictable for the player.
That is one way AI is changing games, but not the only one. It also has the potential to reduce game development costs, which should translate into lower prices for the consumer.
Cross-Platform Gaming
This year looks set to be the one that sees cross-platform gaming really start to ripple through the mainstream industry. Up until now, it has been a very limited opportunity with just a handful of titles on the market, including Kingdom Hearts II and Final Fantasy XI.
Gamers can expect that number to grow before the end of this year though. Cross-platform gaming means games that can be played on everything from consoles to PCs and mobile devices.
The idea behind it is to make multiplayer and social gaming easier and that will be of real benefit to games where this is central to the experience. For some examples of the types of games that will be improved for the player, think role-playing strategy ones or online bingo.
Leading games providers are getting on board with the possibilities of cross-platform gaming. SIE and Microsoft are just two that have publicly shown enthusiasm for it.
So we can be sure that it is a gaming tech development to keep a close eye on throughout the remainder of this year.
All of these shifts in technology are going to mean big changes for the games industry, but all of them stand to make it better for the people who play games.
