Video Games in Pop-Culture.
Video games in pop-culture.
Video games and computer games (from here on both categories will be simply referred to as video games for simplicity) have entered the domain of pop culture fairly recently. Although the first video game was developed in 1958 by William Higginbotham, their popularity didn’t occur until the seventies with the appearance of Pac-man and Frogger in the arcades (Computer and Video Games). If the younger generation of video game consumers would take a look at what was out there when the video game boom begun they wouldn’t be able to understand what was so attractive (and addictive?) about Pac-man and Frogger? The truth is, video games from over three decades ago share the same basic principles with the games we have out there right now. Let’s face it, we like video games because they provide us with interactive entertainment. In other words, we’re genuinely entertained by colorful objects that move on the TV/computer screen when we press certain buttons. I suggest that it is the overwhelming gratification that we experience from actually having absolute and unconditional control over something in our lives. Another suggestion that I have is that video games share the same elements or even directly imitate traditional games such as tag, ping-pong, chess, hopscotch etc.; video games allow us to engage in these games easily, without any stigma or significant effort on our parts. Video games are fun, inexpensive, can become a social activity allowing friends to play along, and sometimes they’re even mentally stimulating if not challenging. They’ve been a real hit every since they came out and today the video game industry has grown significantly. However, let’s examine the circle of people that are involved in production and design of video games.
As long ago as video games first became popular their manufacturers turned them into sellable products. It seems a bit ridiculous that a video game can cost as much as $50 (for a good video game),
Video games and computer games (from here on both categories will be simply referred to as video games for simplicity) have entered the domain of pop culture fairly recently. Although the first video game was developed in 1958 by William Higginbotham, their popularity didn’t occur until the seventies with the appearance of Pac-man and Frogger in the arcades (Computer and Video Games). If the younger generation of video game consumers would take a look at what was out there when the video game boom begun they wouldn’t be able to understand what was so attractive (and addictive?) about Pac-man and Frogger? The truth is, video games from over three decades ago share the same basic principles with the games we have out there right now. Let’s face it, we like video games because they provide us with interactive entertainment. In other words, we’re genuinely entertained by colorful objects that move on the TV/computer screen when we press certain buttons. I suggest that it is the overwhelming gratification that we experience from actually having absolute and unconditional control over something in our lives. Another suggestion that I have is that video games share the same elements or even directly imitate traditional games such as tag, ping-pong, chess, hopscotch etc.; video games allow us to engage in these games easily, without any stigma or significant effort on our parts. Video games are fun, inexpensive, can become a social activity allowing friends to play along, and sometimes they’re even mentally stimulating if not challenging. They’ve been a real hit every since they came out and today the video game industry has grown significantly. However, let’s examine the circle of people that are involved in production and design of video games.
As long ago as video games first became popular their manufacturers turned them into sellable products. It seems a bit ridiculous that a video game can cost as much as $50 (for a good video game),
Cited: “Computer and Video Games”. 8 Mar. 2006. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 7 Mar. 2006. <www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_game> Ulmer, James. “Broadband rules in rapidly expanding global video game market”. TheHollywoodReporter.com. 27 Sep. 2004. VNU eMedia, Inc. 7 Mar. 2006. <www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr/pwc/talking_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000642643>