GAMING SETTING THE FOUNDATION OF THE VIRTUAL WORLD

Since its birth as a technological oddity in the early 1950s, gaming has blossomed into one of the most revenue-intensive industries in recent years. Whether it be Mario or Contra, people cherish the first games they ever played. However, we have come a long way from simple?analog-based gaming. Over the years, the gaming industry has taken a quantum leap, infusing digital technologies at the core of their process. In 2019, the online gaming market stood at a value of $155.55 billion.?From Tetris to Call of Duty, the evolution of gaming is the perfect example of what human ingenuity can accomplish.?

2020 was a watershed year for the industry as well, with consumers spending more time playing games than ever. According to?Game?Analytics, the mobile gamer community grew from 1.2 billion to 1.75 billion per month, marking an increase of 46%. Besides offering entertainment during bleak times, gaming evolved into digital classrooms of a different kind, providing players with valuable lessons about the coronavirus. Some of the biggest players in the industry came together with the World Health Organization (WHO) to launch #PlayApartTogether that encourages social distancing by bringing related themes to the most popular games in the world.?

From pandemic lessons to immersive experiences, the gaming industry is making quantum leaps. What is aiding in its massive transformation and will ensure its continued success in 2021 is technological innovation.?

The advent of 3D?

2020 was huge for real-time technologies such as 3D. Creators continued to leverage the potential of interactive 3D to transform how consumers play and communicate inside a game. Unaffected by lockdown restrictions, a live music event of 2020 took place within the popular video game, Fortnite. The main advantage of 3D is its depth and field of vision. As humans, we are accustomed to experiencing our surroundings in a 3-dimensional capacity. With 3D in gaming, our understanding of foreground and background are clearer and more defined.?

The word ‘metaverse’ has been making its rounds for quite a long time, ever since sci-fi writer Neal Stephenson first coined the concept of a global space shared by many. While industry stalwarts have debated questions over AR and VR, the foundations of a global metaverse have been built with game engines.?

Have you ever envisioned your own personal oasis? A place with no restrictions, where you can be or do what you want.?Steven Spielberg’s science fiction action-adventure film?Ready Player One?puts things into perspective. However, this world is not as far off as you think.?

Beyond engineering games that test the limits of virtual landscapes, immersive gameplay and realistic cutscenes – technologies such as photorealistic rendering, lifelike animation, and robust data translation are truly creating the perfect conditions for a new real-time network. This network gives creators from across the industry the tools to deliver cutting-edge content and interactive experiences.?

Cloud gaming?

2021 is poised to be a big year for cloud gaming, with the expected revenue outlook standing at around $1 billion.[3]?Cloud gaming eliminates the reliance on a computer or console with powerful graphics and robust hardware since the game runs on a nearby server and is streamed to the player. Facilitating its popularity are advanced connectivity technologies, particularly 5G, which requires lower latency and offers high-speed connectivity.?

Cloud gaming or Gaming as Services (GaaS) has the potential of revolutionizing the industry with many of the video console companies switching over to this model. The main benefit for the user is the opportunity to play immersive games without needing the relevant hardware configurations on his/her PC or mobile devices. In fact, such a setup would also eliminate the need for regular software updates as all games will be available to the users in an updated format.?

In geographies such as India where a large chunk of the population does not have access to high-end software, the goal is to democratize tools for game making in the cloud environment.?

Mobile gaming takeover?

Over the last two decades, mobile gaming has gone from the industry’s afterthought to its largest source of revenue. In 2020, the sector is estimated to have clocked in revenue around $85 billion.?If we look at the Indian gaming landscape, it is the domestic innovation from tech?startups?that are?fueling?the industry’s growth. With mobile gaming becoming more popular than console and PC games, it presents a huge opportunity for the gaming industry to tap into a wider customer base.?

The infusion of AI?

Artificial intelligence (AI) has been a part of the gaming landscape for a while now, featuring in genres such as strategy games, shooting games, and racing games. The idea behind using AI in video games is to offer players a realistic experience while they play it on a virtual platform. Emulating reality is just 50% of what AI is projected to do for the industry. The other half is aimed at leveraging AI in psychology and how handing over controls to a software system can shift our perception of the very nature of the game. The end result strives to provide not just a game that is close to reality but create experiences that are dynamic and evergreen.?

With more and more names in the gaming industry employing AI and machine learning to create immersive experiences, the revenue for the industry is set to gross more than $250 billion by 2021-2022.[5]?

In conclusion?

In terms of trends, 2021 is already shaping up to be a positive year for the gaming industry. VR, streaming, and interactive 3D will be the most defining technological innovation of the year. As a fast-growing source of mainstream entertainment, video games are projected to be treated as a valid art form as well. Rather than just an avenue to pass time, the video game industry holds the potential of bridging the social distancing gap and connecting people from all over the world on a virtual?platform.?

About the?author:?

“Sachin Khosla is both a visionary and a tech enthusiast, with his roots deeply embedded in programming. Enraptured by the lure of technology, Sachin kickstarted a technology blog,?digimantra.com,?in early 2009, which quickly picked up speed and consequently laid the foundations for Digimantra?Labs,?a technology?start-up,?in 2012.”?

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