Development of computer game analysis

When computer games first came into existence they were extremely basic, consisting of only a few pixels on a screen that the player could control, and they ran mainly on huge college institute computers. Over the years they have moved from these humble beginnings to filling up arcades full of machines, to being a part of nearly most households.

Games themselves have progressed with higher quality graphics, better gameplay mechanics etc.. However this is not the only way that they have evolved. Look back at earlier games and they are either aimed mainly at children, such as Super Mario, or at teenagers and young adults as they are either violent combat games such as Mortal Kombat or some kind of action game.

Mortal Kombat

For the most part, most of society has looked own on games as a form of media, seeing them more as a toy than a form of art such a film or television. But in recent years games have matured, bringing in more adult themes, and not in a gaudy or childish way. Characters are fully fleshed out with backstories, emotions, traits and you really get a sense of who they are.

Bioshock

Indeed some games now have scripts and story lines to rival that of many movies, for example Metal Gear Solid 4 which was extremely popular and got great critical acclaim when it was released, and are trying to cater for a wider audience, moving away from the stereotypical image of a gamer being someone who’s slightly overweight, bearded and plays games alone in a dark room.

Not your typical gamer any more

That type of gamer is still catered for, and many games released are still aimed at children or family gaming, particularly on Nintendo’s Wii console, just as movies are targeted at certain audiences. However for all this gaming still has some of the stigma surrounding it, and is still not taken as seriously as say film for the moment.

Technology being researched that reads your brain signals

One trick up the sleeve of gaming though is that it is evolving. As new technology is released games instantly start utilising it and as games are interactive there is much more you can do with new hardware than film or television can, for example the Kinect on the Xbox 360 tracks the players movement, removing the need for controllers, and there are a number of new technologies on the horizon which could have huge implications for the future of gaming.