Blogpost # 1: Evolution of Video Games and Technologies on it

Different Video Games

It is fun to play video games such as Defense of the Ancient, Grand Auto Theft, Ragnarok, Tomb Raider, Final Fantasy and likes. When I was a kid I was enjoying playing Super Mario Bros, Tetris, Pacman and Bomber Man. It is one of our stress reliever and at the same time it serves as an entertainment. Every time I enter my brother's room, I always see him sitting on swivel chair, facing the monitor and concentrating on what he is doing, playing Defense of the Ancient. It is always his set up when I go inside his room. I always call him "Video Game Addict".

Let us define what video game means. Video game is an electronic game that involves human interaction into machines which generates feed backs. Where humans can control and manipulate the images on computer or television screen. It is a digital medium in which one or more players interact with elements of that medium through the use of a user interface and a video screen. We are just fond of playing games but do we know where and when did it start?

The first computer game was created by Thomas T. Goldsmith Jr. and Estle Ray Mann which they called it as Cathode Ray Tube Amusement Device. The game is a missile simulator which is patterned on the radar displays from World War II.

As I research on how do video games evolved, I found an article entitled "Computer and Video Game History" written by Mary Bellis in a website "About.com Inventors". It talks about how video game was developed and how it was started and the people behind those games.

Spacewar! played using the Cathode Ray Tube

According to this article, the first graphical computer game was started in year 1952 by Alexander S. Douglas which he created "Noughts and Crosses", a version of "Tic-Tac-Toe". In year 1958, "Tennis for Two", which is played by an analog computer, was made by William Higinbotham. Spacewar!, the first video game intended for computers, was invented on 1962 by Steve Russell. In 1967, the first video game using television set was invented by Ralph Baer, which is the "Chase". The first arcade game was created by Nolan Bushnell which is called "Computer Space". In 1972, the first home video game console was designed by R. Baer and released by Magnavox, the "Odyssey". The Fairchild released the first programmable home game console called the Fairchild Video Entertainment System. The first electronic system who use the microchip invented by Robert Noyce that allowed video games to not be limited by TTL switches. 

After reading the article, I learned that it shows not just only the history of video games but also the evolution of the technology on it. From Cathode Ray Tube to computer to television to arcade and  to a microchip.

3-Dimensional Games

As I was searching for another article, one caught my attention. The website entitled "Buzzle: Intelligent  Life on the Web" with an article "Evolution of Video Games" written by Stephen Ramphur. It was presented here how the video games inventions in the past resulted in hi-graphic 3D that we are enjoying now not just in big screens but also in games .

Based on the article, 'Atari' was the first company who launched and produced  the video game on December 1975. The game console was composed of two knobs, one on left side and one on right side. The knobs were used to move rectangular as a control. It allows the player to hit 'to' and 'fro'. The game was named  "Pong", similar to Table Tennis. After two years, another video game console named Video Computer System was invented by the same company which was based on cartridge system and was now called as Atari 2600 which can be use to play Galaxian, Space Ivaders, Donkey Kong, Backgammon, BlackJack and many more. 

PacMan and Super Mario 

In year 1980s, there were many interesting games invented by different game companies such as Defender, Battle Zone, even the most widely known game, Pacman. Five years later, game consoles loss their shares in the public when Personal Computers or PC was invented and produced in market. As years go by, the Nintendo Entertainment System, a company which created the Super Mario Brothers, 'Mario' and 'Luigi' who stomp on bad guys, or of enemy warriors battling on an alien planet, is the best selling game ever in video game history. It is funny to know that Mario and Luigi is more popular than the well-known Disney character, Mickey Mouse. 

As years past, video game programmers think more of how they will encourage the public to buy their products. Several action and first-person shooting games were bought into the scene, like 'Wolfenstein 3D' and 'Doom'. Looking at the popularity of such games, the companies decided on providing free 'demo' game versions to the public. During these years, computers became well suited for handling such 3D games. The 'Doom' game had certainly set a standard for action shooting games along with good 3D graphics. 

Three-Dimensional games can be played in shooting, puzzles, sports, horror, racing, and others that includes high quality not just in sound but also in graphics. With more advanced inventions yet to come, there is a possibility of the video game technology going more further than it is today.

Evolution of Gaming Chart

“The gaming industry itself is maturing — both in its development style and its target product,” said D.J. Kehoe, assistant to the director of the information technology program in the College of Computing Sciences at the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT).

It is true that the growing of games can also matured the technologies now because of creativity and intelligence of people. Xbox, Play Stations, arcades, and desktop, these are some computer game devices that can be used at home only. However, people cannot just only play inside their house but they can bring the gaming device outside using brick games, game boy, PSP, DS Lite and even tablets and cellphones installed with games. 

As a video gamer and player, using different kind of technology as my playing device can really entertain me. It is good to know that video games shared a big part to improve and to advance the technologies which the society is using. Which the technologies that society is enjoying nowadays.