Gaming has come a long way since the days of Pong and Pac-Man. Arcades gave way to consoles, and in the early 90s, PC titles took off in spectacular fashion. In fewer than 40 years, the video games industry grew to a global market size of $200 billion, and it’ll likely double by 2030.
But what will gaming look like 20 years from now? Although we can’t know for sure, we can make predictions based on recent trends and technological advancements.
Mobile Gaming
It’s common for hobbyist gamers on platforms such as the PC, to give mobile games a bad rap. They’re accused of being simple, lacking innovation, and have suffered from predatory monetisation schemes in the past. Yet, despite (or maybe as a result of) some of these factors, the mobile industry has grown faster than any other gaming industry in the past ten years, with projected revenue of nearly $125 billion in 2022—more than half of the industry’s total $200 billion.
Does that mean that we’ll all be gaming exclusively on our phones come 2030? Probably not, but with graphics cards and processors getting smaller and more compact by the year, the possibility of enjoying AAA titles on mobile phones doesn’t seem too far-fetched.
Virtual Reality
The transition to fully-virtual, all-immersive gaming environments has been on the table for quite some time. Developers are always looking for new ways to make their games feel more lifelike, and headsets like the Oculus are a step towards achieving that dream.
But things are about to get even better with upcoming wearables that will reportedly stimulate other senses besides our vision. Engineers are working on gloves and wrist devices that will allow developers to create haptic, touchable elements.
The million (or rather billion) dollar question remains: Is total immersion what gamers really want? How ‘real’ do things need to get to achieve this vision? Gamers have been slow on the uptake to purchase the prerequisite hardware. VR is growing, but it needs the credibility of a showstopper, standout title to help the industry make the leap.
The Evolution of Consoles
Consoles have been with us for more than four decades, and they’re still going gangbusters, expecting to generate $57 billion of the year’s $200 billion revenue. The PlayStation 5 is still in high demand, and Microsoft’s XBOX Series X isn’t doing too badly either.
Despite the current success, there could be ‘cloudy’ skies ahead. Producers have flirted with cloud gaming in the past and although the technology has previously fallen short, all indicators are pointing towards a future expansion. Allowing players to run games on remote servers, cloud gaming streams the action directly to the monitor without the need for expensive hardware.
Provided the hardware keeps advancing and internet speeds keep improving, it’s possible that console manufactures could move closer towards a cloud gaming model. Many of us could be launching our favorite games with the click of a button via a cloud streaming platform, much like how we watch movies and series on Netflix today. Already, services like PlayStation Plus, PlayStation Now and XBOX Game Pass are strong winners for subscription based models.
As more and more people actively get into gaming, we’re more likely to see developers come up with fun and innovative ideas that will push the industry forwards. No matter who prevails, the future of gaming seems bright.