The Evolution of Video Games!

Video games have become probably the most popular thing in today's generation and has also become more cinematic along with the advancement of computer graphics. And with the introduction of esports, which can actually be traced back in 1972, it has become a well known competition between players. You might be wondering how all this came to fold, and to understand that we need to look at the beginning.

William Higinbothman, a physicist, created the very first video game in October, 1958 that we all know as "Pong," which depicted a tennis game. This invention paved the way for new titles and brands to come out, most notably Nintendo. Arcade shops started to gain a lot of business and brought to life characters that everyone knows today. It then started to shift to games on people's computers and then soon came to their televisions. The first video game console was the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) which was first released in Japan in 1985. Nintendo's next popular invention was the Game Boy, which became popular because of it being a handheld gaming device.

As video games became more popular in the 90s, more brands came out such as Sega, Blizzard, Sony, etc., and titles including Mortal Kombat, Zelda, and Tomb Raider. Later into the 2000s, Microsoft's Xbox was introduced along with the Playstation by Sony and the Nintendo DS. In 2010, the most popular indie game known as "Minecraft" was released and more and more titles were being introduced.

After a few years passed, Competitive games have become the most talked about subjects in the gaming community. Overwatch, Fortnite and Apex Legends have become the most popular games and have found their way into competitive tournaments, with the winner(s) being reward with a cash prize.

What is most impressive about games today is how graphics have progressed and how more realistic the look. The cinematography has also been an improvement and how video games are starting to look almost like movies. Keith Stuart, a blogger, said that "games are inarguably beautiful. From the iconic minimalism of Pac-Man and Space Invaders...to the abstract wonderlands of Super Mario and Final Fantasy."

With the introduction to virtual reality, video games can possibly go even further in their immersion.

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