Games, Technology and Art

In a New Merger, Evidence of How Much the Gaming World Has Changed

In this article, the merger of Activision and the games unit of Vivendi is discussed. The growing trends in the gaming industry are also addressed. The merging of these two companies marked a turning point in the gaming industry. Online gaming is huge and growing. A scenario of an executive that would not have given you any merit if you told them that online gaming is the next big thing, is used in this article.

World of Warcraft is a game where players from all over the world have a character and they go on fantasy missions and attempt to improve their character’s level. This game has put Blizzard at the top of the online gaming industry. Millions of players have logged online and played this game. There is so much information and bandwidth being used in these game that it would have never possibly been imagined back in the MIT days (Poole). With the widespread use of broadband connections, faster computers and online gaming platforms, World of Warcraft has paved the way for a new kind of gaming.

There have also been other significant innovations in the gaming world. These include the Nintendo Wii and Guitar Hero. The Wii enables the gamer to physically interact with the game console using infrared beams and the television. Guitar Hero also utilizes the physical interaction by having the gamer pretend to play rock songs just by pressing the buttons on a plastic guitar. It is my opinion that both of these consoles work to bring the rich arcade experience into the home and do it very well.

The technology behind these consoles is amazing. Each console, whether an Xbox or Playstation is practically a computer. The manufacturers actually lose some money on the consoles but make up the difference in the games themselves. That is why it is crucial that your games are successful or else you will end up losing money.

Bibliography
In S. Poole, Trigger Happy (pp. 15-44). New York: Arcade Publishing.
SCHIESEL, S. (2007, December 5). In a New Merger, Evidence of How Much the Gaming World Has Changed. Retrieved March 1, 2008, from New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/05/arts/television/05schi.html?scp=1&sq=gaming+trends&st=nyt