Gaming technology evolves so quick it’s hard to imagine how amazed people were with a game like PONG. The graphics, gameplay, and the tech had gamers spending over $138 billion in 2018.

Video games are one of the best mediums because it’s virtually unlimited. The ideas and concepts were always there but the tech was lacking. This isn’t the case any longer as we see new technology pushing the industry forward.

What has changed throughout the years of video gaming technology? Let’s press start and learn more.

1. Cloud Streaming

Cloud streaming is finally here after many attempts.

Google announced a partnership with Ubisoft in delivering AC: Odyssey through the cloud. Playstation touts their PSNow service with hundreds of streaming titles. Microsoft, too, is entering the cloud gaming niche in the coming years with Project xCloud.

Gamers already buy digital games through platforms like Steam, GoG, and others. It’s a natural evolution to see full games streamed as speeds improve and 5G around the corner.

2. Ray Tracing

Nvidia’s ray tracing experienced a rough start but it will reshape graphics. GPU prices will come down further and we’ll ray tracing it their future endeavors. The company’s market dominance is a major contributor to this graphics evolution.

Ray tracing graphics does its best at replicating how the eye sees. This adds an incredible depth to the visual fidelity in games. What we’ll see are lifelike graphics and animations sucking us into the storytelling.

3. Preservation

Many games from the early days are no longer available to the public. These games got lost in time including their source code and assets. Many have taken it upon themselves to preserve and archive gaming history.

Preservation had an interesting side effect:

• The distribution of ROMs and emulators
• A new media found in gaming documentaries
• Enthusiast tech pairing with legacy gaming

Many older games used interesting development tricks you don’t see today. ROM dumping and reverse engineering have revitalized some of these techniques.

We also see the surge in arcades coming back with renewed interest in old games. Collectors now house thousands of games in their arcades (click here for an example). Many contribute to the archival process, too!

4. Virtual Reality

The tech for VR is already there:

• Oculus Go
• HTC Vive
• PSVR

Prices are dropping as more units are sold, the technology improves, and gaming libraries fill up as developers master the technology. Soon, it’s likely we’ll see these more readily bundled with the consoles.

5. Mobile

There’s no denying smartphone’s influence on gaming. Portable gaming isn’t a new concept. We already have classics like the Game & Watch and Gameboy. But the powerful hardware of modern mobile phones changed the game (literally).

We have many big publishers making the jump to mobile. Blizzard, for all the flak with the new Diablo, understands the demand for the mobile market. These companies won’t dismiss mobile, gamers should adopt as they’ve always done.

Gaming Technology is the Co-op We Need

Video games are more popular than ever and with it come many talented storytellers. Gaming technology is playing co-op to letting creators explore awesome concepts. The next 10 years will be mind-blowing as we see new console life cycles, mobile expand, and PC gaming explode.