# History of video games/Print version/Timeline
## Earliest electronic games
### Cathode Ray Tube Amusement Device

The earliest known computer gaming system is the cathode-ray tube amusement device, a device which enabled its user to use its CRT system to project an electron beam on targets positioned on the screen. The game was designed by Thomas T. Goldsmith, Jr. and Estle Ray Mann, who patented it in 1947, although it was never built or sold.

### Early strategy games

A later analog computer game, Bertie the Brain, was released by Josef Kates on August 25, 1950. Bertie the Brain was a tic-tac-toe simulator, in which the user played against the computer a tic-tac-toe game, while John Makepeace Bennett and Raymond Stuart-Williams's Nimrod computer, manufactured by Ferranti and based on Edward Condon's "Nimatron" machine, was a huge analog computer released on May 5, 1951 designed to play Nim against the user. Instead, in the same year, Dietrich Prinz wrote the first computer chess simulator on a Ferranti Mark I machine, followed by Christopher Strachy's 1952 draughts simulator for the same computer. This games were mainly experiments to demonstrate the potential power of computing machines and to develop AI, more than entertainment software.
* The cathode ray tube amusement device's schematics from its patent.
* A rendering of the Nimrod.

## First interactive games

Meanwhile, A S Douglas developed and realized the tic-tac-toe software OXO (or "Naughts and Crosses"), it was a computer-versus-user game based on screen vision running on the electronic delay storage automatic calculator (EDSAC, a stored-program computer housed in the University of Cambridge's Mathematical Laboratory), in other words, the user (after receiving a special authorization to use the EDSAC) could, for one of the first times, see the game on the computer's screen. Six years later, in 1958, the first known entertainment computer game, the tennis simulator Tennis for Two, or "Computer Tennis" (designed by Los Alamos nuclear scientist William Higinbotham and built by Robert Dvorak at the Brookhaven National Laboratory, where it was shown every year). Tennis for Two, which could be played by two players using two early controllers (each with a button to hit the ball and a knob to change the angle of the trajectory), ran on an analog computer with an oscilloscope as screen and had the following gameplay: a horizontal line represented the tennis court as seen by its side, a vertical dash in the center represented the net and, once the first player started the game, the ball (a dot of light) could be used to play. The ball could hit the net, land inside or outside the yard and, when it was on one's side, he or she could use the button to virtually hit it again, but the game did not have any points nor an "end": users simply had to play.
* Strachy's draughts software, one of the first screen-based visual games.
* The EDSAC, the computer which ran OXO, which shares the draughts simulator's record.
* A Tennis for Two game on a DuMont Lab Type 304-A oscilloscope. Tennis for Two is mainly considered History's first video game.
* A modern replica of one of Tennis for Two's two controllers.
* A Tennis for Two replica in action for the game's twenty-fifth anniversary.

## Spacewar! and mainframe games

In the first years of the 1950s most mainframe computers were unsuitable for gaming, being relatively weak in memory and speed, but, in the early decade, an MIT Lincoln Laboratory research team, with Jay Forrester as head, developed, to the US Navy's gain, the perfectioned and more powerful Whirlwind I. Inspired by their work, researchers Ken Olsen and Wes Clark built the prototype machine TX-0 (Transistorized Experimental computer zero, nicknamed "tixo"), based on early transistor technology.
Clark and Harlan Anderson soon founded the Digital Equipment Corporation, or "DEC", and tixo was updated to be publicly sold under the new name "PDP-1" (Programmed Data Processor-1, one of the most notable computers in the hacker culture). In 1962, on the MIT's own PDP-1, used by later MIT students and professors, Steve Russell created Spacewar!, the first widespread video game. Spacewar! was another two-players game, in which's two-dimensional world each user controlled a spacecraft with a rear thruster (with limited fuel), yaw variation capabilities and a frontal weapon, orbiting a gravity source against a starfield background; the craft were destroyed (but soon regenerated) if the were shot by the other's weapon or they collided (with the other's ship or with the gravity source), generating explosion effects, but could also use the gravity to their advantage, jump into hyperspace to reappear at a random point of the battlefield (but increasing the probability to explode during re-entry) and use the warp screen effect ("exiting" the screen to reappear on the opposite side) to travel between two opposite points of the screen in brief time (thus avoiding the gravity source).
Other notable mainframe games (mainly written in various FOCAL dialects) include Witold Podgórski's 1962 Marienbad (an Odra 1003 Nim computer game inspired to the film Last Year at Marienbad), Doug Dyment's 1968 text-based game Hamurabi (a PDP-8 game, rewritten in the popular programming language BASIC for the famous 1973 book BASIC Computer Games, in which the player impersonated Babylonian king Hammurabi and had to participate in ancient politics) and Ken Thompson's 1969 Space Travel (a multi-platform non-combat spaceflight simulator, part of a genre that would have little-to-no further success until the late 1980s).
* The TX-0 computer, which revolutionized the mainframe computer industry.
* Spacewar! runs on the Computer History Museum's PDP-1.
* An ongoing session of Space Travel.

## Early arcade games

In 1971, the first arcade games (usually coin-operated video game-based machines) were presented: they were the Computer Space by Syzygy Engineering ("Syzygy" was the name of the partnership between Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney, originally born, inspired by Spacewar!, to found a computer games-equipped restaurant, later destined to become Atari, Inc.), though manufactured by Nutting Associates, and the PDP-11-based coin-operated Spacewar! clone Galaxy Game by Bill Pitts and Hugh Truck (a two-player arcade which enabled to play, though in with lower video and reaction quality, a multi-mode re-creation of the 1962 game, built and, for a long time, kept at Stanford University). Arcades were soon seen as a notable way to earn money easily, and, soon, other famous video game cabinets manufacturers were born: in 1972 Atari itself realized the table tennis simulator Pong by Allan Alcorn, one of the first best-selling games, as well as the inspiration for the first video game consoles; in 1973 Taito published its first game, Astro Race, a racing simulator; in 1976 Sega published Moto-Cross, the first game to provide haptic feedback (tactile output), better known as published under the Happy Days-themed label "Fonz".
* Two Galaxy Game cabinets at the Computer History Museum.
* Atari's notorious arcade game Pong running.
* A Fonz-style Moto-Cross cabinet.

## Read more

* History of Computers - Wikibook on the history of computers, which is a foundational technology for most video games.

## References

* ↑ "Cathode-ray tube amusement device". 25 January 1947. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
* ↑ "BNL History:The First Video Game?". www.bnl.gov. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
← Understanding Historical Technology · 1960-1969 →
* Spacewar! running on a PDP-1.
* Ralph Baer with his "Brown Box" prototype. This device was a forerunner to the first commercial game console, the Magnavox Odyssey.

## A small market

During the 1960's the Video Game Industry was a rather small market, and were more often than not used as a novelty attraction or the hobby project of an academic than a serious product category. In spite of that this decade would not only host some key developments in foundational technologies, some rather significant developments would be made in video gaming directly.
The PLATO Educational computer terminal system is launched after being developed from 1959 through 1960, later giving rise to a number of early multiplayer games in the 1970's once adoption picked up.
Adaptations of the game of Nim were quite popular during the this decade. In 1962 the mainframe game Marienbad is developed in Poland as a Nim adaptation. Dr. Nim is a dedicated mechanical digital computer game that used marbles instead of a screen launched at some point during the 1960's.
For more information about some early mainframe games, please read the chapter on early games.

## Computer Technology Improves

As Computing technology was spurred on by demand from Cold War era policies and business needs, several developments were made that would go on to impact gaming technology as well.
Reed-Solomon Code is invented in 1960, allowing for more reliable telecommunication and optical media, which would later be used by gaming systems. It is also used by more obscure game media, such as Nintendo E-Reader cards.
Project Xanadu begins in 1960 and becomes a significant early attempt at implementing hypertext, as well as an early prominent example of vaporware. This is a key development in the realization of hypertext, and eventually it's more popular competitor, the World Wide Web, plays host to a number of web games.
An early computer animation is rendered in Sweden 1960 and broadcast in 1961. Eventually computer generated imagery, or CGI for short, becomes a common way of generating rich visuals for games.
In October 1962 the first red LED is invented. This paves the way for cheap indicator lights in consoles and computers, as well as the red LED arrays that made consoles like the Entex Adventure Vision and the Virtual Boy possible.
In 1963 the Dutch company Phillips brings the compact cassette to market. Cassette tapes would later be used as a popular medium for computer games during the late 1970's and 1980's. The Cassette's popularity among gamers in Europe was particularly notable. By the 1980's the cassette proved popular among computer gamers in the Netherlands, as game software was distributed on radio broadcasts, where they could easily be recorded in standard players then loaded into computers.
In 1968 Digi Grotesk is created, one of the first known digital typefaces. Digital typography would become a key component of visual design in any video game which used text, and designers would quickly leverage type itself as a way they could further immerse the player in their games, improve visual clarity of game elements, and further their own artistic goals.

## Doug Englebart

Doug Englebart invents the mouse in 1964. Following years of development, on December 9th, 1968 Doug Englebart hosts the "Mother of All Demos" where he demonstrates a number of concepts, such as a computer mouse, digital maps, hyperlinks, real time collaboration in the same environment, and video chat. The concepts demonstrated by Doug Englebart in the Mother of All Demos would eventually be deployed in the gaming industry, either in games themselves or by video game developrs.

## Space Race

The space race spawned a number of space age technologies and a media frenzy. From these developments, the space race spurred several key developments in the gaming industry, either through direct technological development, or by inspiring space themed games.
Spacewar! for the PDP-1 computer was among the first digital video games, and featured two players fighting around a gravity pulling star. It's open source nature also soon leads to some of the first video game mods.
In March 1969 Bell Labs changed focus, spurring programmer Ken Thompson to port his video game Space Travel from the expensive to run GE-645 computer to a cheaper PDP-7 he had access to, eventually resulting in the creation of the Unix operating system. Unix derived and compatible operating systems would go on to directly power a number of gaming devices, such as the PlayStation 4. Unix and compatible operating systems would also go onto power a number of gaming adjacent devices, such as game servers, or mobile phones.
During the space race NASA created demand for then emerging technologies spurring their development, like microchips. This helped to promote the miniaturization of consumer electronics.
On July 20th, 1969 humans lands on the Moon for the first time, with the historic moment televised across the globe. This moment defines a generation, and many are deeply moved by this momentous occasion. Among those captivated by the Apollo 11 moon landing is Hideo Kojima, who would later develop games inspired by space travel, such as Policenauts.

## Influence of Literature

The literature of the late 1950's and 1960's had a large influence on the plots of many video games in later years. One of the most notable examples Bioshock (2007) took inspiration from Atlas Shrugged (1957) 50 years later to explore the society advocated by the novel, and would also offer a deconstruction by illustrating the pitfalls of such a society. A Canticle for Leibowitz (1959) would go on to inspire the Brotherhood of Steel in Fallout (1997), with both using a theme of a religious order safeguarding old world relics in a post-nuclear landscape. Dune (1965) was a major work of science fiction literature which would go on to influence a number of foundational science fiction games, shaping genres in a media which barely yet existed. The 1959 novel Starship Troopers is commonly credited with popularizing the concept of "Power Armor", a concept later found in other science fiction media, including many video games.

## 1960's Gaming History Gallery

* Gameplay of Spacewar! - Graphical games of the era were simplistic, yet conveyed a message with their meager resources.
* Screenshot of the 1969 game Space Travel. Mainframe games were often similar to simulations.
* The Apollo 11 put Humans on the Moon for the first time, inspiring a people across the planet. This monumental event would influence a number of creators, including many pioneering figures of the gaming industry.
* The Manchestrer Atlas computer in January 1963. Most of the powerful computers of the 1960's took up a whole room, and cost significant amounts of money to operate by the hour. This often precluded their use in home or arcade environments.
* Wonderland Arcade located in Kansas City, Missouri in 1968. These businesses used mechanical games that predated arcade video games, but would quickly adopt electronic games in the decades to follow.

## References

* ↑ "The Game Archaeologist: The PLATO MMOs, part 1". Engadget. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
* ↑ "How PLATO changed the World...in 1960". eLearningInside News. 3 June 2017. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
* ↑ "Marienbad (video game)". Wikipedia. 3 September 2020. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ "Reed-Solomon Codes". Retrieved 21 November 2020.
* ↑ "Nintendo E-Reader Technical Details". www.caitsith2.com. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
* ↑ "World's most delayed software released after 54 years of development" (in en). the Guardian. 6 June 2014. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/jun/06/vapourware-software-54-years-xanadu-ted-nelson-chapman.
* ↑ Wenz, John (25 June 2015). "These Retro Animations Were Far Ahead of Their Time". Popular Mechanics. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
* ↑ "3D Animation Design: 5 Large Industries Reshaped by It". Blog cgiflythrough.com. 3 July 2020. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
* ↑ "LED at 50: An illuminating history". BBC News. 9 October 2012. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
* ↑ "Total rewind: 10 key moments in the life of the cassette". the Guardian. 30 August 2013. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
* ↑ Moore, Bo (20 April 2015). "New storage format could hold 220 terabytes of games—on tape". PC Gamer. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
* ↑ "People Once Downloaded Games From The Radio" (in en). www.amusingplanet.com. https://www.amusingplanet.com/2019/04/people-once-downloaded-games-from-radio.html.
* ↑ "This Was The First Computer Font". BuzzFeed News. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ "The Digital Past: When Typefaces Were Experimental". AIGA the professional association for design. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ "Down to the Letter: The Importance of Typography in Video Games". www.gamasutra.com. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ Markoff, John (3 July 2013). "Computer Visionary Who Invented the Mouse (Published 2013)". The New York Times. Retrieved 25 November 2020.
* ↑ "Highlights of the 1968 Demo - Doug Engelbart Institute". dougengelbart.org. Retrieved 12 November 2020. {{cite web}}: no-break space character in |title= at position 28 (help)
* ↑ Center, Smithsonian Lemelson (10 December 2018). "The Mother of All Demos". Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ "Spacewar! PDP-1 Restoration Project Computer History Museum". www.computerhistory.org. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
* 1 2 Brandom, Russell (4 February 2013). "'Spacewar!' The story of the world's first digital video game". The Verge. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
* ↑ "The Strange Birth and Long Life of Unix". IEEE Spectrum: Technology, Engineering, and Science News. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ "PS4 runs Orbis OS, a modified version of FreeBSD that's similar to Linux - ExtremeTech". www.extremetech.com. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* 1 2 Gaudin, Sharon (20 July 2009). "NASA's Apollo technology has changed history". Computerworld. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
* ↑ Potter, Sean (5 June 2019). "Exploring the Moon Promises Innovation and Benefit at Home". NASA. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
* ↑ Sosby, Micheala (12 July 2019). "Memories of Apollo from People All Over the World". NASA. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ Chen, Adrian (3 March 2020). "Hideo Kojima's Strange, Unforgettable Video-Game Worlds". The New York Times. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ "shmuplations.com". shmuplations.com. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ Perich, John (25 February 2009). "The Myth of Atlantis: Atlas Shrugged and Bioshock" (in en). Overthinking It. https://www.overthinkingit.com/2009/02/25/the-myth-of-atlantis-atlas-shrugged-and-bioshock/.
* ↑ Perrotta, Anthony (7 July, 2017). "“BIOSHOCK” AND THE PHILOSOPHY OF AYN RAND". https://entropymag.org/bioshock-and-the-philosophy-of-ayn-rand/.
* ↑ Boisvert, Lauren (25 November 2020). "The Untold Truth Of Fallout's Brotherhood Of Steel". Looper.com. https://www.looper.com/285387/the-untold-truth-of-fallouts-brotherhood-of-steel/.
* ↑ "What if: Dune was never written?". PCGamesN. https://www.pcgamesn.com/doom/what-if-dune-was-never-written.
* ↑ Singer, Peter W. (May 2, 2008). "How to Be All That You Can Be: A Look at the Pentagon’s Five Step Plan For Making Iron Man Real". Brookings. https://www.brookings.edu/articles/how-to-be-all-that-you-can-be-a-look-at-the-pentagons-five-step-plan-for-making-iron-man-real/.
← Early games · 1970-1979 →
* Re-enactment of a typical 1970's home gaming scene.

## Mass Media

While the general public remained generally oblivious to video games during the early part of the decade, this quickly began to change with the dawn of the golden age of arcade gaming, as well as the release of the popular Atari 2600 home video game console. With the rise of this new mass media, also came some of the first widespread moral panics and controversies over video gaming.
In addition to consumer usage, edutainment games in schools began to propagate more broadly during the 1970's, though their usage was hampered by both the technology, and by a lack of computers.

## Women Developers

Despite facing workplace adversity, the 1970's saw several women make prominent contributions in the video game industry, most notably at RCA and Atari. However these developers would often not see widespread recognition in their day. This trend would continue into the 1980's.

## Popular Genres

* Arcade style games, especially the Lunar Lander subgenre
* 2D Shooters
** In the first half of the decade Spacewar! clones were popular among video gamers.
** The massive success of Space Invaders (1978) led to the popularization of the genre with the public.
* Tabletop games often influenced computer games of the time.
** Wargaming, as well as tabletop role playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons inspired many early computer roleplaying games.
* Text adventures and other interactive fiction proved popular among those few who owned home computers. These simplistic games often required no special graphics hardware, yet offered a glimpse into fantastic worlds for imaginative gamers despite their limitations.
* Edutainment games were a popular target for developers, hoping to improve or capitalize on the educational market.
** In the first half of the decade, these games were common on minicomputer and mainframe time share systems, limited to those affiliated with specific institutions.
** Later in the decade, as schools began adopting home computers, these games became much more accessible to the public.

## 1970
### The May 4th Massacre

The horrific events of the May 4th massacre by the Ohio National Guard at Kent State University had drastic effects on America, and especially on those present. Several of those present at the event would go on to influence the game industry.
Several students present were moved by what they witnessed transpire to form the band DEVO. Band member Mark Mothersbaugh later goes on to work on games such as Crash Bandicoot. Another student, John De Lancie, was less then 20 yards from the shooting, and worked with Senator Young and Ted Kennedy to share his experience with the Senate. John De Lancie would later pursue a career as a prominent actor, which included voice acting for video games.

### Game of Life

After development in the 1960's, Conway's Game of Life is published in Scientific American in 1970. Although initially a simple mathematical game, it was later turned into various computer programs. The game is formed by a simple playfield of "cells", each one surrounded by eight "neighbors" (the adjacent cells), and either "lives" or "dies" in the next turn based on them. The correct combination of "alive" and "dead" cells can create stable systems ("still lives"), mutating shapes, ("oscillators"), moving objects ("spaceships") or generate an infinite stream of shapes through "guns", thus allowing for a sort of "war" to be "fought".

## 1971
### Galaxy Game

In September 1971 the arcade game Galaxy Game is installed at Tresidder Memorial Union of Stanford University. The game is a Spacewar! clone, designed with multiplayer-only capabilities in mind as it lacked an artificial intelligence for single-player gameplay. Although it ranks as the first known coin-operated video game (running on a modified PDP-11), it was never commercially released. Despite this, it can be ran on the popular MAME emulator for modern computers.

### Computer Space

In November 1971 the arcade game Computer Space is released by "Syzygy Engineering" (the progenitor of Atari, Inc.) to try to recreate the success of the Computer Quiz game of 1968. The gameplay is reminiscent of Spacewar!, but is distinct enough to avoid being classified as a Spacewar! clone. Few units survive to this day, but the game itself is a popular culture icon among video game fans, both due to it's historical value and due to it's distinctive and funky cabinet design.

### The Oregon Trail

In November 1971 three student teachers (Bill Heinemann, Don Rawitsch, and Paul Dillenberger) make The Oregon Trail for a UNIVAC computer operated by the Minnesota Educational Computing Consortium and is connected to a number of schools in Minnesota by teletypewriter. The Oregon Trail was made despite challenges posed by limited computer access. The first version of The Oregon Trail had to be made with teletypewriters in mind, so shooting mechanics were based on accurately typing words quickly.
The Oregon Trail is one of the earliest edutainment games. As of 2020 the game's modernized versions are often considered to be among the best edutainment games made.

### Intel 4004

1971 saw the release of the Intel 4004, Intel's first chip produced on a 10 micron process. This chip becomes one of the first generally available microprocessors, helping to usher in an era where mass-produced computers and programmable game consoles could reach the home.

## 1972
### Atari & Pong

In 1972 Nolan Bushnell founds the company Atari, releasing the arcade hit Pong by fall 1972.

## 1973
### Gaming at BGSU

Across the United States, many gaming cultures have sprung up at various universities, piggybacking off of the advanced computing resources available to students. Records from the rural Bowling Green State University show that this spread was not limited to the biggest or most elite universities by 1973. The Bowling Green State University computer center offers about 250 computer games for students to play freely, including Moon an early game in the Lunar Lander genre.

### Lemonade Stand

A programmer working for the educational institution Minnesota Educational Computing Consortium makes Lemonade Stand for their UNIVAC mainframe, which is connected to a number of schools via teletypewriter.Gameplay revolves around simulating a business, balancing prices and costs with demand influenced by external factors like weather.
Lemonade Stand is among the first games that attempts to simulate a business, as well as an early example of an edutainment game.

### Oil Panic

The OPEC Oil embargo to the United States, Japan, and other nations creates great economic shock and a recession. Hanafuda cardmaker and toy manufacture Nintendo is nearly pushed to financial ruin by the economic effects of the embargo and begins desperately seeking alternate revenue sources, eventually leading them to make home video games.

### Phong Shading

Phong Shading is invented in 1973, becoming a common 3D graphics shading technique which adds dynamic highlights to objects.

### BASIC Computer Games

1973 sees the release of one of the most influent computing and video gaming books of History: BASIC Computer Games, initially a DEC book titled "101 BASIC Computer Games". The book is a collection of BASIC source codes (usually converted from DEC's FOCAL) for simple video games, collected and partially modified or created by David H. Ahl. The book initially written in the DEC dialect of the language for use on PDP computers, but Ahl later left DEC to found the magazine Creative Computing, purchased the rights to the book, changed its title and ported the games to the now more standard Microsoft BASIC (which was starting to be used for home computers, and still survives today in its Visual Basic form), with instructions on how to port the games to platforms running personalized dialects.

## 1974
### Dungeons & Dragons

In 1974 the original "White Box" edition of the World-famous Dungeons & Dragons tabletop roleplaying game is released with it and its derivatives influencing a number of programmers, and through them highly influenced the creation of both Western computer RPGs and Japanese RPG genres.

## 1975
### Video Games on Planes

In 1975 Braniff Airlines offers Pong during flights, becoming the perhaps first airline to offer a video game as an official in flight entertainment option.

### First Digital Camera

On December 12th, 1975 the first digital photograph is taken by Kodak employee Steven Sasson of subject Joy Marshall. The Camera captures the image using a CCD from Fairchild Semiconductor and then takes 26 seconds to record the result onto an audio tape. Later on gaming devices such as the GameBoy camera and the Xbox Kinect used digital cameras to offer unique gameplay experiences.

### Graphic Music Synergy

At ACM SIGGRAPH 1975 in Bowling Green, Ohio a presentation is given on graphics influenced by music, an early example of a relationship that would become common in games with adaptive music.

## 1976
### Cars!

1976 was an important year for automobiles and racing in video games.
Datsun became the first automaker to license one of it's cars for a arcade game in 1976, later seeing a home console port to the Bally Professional Arcade. Later on, real automobile brands would later proliferate in racing games, adding to realism and immersion, as well as being a powerful marketing tool for the automobile industry.
In 1976 the Death Race arcade game is introduced, prompting media to question the violence featured in the game. The newness of video games meant that some outlets struggled to differentiate the game from a pinball machine or board game. The sensationalism surrounding the game ultimately boosted it's sales.

### Apple Computer

On April 1st, 1976, Apple Computer is founded by Steve "Woz" Wozniak and Steve Jobs in the latter's garage. The initial purpose of the company is to manufacture Woz's Apple I motherboard. The company later produces a number of computers which were commonly used for gaming, and would even help produce the short lived Apple Pippin game console during the 1990's.

## 1978

The gameshow TV Powww debuts, focusing on playing video games on a television show via telephone.

## 1979
### Mobile Suit Gundam

The Anime Mobile Suit Gundam is released in Japan, having a huge influence on Japanese geek culture, and by extension influencing a number of Japanese game designers. The designs of Mobile Suits from Gundam may have had an influence on other game series as well.

## References

* ↑ Wells, Matthew (28 July 2022). "The nuclear war origins behind some of the earliest computer lab games". Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/23278536/rand-corporation-nuclear-wargames-computer-lab.
* ↑ "Celebrating Women at Atari - Blog - The Henry Ford". www.thehenryford.org. Retrieved 22 December 2020.
* ↑ Edwards, Benj (27 October 2017). "Rediscovering History’s Lost First Female Video Game Designer". Fast Company. https://www.fastcompany.com/90147592/rediscovering-historys-lost-first-female-video-game-designer.
* ↑ Hernandez, Patricia (11 February 2021). "In the ’80s, she was a video game pioneer. Today, no one can find her" (in en). Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/2021/2/11/22273073/ban-tran-atari-2600-wabbit-first-female-character-video-games-playable-history-apollo.
* ↑ "REMEMBERING MAY 4 - AN INTERVIEW WITH DEVO'S JERRY CASALE". Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ "Exclusive Interview – Composer Mark Mothersbaugh talks working with Wes Anderson, Crash Bandicoot and his discography". Flickering Myth. 27 June 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ "de Lancie" (in en). Star Trek. https://www.startrek.com/database_article/de-lancie.
* ↑ "Q and A-theism w/ John de Lancie - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 22 December 2020.
* ↑ "John de Lancie Kent State University". www.kent.edu. Retrieved 22 December 2020.
* ↑ "The Game of Life, by John Horton Conway The Embryo Project Encyclopedia". embryo.asu.edu. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ ""Galaxy Game", the Earliest Coin-Operated Computer or Video Game : History of Information". www.historyofinformation.com. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ "Computer Space and the Dawn of the Arcade Video Game". PCWorld. 1 January 2012. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ "Pixels In Print (Part 1): Advertising Computer Space - The First Arcade Video Game". Video Game History Foundation. 10 April 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ [computerspacefan.com "computerspacefan.com"]. computerspacefan.com. Retrieved 10 February 2020. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
* 1 2 "How You Wound Up Playing The Oregon Trail in Computer Class". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* 1 2 3 Juba, Joe. "A Pioneer Story: How MECC Blazed New Trails". Game Informer. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* 1 2 Porges, Seth. "How 'The Oregon Trail' Was Built Without Access To A Computer". Forbes. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* ↑ Brown, Shelby. "Worried about your kids' screen time? Try one of these educational video games". CNET. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* ↑ Staff, GamesRadar; December 2013, GamesRadar 25. "The best edutainment games [ClassicRadar]". gamesradar. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* ↑ "The Story of the Intel® 4004". Intel. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
* ↑ Edwards, Benj (17 February 2017). "The Untold Story of Atari Founder Nolan Bushnell's Visionary 1980s Tech Incubator". Fast Company. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
* 1 2 3 "The BG News October 3, 1973". BG News (Student Newspaper). 3 October 1973. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ "oil crisis of 1973 Japan Module". www.japanpitt.pitt.edu. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* ↑ "Milestones: 1969–1976 - Office of the Historian". history.state.gov. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* ↑ "Nintendo - The Early History". www.i-programmer.info. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* ↑ "History School of Computing". Retrieved 5 December 2020.
* ↑ "Phong shading algorithm". mrl.cs.nyu.edu. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
* ↑ "The Unlikely Origin Story of JRPGs". www.gamasutra.com. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ Messner, Steven (15 April 2017). "The forgotten origins of JRPGs on the PC". PC Gamer. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ "​Henk Rogers: The Dutch Godfather of Japanese RPGs". www.vice.com. Retrieved 28 November 2020. {{cite web}}: zero width space character in |title= at position 1 (help)
* ↑ "Beautiful posters from the golden age of flying – where are the airlines now?". The Telegraph. 13 September 2018. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/lists/posters-golden-age-air-travel/braniff/.
* ↑ "A Brief History of In Flight Entertainment – Imagik Corp". Retrieved 14 December 2020.
* 1 2 "How the Digital Camera Transformed Our Concept of History". IEEE Spectrum: Technology, Engineering, and Science News. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* ↑ "Hands on: Xbox One Kinect review". TechRadar. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* ↑ "The Game Boy Camera, Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Pixels". Hackaday. 26 October 2020. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* ↑ Kaczmarek, Thomas; Smoliar, Stephen W. An experiment in interaction between independent music and graphics processors. Association for Computing Machinery. pp. 208–211. ISBN 978-1-4503-7354-8. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
* ↑ "Datsun Was The First Car Maker To Officially Brand A Video Game" (in en-us). Jalopnik. https://jalopnik.com/datsun-was-the-first-car-maker-to-officially-brand-a-vi-1652829922.
* ↑ "The Torchinsky Files: I'm Betting Most Of You Have Never Seen A Bally Professional Arcade" (in en-us). Jalopnik. https://jalopnik.com/the-torchinsky-files-im-betting-most-of-you-have-never-1844218806.
* ↑ Wilson, Mark (8 June 2012). "How Do Real Cars End Up In Video Games? And Does It Help The Brands?". Fast Company. https://www.fastcompany.com/1669990/how-do-real-cars-end-up-in-video-games-and-does-it-help-the-brands.
* ↑ "The Media vs. Death Race". Video Game History Foundation. 1 June 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ "A Video Game By Any Other Name". Video Game History Foundation. 24 May 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ Kocurek, Carly A. (September 2012). "The Agony and the Exidy: A History of Video Game Violence and the Legacy of Death Race". Game Studies. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ "Apple Computers: This Month in Business History (Business Reference Services, Library of Congress)". www.loc.gov. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
* ↑ Barder, Ollie. "Understanding How Gundam May Have Influenced Halo Over The Years" (in en). Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/olliebarder/2015/07/01/understanding-how-gundam-may-have-influenced-halo-over-the-years/?sh=6586cd8655eb.
← 1960-1969 · 1980-1989 →
* A CPC464 computer being used to play games in 1988.
* A recreation of a typical gaming scene in the 1980's.

## Trends
### Decision Making

The early 1980's were a chaotic time in the Gaming Industry, with little demographic information on gamers available to inform game companies on their decisions.

### Home Computers

The 1980's saw the rise of personal computers, as well as home game development companies.
See the 1980's section of the Computer gaming article.

### Arcades

The late 1970's and early 1980's is widely considered to be the peak of arcades, as they were culturally relevant and popular in many countries. Arcade machines allowed players to game without the expensive upfront cost of consoles, as well as to experience graphical fidelity that often surpassed what was possible on popular home hardware.

### High Difficulty

Games from the 1980's are known for their high difficulty. As game media could not easily store information for detailed long stories and campaigns, many developers instead used high difficulties to make games last longer.

### Gaming Watches

While gaming watches first hit the market in the 1970's, they became relatively common during the 1980's and 1990's. An example of a watch from this time is the 1984 Casio GD8 wristwatch, which included a simple racing game.

### Popular Genres

* Arcade games
* 2D Platformers
* 2D Action adventure games
* Puzzle games
* Rougelikes (On Computers)

## 1982
### The Golden Age of Spanish Software dawns

Spanish software becomes a major player in the home computer gaming scene in Europe.

## 1983
### Game Stores

By 1983 there were dedicated game stores and mail order used game services in the United States.

### The Video game crash of 1983

The 1980's also saw the end of the Second generation of video game consoles with the Video game crash of 1983 severely disrupting the market in North America. Unsold North American-market Atari consoles, computers and cartridges are buried in a New Mexico landfill to be discovered only in 2013.
* Atari at CES in Chicago in 1982.
* Atari E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial and Centipede cartridges found in a landfill in 2013, 30 years after 1983.

### Third Generation of Video Game Consoles

Beginning in 1983 the Third generation of video game consoles later saw widespread mainstream success. These consoles offered much better 2D graphics and sound then earlier generations.

### WarGames

WarGames, a 1983 movie about a teenager computer hacker and phreaker looking for unreleased video games but accidentally triggering a nuclear defense system, helps put computer hacking in the public imagination and sparks some of the first high level American government efforts regarding cybersecurity. While many aspects of the movie were fake, automated scanning of phone numbers for game company computers was inspired by real phreaker practices from the time like demon dialing, which came to be known as "wardialing" after the film. The aesthetics of the film would also influence a number of later retro revival games made after the 1980's.

## 1984
### Distribution

A few companies such as Cumma Technology try their hand at game distribution through rewritable cartridges.

## 1987
### Beginning of the Fourth Generation of Video Game Consoles

Early fourth generation game console began to be released in 1987, though serious competition in this space would not begin until 1990 with more international releases. The improved hardware in these consoles featured much better audio and graphics than the previous generation.

## 1989
### Fall of the Berlin Wall

Throughout the 1980's game developers in East Germany had to make games in accordance to party wishes, such as not including violent elements in their games. Meetings of gamers were often monitored by the Stasi agents out of concern that western software and games were being used. On November 9th, 1989 East German citizens begin to tear down the Berlin Wall, leading to German Reunification and thus the end of gaming culture under the East German government.

## 1980's gaming gallery

* The 3D Bradley Trainer, the military version of the 1980 Atari game Battlezone.
* The 1980 game Mystery House on the Apple II.
* Mazogs, a 1982 game.
* The 1986 game Rebelstar on the ZX Spectrum, an early example of the turn based tactics genre.
* Turbo GT Circuit from 1986, showing typical 2D graphics of the era.
* Laser Squad, a 1988 strategy game.
* Rebel Star II, a turn based tactics game from 1988.
* Bubble Ghost, a 1988 puzzle game.
* Another recreated typical gaming scene.

## General Gallery

* A map of the Cold War alliances in 1980. As computer technology was a sensitive field during this era, there were significant differences in the general availability of specific models of computers and game consoles between nations in NATO and the Warsaw Pact.

## References

* ↑ Lien, Tracey (2 December 2013). "No girls allowed" (in en). Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/features/2013/12/2/5143856/no-girls-allowed. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
* ↑ Crecente, Brian (7 December 2015). "Watch History Time killers: The strange history of wrist gaming". Polygon.com. https://www.polygon.com/a/smartwatch-history-guide-evolution/watch-history.
* ↑ "A brief history of wearable gaming". Wareable. 8 April 2015. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
* ↑ George, Ashley (18 November 2020). "The Other Spanish Golden Age". Language Magazine. https://www.languagemagazine.com/2020/11/18/the-other-spanish-golden-age/.
* ↑ "SECONDHAND GAMES FOR VIDEO BUFFS (Published 1983)". The New York Times. 7 July 1983. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
* ↑ "No. 3038: The Video Game Crash of 1983". www.uh.edu. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* ↑ "Video Game History". www.cs.uic.edu. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* 1 2 "WarGames: A Look Back at the Film That Turned Geeks and Phreaks Into Stars". Wired. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* ↑ Kaplan, Fred (19 February 2016). "'WarGames' and Cybersecurity's Debt to a Hollywood Hack (Published 2016)". The New York Times. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* ↑ Pollack, Andrew (12 January 1984). "TECHNOLOGY; NEW SOFTWARE DELIVERY IDEAS (Published 1984)". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/1984/01/12/business/technology-new-software-delivery-ideas.html.
* ↑ "Fourth Generation (1987-1993)". History of Console Gaming. 22 September 2016. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* 1 2 "4th Generation". www.retroislife.com. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* ↑ "Gaming Beyond the Iron Curtain: East Germany". Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* ↑ "ZEIT ONLINE Lesen Sie zeit.de mit Werbung oder im PUR-Abo. Sie haben die Wahl". www.zeit.de. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
* ↑ "Fall of Berlin Wall: How 1989 reshaped the modern world". BBC News. 5 November 2019. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
← 1970-1979 · 1990-1999 →
* A PC Gaming scene featuring competitive esports player Thresh at Comdex 1997.

## Trends
### Network Gaming

The Internet was a sensation in the 1990's, leading to more incorporation in games. LAN parties became common among computer gamers. Many legacy dial up gaming services from the 1980's shut down in the mid 1990's and many were founded in the 1990's.
- The noise of a dial up connection being made, a common way 1990's gamers got on the internet.

### 3D Gaming

While 3D games predate the 1990's, this decade saw a huge leap and refinement in 3D video games in terms of graphical fidelity. More importantly, this decade also saw refinements in 3D gameplay especially in level design and control. The 1990's also saw improvements to storytelling in games, allowing for richer tales and better plots.

### Expanding Audience

The demographics for video game consoles shifted older, to include more young adults.
Some families suffered strain due to generational conflict.

### Big Box Era

Following a number of packaging styles in the 1980's, computer game packaging from the early 1990's on through the late 2000's would adopt an informal "Big Box" standard.

### Realism & Controversy

In the 1990s more game developers would strive to achieve realism in their games. This was often in the form of graphical realism, taking advantage of increased graphical fidelity to push the limits of hardware. Other developers sought to leverage improving technologies by crafting ever greater and vaster worlds. Others still sought to push storytelling in a more serious direction, focusing on real world issues.
The main controversial games of the era include:
* Mortal Kombat
* Doom
* Duke Nukem
* Tomb Raider
Controversy was not limited to major commercial titles. A 1992 successor game to The Oregon Trail depicting American slavery prior to the Civil War, Freedom!, attracted controversy due to several misstepes which were insensitive, despite good intentions by the developers.

## Popular or Iconic Genres

Some terms in this section will link to Wikipedia for more information.

### Platformers

Gaming in the early 1990s is often exemplified by the 2D platformer. As better game hardware enabled new experiences, developers took risks with new and novel takes on the platformer genre, such as the fast-paced Sonic the Hedgehog. Other titles, such as Super Mario World, were iterative improvements that improved on tried and true gameplay.
The later half of the decade saw the industry pivot to 3D platformers. 3D platformers were dominated by the collectathon genre, notably by the landmark title Super Mario 64, which helped pioneer easy to use 3D control schemes. Other notable collectathons include Spyro the Dragon, Donkey Kong 64, and Banjo Kazooie. Other 3D platformers tried to differentiate themselves through other means, such as the use of lush and well crafted linear levels in Crash Bandicoot, or humor in Gex: Enter the Gecko.

### Action-Adventure

Notable general Action-Adventure games of the decade include The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and Tomb Raider.
Survival Horror Action-Adventure games of the decade included Alone in the Dark, Resident Evil, Resident Evil 2 and Silent Hill.

### 3D Racing games

This genre was influenced by important games such as the 3DO and DOS game The Need for Speed (1994-1995) and the PlayStation game Gran Turismo (1997) which aimed for realistic 3D graphics and driving mechanics for a much more immersive driving experience then prior 2D racing games could provide. Both generated successful franchises for the PC and console platforms (although the latter never left the PlayStation line).
Less realism focused arcade style and karting games were also released, including the original 2.5d titles F-Zero and Super Mario Kart, as well as their fully 3D followups F-Zero X and Mario Kart 64. Other notable 3D racing games not focused on realism included titles such as Wipeout, Cruis'n USA, Sega Rally Championship, and Daytona USA. Ridge Racer was an interesting example of a game that mixed very realistic graphics, with arcade style gameplay.

### Shooters

After id Software's first-person interface experiments with Hovertank 3-D (1990) and Catacomb 3-D (1992), a number of Shooter sub genres, especially third person shooters and fast-paced first person shooters, were pioneered in this decade with groundbreaking hit titles. id's Wolfenstein 3D (1992) was a landmark title in the genre, a remake of the earlier 2D video games Castle Wolfenstein and Beyond Castle Wolfenstein and one of the first popular first-person shooters ever and pioneer in 2.5D graphics, although it allowed 2D-only gameplay action, thus making it impossible to jump, go up or down stairs, or even aiming up or down. More complex shooters such as id's highly controversial Doom (1993) and the tongue-in-cheek Duke Nukem 3D (1996) developed by the emerging Apogee Software and published by 3D Realms, would follow.
All three games also spawned notable modding communities, altering and modifying game files at one's own pleasure. Also, Doom pioneered the technology of online multiplayer games, already experimented by games such as the 1970s Maze War (which is also one of the very earliest FPS).
Other notable first person shooters would include Quake, Unreal Tournament, Tribes, MDK, Perfect Dark, and the 1997 Nintendo 64 shooter GoldenEye 007, based on the 1995 James Bond film. Later games with FPS mechanics such as Half-Life and Deus Ex would use this medium to tell detailed and immersive stories.

### Point and Click Adventure

The 1990's are often seen as the critical apex of the Point and click adventure genre, where the culmination of a developers with a decade of experience during the 1980's still retained significant financial backing from publishers.

### Fighting Games

Games such as Street Fighter II and Mortal Kombat would forever shape the genre with their technical and artistic decisions which skyrocketed the appeal and popularity of the genre.

### Role Playing Games

Notable JRPGs (Japanese role-playing (video) games) from the decade include games III-VIII in the Final Fantasy series, Chrono Trigger, and Secret of Mana.
Notable western computer role playing games from this decade include System Shock, Fallout 1 & 2, and the first Baldur's Gate from American studios. CRPGs were popular with European PC gamers during this time.
Other RPGs sought to subvert traditional expectations of the RPG formula, including Earthbound/Mother 2, Super Mario RPG, and Moon: Remix RPG Adventure.

### FMV Games

A number of games attempted to leverage the high capacity of CD-ROM to make movies interactive using full-motion video (FMV). This was a selling point of consoles such as the original PlayStation (1994) by Sony Computer Entertainment and the failed CD-i (1990) by Philips.

### Sports

At the very end of the decade, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater would spark an interest in the skating subgenre.

### Strategy & Tactics

This decade saw increased interest in real time strategy games, notably with the release of Starcraft, Age of Empires, Warcraft: Orcs & Humans, and Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness.
Turn based strategy and tactics games would also see landmark titles, such as Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War, Front Mission, and Final Fantasy Tactics.
The original XCOM trilogy, including X-COM: Enemy Unknown, X-COM: Terror from the Deep, and X-COM: Apocalypse, offered a unique take on the genre with a theme of planetary defense, and offered a hybrid approach of real time strategy on a macro scale, with turn based tactics on a micro scale.

### Simulation

Notable games from the decade include SimCity 2000 (Despite the name, it was released mid decade).

## Timeline
### 1992
#### The Golden Age of Spanish Software ends

Many companies in the Spanish gaming industry fold, ending an era in home computer gaming.

### 1993
#### Tetris in Space

Cosmonaut Aleksandr Serebrov flies on the Soyuz TM-17 mission to the Russian space station Mir, bringing a MIR postmarked Game Boy and a copy of the famous Russian game Tetris to play in space during limited free time, thus becoming among the first, if not the first person, to play video games in space.
While this may seem like a trivial fact, it represents a small though significant milestone in space exploration. Following the revolt of the crew of the space station Skylab in 1974, the welfare of spacefaring people has been of particular importance. Today entertainment during extended time in space is considered a critical part of daily life. This event marked a point where video games became part of that strategy.

### 1994
#### Industry Organization

In 1994 the Computer Game Developers Association is founded, later becoming the International Game Developers Association.

### 1995
#### Neon Genesis Evangelion

The 1995 release of the anime Neon Genesis Evangelion would go on to influence a number of Japanese game developers.

### 1996
#### Dawn of the MMORPG

The game Meridian 59 launches on PC, letting over 10,000 players play simultaneously in a 3D environment, making it among the earliest modern MMORPGs. Players engage in social activities that the developers did not anticipate such as marriage and mass player killing. Emergent behavior caused by the social systems massively multiplayer games would often prove an interesting field of study in the following years.

#### Video games banned in Afghanistan

Following the Afghanistan Civil War from 1992 to 1996 the nation of Afghanistan came under the control of the 1996-2001 Islamic Emirate. As a result Video Games are banned along with many other forms of cultural expression deemed inappropriate by the government.

### 1997
#### Sega Bandai Shakeup

A merger between Bandai and Sega nearly occurred, before being called off.

### 1998
#### .beat

Swatch .beat internet time is announced, and sees some use by players of MMORPGs for coordinating across time zones.

## Other Gaming Tech of the 1990's

The 1990's saw the first mobile phone games, as well as a number of novel small LCD games.
* A 1997 Tamagotchi, a popular virtual pet game.
* A 1994 Aura Interactor Force Feedback Vest.

## Game Gallery

* Vroom, a racing game from 1991.
* Video explaining the technology behind the 2.5d graphics of Wolfenstein 3D.
* Flight of the Amazon Queen, an adventure game from 1995.
* Warzone 2100, a 3D real time strategy game released in 1999.
* The 1999 adventure game Amerzone, showing pre-rendered 3D graphics.
* A number of first person shooters and engines would be descended from the Quake engine, including some still in use in 2023.

## References

* ↑ Williams, Owen (16 February 2015). "How People Described The Internet In The 1990s is Hilarious". The Next Web. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* ↑ "In-person LAN parties > Online multiplayers". iMore. 15 June 2020. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* ↑ "The Game Archaeologist: Online gaming service providers of the '80s and '90s Massively Overpowered". Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* ↑ "The Magic of Early 90s 3D". GameZone. 4 May 2012. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* 1 2 July 2010, PC Plus11. "The evolution of 3D games". TechRadar. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* ↑ Otty, Karl (28 September 2020). "In Defence of Tank Controls". Medium. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* ↑ "Educational Feature: A History and Analysis of Level Design in 3D Computer Games - Pt. 1". www.gamasutra.com. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* ↑ James, Matt (29 November 2018). "The Enduring Legacy of 'Half-Life,' 20 Years After Its Release". The Ringer. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* ↑ "The 10 Best Stories In '90s Horror Video Games". TheGamer. 7 June 2019. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* ↑ "Le public des consoles de jeux prend de l'âge" (in fr). Le Monde.fr. 4 March 1997. https://www.lemonde.fr/archives/article/1997/03/04/le-public-des-consoles-de-jeux-prend-de-l-age_3765876_1819218.html.
* ↑ "La culture du jeu vidéo gagne les adultes" (in fr). Le Monde.fr. 20 November 1998. https://www.lemonde.fr/archives/article/1998/11/20/la-culture-du-jeu-video-gagne-les-adultes_3697628_1819218.html.
* ↑ "Les jeux électroniques creusent l'écart entre générations" (in fr). Le Monde.fr. 26 March 1999. https://www.lemonde.fr/archives/article/1999/03/26/les-jeux-electroniques-creusent-l-ecart-entre-generations_3557631_1819218.html.
* ↑ "Big Boxes". Retrieved 29 November 2021.
* ↑ "Big Box Extinction". Rome.ro. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
* ↑ Romano, Aja (17 March 2018). "Why we’ve been arguing about Lara Croft for two decades" (in en). Vox. https://www.vox.com/culture/2018/3/17/17128344/lara-croft-tomb-raider-history-controversy-breasts.
* ↑ "The 'Oregon Trail' Studio Made a Game About Slavery. Then Parents Saw It". www.vice.com. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
* ↑ Batchelor, Carl (21 January 2015). "A Brief History of the European CRPG". Niche Gamer. https://nichegamer.com/a-brief-history-of-the-european-crpg/.
* ↑ George, Ashley (18 November 2020). "The Other Spanish Golden Age". Language Magazine. https://www.languagemagazine.com/2020/11/18/the-other-spanish-golden-age/.
* 1 2 Martin, Douglas (17 November 2013). "Aleksandr Serebrov, 69, Dies; Cosmonaut Who Persevered (Published 2013)". The New York Times. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
* 1 2 "Auction: Nintendo Game Boy Flown In Space". Retro Thing. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
* ↑ Eschner, Kat. "Mutiny in Space: Why These Skylab Astronauts Never Flew Again" (in en). Smithsonian Magazine. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/mutiny-space-why-these-skylab-astronauts-never-flew-again-180962023/.
* ↑ Wild, Flint (8 June 2015). "Free Time in Space". NASA. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
* ↑ "About Us – IGDA". Retrieved 6 January 2021.
* ↑ "How much Neon Genesis Evangelion is in Metal Gear Solid?". Retrieved 2 March 2021.
* ↑ "The Game Archaeologist crosses Meridian 59: The highlights". Engadget. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
* ↑ "Finding Art in an Internet Game". archive.nytimes.com. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
* ↑ "Kabul gamers fret over favourite pastime with Taliban back in power" (in en). Reuters. 14 September 2021. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/kabul-gamers-fret-over-favourite-pastime-with-taliban-back-power-2021-09-13/.
* ↑ "Echec de la fusion entre Sega et Bandai" (in fr). Le Monde.fr. 29 May 1997. https://www.lemonde.fr/archives/article/1997/05/29/echec-de-la-fusion-entre-sega-et-bandai_3762947_1819218.html.
* ↑ ".beat: Swatch's Insane Attempt To Reinvent Time for the Internet". www.themarysue.com. Retrieved 15 November 2020.
* ↑ "PSO-World.com - Guides - .beat Time System". www.pso-world.com. Retrieved 15 November 2020.
← 1980-1989 · 2000-2009 →
* A typical game shop in 2005, showing a variety of games for sale.
* A typical gaming scene in the December 2006. People hang out while two gamers play a Nintendo Wii with motion controls.
* The living room of a gamer in 2007.
* The line for GTAIV on launch in Las Vegas, 2008.

## Trends
### Internet Gaming matures

In late 1999 EverQuest was released, popularizing MMORPGs. The 2000's saw the release of popular MMORPG's such as World of Warcraft, and Runescape. These MMORPGs offered unique social experiences for their players and resulted in in game social institutions being formed.

### New Economics of games

The concept of free to play games primarily downloaded on the internet with small paid additions, microtransactions, is refined. This strategy begins to be seriously pursued by major game companies like EA by the end of the decade.
Companies begin seriously marketing small DLC, with incidents like Horse Armor DLC for Oblivion initially attracting an incredulous response for selling something that did not include story or other additional content, and becoming a common joke online by the end of the decade.
Virtual in-game currencies that can be officially exchanged for real currencies or to replace membership costs emerge in games like Second Life and EVE Online. In part due to concerns of inflation, EVE Online developer CCP Games hires an economist to manage the in-game economy. In games that prohibit trading in game currency for real currency like World of Warcraft, and to a lesser extent games that allow it like EVE Online, under the table deals and grey markets for in game currency obtained by techniques like gold farming arise. In game thefts for real world gain begin catching the public eye.

### Games as Apps, Mobile gaming in the 2000's

Games for non-gaming mobile computer devices gained popularity, often running on mobile media players like iPods, or on basic feature phones.
Later the introduction of smartphones and application stores on them made mobile gaming more accessible.

## Popular Genres

* Rhythm and Music games

### Role Playing Games

Role Playing Games continued to evolve during this decade, and would incorporate technological features to enhance storytelling, such as increased use of voice acting, better CGI, and larger maps. 3D RPGs became quite common on PC and home console, while 2D RPGs remained common on handheld devices, typically reaching graphical parity with home RPGs of the 1990's while incorporating improved understanding of game design.

### First Person Shooters

While First Person Shooters continued to be popular on PC, innovations in controllers and console capabilities lead to a boom in console first person shooters. These console shooters were typically slower paced then their PC counterparts, but found massive popularity and adoption among gamers.

### Massively multiplayer online role-playing games

While Massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPG) emerged before the 2000's, this decade was when they achieved mass popularity. Most notably World of Warcraft was released this decade.

### Open World

As hardware increasingly became more powerful, game developers soon were able to craft comprehensive, vast 3D environments much more easily than before. Open World games blur the line between a subgenre, a design choice, and a game mechanic. Open world mechanics often were mixed with other genres for interesting results.

#### Constructive

One of the most notable video games to be released in the 2000s, despite the fact that it was only a paid public alpha, is Markus "Notch" Persson's 2009 masterpiece Minecraft, which was an instant success since the time of its release and has since become an ever-evolving video game running on various different platforms - eventually becoming one of the most popular games of all time. The 2009 version evolved in what was later known as the "Java Edition", due to the fact that it was completely written in Java, although this will be explored in later chapters. Earlier in the decade, similar games attempted to capture this idea of an open world where the player could do anything, though far less popularity. Minecraft was influenced by the earlier 2009 voxel building game Infiniminer. 2002 saw the beginnings of the game Dwarf Fortress.

#### GTA and clones

Other, earlier, games that had enormous success in the 2000s were Rockstar Games's Grand Theft Auto III (2001), IV (2008) and the intermediate chapters Vice City (2002) and San Andreas (2004). They have spawned the GTA clone video game genre, which also encompasses many other video games, all characterized by being a hybrid of third-person shooters and driving simulators and often focusing on organized crime and mafia storylines.
There was a large demand for GTA-style games on the go, which included the well-received, but controversial, 2006 video game adaptation of The Godfather and its 2009 sequel, leading to innovative attempts to replicate the gameplay on very underpowered handheld hardware. This resulted in the release of acclaimed titles such as Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars in 2009 or the Payback clone duology (2001-2012).

## 2000
### Handheld Era

High demand for handheld electronics of all kinds causes a severe shortage of the chemical element Tantalum.

### The People's Republic of China bans video game consoles

As a measure intended to protect the mental health of youth in China, game consoles are banned in the People's Republic of China. This ban did not apply in Hong Kong or Macau, and consoles were often openly sold to wealthy gamers in grey market storefronts despite the ban during its later years. There were also a few exceptions made, allowing Sony and Nintendo to make limited sanctioned attempts to enter the Chinese market. Still, this restriction lead to computer and mobile games becoming the dominant mode of play in the country.

## 2001
### War on Terror

The horrific attacks on September 11th, 2001 had huge repercussions on both culture and the global economy. In response to the attacks, many games are delayed and edited out of respect to the victims of the tragedy.

## 2002
### Game Jams

In early 2002 Game Jams begin taking off with developers. In Oakland, California the 0th Indie Game Jam is held from March 15th, to March 18th. The first Ludum Dare follows shortly in April.

## 2003
### Strategy Guides Peak

By 2003 the rush to write official strategy guides that release either on or before the launch of a game lead to poor quality writing in such guides. Furthermore some strategy guides for Square Enix games required use of a non-free website in conjunction with the guide, which was problematic in an era before laptops and mobile devices were common, and when desktop computers were often kept in separate rooms from a television and console. Meanwhile a popular unofficial strategy guide website GameFAQs is acquired by CNET.

## 2005
### World of Warcraft goes Viral

2005 was a landmark year for World of Warcraft, including a number of events which would have broader influence outside the game.
In 2005 a bug in the popular MMORPG World of Warcraft leads to the player transmissible status effect Corrupted Blood not always disappearing after a specific encounter, thus spreading across the game world and infecting over a million player characters in a virtual epidemic.
The event became a subject of academic research by medical professionals, as the event was essentially a model of a real life epidemic. In particular observations from the Corrupted Blood incident would later be used in 2020 by researchers looking to understand decision making during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A video of the infamous total party wipe in the Leeroy Jenkins World of Warcraft raid gained enormous online popularity following its posting on the 10th of May 2005, though in 2017 the video was confirmed to have been staged. The name Leeroy Jenkins became somewhat of an icon, and was used to refer to players who charged into dangerous situations with blind enthusiasm.

### 2005 Gallery

* Japanese arcade in 2005, featuring Purikura booths.
* PSP Demo Bubbles at E3 2005.

## 2007
### Great Recession

The Great Recession hits the economy in 2007, wiping out savings and deeply hurting the stock market. Sales of video games and gaming hardware subsequently drop. Compared to other industries, the gaming industry was relatively resilient.

## 2008
### Tabula Rasa in Space

The creator of Ultima, Richard Garriott, flies to the International Space Station as a tourist. He attempts to play the game Tabula Rasa into space, but this is denied for security reasons, bringing the code of Tabula Rasa with him and broadcasting a message to players instead.

### 2008 Gallery

* S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky, a game released in 2008.
* Richard Garriot (Right) on the International Space Station with Greg Chamitoff, Michael Fincke, and experimental satellites free floating.
* Fallout 3 at PAX 2008
* Simple games gained popularity on mobile phones such as this Sony Ericsson running Edge in 2008.
* The original iPhone, next to an iPhone 3G compared in 2008, both popular smartphones of the late 2000's.

## 2000's Gallery
#### Screenshots

* PeaceMaker, a strategy game from 2007.
* Symphony featuring music from Oblivion in 2007.
* S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl, a game from 2007.
* Combat in EVE Online in 2007.
* Trine, a game released in 2009.
* Zeno Clash in 2009.
* King Arthur: The Role-playing Wargame, a game released in 2009.
* And Yet It Moves, a game released in 2009.
* The 2009 release of Killing Floor.
* Crusaders, a 2009 video game.
* S.T.A.L.K.E.R.- Call of Pripyat in 2009.
* The Whispered World in 2009.
* Menu from the game Cricket Revolution, a fairly typical interface from 2009.

#### Events

* Ion Storm employees at E3 2000.
* Ralph Baer of Magnavox Odyssey fame receives the National Medal of Technology from President George W Bush in 2006.
* Allan "Al" Alcorn (of Pong fame) and Ralph Baer with a Brown Box prototype at GDC 2008.
* Bayonetta promotion at E3 2009
* Promotion of Metal Gear Solid Touch for iOS at E3 2009.

## References

* ↑ "Engineering Everquest". IEEE Spectrum: Technology, Engineering, and Science News. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* 1 2 Silva, Matthew De. "What I learned from getting scammed by 12-year-olds". Quartz. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* ↑ Schiesel, Seth (21 January 2008). "The Video Game May Be Free, but to Be a Winner Can Cost Money (Published 2008)". The New York Times. Retrieved 4 December 2020.
* ↑ "Download Oblivion's horse armor, for a price". Engadget. Retrieved 4 December 2020.
* ↑ "Oblivion Horse Armor On Sale For Twice The Price". Kotaku. Retrieved 4 December 2020.
* ↑ "Industry must address horse armour 'joke'". MCV/DEVELOP. 15 July 2009. Retrieved 4 December 2020.
* ↑ "Virtual Economics". MIT Technology Review. Retrieved 4 December 2020.
* 1 2 "EVE Online player loses USD 19,000 in shady virtual currency deal". Engadget. Retrieved 4 December 2020.
* ↑ Hillis, Scott (16 August 2007). "Virtual world hires real economist". Reuters. Retrieved 4 December 2020.
* ↑ "China's 'Gold Farmers' Play a Grim Game". NPR.org. Retrieved 4 December 2020.
* ↑ "Gamer robs virtual bank to get real-world cash CBC News". CBC. Retrieved 4 December 2020.
* ↑ Hill, Jason (4 September 2008). "The rise and rise of casual gaming". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* ↑ Wortham, Jenna (5 December 2009). "Apple's Game Changer, Downloading Now (Published 2009)". The New York Times. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* 1 2 3 "The good, the bad, the Minecraft: All the inspiration and clones you’ll ever need". VentureBeat. 15 September 2012. https://venturebeat.com/2012/09/15/minecraft-inspiration-and-clones/.
* ↑ "Minecraft: 10 Facts About The Game That Every Fan And Newcomer Should Know About". Game Rant. 25 October 2020. https://gamerant.com/minecraft-facts-about-the-game/.
* ↑ Roos, Gina (January 31st, 2000). "A Serious Case Of the Shorts". https://www.eetimes.com/a-serious-case-of-the-shorts/.
* ↑ "China lifts ban on foreign video games consoles". BBC News. 7 January 2014. https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-25635719.
* ↑ "China suspends ban on video game consoles after more than a decade" (in en). Reuters. 7 January 2014. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-gamesconsoles/china-suspends-ban-on-video-game-consoles-after-more-than-a-decade-idUSBREA0606C20140107.
* ↑ "Boy, Is China's Illegal Gray Market Blatant" (in en-us). Kotaku. https://kotaku.com/boy-is-chinas-illegal-gray-market-blatant-5883693.
* ↑ "China's complicated history with video games: when a ban isn't really a ban". Engadget. https://www.engadget.com/2013-01-30-china-console-ban.html.
* ↑ Kharpal, Arjun (16 August 2021). "Game consoles were once banned in China. Now Chinese developers want a slice of the $49 billion pie" (in en). CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2021/08/16/chinese-games-developers-eye-a-slice-of-49-billion-console-market.html.
* ↑ "Events of 9/11 Affected U.S. Culture in Ways Both Clear and Obscure". www.trincoll.edu. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
* ↑ Brainard, Lael (NaN). "Globalization in the Aftermath: Target, Casualty, Callous Bystander?". Brookings. Retrieved 14 December 2020. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
* ↑ "How 9/11 Affected Games bit-tech.net". bit-tech.net. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
* ↑ "Technology Inspires Creativity: Indie Game Jam Inverts Dogma 2001!" (in en). www.gamasutra.com. https://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/2989/technology_inspires_creativity_.php.
* ↑ "Get Your Game On with Ludum Dare: Interview with Mike Kasprzak (Part..." Intel. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
* ↑ "Decline of Guides". web.archive.org. 8 September 2003. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* ↑ "GameSpy.com - Article". web.archive.org. 17 June 2006. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* ↑ "GameFAQs Acquired by CNET - Slashdot". games.slashdot.org. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* ↑ "Corrupted blood incident—a not-so-virtual epidemic in a virtual world : Networks Course blog for INFO 2040/CS 2850/Econ 2040/SOC 2090". https://blogs.cornell.edu/info2040/2016/11/28/corrupted-blood-incident-a-not-so-virtual-epidemic-in-a-virtual-world/.
* ↑ Oultram, Stuart (1 December 2013). "Virtual plagues and real-world pandemics: reflecting on the potential for online computer role-playing games to inform real world epidemic research". Medical Humanities. 39 (2): 115–118. doi:10.1136/medhum-2012-010299. ISSN 1473-4265. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
* ↑ Elker, Jhaan. "World of Warcraft experienced a pandemic in 2005. That experience may help coronavirus researchers.". Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/video-games/2020/04/09/world-warcraft-experienced-pandemic-2005-that-experience-may-help-coronavirus-researchers/.
* ↑ "The Makers Of 'Leeroy Jenkins' Didn't Think Anyone Would Believe It Was Real" (in en-us). Kotaku. https://kotaku.com/the-makers-of-leeroy-jenkins-didnt-think-anyone-would-b-1821570730.
* ↑ "Leeroy Jenkins Meme is 10 Years Old". Time. https://time.com/3855242/leeroy-jenkins-world-of-warcraft-meme/.
* ↑ Merle, Renae. "A guide to the financial crisis — 10 years later". Washington Post. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
* ↑ Richtel, Matt (11 June 2009). "Video Games Aren't Recession-Proof". Bits Blog. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
* ↑ Terdiman, Daniel. "Is the video game industry recession-proof?". CNET. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
* ↑ "What Did Richard Garriott Do In Space?". Kotaku. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
* ↑ "Video Games in Space Nixed Over Fears of Space Station Hacking". Kotaku. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
* ↑ "Garriott: 'Operation Immortality' Good Substitute For Playing Tabula Rasa In Space". www.gamasutra.com. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
* ↑ "Garriott Sends Coded Message From Space". Wired. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
← 1990-1999 · 2010-2019 →
* A group of Pokémon Go players in 2018. During the 2010's mobile gaming became very popular.
* A GameStop game store in 2018. Physical retail faced increasing digital competition this decade.
* PAX East 2019. Large game conventions were a hallmark of this decade, as the industry grew from the 2000's and as the COVID-19 pandemic would decimate the in person convention industry in 2020.

## Trends
### The changing economy of games

Online game marketplaces like Steam became quite popular as digital distribution of computer games takes off with gamers. Other major publishers enter or redouble their efforts in the market, such as the launch of EA's Origin platform in 2011, the revamping of Ubisoft Uplay in 2012, the release of the Bethesda Launcher in 2016, and the release of the Epic Games Store in 2018. There were also less standard online storefronts that gained popularity, such as the launch of the indie focused platforms Humble Bundle in 2010, and itch.io in 2013. In the later part of the decade, cross play between platforms begins to see more adoption.
Often new game storefronts and associated customer support systems were poorly secured, leading to large breaches of gamer information. Casual games reach wide audiences with digital distribution on smartphone application stores, as well as on social media websites such as Facebook. The new frontier of digital game storefronts also attracted criminals, who took advantage of these new platforms and associated services by exploiting policy weaknesses to resell hacked keys or launder money gained through more traditional criminal acts.
Many games go free to play, with monetization strategies such as in app purchases proving lucrative for some developers. Dark patterns in many games enabled by internet connectivity begin to catch attention. In particular, many games, both paid and free to play, add cosmetic and "Pay to Win" microtransactions and loot boxes. Loot boxes in particular are linked to gambling addictions during this time. These techniques raised concerns and potentially ran afoul of gambling laws, creating friction between the industry and regulators. Unofficial sites that offered services such as skin gabling proliferated during this boom of in game cosmetics.
A lack of moderation on online storefronts lead to a number of controversial and low quality games being released.
Some games see success on crowdfunding platforms such as Kickstarter, despite often lacking solid prototypes. This also helps to revive old styles of games no longer seen as viable by major industry players. At the same time, a number of high profile scams and failures shake confidence in crowdfunding as a model for video game funding.
Many of the first widely available cloud gaming platforms were launched during this time. Some launches have problems, though the potential of the technology is acknowledged.
The ebb and flow of sanctions on Iran during this decade helped shape their burgeoning game industry. Notably, their small but hardy homegrown industry managed to compete against mostly pirated international imports for its domestic marketshare of about 20 million gamers.

### Developer treatment enters the public eye

This decade saw the increasing awareness of gamers of frequent poor treatment faced by video game developers in some work environments. While imperfect conditions can exist in any occupation and issues had existed in the game industry previously, this decade saw a large deterioration in relations between companies and developers.
Tactics used by companies which hurt developers during this time included misclassifying workers to dodge labor laws, expecting a cycle of long crunch times with unemployment following immediately after, and creating a fear of retaliation so that employees would be reluctant to speak to the press.
In late 2016 the video game industry saw its first major strike, following a breakdown of negotiations between a handful of major companies and the Screen Actors Guild - American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), with 450 members picketing the company Insomniac Games. This lead to industry concern that game developers would observe these workers demanding better and possibly unionizing as a result.
Quality Assurance (QA) Testing entered the spotlight as a field where some companies were mistreating employees. The practice of using Bug Quotas in QA testing in particular were in decline around 2019, as it created a perverse incentive which resulted in counterproductive work being done.
From 2009 to 2019 game developer views on unionization shifted radically from a small percentage of developers in favor of unionization to much broader support. Notably, in the United Kingdom an official trade union for video game developers was formed in 2018. Some American politicians supported unionization efforts within the gaming industry.
Not all companies mistreated their developers this decade. As a result of increased public awareness of these issues, companies such as Nintendo and Media Molecule use their avoidance of crunch as a symbol of ethical leadership within the video game industry.

### Player Wellbeing

As video game industry grew dramatically this decade, interest grew in safeguarding the wellbeing of gamers.
Following industry support for gamer healthcare, the Obama Administration supported an initiative for gamers to get healthcare coverage in the United States of America from 2015 to the end of the administration's term in office in 2017.
On May 25th, 2018 the World Health Organization (WHO) recognizes gaming addiction as a medical disorder, though there was some contention around the issue. The description of gaming addiction provided was very specific, and was only applied to those neglecting basic needs to play games for extended periods of time. Research this decade also suggested that gaming may have positive effects when performed in balance with other life activities.
Mobile operating systems iOS and Android focused on digital wellbeing tools in 2018. While meant for general use, the granular settings of these tools allowed either parental or self imposed limits to be set on game time specifically.

### People's Republic of China opens up to consoles

By January 2013 it was openly rumored that the ban on the sale of video game consoles in the People's Republic of China would be lifted.
On January 7th, 2014 the People's Republic of China temporarily eases their ban of video game consoles put in place in the year 2000. The ban was permanently ended on July 25th, 2015.

### Decline of the Physical Mediums

As the industry shifted to online focused markets, the industry shifted away from traditional physical ones. This decade was especially transitional, as though physical games remained an important factor in the industry throughout the decade, digital games went from a small niche to the favored future of game distribution. Online shops gave serious competition to physical stores, leading to large chain stores floundering by the end of the decade. This also affected other games related media. Continuing from the late 2000's game manuals continued to shrink and were abandoned all together in some cases. Major publishers of Strategy Guides went from paper to online during this time.

### Automotive Gaming

Tesla CEO Elon Musk announces partnership with Atari for games as Easter eggs on Tesla electric cars.
German automakers Audi and Mercedes-Benz both experimented with in car gaming concepts in 2019.

### Rebirth of Arcades

To a limited extent, Arcades saw a small revival during this time. In the 2000's arcades had struggled to compete with increasingly better home gaming experiences. Recognizing that Arcades could no longer rely on the technical dominance they once did, arcades reinvented themselves. Often this meant appealing to nostalgic adults and young adults looking for a new experience with barcades. Others focused on special experiences that couldn't be had at home without spending significant amounts of money, such as virtual reality, to mixed success.
* Cobra Arcade Bar in Phoenix Arizona in 2016.
* A Virtual Reality Arcade in New York City in 2018.
* Gaming stations in 2019 at the Dallas/Fort Worth Airport.

### Popular Genres

* Open World games
* Survival games
* Shooters
* Action adventure games
* Rougelikes
* Platformers
* Retro revival games
* Walking Simulators
* Visual Novels

## Notable Cross Platform Games of the 2010s
### 2010
#### Mass Effect 2

Outcry from conservative media on the first Mass Effect lead to LGBTQ themes in Mass Effect 2 being suppressed.
Read more about Mass Effect 2 on Wikipedia.

#### Call of Duty: Black Ops

This game attracted media attention for it's secret level featuring John F. Kennedy, Richard M. Nixon, Robert McNamara, and Fidel Castro cooperatively fighting against zombies in the Pentagon.
Read more about Call of Duty: Black Ops on Wikipedia.

### Later
#### Final Fantasy XV

Released in 2016 Final Fantasy XV is known for it's well written characters and real time combat system. Final Fantasy XV is also known for the extensive care which was taken in modeling it's in game food.

## 2010
### eInk games

A few makers of eInk based ebook readers experiment with simple games that play well with the slow refresh displays used on these devices, though the market for such games quickly peters out.

## 2011
### Video Games as Speech

In 2011 the United States Supreme Court rules video games are protected speech under the First Amendment of the United States constitution. This overruled state legislation restricting the purchase of games based on game content. Justice Antonin Scalia wrote the majority opinion, which was backed by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Justice Sonia Sotomayor, and Justice Anthony Kennedy.
Justice Clarence Thomas and Justice Stephen Breyer dissented in this case. Justice Stephen Breyer cited court rulings allowing similar prohibitions on sexual content, while Justice Clarence Thomas suggested that a constitutional right to free speech does not fully apply when speaking to youth. Justice Antonin Scalia criticized the opinion given by Justice Clarence Thomas, noting that if such a position was taken, it would also lead to the erosion of the religious and political freedoms of youth in areas outside video games. Thus this case not only strengthened civil liberties in the United States of America as it relates to video games, it helped set a much broader precedent supporting general freedom of speech by youth.

## 2012
### Video Games as Artwork

In November 2012 the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City debuted an applied design exhibition of 14 noteworthy video games. This prompted some backlash by those who did not consider video games to be artwork.

### Satellite technology in Games

The 2012 release of Super Snowcross by EA (Electronic Arts) capitalizes on the public data provided by the ASTER sensor of the NASA earth observational satellite Terra to make realistic game maps based on real world locations based on data collected by the satellite, improving realism by replacing earlier randomly generated terrain.

## 2013
### Microconsoles: Boom & Bust

A number of crowdfunded microconsoles are launched this year, with hopes of finding a new approach to the console industry that was more open and inexpensive then what traditional consoles offered. Several years later it becomes clear that none of the early microconsoles were long lived successes, though the boom did create an interesting period of gaming history.

### Eighth Generation of Game Consoles

2013 saw the eighth generation of game consoles begin in earnest.

## 2014
### Digital catches Physical

In 2014 digital sales of games roughly reach parity with physical sales of games. The convenience of digital games was especially resonant with owners of portable devices, with many gamers growing accustomed to not needing to carry multiple cartridges with them in addition to the system itself.

### Twitch Plays Pokémon

An experimental crowed source play through of the GameBoy game Pokémon Red leads 35,000 collective players to beat the game in 16 days. The immense internet sensation created by Twitch Plays Pokémon spurs other creators to create more interactive content on streaming platforms such as Twitch.

## 2015
### Kojima & Konami

In early 2015 Konami and a well known then Konami employee Hideo Kojima had a falling out, resulting in Kojima going independent.
Konami also attempted to remove independent journalistic coverage of the event. This backfired, as this action attracted the attention of larger media outlets.

### Death of Satoru Iwata

Satoru Iwata, CEO of Nintendo, passes away at the age of 55, shocking the industry and resulting in a number of tributes made. Respects were paid across the industry, including from people working at rival companies who respected the impact and character of Iwata.

## 2017
### Year of Innovation

2017 is noted for a number of high quality or mold breaking games releasing that year, like Breath of the Wild, Cuphead, Nier: Automata, Sonic Mania, Gravity Rush 2, Pyre, and Super Mario Odyssey. Nier: Automata was noted for it's nihilistic tone.
2017 also saw the release of new ways of gaming. The Nintendo Switch was released this year as the first popular hybrid game console, combining a portable console and a home console in one unit. Netflix tested out interactive movies this year.

### End of Miiverse

On November 8th, 2017 the Miiverse social networking service is shuttered. Miiverse had been Nintendo's gaming social network since 2012. An unofficial community archive of Miiverse content was made before the shutdown occurred.

### Blockchain Mania

In 2017 blockchain technology saw significant hype. Later in 2017 the early blockchain game Cryptokitties is released, crowding the Ethereum network with over one million USD worth of transactions made after a few days.

## 2018
### Celebrities in Gaming

2018 saw several celebrities attempt to get involved in the gaming industry, primarily by leveraging their name or brand to partner with existing manufacturers.
Rapper Soulja Boy briefly launches a console line, with Soulja Boy claiming 5 million consoles sold before withdrawing from the market. Consoles were existing models, such as the Chinese Fuze microconsole.

### Telltale Games

In September 2018, noted studio Telltale Games abruptly collapses. Following a failure to raise needed funding, most employees are fired and given 30 minutes to leave. Inability to retain talented employees, poor management, dated technology, and increasing competition from other studios are common factors cited in the collapse of the studio.

## 2019
### Scapegoating games

In the United States, politicians consider a ban on violent games, blaming violent video games for recent mass shootings despite little evidence linking the two together.
In response to the shootings some stores and television networks reduced or eliminated advertisements for violent video games. Additionally, lawmakers in Pennsylvania revived discussions on a 10% tax on mature rated games in response to the shootings.

### Auto chess

2019 saw the release of a number of games release in the new genre Auto Chess.

### Runescape

A prolonged power outage in Venezuela leads to an economic shock in the MMORPG Runescape.

## 2010's gaming gallery

* Deus Ex Human Revolution booth at E3 2011.
* Fez, a game released in 2012.
* Trailer for Dustforce, a 2012 release.
* Strike Suit Zero, a 2013 game.
* The Stanley Parable, a 2013 game.
* A Cyberith Virtualizer treadmill for VR in 2013. The user is said to be the developer of the device, Tuncay Cakmak.
* Freedom Planet (2014)
* PAX South 2016
* Celeste, a game released in 2018.
* The 2b2t Minecraft server in June of 2019.
* Manifold Garden, released in 2019.
* The Outer Wilds, released in 2019.
* Gaming tablets for youth on shopping carts in 2019.

## References

* ↑ "How digital distribution is changing the scope of gaming". VentureBeat. https://venturebeat.com/community/2014/05/06/how-digital-distribution-is-changing-the-scope-of-gaming/.
* ↑ "EA Launches 'Origin,' Downloadable Games Service" (in en-us). Wired. https://www.wired.com/2011/06/ea-origin/.
* ↑ "Ubisoft Launches Their Own PC Gaming Client, and Is Selling Some Games For $1 to Get You To Try It" (in en-us). Kotaku. https://kotaku.com/ubisoft-launches-their-own-pc-gaming-client-and-is-sel-5935427.
* ↑ "Did Bethesda just release its own uPlay-like games launcher?". TweakTown. 1 May 2016. https://www.tweaktown.com/news/51945/bethesda-release-uplay-games-launcher/index.html.
* ↑ Orland, Kyle (7 December 2018). "Epic Games Store launches with extremely limited selection of games" (in en-us). Ars Technica. https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2018/12/epic-games-store-launches-with-extremely-limited-selection-of-games/.
* ↑ "About Humble Bundle". Humble Bundle. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
* ↑ "Frequently Asked Questions". itch.io. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
* ↑ Hernandez, Patricia (24 October 2019). "Fortnite’s cross-play made history, but now some players hate it" (in en). Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/2019/10/24/20930824/fortnite-cross-play-epic-games-skill-based-matchmaking-controller-mouse-keyboard-better.
* ↑ Marshall, Cass (5 December 2018). "Bethesda support site leaks Fallout 76 customers’ personal info" (in en). Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/2018/12/5/18128248/fallout-76-customer-information-leaked-collectors-edition.
* ↑ "Despite The Name, Report Finds “Mobile Games” Are Played Most Often At Home". TechCrunch. https://techcrunch.com/2012/03/20/mobile-games-survey-couched/.
* ↑ Cavalli, Earnest (April 27, 2012). "Casual gaming continues to prove lucrative for Farmville publisher". www.digitaltrends.com. https://www.digitaltrends.com/gaming/casual-gaming-continues-to-prove-lucrative-for-farmville-publisher/.
* ↑ Orland, Kyle (21 May 2020). "G2A confirms stolen game key sales, pays $40,000 to Factorio devs" (in en-us). Ars Technica. https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2020/05/g2a-confirms-stolen-game-key-sales-pays-40000-to-factorio-devs/.
* ↑ "Valve shuts down money laundering via CS:GO game". BBC News. 1 November 2019. https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-50262447.
* ↑ Wingfield, Nick (5 July 2014). "Free Video Games Say Pay Up or Wait, Testing Players’ Patience (Published 2014)". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/06/technology/free-video-games-say-pay-up-or-wait-testing-players-patience.html.
* ↑ Goethe, Taylor Synclair. "Pay to Win: Monetization in Gaming". Reporter. https://reporter.rit.edu/tech/pay-win-monetization-gaming.
* ↑ "What is a Dark Pattern in video games?" (in en). Gur-u. 28 August 2014. https://gurusability.wordpress.com/2014/08/28/what-is-a-dark-pattern-in-video-games/.
* ↑ Zendle, David; Meyer, Rachel; Ballou, Nick (7 May 2020). "The changing face of desktop video game monetisation: An exploration of exposure to loot boxes, pay to win, and cosmetic microtransactions in the most-played Steam games of 2010-2019". PLoS ONE. 15 (5). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0232780. ISSN 1932-6203. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
* ↑ Zendle, David; Cairns, Paul (7 March 2019). "Loot boxes are again linked to problem gambling: Results of a replication study". PLoS ONE. 14 (3). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0213194. ISSN 1932-6203. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
* ↑ "Great Britain: Government Seeks Opinion on Regulation of Video Game Loot Boxes Global Legal Monitor". www.loc.gov. 27 October 2020. https://www.loc.gov/law/foreign-news/article/great-britain-government-seeks-opinion-on-regulation-of-video-game-loot-boxes/.
* ↑ Campbell, Colin (18 July 2016). "The true cost of Counter-Strike skin gambling" (in en). Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/features/2016/7/18/12203534/counter-strike-cs-go-skin-gambling.
* ↑ Frank, Allegra (4 July 2016). "Counter-Strike YouTubers revealed as owners of gambling site they promoted (update)" (in en). Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/2016/7/4/12093546/csgo-lotto-tmartn-syndicate-youtube-disclosure.
* ↑ Lucero II, Louis (8 June 2018). "Steam, After Pulling School Shooter Game, Says It Will Sell Nearly Everything (Published 2018)". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/08/technology/steam-games-active-shooter.html.
* ↑ "Nintendo Accused Of Hosting Asset Flip Game On Switch, And Fans Aren't Happy". Nintendo Life. 11 May 2020. https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2020/05/nintendo_accused_of_hosting_asset_flip_game_on_switch_and_fans_arent_happy.
* ↑ "Kickstarter crowdsourced cash empowers US innovators". BBC News. 28 March 2012. https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-17531736.
* 1 2 "Crowdfunding Pitches as Genre Writing". University of Arkansas News. https://news.uark.edu/articles/42703/crowdfunding-pitches-as-genre-writing.
* ↑ "Kickstarter video game project exposed as a scam". BBC News. 1 May 2012. https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-17915305.
* ↑ Kain, Erik. "Google Stadia Review: The Good, The Bad And The Ugly" (in en). Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2019/11/26/google-stadia-review-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/?sh=4bc35d356cc1.
* 1 2 Lewis, Danny. "Inside Iran’s Budding Video Game Industry" (in en). Smithsonian Magazine. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/inside-irans-budding-video-game-industry-180957856/.
* ↑ "A First Look At Mobile Gamers In Iran". TechCrunch. https://techcrunch.com/2016/01/17/a-first-look-at-mobile-gamers-in-iran/.
* ↑ Elmjouie, Yara (14 January 2016). "The game industry of Iran" (in en). Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/features/2016/1/14/10757460/the-game-industry-of-iran.
* ↑ "Video Game Based On Ancient Story Aims For Audiences In Iran, Beyond" (in en). NPR.org. https://www.npr.org/sections/alltechconsidered/2015/01/13/376789932/video-game-based-on-ancient-story-aims-for-audiences-in-iran-beyond'.
* 1 2 3 "The Video Game Industry Is Afraid of Unions" (in en). www.vice.com. https://www.vice.com/en/article/nz9e58/walk-the-line.
* ↑ Campbell, Colin (19 December 2016). "The game industry's disposable workers" (in en). Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/features/2016/12/19/13878484/game-industry-worker-misclassification.
* ↑ Miller, Patrick. "Contract QA: A dead end or a foot-in-the-door?" (in en). www.gamasutra.com. https://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/193614/Contract_QA_A_dead_end_or_a_footinthedoor.php.
* ↑ "I Freelanced On Halo 4. It's Time For Gaming's Contractors To Strike." (in en-us). Kotaku. https://kotaku.com/i-freelanced-on-halo-4-its-time-for-gamings-contract-510353357.
* ↑ "How the Video Game Industry Treats its Testers". Retrieved 24 January 2021.
* ↑ "Video Game Creators Are Burned Out and Desperate for Change". Time. https://time.com/5603329/e3-video-game-creators-union/.
* ↑ Fogel, Stefanie (14 December 2018). "Game Workers Unite UK Is That Country’s First Games Industry Union". Variety. https://variety.com/2018/gaming/news/game-workers-unite-uk-video-game-union-1203090102/.
* ↑ Sanders, Bernie. "Twitter". Retrieved 6 January 2021.
* ↑ Square, Push (4 October 2018). "Media Molecule Doesn't Crunch, Reckons It's Too 90s". Push Square. https://www.pushsquare.com/news/2018/10/media_molecule_doesnt_crunch_reckons_its_too_90s.
* ↑ "Nintendo: Animal Crossing delay means avoiding crunch" (in en). GamesIndustry.biz. https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2019-06-12-nintendo-animal-crossing-delay-means-avoiding-crunch.
* ↑ Partin, Will. "Analysis The 2010s were a banner decade for big money and tech — and esports reaped the rewards". Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/video-games/esports/2020/01/28/2010s-were-banner-decade-big-money-tech-esports-reaped-rewards/.
* ↑ "Helping Gamers Get Health Care Coverage (An Epic Win)" (in en). whitehouse.gov. 8 December 2016. https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/blog/2016/12/08/helping-gamers-get-health-care-coverage-epic-win.
* ↑ Popper, Ben (11 February 2015). "The White House wants professional video gamers to get health insurance" (in en). The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/2015/2/11/8019255/e-sports-health-insurance-obamacare-twitch.
* ↑ Solsman, Joan E.. "Obamacare's last gasp: Get Twitch gamers on board" (in en). CNET. https://www.cnet.com/news/obamacare-twitch-gamers-obama-trump-aca-affordable-care-act-e-sports/.
* 1 2 "Is 'Gaming Disorder' An Illness? WHO Says Yes, Adding It To Its List Of Diseases" (in en). NPR.org. https://www.npr.org/2019/05/28/727585904/is-gaming-disorder-an-illness-the-who-says-yes-adding-it-to-its-list-of-diseases.
* ↑ "Video game play may provide learning, health, social benefits, review finds". www.apa.org. https://www.apa.org/monitor/2014/02/video-game.
* ↑ Duino, Justin (8 May 2018). "Google's Digital Wellbeing will help you understand smartphone habits, view usage, focus on the important things". 9to5Google. https://9to5google.com/2018/05/08/google-digital-wellbeing/.
* ↑ "Apple unveils a new set of ‘digital wellness’ features for better managing screen time". TechCrunch. https://techcrunch.com/2018/06/04/apple-unveils-a-new-set-of-digital-wellness-features-for-better-managing-screen-time/.
* ↑ Sorrel, Charlie (17 September 2019). "How to stop your kids from wasting their lives on Apple Arcade". Cult of Mac. https://www.cultofmac.com/652536/set-apple-arcade-screen-time-limits/.
* ↑ "China's complicated history with video games: when a ban isn't really a ban". Engadget. https://www.engadget.com/2013-01-30-china-console-ban.html.
* ↑ "China lifts ban on foreign video games consoles". BBC News. 7 January 2014. https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-25635719.
* ↑ "China suspends ban on video game consoles after more than a decade" (in en). Reuters. 7 January 2014. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-gamesconsoles/china-suspends-ban-on-video-game-consoles-after-more-than-a-decade-idUSBREA0606C20140107.
* ↑ D'Orazio, Dante (25 July 2015). "China officially ends ban on video game consoles" (in en). The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/2015/7/25/9039995/china-ends-ban-on-video-game-consoles.
* ↑ Burkitt, Laurie (25 July 2015). "China to End Ban on Videogame Consoles". Wall Street Journal. https://www.wsj.com/articles/china-to-end-ban-on-videogame-consoles-1437813695.
* ↑ Paprocki, Matt (7 May 2019). "Rumors of the Death of Physical Video Games Have Been Greatly Exaggerated". Variety. https://variety.com/2019/gaming/features/physical-video-games-death-disc-digital-1203207513/.
* ↑ Gilbert, Ben. "We went on a tour of New York City's GameStop stores to see if the company is doomed to become the next Blockbuster Video — here's what we found". Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/gamestop-failing-store-tour-shows-flawed-business-2019-8.
* ↑ "The Incredible Shrinking Instruction Manual" (in en). n4g.com. https://n4g.com/user/blogpost/baggio1000000/217807.
* ↑ "Even Nintendo Seems To Be Abandoning Game Instruction Manuals" (in en-us). Kotaku. https://kotaku.com/even-nintendo-seems-to-be-abandoning-game-instruction-m-1793260316.
* ↑ "Asteri acquires Prima Games". GamesIndustry.biz. Retrieved 12 December 2020.
* ↑ "Elon Musk Has A Deal With Atari To Turn Teslas Into Game Consoles". Jalopnik. Retrieved 16 November 2020.
* ↑ "Mercedes-Benz wants to turn your car into a video games console". Motoring Research. 26 March 2019. https://www.motoringresearch.com/car-news/mercedes-benz-in-car-gaming-challenge-2019-video-games/.
* ↑ O'Kane, Sean (7 January 2019). "Audi and Disney want to spice up your Uber ride with VR" (in en). The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/ces/2019/1/7/18171688/audi-disney-marvel-virtual-reality-holoride-vr-oculus-uber-ces-2019.
* ↑ "Arcade businesses set for revival, industry insiders say". Las Vegas Review-Journal. 28 March 2019. https://www.reviewjournal.com/business/arcade-businesses-set-for-revival-industry-insiders-say-1628383/.
* ↑ Sedacca, Matthew. "How Arcade Bars Became Boozy Playgrounds for Adults". https://www.eater.com/2017/4/10/15212624/arcade-bar-barcade-video-games.
* ↑ Hollister, Sean (13 December 2018). "IMAX is shutting down its virtual reality arcade business for good" (in en). The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/2018/12/13/18139981/imax-virtual-reality-arcades-shut-down-write-off-los-angeles-bangkok-toronto.
* ↑ Chan, Khee Hoon (21 December 2018). "Inside today's high-end virtual reality arcades". PC Gamer. https://www.pcgamer.com/inside-todays-high-end-virtual-reality-arcades/.
* ↑ Hernandez, Patricia (22 January 2021). "Report: Mass Effect 2 was once a bit more gay, but then Fox News happened" (in en). Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/2021/1/22/22244546/mass-effect-2-romance-jack-pansexual-fox-news.
* ↑ "Call of Duty Black Ops Secret Stage: JFK, Nixon and Castro Battle Zombies". www.cbsnews.com. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/call-of-duty-black-ops-secret-stage-jfk-nixon-and-castro-battle-zombies/.
* ↑ "Final Fantasy XV Review - IGN" (in en). https://www.ign.com/articles/2016/11/28/final-fantasy-xv-review.
* ↑ Reynolds, Whitney (21 December 2016). "The Food in 'Final Fantasy XV' Is Insanely Realistic" (in en). Eater. https://www.eater.com/2016/12/21/14030230/final-fantasy-vx-15-food-review.
* ↑ Reily, Markus (October 24, 2018). "Games on E-Readers: A Missed Opportunity?". goodereader.com. https://goodereader.com/blog/electronic-readers/games-on-e-readers-a-missed-opportunity.
* 1 2 3 Hudson Jr., David L. "Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association". www.mtsu.edu. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
* 1 2 3 4 5 Barnes, Robert (27 June 2011). "Supreme Court strikes Calif. law banning sale of violent video games to minors". Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/supreme-court-strikes-calif-law-banning-sale-of-violent-video-games-to-minors/2011/06/26/AGwtxenH_story.html?hpid=z1&tid=a_inl_manual.
* ↑ Borger, Faegre Baker Daniels LLP-John P.; Walker, Leita. "Supreme Court decides Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Assn | Lexology" (in en). www.lexology.com. https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=da355d62-dad2-47ec-a06c-44903afb5ee6.
* ↑ Millhiser, Ian (12 May 2020). "Clarence Thomas wants to shrink your free speech rights — unless you are a rich donor" (in en). Vox. https://www.vox.com/2020/5/12/21250988/supreme-court-clarence-thomas-free-speech-first-amendment-sineneng-smith.
* ↑ "Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Assn. ( Justice Scalia , Opinion of the Court )". 2011. Retrieved 23 January 2021.
* ↑ "MoMA Video Games: 14 in the Collection, for Starters". www.moma.org. https://www.moma.org/explore/inside_out/2012/11/29/video-games-14-in-the-collection-for-starters/.
* ↑ "MoMA to Exhibit Videogames, From Pong to Minecraft" (in en-us). Wired. https://www.wired.com/2012/11/moma-videogames/.
* ↑ "Sorry MoMA, video games are not art" (in en). the Guardian. 30 November 2012. https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/jonathanjonesblog/2012/nov/30/moma-video-games-art.
* ↑ "Satellite Maps Deliver More Realistic Gaming NASA Spinoff". spinoff.nasa.gov. https://spinoff.nasa.gov/Spinoff2012/cg_5.html.
* ↑ Orland, Kyle (28 February 2012). "How NASA topography data brought dose of reality to SSX snowboarding courses" (in en-us). Ars Technica. https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2012/02/how-nasa-topography-data-brought-a-dose-of-reality-to-ssxs-snowboarding-courses/.
* ↑ Kelly, Tadhg. "2013: The year of the microconsole?". www.gamasutra.com. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ Graft, Kris. "With Ouya's demise, is the dream of the microconsole dead?" (in en). www.gamasutra.com. https://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/251100/With_Ouyas_demise_is_the_dream_of_the_microconsole_dead.php.
* ↑ Calpito, Dave (29 February 2016). "PlayStation TV Is Dying A Slow Death: Sony Quietly Halts Shipments Of The Microconsole In Japan" (in en). Tech Times. https://www.techtimes.com/articles/137236/20160229/playstation-tv-is-dying-a-slow-death-sony-quietly-halts-shipments-of-the-microconsole-in-japan.htm.
* ↑ Good, Owen S. (22 May 2019). "Razer closing Ouya store, officially killing the console" (in en). Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/2019/5/22/18635860/razer-ouya-store-forge-tv-closing-discontinued-dates.
* ↑ Statt, Nick. "For video game industry, 2014 couldn't escape slumping game sales" (in en). CNET. https://www.cnet.com/news/for-video-game-industry-2014-couldnt-escape-slumping-software-sales/.
* ↑ "Five Reasons Why Digital Games Trump Physical - Feature". Nintendo World Report. https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/feature/36638/physical-games-vs-digital-games-the-face-off-five-reasons-why-digital-games-trump-physical.
* ↑ Robertson, Adi (1 March 2014). "Thousands of Twitch viewers beat massively multiplayer 'Pokemon' game". The Verge. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
* ↑ Frank, Allegra (12 February 2019). "Five years ago, Twitch Plays Pokémon ‘changed Twitch forever’" (in en). Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/2019/2/12/18221792/twitch-plays-pokemon-anniversary.
* ↑ "Twitch makes it easier to find Twitch Plays Pokémon-style games". VentureBeat. 14 January 2016. https://venturebeat.com/2016/01/14/twitch-adds-directory-for-twitchplayspokemon-style-games/.
* ↑ Sarkar, Samit (16 December 2015). "Konami's bitter, yearlong breakup with Hideo Kojima, explained". Polygon. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ Kuchera, Ben (12 May 2015). "Why didn't Konami want you to watch this video about Hideo Kojima?". Polygon. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ "Konami Gets YouTube To Take Down Critical Video". Kotaku. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ "YouTube Overrides Konami's Video Takedown". Kotaku. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ "Nintendo's Satoru Iwata dies at 55". BBC News. 13 July 2015. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ France-Presse, Agence (13 July 2015). "Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata dies of cancer aged 55". the Guardian. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ Stack, Liam (13 July 2015). "Satoru Iwata, Nintendo Chief Executive, Dies at 55 (Published 2015)". The New York Times. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ "Microsoft Xbox executives pay respects to Satoru Iwata". Windows Central. 13 July 2015. https://www.windowscentral.com/microsoft-xbox-executives-pay-their-respects-nintendos-satoru-iwata.
* ↑ "Goodbye, Satoru Iwata: The video game industry remembers one of its best" (in en). Polygon. 12 July 2015. https://www.polygon.com/2015/7/12/8940769/goodbye-satoru-iwata-the-video-game-industry-remembers-one-of-its-best.
* ↑ Staff, Polygon (18 December 2017). "The 50 best games of 2017". Polygon. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ "The best games of 2017". Engadget. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ Senior, Tom (31 March 2017). "Nier: Automata is one of the saddest games ever made". PC Gamer. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
* ↑ Wahba, Michael (27 June 2018). "Nier and Nietzsche: Conveying Nihilism Through Mechanics". Scholarly Gamers. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
* ↑ "Is Nintendo's Switch hybrid console the future of gaming?" (in en). the Guardian. 12 January 2017. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/jan/12/nintendo-switch-is-this-hybrid-console-the-future-of-gaming.
* ↑ Newton, Casey (20 June 2017). "Netflix’s interactive shows arrive to put you in charge of the story" (in en). The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/2017/6/20/15834858/netflix-interactive-shows-puss-in-boots-buddy-thunderstruck.
* 1 2 "Nintendo to close Miiverse social network". BBC News. 29 August 2017. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-41082918.
* ↑ McWhertor, Michael (3 January 2018). "Massive Miiverse archive goes online with 17 TB worth of posts" (in en). Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/2018/1/3/16844802/miiverse-archive-archiverse-old-miiverse-posts-wii-u-nintendo-3ds.
* ↑ Michelman, Christian Catalini, interviewed by Paul. "Seeing Beyond the Blockchain Hype". MIT Sloan Management Review. https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/seeing-beyond-the-blockchain-hype/.
* ↑ "People have spent over $1M buying virtual cats on the Ethereum blockchain". TechCrunch. https://techcrunch.com/2017/12/03/people-have-spent-over-1m-buying-virtual-cats-on-the-ethereum-blockchain/.
* ↑ "CryptoKitties Mania Overwhelms Ethereum Network's Processing" (in en). Bloomberg.com. 4 December 2017. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-12-04/cryptokitties-quickly-becomes-most-widely-used-ethereum-app.
* ↑ "Just Got My Sales Report: Soulja Boy Says He's Sold 5,000,000 Consoles In December". TheGamer. 2 January 2019. https://www.thegamer.com/soulja-boy-sold-5-million-consoles/.
* ↑ "Finally, Soulja Boy Is Selling Bootleg Video Game Consoles". PCMAG. Retrieved 16 November 2020.
* ↑ "Soulja Boy no longer selling game consoles". TweakTown. 30 December 2018. https://www.tweaktown.com/news/64284/soulja-boy-longer-selling-game-consoles/index.html.
* ↑ Farokhmanesh, Megan (4 October 2018). "The tragic end of Telltale Games, as told by the people who were there". The Verge. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ "Telltale's Sudden Closure Was Reportedly the Result of a Failed Round of Financing - IGN". Retrieved 7 December 2020.
* ↑ Favis, Elise. "The Rise And Fall Of Telltale Games" (in en). Game Informer. https://www.gameinformer.com/feature/2019/04/09/the-rise-and-fall-of-telltale-games.
* ↑ Farokhmanesh, Megan (20 March 2018). "Toxic management cost an award-winning game studio its best developers" (in en). The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/2018/3/20/17130056/telltale-games-developer-layoffs-toxic-video-game-industry.
* ↑ Statt, Nick (9 August 2019). "Walmart denies report that it's taking violent video games off shelves". The Verge. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ Kocurek, Carly A. "Perspective | Why we scapegoat video games for mass violence and why it's a mistake". Washington Post. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ Kovach, David Anderson, Steve. "Violent video games are played all over the world, but mass shootings are a uniquely American problem". Business Insider. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ Fortin, Jacey (9 August 2019). "Walmart Pulls Violent Video Game Signs (Published 2019)". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/09/business/walmart-video-games-mass-shootings.html.
* ↑ Business, Chris Isidore, CNN. "Walmart pulls violent video game displays from its stores, but it will still sell guns". CNN. Retrieved 7 December 2020. {{cite web}}: |last1= has generic name (help)
* ↑ Orland, Kyle (9 August 2019). "Walmart, ESPN pull violent game marketing following shootings". Ars Technica. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
* ↑ Webb, Kevin. "Pennsylvania might slap a 10% tax on violent video games, but the industry says the proposed law is fundamentally flawed". Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/pennsylvania-video-game-tax-2019-2.
* ↑ "PA Lawmakers Debate Video Game ‘Sin Tax’ During State’s Esports Month". Variety. 5 February 2019. https://variety.com/2019/gaming/news/pennsylvania-video-game-tax-1203128774/.
* ↑ "Is there a link between video games and mass shootings?". 12news.com. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ Panetta, Grace. "Trump incorrectly blames 'gruesome video games' and 'mentally ill monsters' for mass violence while commenting on 2 mass shootings". Business Insider. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ Goslin, Austen (1 November 2019). "Blizzard announces Hearthstone Battlegrounds, a new autobattler set in the Warcraft Universe". Polygon. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* ↑ "Video Gaming The System : Planet Money" (in en). NPR.org. https://www.npr.org/transcripts/1018915121.
← 2000-2009 · 2020-2029 →

## Trends
### COVID-19

The game industry booms, as people hunker down at home during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some game retailers initially resisted closing down during lockdowns by declaring themselves essential businesses, to widespread criticism. Numerous high profile games are delayed due to COVID-19. Game development companies move to work from home, with some such as Square Enix planning to allow work from home after the pandemic ends. Animal Talking leverages the Animal Crossing: New Horizons as a medium to create a highly successful talk show that rivals and outcompetes traditional media during early pandemic restrictions.
In contrast to many other economic sectors that are drastically affected by the pandemic, the video game industry has been more resilient. Most video game developers, publishers, and operators have been able to maintain operations with employees w:remote working to sustain game development and digital releases, though some productivity issues arose. With many people globally at home and unable to work, online gaming has observed record numbers of players during the pandemic as a popular activity to counter physical distancing for society, a practice recommended by the w:World Health Organization that helped boost revenues for many companies in the gaming industry.
The pandemic simulation game Plague Inc., which was originally released eight years prior in 2012, gains massive popularity, with the developers releasing an update to enhance the educational experience of the game in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The developer of Plague Inc. also donated $250,000 to CEPI and WHO to help fight the pandemic. The older 2008 flash game Pandemic 2 also experiences a surge of popularity.
In 2021 the Truck Simulator series held a virtual trucking event in solidarity with real truckers delivering COVID-19 vaccines. Players from around the globe organized a virtual graduation ceremony using Minecraft.
COVID-19 increased the public profile of virtual reality applications, potentially increasing interest in VR gaming as a result. AR gaming proved to help some seeking reprieve from isolation. As gyms closed, interest in Exergaming greatly increased by those looking to get fit while isolating.
Though its launch was delayed by COVID-19, the first Super Nintendo World theme park in Osaka, Japan was shown in a video tour online by Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto.
Groups dedicated to tracking the availability of game consoles during the shortages sometimes assisted in finding COVID-19 supplies.

### Games as a Political Vehicle

In the run up to the 2020 United States elections, politicians used online multiplayer games and game streaming to reach out to voters safely during the pandemic. The Biden campaign operated a custom Fortnite island with its own minigames. In Animal Crossing: New Horizons, which supports user made content, digital yard signs were distributed by the Biden campaign. Though the official Trump campaign mocked campaigning in games, independent efforts by his supporters also made Animal Crossing signs, as well as using the massively popular game Among Us to promote their candidate. Following the election a video was posted of President Biden playing Mario Kart Arcade GP DX with Naomi Biden at Camp David.

### Developer Welfare Concerns

Concerns for developer welfare continued from the previous decade into the 2020's.
In particular there were a number of high profile incidents at major game developer companies. This lead to increased calls for, and corporate pushback against, unionizing.
Concerns of child labor in the industry were also raised.

### Popular Genres

* Skateboarding

## 2020
### Apple vs. Epic

In August 2020, Apple and Epic begin disputing payment systems on the Apple App store, resulting in the game Fortnite being removed from the App Store. Coupled with increasing scrutiny from lawmakers, Apple reduces their cut from 30% to 15% for developers making under a million dollars annually, a move said to benefit indie game developers.

### Ninth generation of video game consoles

The first ninth generation consoles launch in November 2020. 3D audio, SSD storage, and raytracing support is a common trend in this generation. Initially supplies of new PS5 and Xbox Series consoles are quickly bought up.

## 2021
### Economy
#### GameStop Stock

Defying expectations, in January 2021 Redditors send the stock of the physical game retailer GameStop soaring over 1600%. This had broader implications for the overall market, as the reactions from some firms caused some members of Congress to begin looking into the event.

#### Blockchain

Some game developers and game artists turn to non-fungible tokens as an additional revenue stream, with concerns over environmental impact and issues with rights leading to controversy.
Major PC game distributor Valve banned games using blockchain, NFT, and cryptocurrency from it's distribution platform Steam by October 15th, 2021. Competitor Epic continued to allow such games on it's Epic Games Store.

#### Collectables

Collectables soared in value, with a sealed and graded copy of Super Mario 64 selling for over 1.5 million US dollars. This was the first publicized instance of a single copy of a video game selling for over one million US dollars. This was quickly surpassed, with an unopened copy of Super Mario Bros. selling for 2 million dollars.

#### Mint

The United States Mint mixed game collecting with coin collecting with the production of the manganese-brass 2021 New Hampshire American Innovation $1 coin, which honored Ralph Baer, and the development of the Magnavox Odyssey. The reverse of the coin was designed by artist Christina Hess and depicted gameplay generated by the Odyssey prototype, the "Brown Box". Upon release the coin proved to be popular among collectors, selling 785,700 coins in 6 days.
This is recognized as the first time the United States Mint created currency featuring a video game.

#### Other

2021 also saw increased investment in gaming companies by sovereign wealth funds.

### Technology
#### Neural Implants

In 2021 the game Pong was used to demonstrate a wireless neural implant to the public.

#### Xbox 2042

In October 2021 Microsoft released a speculative concept of what an Xbox might look like in 2042. Technologies included in this work of speculative fiction included a holographic interface, a neural interface, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and quantum technology. The fictitious console were touted as being "90% smaller", while using 1 exaFlop of performance to ouptup 32k video in between 240 and 480 frames per second.

#### Nuclear Handheld Game Console Mod

Ian Charnas attracted much attention in 2021 with the development of a nuclear powered handheld game mod.
The modded console captured the output of 25 vials luminescent Trintium vials placed between 2 conventional solarphotovoltaic cells, and then stored the continuous 1.5 microwatts of output energy in thin film solid state batteries. The console was not capable of continuous operation, but could play a clone of Tetris for 55 minutes once every one to two months. The system power source should last for 25 years, though some media sources stated the system to have an operational life of 100 years.
The system was raffled to raise proceeds for the charity Chernobyl Children International.

### Culture

For the first time, the Hugo Awards included video games as finalists in 2021.
The International Olympic Committee hosted their first esports event, the Olympic Virtual Series, beginning on May 13th, 2021. The opening ceremony for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic games on July 23rd, 2021 included music derived from a number of video games.
Some American politicians cited video games as a negative factor in society.

### Fall of Kabul

Following the collapse of the Afghanistan government, gamers in Afghanistan feared that games would once again be banned in their country.

## 2022
### Gaming in Russia

Major console manufacturers left the Russian market, though they were not popular with gamers there due to a preference for PC gaming.

## Notable Cross Platform Games of the 2020's
### Umurangi Generation

A 2020 photography game set in an future apocalyptic Tauranga, New Zealand. The game was developed by a Māori developer, and was noted for it's themes of colonization from the perspective of the colonized.
Read more about Umurangi Generation on Wikipedia.

## Gallery

* A map of countries showing GDP per capita in 2020. Countries with wealthier citizens are more likely to have higher impacts in non-essential markets such as video games. Dark purple indicates higher GDP per capita, light blue indicates lower GDP per capita.

## References

* ↑ Browne, Ryan (20 November 2020). "Game consoles may haul in $45 billion this year, and big changes are coming". CNBC. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ "GameStop closes all stores". CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/20/tech/gamestop-open-essential-business/index.html.
* ↑ McWhertor, Michael (10 September 2020). "No More Heroes 3 delayed to 2021". Polygon. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ Warren, Tom (11 August 2020). "Microsoft delays Halo Infinite to 2021". The Verge. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ G, Alec (21 May 2020). "Nintendo Developers Experiencing 'Big Limitations' From Working at Home Because of COVID-19 Pandemic". Tech Times. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* ↑ Clayton, Natalie (25 November 2020). "Square Enix will let employees work from home permanently". PC Gamer. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
* ↑ Farokhmanesh, Megan (14 May 2020). "Late night's hottest talk show is in Animal Crossing". The Verge. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
* ↑ Schreier, Jason (21 April 2020). "Gaming Sales Are Up, but Production Is Down". The New York Times. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
* ↑ Romero, Nick (19 March 2020). "Game (still) on: How coronavirus is impacting the gaming industry". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
* ↑ Howley, Daniel (18 March 2020). "The world is turning to video games amid coronavirus outbreak". Yahoo!. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
* ↑ "How to Get Rich Simulating the Deaths of Billions of People" (in en-us). Wired. https://www.wired.com/2012/12/plague-inc/.
* 1 2 Thompson, Benjamin; Howe, Nick (16 December 2020). "Could you prevent a pandemic? A very 2020 video game". Nature. doi:10.1038/d41586-020-03594-6. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
* ↑ Leskin, Paige. "An old flash computer game is getting a 2nd life because of its eerie similarities to the coronavirus outbreak, and its website's CEO says it has too much of an 'educational value' to shut it down". Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-pandemic-2-computer-game-second-life-amid-outbreak-2020-3.
* ↑ Good, Owen S. (22 January 2021). "Truck Simulator event invites players to deliver COVID-19 vaccines" (in en). Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/2021/1/22/22244780/euro-truck-simulator-2-american-hauling-hope-covid-event-dates.
* ↑ "Inside a Global Graduation Ceremony, Held Entirely in 'Minecraft'". Rolling Stone. 1 June 2020. https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/global-graduation-quaranteen-minecraft-1007713/.
* ↑ "Coronavirus: Is virtual reality tourism about to take off?". BBC News. 30 October 2020. https://www.bbc.com/news/business-54658147.
* ↑ Ellis, Louise A.; Lee, Matthew D.; Ijaz, Kiran; Smith, James; Braithwaite, Jeffrey; Yin, Kathleen (22 December 2020). "COVID-19 as 'Game Changer' for the Physical Activity and Mental Well-Being of Augmented Reality Game Players During the Pandemic: Mixed Methods Survey Study". Journal of Medical Internet Research: pp. e25117. doi:10.2196/25117. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33284781/.
* ↑ Viana, Ricardo Borges; de Lira, Claudio Andre Barbosa (June 2020). "Exergames as Coping Strategies for Anxiety Disorders During the COVID-19 Quarantine Period". Games for Health Journal. 9 (3): 147–149. doi:10.1089/g4h.2020.0060. ISSN 2161-7856. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
* ↑ Sarkar, Samit (13 March 2020). "Ring Fit Adventure is sold out everywhere, Nintendo confirms" (in en). Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/2020/3/13/21177214/ring-fit-adventure-sold-out-stock-coronavirus-nintendo-switch.
* ↑ Peters, Jay (18 December 2020). "Shigeru Miyamoto tours Super Nintendo World theme park in new video" (in en). The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/2020/12/18/22189601/super-nintendo-world-theme-park-universal-studios-japan-mario-shigeru-miyamoto.
* ↑ Machkovech, Sam (19 December 2020). "Miyamoto leads fans through Super Nintendo World—and it looks incredible" (in en-us). Ars Technica. https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2020/12/miyamoto-leads-fans-through-super-nintendo-world-and-it-looks-incredible/.
* ↑ Carpenter, Nicole (7 January 2022). "COVID-19 tests are so hard to find that console trackers are stepping in". Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/22872150/covid-19-testing-ps5-xbox-console-tracker-help.
* ↑ Smith, Noah. "The gamer vote: Democrats lean into video games to aid Biden campaign". Washington Post. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
* ↑ Park, Gene. "Joe Biden's 'Animal Crossing' island was definitely made by a pro gamer". Washington Post. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
* ↑ "Joe Biden Has A Fortnite Island Now" (in en-us). Kotaku. https://kotaku.com/joe-biden-has-a-fortnite-island-now-1845539140.
* ↑ Taylor, Derrick Bryson; Ortiz, Aimee (1 September 2020). "Biden Campaign Courts the Animal Crossing Island Vote With Yard Signs". The New York Times. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
* ↑ Pesce, Nicole Lyn. "Trump camp mocks Joe Biden for ‘campaigning for president of “Animal Crossing” ’ with virtual yard signs". MarketWatch. https://www.marketwatch.com/story/trump-camp-mocks-joe-biden-for-campaigning-for-president-of-animal-crossing-with-virtual-yard-signs-2020-09-01.
* ↑ Kim, Allen. "'Animal Crossing' players can deck their virtual yards with Joe Biden campaign signs". CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/01/tech/animal-crossing-biden-trnd/index.html.
* ↑ "When even Biden has an "Animal Crossing" island: Games are the new battleground state". Los Angeles Times. 30 October 2020. https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2020-10-30/election-games-animal-crossing-biden-among-us-aoc-twitch-propaganda.
* ↑ "President Joe Biden Apparently Plays Mario Kart - IGN" (in en). https://www.ign.com/articles/president-joe-biden-apparently-plays-mario-kart.
* ↑ "President Biden Only Just Beat His Granddaughter At Mario Kart" (in en-us). Kotaku. https://kotaku.com/president-biden-only-just-beat-his-granddaughter-at-mar-1846270984.
* ↑ Needleman, Kirsten Grind, Ben Fritz and Sarah E. (16 November 2021). "Activision CEO Bobby Kotick Knew for Years About Sexual-Misconduct Allegations at Videogame Giant". Wall Street Journal. https://www.wsj.com/articles/activision-videogames-bobby-kotick-sexual-misconduct-allegations-11637075680.
* ↑ "Riot Games agrees to pay $100 million in settlement of class-action gender discrimination lawsuit". Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/video-games/2021/12/27/riot-discrimination-100-million-settlement/.
* ↑ Allyn, Bobby (10 December 2021). "Embattled Activision Blizzard to employees: 'consider the consequences' of unionizing" (in en). NPR. https://www.npr.org/2021/12/10/1063230658/embattled-activision-blizzard-to-employees-consider-the-consequences-of-unionizi.
* ↑ "The video game industry is closer to unionization than ever before". The Seattle Times. 27 December 2021. https://www.seattletimes.com/business/the-video-game-industry-is-closer-to-unionization-than-ever-before/.
* ↑ D'Anastasio, Cecilia. "Why 2021 Was the Biggest Year for the Labor Movement in Games". Wired. https://www.wired.com/story/2021-biggest-year-labor-movement-video-games/.
* ↑ "The sketchy economy that helps Roblox make its millions" (in en). the Guardian. 21 December 2021. https://www.theguardian.com/games/2021/dec/21/pushing-buttons-roblox.
* ↑ "An Esports Team Signed An 8 Year Old, But Nobody Is Sure If It's Legal" (in en-us). Kotaku. https://kotaku.com/an-esports-team-signed-an-8-year-old-but-nobody-is-sur-1845898629.
* ↑ Clayton, Natalie (2021-05-27). "Skateboarding games are back, here's why they're better than ever". PC Gamer. https://www.pcgamer.com/skateboarding-games-are-back-heres-why-theyre-better-than-ever/.
* ↑ Corkery, Michael; Maheshwari, Sapna (30 October 2020). "Boarded-Up Windows and Increased Security: Retailers Brace for the Election". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/30/business/retailers-election-protests.html.
* ↑ "'Fortnite' Developer Epic Games Is Suing Apple for Anti-Competitive Practices". www.vice.com. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ Leswing, Kif (18 November 2020). "Apple will cut App Store commissions by half to 15% for small app makers". CNBC. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
* ↑ Axon, Samuel (18 November 2020). "Apple drops its cut of App Store revenues from 30% to 15% for some developers". Ars Technica. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
* ↑ Yin-Poole, Wesley (20 November 2020). "Are the PS5 and Xbox Series X too buggy at launch? It's the Eurogamer next-gen news cast!". Eurogamer. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ Warren, Tom (10 September 2020). "Welcome to the next generation of gaming". The Verge. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ "What 3D Audio Means for Next-Gen Games - IGN". Retrieved 20 November 2020.
* ↑ "Will there be another PlayStation 5 and Xbox restock at retailers this year?". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
* ↑ "Sold Out? How to Beat the Rush and Score an Xbox Series X, PS5 From Retailers Online". PCMAG. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
* ↑ Lopatto, Elizabeth (27 January 2021). "How r/WallStreetBets gamed the stock of GameStop" (in en). The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/22251427/reddit-gamestop-stock-short-wallstreetbets-robinhood-wall-street.
* ↑ Lopatto, Elizabeth (27 January 2021). "Memes have broken the brokerages" (in en). The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/27/22252864/wallstreetbets-stocks-memes-broker-outages-limits-amc-gamestop.
* ↑ "AOC, Rashida Tlaib Rip Robinhood Over GameStop Trading Restrictions". Rolling Stone. 28 January 2021. https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/gamestop-reddit-alexandria-ocasio-cortez-rashida-tlaib-hedge-funds-1120334/.
* ↑ "Gaming Crypto-Artists Court Controversy While Cashing in on NFTs" (in en). Bloomberg.com. 9 March 2021. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-09/gaming-crypto-artists-court-controversy-while-cashing-in-on-nfts.
* ↑ Hollister, Sean (15 March 2021). "Maybe don’t sell your friend’s art as an NFT" (in en). The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/tldr/2021/3/15/22332357/nft-art-jason-rohrer-castle-doctrine-selling-friend-art.
* ↑ "Game Artists Not Happy That Developer Is Selling Their Nearly Decade-Old Work As NFTs" (in en-us). Kotaku. https://kotaku.com/game-artists-not-happy-that-developer-is-selling-their-1846465316.
* ↑ "Steam Boots Blockchain-Based Video Games From Its Platform". finance.yahoo.com. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/steam-boots-blockchain-based-video-220703381.html.
* ↑ Yin-Poole, Wesley (16 October 2021). "Valve bans blockchain, crypto and NFT games from Steam, but Epic is on-board" (in en). Eurogamer. https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2021-10-16-valve-bans-blockchain-and-nft-games-from-steam-but-epic-is-on-board.
* ↑ Peters, Jay (24 July 2021). "Super Mario 64 probably won’t be the last million-dollar video game" (in en). The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/2021/7/24/22587929/super-mario-64-heritage-auctions-most-expensive-wata-games.
* ↑ Picheta, Rob. "A copy of 'Super Mario 64' sold for over $1.5 million, the most ever paid for a video game" (in en). CNN. https://www.cnn.com/style/article/super-mario-auction-video-game-record-scli-intl/index.html.
* ↑ "Mamma Mia! Super Mario 64 Is The First Video Game To Sell For More Than $1 Million" (in en). NPR.org. https://www.npr.org/2021/07/14/1016037499/super-mario-64-video-game-auction-million-dollars.
* ↑ Browning, Kellen (6 August 2021). "A Super Mario Bros. game sells for $2 million, another record for gaming collectibles.". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/06/business/super-mario-bros-sale-record.html.
* ↑ Gray, Kate (6 August 2021). "A Copy Of Super Mario Bros. For NES Just Smashed World Records, AGAIN". Nintendo Life. https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2021/08/a_copy_of_super_mario_bros_for_nes_just_smashed_world_records_again.
* 1 2 "American Innovation $1 – New Hampshire | U.S. Mint". www.usmint.gov. Retrieved 27 October 2021.
* ↑ "U.S. Mint Honors Game Developer Ralph Baer" (in en). IEEE Spectrum. 21 July 2021. https://spectrum.ieee.org/us-mint-honors-game-developer-ralph-baer.
* ↑ "Sales strong for commemorative coin honoring NH video-game pioneer". June 28, 2021. https://www.concordmonitor.com/ralph-baer-home-video-game-coin-nh-mint-41187818.
* ↑ Bulfinch, Chris (11 June 2021). "Coin Honors Inventor and the Birth of Videogame Culture". CoinWeek. https://coinweek.com/modern-coins/coin-honors-inventor-and-the-birth-of-video-game-culture/.
* ↑ "Saudi Activision Blizzard Stake Rises Again Amid Controversy" (in en). Bloomberg.com. 17 August 2021. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-08-17/saudi-stake-rises-again-as-activision-blizzard-faces-controversy.
* ↑ Timmer, John (9 April 2021). "The big advance in Elon Musk’s Pong-playing monkey is what you can’t see" (in en-us). Ars Technica. https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/04/the-big-advance-in-elon-musks-pong-playing-monkey-is-what-you-cant-see/.
* ↑ "Microsoft imagines Xbox 2042 with 1 exaFLOP processor". HEXUS. 29 October 2021. https://hexus.net/gaming/news/hardware/148579-microsoft-imagines-xbox-2042-1-exaflop-processor/.
* ↑ "Xbox's Vision For 2042 Is 32K Resolution, 480FPS Gameplay". GameSpot. https://www.gamespot.com/articles/xbox-vision-for-2042-is-32k-resolution-480fps-gameplay/1100-6497431/.
* ↑ Sheridan, Connor (27 October 2021). "Xbox 2042 video from Microsoft stars a tiny super-console that beams onto your contacts" (in en). gamesradar. https://www.gamesradar.com/xbox-2042-video-from-microsoft-stars-a-tiny-super-console-that-beams-onto-your-contacts/.
* ↑ "Could the Xbox 2042 Console Really Exist in Just 20 Years?" (in en). https://www.dualshockers.com/could-the-xbox-2042-console-really-exist-in-just-20-years/.
* ↑ Stephenson, Brad (28 October 2021). "Microsoft's Xbox 2042 concept video teases 32K video, 240 FPS, holograms, and more - OnMSFT.com". https://www.onmsft.com/news/microsofts-xbox-2042-concept-video-teases-32k-video-240-fps-holograms-and-more.
* ↑ "Next-gen Xbox 2042: 32K 480FPS perf with 1 exaFLOPs quantum processor". TweakTown. 27 October 2021. https://www.tweaktown.com/news/82423/next-gen-xbox-2042-32k-480fps-perf-with-1-exaflops-quantum-processor/index.html.
* 1 2 3 4 "YouTuber Builds A Nuclear Powered Game Boy". TheGamer. 15 July 2021. https://www.thegamer.com/nuclear-powered-game-boy/.
* 1 2 3 "This Tetris-Playing Game Boy Knockoff Runs on a Tiny Nuclear Generator" (in en-us). Gizmodo. https://gizmodo.com/this-tetris-playing-game-boy-knockoff-runs-on-a-tiny-nu-1847289167.
* ↑ "This Nuclear-Powered Game Boy Will Run for a Century" (in en). Hackster.io. https://www.hackster.io/news/this-nuclear-powered-game-boy-will-run-for-a-century-d3c1cb3c53e9.
* ↑ "Jugaad Level Max! This Guy Charged His Game Boy With 'Nuclear' Batteries To Play Tetris" (in en-IN). IndiaTimes. 15 July 2021. https://www.indiatimes.com/trending/jugaad/youtuber-charges-game-boy-using-tiny-nuclear-generator-545018.html.
* ↑ "Nuclear Powered Game Boy" (in en). kottke.org. https://kottke.org/21/07/nuclear-powered-game-boy.
* ↑ "YouTuber Converts A Knock-Off Game Boy To Run On Nuclear Power". GameSpot. https://www.gamespot.com/articles/youtuber-converts-a-knock-off-game-boy-to-run-on-nuclear-power/1100-6493948/.
* ↑ "2021 Hugo Award game finalists include 'Hades' and 'Animal Crossing'". Engadget. https://www.engadget.com/2021-hugo-award-game-finalists-210602810.html.
* ↑ Horiuchi, Junko (28 June 2021). "IOC weighs addition of pandemic-boosted virtual sports to Olympics". The Japan Times. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/sports/2021/06/28/olympics/ioc-esports-future-games/.
* ↑ Note: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 Olympic games were held in 2021.
* ↑ "Olympics ceremony uses music from Japanese video games" (in en). AP NEWS. 23 July 2021. https://apnews.com/article/tokyo-olympics-video-game-music-8dbdfaff5de83c76b021d1dc0e25c871.
* ↑ McWhertor, Michael (23 July 2021). "The Olympic opening ceremony was full of video game music" (in en). Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/22590146/olympics-2020-games-athletes-parade-of-nations-video-game-music-dragon-quest-kingdom-hearts.
* ↑ "Republican senator Josh Hawley worries feminism has driven men to ‘pornography and video games’" (in en). the Guardian. 1 November 2021. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/nov/01/josh-hawley-feminism-men-pornography-video-games.
* ↑ Bacharier, Galen. "Sen. Hawley says American men are 'withdrawing' into pornography and video games amid 'crisis'". USA TODAY. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2021/11/02/missouri-republican-hawley-men-withdrawing-pornography-video-games/6251225001/.
* ↑ "Sen. Josh Hawley says liberals’ attacks on manhood are driving men to pornography and video games". Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/11/02/josh-hawley-pornography-video-games/.
* ↑ "Kabul gamers fret over favourite pastime with Taliban back in power" (in en). Reuters. 14 September 2021. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/kabul-gamers-fret-over-favourite-pastime-with-taliban-back-power-2021-09-13/.
* ↑ Orland, Kyle (10 March 2022). "Russia’s console game market no longer exists" (in en-us). Ars Technica. https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2022/03/russias-console-game-market-no-longer-exists/.
* ↑ "Review | ‘Umurangi Generation’: A photography game that urges you to look closer". Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/video-games/reviews/umurangi-generation-photography-game-that-urges-you-look-closer/.
* ↑ Weidman, George. "Umurangi Generation, Colonialism, UAPs, UFOs and Alien Invasion Stories". Retrieved 22 June 2021.
* ↑ "Interview: Umurangi Generation's Developer On Fascism, Colonisation, And Donald Trump". TheGamer. 2021-06-05. https://www.thegamer.com/umurangi-generation-interview-fascism-colonisation/.
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