Video game
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
A video game is a game played using an electronic device with a visual display.
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2 Video game market 3 Top video games 4 Critics of video games 5 Genres 6 See also 7 External links |
Overview
Often "video game" is taken in a narrow sense to mean those games played on consoles for television and similar handhelds. The term "video game" is often not considered to include computer games and coin-operated arcade games, both because historically the games in these three categories were very different, and also because the activity of playing these three types of games is different. See history of the video game for more information. The terms electronic game and interactive entertainment both include video games, computer games, and coin-operated arcade games.
However nowadays in terms of genre there is a thin line between computer games and video games. Arcades are still based on gameplay that can be quickly caught on, and work according to progression through levels. Many games intended for computers are now just as much prevalent on videogames, both having many of the same selection of titles. This is due to the fact that videogame has increased its technology so dramatic over the last few years, that it can handle games that at one point were only operational through computers. However, computers still remain dominant through technology, and typically a computer will acquire a certain game before it "hits" the video game consoles.
Video games are made by developers, sometimes individuals, but almost always a team consisting of designers, graphic designers and other artists, programmerss, sound designers, musicians, and other technicians. Most video game console development teams number anywhere from 20 to 50 people, with some teams exceeding 100. The average team size as well as the average development time has grown with the maturation of the industry and technology, and this has led to regular cases of missed deadlines and unfinished products. See video game industry practices for more information.
From time to time the term interactive is used to describe a video game. This term is often used by people in the movie and television industry who are not comfortable with the idea that they are involved in making video games. Usage: "We're a movie production company, and we're getting into interactive."
Video game market
Video games are very popular and the market has grown continuously since the end of the video game crash of 1983. The market research company NPD estimated that video game hardware, software, and accessories sold about US$10.3 billion in 2002. This was a 10% increase over the 2001 figure.
The video game market changes over the years as new video game consoles are introduced. This has happened in cycles of about 5 years or so, in which multiple manufacturers release their consoles within about a year of each other, then they and the video game publishers enjoy several years of game sales until technology has improved enough for a new cycle to begin. At that point, games for the old consoles generally enjoy some residual sales, but the video game public as a whole has moved on to the new generation of machines. The current dominant consoles are:
- Sony's PlayStation 2
- Nintendo's GameCube
- Microsoft's XBox
- Nintendo's Game Boy Advance (portable console)
Top video games
The ten best selling console video games, according to NPD, ranked by total US units (February 2004'') were:
- , Nintendo, GameCube
- NFL Street, Electronic Arts, PS2
- Metroid Zero Mission, Nintendo, Game Boy Advance
- , Electronic Arts, PS2
- , Electronic Arts, PS2
- , Sony, PS2
- , Sony, PS2
- Halo , Microsoft, XBox
- Mafia, Gathering of Developers, PS2
- , Electronic Arts, XBox
- Madden NFL 2004, Electronic Arts, PS2
- Pokemon Ruby, Nintendo of America, Game Boy Advance
- Pokemon Sapphire, Nintendo of America, Game Boy Advance
- , Electronic Arts, PS2
- , Nintendo of America, GameCube
- , Rockstar Games, PS2
- , Nintendo of America, GameCube
- Tony Hawk's Underground, Activision, PS2
- Enter the Matrix, Atari, PS2
- , Electronic Arts, PS2
Critics of video games
From time to time, video games are criticized by some parents' groups, psychologists, politicians, and some religious organizations for glorifying violence, cruelty, and crime, and exposing this violence to children. It is particularly disturbing to some adults that some video games allow children to act out crimes (for example, the Grand Theft Auto series), and reward them for doing so. Some studies have shown that children who watch violent television shows and play violent video games have a tendency to act more aggressively on the playground, and some people are concerned that this aggression may presage violent behavior when children grow to adulthood. These concerns have led to voluntary rating systems adopted by the industry, such as the ESRB rating system in the United States, that are aimed at educating parents about the types of games their children are playing (or are begging to play).
Critics of movies, television, and books as a group look down on video games as an inferior form of entertainment. This is probably because of the accurate observation that most video games have very little plot and even less character development—although there are some exceptions to the rule. In any case, a frequent counter is that this complaint is like complaining that playing a game of football doesn't have much plot or character development—that though video games include a narrative, they are really about acting in and against the world, and this type of entertainment is not primarily about passively seeing and hearing.
See also: video game controversy, video game proponent
Genres
Nearly all video games fall into one or more genress. A genre is a category which classifies what kind of content and game play a game is likely to contain. For example, a first person shooter is likely to contain a great deal of action, will require quick reflexes and may contain graphic violence, while an adventure game will require a great deal of problem solving and exploration.
See video game genres for more information.
See also
- Audio game
- Computer game
- Video game console
- Timeline of video games and history of the video game
- List of computer and video games
- List of game industry people
- List of video game consoles
- List of movies based on video games
- Video game developer
- Video game publisher
- Video game music
- Video game franchise
- Game programmer
- Game designer
- Video game player
- Video game controversy
- Video game theory
- Video game proponent
- Fan translation
- Enhanced remake
- Walkthrough
External links
- Console Database - All about video game consoles and games
- Video Game Reviews
- Video Game Directory
- Open Gaming Center: the Wikipedia of Computer Gaming
- MobyGames, a game documentation and review project
- BBCNews, 28 May, 2003, Video games 'good for you'
- Gamasutra, a video game developer e-zine
- Open Gaming Foundation
- Game Download site
- NPD Video games industry sales studies, press releases
- Atari Corporate History ,a site about the History of Atari from a corporate perspective
- FFShrine, a site dedicated to the popular Final Fantasy series of games