The gaming landscape is no stranger to change, but while that’s always been true, there are juggernaut franchises and names that continue to prosper. Perhaps chief among these is the console giants that players often find themselves having to choose between – Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo. How these three companies approach the gaming landscape directly affects and is affected by what’s popular.
Whether you’re an outsider to the gaming landscape or just curious to understand what kind of direction it’s headed in, knowing where the money is can help you to answer whatever questions that you have.
Remakes
This is something that’s followed in the footsteps of how many classic movies have received remakes again and again, trying to cash in on a past success. While it’s easy to be cynical about it here, too, there is a wide spectrum of quality on display that can often justify this move – helping to bring a beloved game from the past to a new audience that would have no way of playing it otherwise. The Resident Evil series has seen its share of successful remakes, as has Dead Space, another horror classic. Outside of that, famous platforming titles like Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon have had their original trilogies remastered to great success.
Mobile Gaming
The increased possibilities that have come with improved mobile hardware, paired with the fact that so many people have access to smartphones, make it no wonder that mobile gaming is as popular as it is. Not only is this a much more accessible platform for many people who are curious about gaming (because they already have a phone, rather than having to buy a new console), but there’s also a great deal of variety on display from the outset.
Not only do gamers have access to popular ports of modern and past classics, but there are also online casino experiences, such as at Lucky Days. These digitized versions of once exclusively physical venues can refamiliarize you with slots and blackjack while also introducing a player to new spins on these classic, household experiences.
Live Service Games
Another modern trend that has been met with a fair bit of controversy is that of live service games. These refer to games (often online, multiplayer experiences) that are frequently updated and added to over time. This means that there is a consistent stream of new content that can transform the less popular elements of the game, but it also means that the game ceases to become a static, knowable piece of media. How a live service game exists today might be completely gone a few years down the line when all but the fundamentals have changed.
Still, this has been shown to be a potentially very lucrative way of designing games, with the sheer popularity of games like Fortnite speaking for itself – and that’s a game that was also free to play. With that in mind, it’s no wonder that companies like Sony are looking to get a piece of the live service pie.
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