Mobile gaming has come on in leaps and bounds in recent years. Those who are young enough to remember games such as Snake on an old Nokia phone are inevitably amazed at the changes that have taken place in the intervening years. High definition graphics are one example of a big change, while the sheer range of choice now available – spanning everything from puzzles to virtual reality – is also remarkable.
But what few people recognize is just how cutting-edge an industry mobile gaming really is. Changes and innovations in this sector are happening not just in annual increments, but in fact all the time. This article will delve into some of the big changes that have happened in recent years.
VR and AR
When it comes to innovation in this sector, two of the abbreviations most commonly on the lips of commentators are VR and AR. The former stands for virtual reality and is perhaps the more famous of the two. The use of headsets and other wearable technology makes virtual reality a winner and provides an immersive experience in virtual environments as diverse as battlegrounds and oceans.
But augmented reality has also caused a shift in mobile gaming – one that is, perhaps, even cooler than VR. Augmented reality is essentially a combination of the real world and the virtual world, meaning that players can enjoy a fascinating mixture of environments where both fantasy play and reality can come to life. One of the most famous examples of this is the Pokémon Go craze, which swept the world a few years ago and really put the studio – Niantic – back on the online gaming map. By combining elements of the game with the real world as viewed through a smartphone camera lens, Niantic showed that a mix and match approach really can work.
Casino gaming
But the long arm of technology isn’t just represented by virtual reality. It also lies in the world of casino gaming – and many bettors now find themselves preferring the ease and convenience of their phone or tablet to the desktop computer or the real-world casino. Various developments have taken place in this regard in recent years, one of which is the arrival of cryptocurrency-based casinos.
Blockchain technology, which powers big names such as Bitcoin, has established itself as a legitimate partner of many mobile gaming firms. As casino gaming has a distinctive financial element involving the depositing of a stake, it’s little surprise that crypto casinos have become so popular in recent times. Cryptocurrencies are set apart from others by their decentralised administration systems, which means that no central authority can check the ledger to monitor transactions. Given that there is still some social stigma around gambling, the privacy that this offers can be vital for those who want to ensure that they aren’t going to risk their private or personal details being made public.
Voice recognition
Finally, it’s definitely also worth thinking about the role of voice recognition technology in giving mobile gaming’s profile a boost in recent years. The telephone was, of course, invented for voice communication – and while the arrival of smartphones and camera phones means that images have become an important part of phone usage, it still feels natural for the phone to be powered by voices.
For gamers, this need has been met by studios shifting their gameplay modes towards voice command technology. This allows players to instruct their characters, avatars, or other items around the game world using spoken words, rather than traditional control modes such as joysticks. This technology also allows players to connect, no matter how far apart they might be in terms of geography, and converse while they play. So, while there are some lazy accusations made that mobile gaming can cause people to drift apart and become isolated, there’s also plenty of evidence to suggest that it’s a positive thing – and that it has the capacity to bring people together.
Overall, mobile gaming is most certainly the sort of industry where change is constant. Providers in this realm are highly innovative and competitive, which is a boon for the end-user as it means an enormous range of game type choice as well as a big focus on player experience. Whether it’s down to virtual reality, mobile casinos, or voice-powered technologies, it’s probably no stretch to say that every mobile gaming user has had their gaming life transformed by the innovations that have come through in this sector in the last few years.