When video games started, there was a huge explosion of excitement. Everyone was interested and wanted to see “the next best thing.” The presence of this interactive medium could not be avoided. You’d walk into your local diner, only to find long lines for the next Donkey Kong or Pac-Man game. Video games were the new kids on the block. They were new, fresh, fun and exciting. In the early to mid-1980s, the video game industry was experiencing a meltdown. It was the beginning of the end? It turns out, thankfully, that was not the case.
An industry newcomer, Nintendo, was responsible for launching the NES (Nintendo Entertainment System), which essentially single-handedly revived the entire industry. Although Nintendo is over a century old, video games in particular were a new adventure for them, so there was a lot of skepticism. That skepticism was quickly silenced once they released their first game console, featuring the game’s world-renowned mascot, Super Mario Brothers. This single game was responsible for putting the industry back on the map. One of the reasons for the game’s huge success is not just due to the cute personalities of the characters, but largely due to the fact that Super Mario Brothers itself was a revolutionary game. There was nothing like it at the time. It was a whole new wave in interactivity and thus a new generation of gamers was born. In the early days, there was one particular element that all games had in common: ease of use.
The games were quite easy to learn and play and as a result this allowed a large number of people interested in the medium to try it out. With the passage of time, games naturally evolved. At the same time, as games began to evolve more, so did the complexity of playing them. Historically, all video games were presented in two dimensions (2-D). However, in the mid-90s, we were introduced to games that now jumped into the third dimension (3-D). As a result, a whole new dimension of complexity, so to speak, came with it. Although 3-D games may have had some effect on the “ease of use” factor, a large portion of the games that became too complex had to do with the natural progression of the game controllers. Essentially, the tools players use to control what’s happening on the screen.
As a result of this, people who used to play and enjoy games suddenly turned their backs on him. Not because they weren’t interested, but because they simply couldn’t handle the levels of difficulty that were now presented to them. If you do some research, you will find that this increase in difficulty was also reflected in the sales or lack of growth of the industry. The number of people who used to play video games suddenly decreased. This put the industry into something of a frenzy. However, there was one company that really showed concern: that company was Nintendo. It was around 2004 when Nintendo stated that it felt the industry needed to change, so procedures were being put in place to make those changes happen. The result: both the Nintendo DS and the Wii.
You would almost have to be living under a rock not to hear about such systems. His success so far is simply unprecedented. But why is that? The answer is quite simple: those two systems are really easy to use. In a way, they harken back to the basics of when anyone could play games. The DS uses a touch screen as an interface and a stylus as a “controller”. However, this combination really works, and it is evident from the sales reflected by the system. The Wii, on the other hand, is movement-based, with a controller that looks like a TV remote. Who doesn’t have and use a TV remote? Almost everyone does it and thus the reason the Wii Remote was developed the way it is. The Wii’s interface makes playing games easy again, looking no further than the latest system-generated sales to prove this point. The brilliant thing that Nintendo did was use the latest technology, but in a way that simplifies the process so anyone can use it. In other words, cutting-edge technology that’s easy to use. Sparkly!
Industry analysis shows that after the release of the Wii and DS, the industry began to expand again. People who once stopped playing games have started playing games again. Even more importantly, people who had never touched a game before suddenly got involved. Now it seems that the industry as a whole is working to expand the market, reaching people of all ages and nationalities. A goal where one day people will regard video games as a legitimate form of entertainment, a medium that can be proud alongside other forms of entertainment such as movies and music. Be sure that day will come!