Advances in Gaming Tech
Here in the 21st century, playing games is as easy as tapping an app on your mobile phone home screen or just opening up a browser window and heading to a gaming platform or distribution service. And that’s to say nothing of the massive variety of gaming experiences that are available; today’s games can transport you to alternative realities, enable you to compete and team up with gamers all over the globe, or even give you the tools to build your own gaming environment.
Incredibly, the vast majority of these advancements only occurred during the past two decades. The differences between a current next-gen console and the Nintendo or SEGA consoles of the mid-90s are incredible. 2022’s devices feature more storage, more power and faster processing speeds than previous editions, while future iterations will outperform even these.
But the progression of gaming hasn’t stopped at hardware; video games themselves have also been transformed. We’re fully immersed in the era of digital gaming, powered by advanced technologies.
Advanced Tech Powering Digital Gaming
Cloud Gaming
The latest technology to have emerged in the gaming industry, cloud gaming, has the potential to revolutionise digital gaming. Clout technology has already proven to be highly beneficiation in its application across communication and enterprise, and now it’s making strides in changing the accessibility of gaming.
The beauty of cloud gaming is that it frees up digital space, which is often at a premium on gaming consoles or PCs. Instead, gaming content libraries are stored on huge servers in “the cloud” that players can then access from any connected device. Yes, any connected device, be that a gaming console or a smartphone.
Although cloud technology is the newest to be implemented into mainstream gaming, it’s already had a dramatic impact.
Random Number Generator (RNG)
While it’s not necessarily a term that you come across every day, you have, nevertheless, most likely encountered an RNG in action in an array of digital games. In simple words, an RNG is a software algorithm that ensures an event or action in a game is completely randomised and cannot be predicted.
RNGs form the backbone of the licensed online casino gaming market, which encompasses real money digital slot, card and table games. Operators in this sector are known for running online platforms loaded with a variety of titles while ensuring the fairness and transparency of the games.
The technology doesn’t just occur in iGaming, however. RNGs are utilised throughout games like DOTA 2 or Counter-Strike: Global Offensive to determine randomised outcomes.
Digital Distribution Services
Although cloud gaming is the newest kid on the block to transform digital gaming, none of this progress would have been possible without Gaming As A Service (GAAS) and digital distribution services.
Back in 2003, the Valve Corporation launched the Steam platform. Initially designed to be a way for the company to provide gamers with automatic updates for Valve games, within two years, the service had expanded to being a gaming marketplace, distributing and offering third-party titles.
Over the decade, Valve added more and more features to Steam that made it an indispensable resource for the modern gamer. In 2013, it held 75% of the market share in digital game distribution, thanks to the millions of gamers purchasing and downloading their favourite games from the storefront. Just last year, there were over 34,000 games available on the store, played by an average of 132 million monthly users.
The success of the service has even led to the development of specialised gaming PCs and the handheld Steam Deck for gaming on the go.
