Online Games - the Evolution

Online Games - The Evolutionthe people could collect games cartridges for one
Now we see thousands of people playing onlinebase unit instead of having bulky game console
games such as tetris, ping pong, mario bros,systems.
super mario etc for free but despite its historyThe 80s - some pause before the storm
dating back to 1970s, for most people online1980's saw growing craze for the video and
gaming began with the explosion of Internet incomputer game craze, but online gaming wasn't
1993 and with the advent of Doom and Warcrafton the horizon yet. New games with better sound
sometime in 1994 or 1995. This got further boostand graphics were introduced and gained
with publishers starting to add Internetpopularity. Pole Position and Pac-man were two
connectivity to computer games in 1994-95.that achieved big popularity. It was during 1980's
The media, in fact, have themselves beenwhen Nintendo introduced its first gaming system.
ignorant about online games history. As far asThe 90s - revolution begins
they are concerned, online gaming justThe 1990's saw the phenomenal growth in both
coincidentally happened when their advertiserspopularity and technology mostly because of the
started producing Internet-capable games. But itrise of 3-D and multimedia.
isn't so…Myst, the intellectual adventure game introduced
Early Years of developmentgaming on the CD-ROM format. Fancier 3-D
In early 1950's a college student created a gamegraphics hardware made FPS (first person
much like Tic-Tac-Toe for a class project to beshooter) games such as Quake possible.
played on dinosaur computers of those daysThe late 1990's saw the exponential growth of
complete with cathode ray tubes for the screenthe Internet, MUDs (multi-user dungeons) which
display. The 1960's had MIT studentsmade online games wildly popular. New and
programming a game called "Space war" thatimproved graphical interfaces had people all over
could be played with two people over a primitivethe world playing against each other not only in
network. The late 1960's brought the first "real"FPS games but also in real time strategy games
video games like table tennis and shooter games.(RTS games) as well as third person games like
The 70s - the game beginsGrand Theft Auto.
Serious online gaming began with the firstThis was also the period when websites started
interactive online game called ADVENT. In factoffering online games such as tetris, ping pong,
networked gaming got conceptualized withmario bros, super Mario, and other free online
ADVENT. Networked gaming had users playingflash games and non-flash based games free for
against each other within an online fantasy world.playing after registering with them. This really
The first networked game was called Mazewar, apushed online gaming into the popular psyche.
game which involved networked players travelingThe 21st Century - world is just a playground
through a maze and attempting to kill oneEarly years of the 21st century were dominated
another.by the DVD-CD-ROM. It has changed the way
Next came the interpersonal interaction in aonline games are played. The latest gaming
multi-player environment. The first such gamesystems such as Sony's play station and
was called DUNGEN. DUNGEN had playersMicrosoft's X-box have networking capabilities to
competing against one another to complete aenable people play with each other in real time
series of quests. DUNGEN provided with newfrom all over the world. Exponentially growing
settings and players each time the user logged on.broadband internet services have made playing
The late 1970's saw the start of video gamethese online games possible in true sense of the
craze with more and more households gettingword.
computer savvy. As a natural corollary, peopleThe only drawback to the constantly evolving
started writing their own games for the hometechnology for online games is that what you buy
computers. These programming hobbyists tradedtoday might become obsolete by the next year.
and sold these home-grown games in localLuckily, for the serious gamers, the resale
markets.industry for these online games is huge. This
Other changes in the 1970's were home gamingresale industry is just another element to the
consoles which used game cartridges. That meantever-changing history of online game.