The gaming industry has experienced rapid, unprecedented growth over decades of time. What began as a hobby turned to obsession and evolved into competitive gaming. And along the way, gaming became a billion dollar industry rivaled by few.
Today’s gaming is hardly a mere escape to fantasy land or casual pastime, it’s a cornerstone of pop culture that’s references finds its way into movies, TV shows, and literature.
The culture impacts of gaming are widespread, complex, and deliberate.
Whether your a casual player or a dedicated gamer, knowing the gaming industry’s history of cultural influence is an interesting topic.
The Rise of Mainstream Gaming
It began in the 1980s with the advent of home consoles like Atari. In the 1990s, Nintendos and Sega’s infiltrated bedrooms all over the world, dazzling families with a new kind of brilliant graphic and energetic audio. Yes, we’re talking about you, Mario Bros.
Families played together. There were sports games like hockey, and most famously, Mike Tyson’s Punchout. In the 90s, we saw the first early indications of a merger between sports and video games. At the very least, both gaming companies and sports corporations began to see mutual opportunities.
In the 2000s, the Internet came roaring and gaming would forever be changed by Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOs) and online competitive games such as “World of Warcraft.” At this juncture, gaming was well on its way into a new stratosphere.
What does all of this mean?
According to the Entertainment Software Association, as of 2021, over 214 million Americans play video games, and the average age of a gamer is 35-44 years old, dispelling the stereotype of gaming as a youth-only pastime. Moreover, the global gaming market value is expected to reach $256.97 billion by 2025. That’s more than most entertainment sectors.
Gaming and its Influence on Language and Communication
The past few decades have seen an increasing infiltration of gaming influence into mainstream culture. It’s impacted the way we communicate. In fact, some gaming-derived terms may surprise you.
You may recognize terms such as “noob”, “grinding”, “frag”, “respawn”, “mobs”, and “buff”, which have been borne out of different gaming communities.
In 2019, the term, “esports” and “completionist” were added to the Merriam-Webster dictionary. While some of your spell-checkers may not agree, it’s true.
Gamers also developed what’s known as “compressed language” as a more efficient way to communicate. Compressed language often involves acronyms, such as “AFK” (Away From Keyboard), “GG” (Good Game), “DPS” (Damage Per Second), and “NPC” (Non-Player Character).
Gaming’s Impact on Other Media
The influence of gaming on our culture is widespread across a variety of mediums. Let’s dive in.
Movies and Television: Hollywood’s intimate relationship with gaming has been obvious for years. Franchises like “Resident Evil,” “Assassin’s Creed,” “Mortal Kombat,” “Sonic the Hedgehog,” and “The Witcher” have made their way onto the silver screen and TV sets around the world.
Inversely, television shows such as “Star Wars,” “Marvel Universe,” “Stranger Things,” and “Game of Thrones” have influenced the creation of popular games. The relationship between gaming and Hollywood works both ways, clearly.
Music: Video game music, often overshadowed by intense graphics, has also come a very long ways. Simple 8-bit tunes are now full orchestral scores, some using Hans Zimmer (composer for Gladiator, The Lion King, Inception, Interstellar).
Soundtracks from games like “Final Fantasy,” “The Legend of Zelda,” and “The Elder Scrolls” have even been performed by symphony orchestras in concert halls worldwide.
Concerts held in games like “Fortnite” and “Roblox” have drawn millions of viewers, reshaping the landscape of live music performances.
Literature: Some of you like to read, right? Hopefully so.
Gaming’s influence has spread into comic books and novels just as much as music and TV.
Series like “Halo,” “World of Warcraft,” “Assassin’s Creed,” and “Mass Effect” have experienced expansion into written form. Conversely, literature has inspired video games, with books like “The Witcher” series and “Metro 2033” serving as the basis for popular game franchises.
Art: The visual elements of video games is elaborate and wildly immersive. From character designs to the sets which surround them, the experience of a video game revolves heavily around stunning visuals.
Museums and exhibitions have started to recognize video game art, with exhibits like the Victoria and Albert Museum’s “Videogames: Design/Play/Disrupt” showcasing the artistic processes behind game development.
Conclusion
The impact on gaming in popular culture is not only robust, but profound and increasingly limitless. As the gaming industry continues to grow and innovate, its cultural influence across various media formats is likely to deepen. This may further blur lines between the various sectors and gaming.