You might find it difficult to believe, but one of the main industries currently driving technology forward all over the world comes from very humble origins. So humble, in fact, that 40 years ago it largely consisted of two bats and a ball, and a bunch of pixelly invaders from space, controlled by us in our local arcades.
Gaming has transformed so much since those simpler times of the late 70s and early 80s. First there was the advent of home console gaming with the likes of Super Mario Bros. and Sonic The Hedgehog. Then, as cartridges were superseded by discs, games got more detailed, more immersive and graphically more appealing. And in recent times, gaming has become far more Internet-centric, with online network play and whole-game downloads now the order of the day.
As a result, the global gaming industry is now worth somewhere in the region of US$200billion, and it’s showing no sign of slowing down. And a big part of that is because of the constant technological arms race needed to support ever more advanced games: more powerful graphics cards, faster CPUs, solid state drives with more space for game storage and game saves, to name but three areas of innovation.
All this hard work in the gaming industry is great news for everyone else, because it forces technology forward at a faster rate, and we all get to benefit. To take the three aforementioned areas of development as examples:
- Solid state drives: compared to traditional hard drive technology, SSDs tend to be more durable, more reliable, faster, more energy efficient, lighter and quieter. This has improved the memory capability of a huge range of everyday devices used by every type of business. And although SSD costs remain higher than hard drives on a per-gigabyte basis, the rate of SSD development means that this gap is narrowing all the time, making SSDs more and more accessible to anyone who wants faster loading times and speedier application launches.
- Graphics cards: the latest high-end graphics cards developed in the gaming world have proved to be transformative in a host of different use cases. For example, they make for a smoother and faster video editing experience that doesn’t overload the CPU; they enable the playback of very high-resolution videos (how else did you think you could stream 4K through your laptop?); and they ease the testing process for software developers and coders. They can even be used to support the high levels of computing power needed for cryptocurrency mining.
- CPUs: the development of CPUs had to go hand-in-hand with graphics cards, because the ultimate performance of one can easily be held back by the other. Having a better CPU installed within a PC or a laptop, for example, means other parts like RAM and cooling systems can then be improved to uprate the overall capability of a machine.
All three of the above points are benefitting the wider world today. But what does tomorrow hold? Well, in short, all these advances mean that what used to be science fiction is increasingly becoming science fact.
In particular, virtual reality and augmented reality are moving away from being trendy innovations and towards becoming common parts of our everyday lives. Things like mixed-reality desks that allow people to work from anywhere with full access to applications and data; shared whiteboards where people can write with a connected pen and visualise their thoughts to people elsewhere; even customisable virtual rooms that deliver the best of both video and in-person meetings.
These are just some of the things that may previously have seemed unthinkable or unachievable, and yet will be all around us within the next few years. And for that, some of the thanks goes to two bats, a ball, and some pixelly invaders from space.