Entertainment has always been expanding from adding color and sound into the theater to creating television shows and movies on DVD. Video games as a part of entertainment started off with text based games on the computer and then arcade games where children and adults would gather for hours playing old school games like Pac-man. Games then were made for at home consoles where people could play their favorite games in the comfort of their homes. These game consoles evolved increasing the ability to play games with better stories, imagery, and game play. In the 21st century games have hit a high point in video quality and game technology.
Game systems like Sony’s Playstation 3 and Microsoft’s XBOX 360 have really pushed the limits of game technology. Both systems have moved on to newer DVD technology allowing more room for games to be stored on as well as better graphics that make games and characters much more life-like. Modern games on these systems let gamers watch as a character moves their lips when they’re talking as if it were a movie. The advances in graphics also allow for beautiful backgrounds that are so detailed that each blade of grass is distinguishable. The games for both of these systems range from sports to role-playing to shooter games.
Nintendo has always been a family friendly system and have advanced the idea of benefiting families and promoting healthy lifestyles with their Wii console. The Wii has a library of games that require gamers to be more active that just pressing buttons on a controller. The wireless controllers that come with the Wii have sensors so that the game knows when players are imitating the acts that the game requires. Games include sports where a person actual does the motions like swing a baseball bat to shooter games where a player must aim with their controller.
Hand held game systems have become more popular since the early days of Gameboys and Gamegear. The two major competitors are the Sony PSP, which provides the graphics of a Playstation 2, and the Nintendo DS, which provides innovative game play. The PSP has incredible graphics for a hand held with extreme detail. It also has the ability to download music and play movies from UMDs. The DS may seem trivial in comparison because of the lower quality in graphics but has a wide selection of games that are played a little differently from other systems. A stylus is used to control characters, select objects, and in some games even draw the main character and it’s surroundings. Both systems have puzzle games and role-playing games. The PSP is geared towards shooters like Call of Duty and racing games like Need for Speed. The DS focuses on thinking games such as Professor Layton and silly games such as Spore Creatures.
The variety of video games is so great that there’s something appealing for everyone. Nintendo is ideal of children and families while Microsoft and Sony are geared towards older children to adults.
