The History of Online Gaming

From the good old days of playing on tabletops to virtual reality, the remarkable change in the games we play is incredibly evident. The online gaming industry has exploded within a short period of some decades. It is now one of the fastest-developing industries in the world, which is estimated to reach, in revenue, $196 billion by the time 2022 ends.

How did online gaming come into being?

As the research done by 22Bet suggests, the 1950s was when scientists created the world's first video gaming prototype. Twenty years after it, consumers witnessed the arrival of the first gaming control in the 1970s. However, the online gaming market started to escalate only in the 90s because of the extensive internet connection. We are presenting you with a list showing how the online gaming industry get so popular year after year -

● The 1990s witnessed the easy availability of the internet, which resulted in the rapid growth of online gaming.

● With the launch of the digital storefront steam in 2003, the gamers were allowed to purchase games online and review them.

● The year 2004 observed the launch of the World of Warcraft, the first MMO that got over 10 million subscriptions.

● Online games which work over mobile phones started in 2007.

● Minecraft achieves the award of being one of the best-selling video games ever made in the year 2009. It sold more than 176 copies. In the same year, the in-app purchase feature for iPhone apps was brought to the world by Apple.

● By the year 2015, there were over 1.5 billion gamers around the globe.

● In 2016 the famous augmented reality game Pokemon Go came out. It is the first mobile game to generate the most revenue in the first month of its release.

● Google launched the cloud gaming service named Stadia in 2019. It allowed the gamers to play online games without the use of a console.

The journey before online gaming

● Brown Box

Every 90s kid can remember the gaming machine that came out in the 1940s at New York's World Fair. After that, the first gaming prototype started in 1967. It was named "Brown Box," which was the first gaming platform for commercial at-home usage.

You could connect the "Brown Box" to the TV. This game allowed two users to play at the same time. It included games like checkers, ping pong, and some other sports games. Undoubtedly, the success of the "Brown Box" cleared the path of Atari to become an instant hit.

● The Arrival of Atari

The arrival of Atari entirely changed the gaming world. Atari, a gaming company established by the godfather of gaming Nolan Bushnell, created terrific video games and set up an industry centering "Arcade." Atari introduced us to the first actual electronic game named Pong. After that, it never had to look back. Soon after the massive success of Pong, the arcade machines were seen everywhere - in the shopping malls, bars, and bowling sectors in the US.

● Personal Computers and Consoles

The year 1970 also witnessed the emergence of personal computers along with significant technological development. It led to the production of a range of games like the Gunfight. It was the first game to include a multiplayer mode where the two players could play against each other.

As suggested by 22Bet, the boost of arcade games created a whole new world of gaming community which saw ups and downs, such as the deadly video games crash in North America in 1983. But this gave rise to the world of home computers like the Apple ll and Commodore 64.

The home computers possessed more robust processors than earlier gaming consoles, so gamers introduced more complex video games. It led to the next generation of multiplayer games, like the arrival of Pathway to Darkness in the year 1993. Also, the birth of the LAN Party stimulated the growth of the video gaming industry remarkably. This LAN network allowed gamers to connect with other players.

● The Emergence of LAN

This LAN and the internet connection later enhanced multiplayer gaming immensely. It brought together more and more people and fulfilled the social aspect of gaming too.

The fundamental advances in the online gaming field took place in the era 1990. But even after several attempts done by companies like Atari, no success was seen. However, the first internet-ready gaming console, Sega Dreamcast, came out in 2000. After that, in 2001, Runescape came into the market, which was indeed a game-changer in the gaming industry. And after that, the real journey of online games started.

Last Thoughts -

The games we unconsciously start playing on our smartphones had a very long and exciting journey with several failures and successes. Today, we can play online betting at 22Bet. But the journey of technological advancement didn't happen overnight. But as wise men say, you cannot achieve success without hard work; enthusiastic companies stick to their vision of creating online games someday, which our generation now enjoys with massive respect to the whole gaming industry.