Video games have advanced tremendously over time, but one thing remains constant – the fact that they are super popular. Many people are addicted to video games. While some play them for pleasure, others do it for competitive reasons. Here are several fun stories revolving around our favorite games.
1. Almost 30% of gamers are over 50
There is an influx of older gamers. That is a big shocker because game developers didn’t initially target the senior and mature citizens while curating games. Probably the increase is because of the baby boomers that are now retired. Now that about 30 percent of players are over 60, we see more titles like crosswords for the audience.
2. The first coin was used to operate video games
Coin-operated games are located on public business premises like amusement arcades, bars, and restaurants. The first pinball machine emerged in the 1930s. Coin-operated devices hit the market in the 1970s. Some of the standard games of the time were Galaxian, Defender, Space invaders, and Pac-man. Today there are tons of free game-streaming sites like Twitch. Twitch is an online site that allows you to stream video gameplay. The videos are either live or pre-broadcasted. To enjoy the service, all you need is to search for how to start streaming on Twitch and get started immediately. In the past, there wasn’t any online service. You had to go to a physical machine to enjoy your popular games right now.
Interested for more facts? You can check this article and browse through the 300 random facts.
3. Many video games don’t have mirrors
You may not have noticed this, but programmers don’t like putting mirrors in games. The reason for this is that mirrors are some of the hardest things to create in a game. How mirrors form images is different from the scenes you see on your screen while playing. To create a mirror, the developer must create a ray-tracing technique, which demands a considerable space and takes a lot of CPU processing time. Some video games with mirrors are made using shortcuts because ray tracing may not be possible for the games.
4. South Korea once banned midnight game
Some time back, South Korea passed the Cinderella laws, which forbid children under 16 years from playing online video games after midnight. The ban was for between 12 am, and 6 am. However, it didn’t affect consoles and mobile games. Kids couldn’t stop themselves from playing online games, so they started stealing registration numbers to beat the law.
5. The average age for U.S. gamers is 36 years
A common belief is that teenagers are the most hooked to playing games online, but it turns out that it isn’t true; at least for the U.S., The Entertainment Software Association reports that the average age of gamers in the United States is 36 years. It also shows that 72 percent of players in the country are aged 18 and over. Interestingly, 45 percent of gamers in America are female. Most of the statistics are far from what one would expect.
6. It may take millions to develop a game
So much is required in making a game, most of which you might not be aware of. For instance, Rockstar North invested over $135 million to build the Grand Theft Auto V. luckily enough for the company, and their investment paid off because they made over $1 billion less than a week after it was released.
7. Some video games come with cheat codes
Some developers create cheat codes for their consumers. Those have existed for some years and are meant to help players to enjoy the games. However, some of these codes are created by third-party software developers, who give tips after modifying some of the game’s files.
Take-Home
Hopefully, you have enjoyed reading this list of exciting game facts and have learned new things in the process.