How casual gaming culture has changed since the 80’s

This will show my age, but I started gaming in the late ’80s with a Sega mega drive.

Gaming culture was very different from what it is now, especially for kids and teens.

There was generally one T.V in the house so gaming was on our parent’s schedule.

The games were also different. Even the most advanced platform games were basic by today’s mobile app standards. They were also for the time extremely expensive.

The first big change probably came in the mid-’90s with the PlayStation. A console that was cheaper with far better games and graphics. Those games were also cheaper.

The real change in gaming culture around this time was that we could afford a T.V in the bedroom.

Cheaper consumer electronics opened up gaming for us for the first time. No longer chained down by our parent’s schedule we could games when we wanted.

The gaming experience itself changed. The graphics improved, the games became harder and as a result, became much more immersive.

Fast forward to today and it’s changing again. The latest consoles blurring the line between console and computer. Games like fortnight and Minecraft. Are changing things again with their format and immersive universe.

In the last 35 years or so there has been a huge development in gaming consoles themselves and gaming as a hobby. Where we will be in another 10 or 15 years who know, but I’m excited to take the journey and see where it takes us.