Video games are part of daily life for a majority of the population whether it's through phones, televisions, or computers. The term video is used to signify that a game has a visual display. Otherwise, the "game" could be something as simple as a game of cards or dice. In chapter five of the book Digital Cultures, Gerard Kraus explains the history of video games.
Like the video above, Kraus details one of the first video game creations. It was called Noughts and Crosses, otherwise known as Tic-Tac-Toe. Even though this game was usually played on paper, Cambridge University took the idea and applied it to their EDSAC computer in 1952. The creation of the Internet began as a way for the military to communicate. The government thought this was the most secure way to pass messages without our "enemies" spying. This happened during the time of the Cold War, which is also when the video game Spacewar was created.
Video games evolved from huge machines that were almost the size of refrigerators down to handheld remote controlled games. Some of the original big machines included Pacman and Asteroids.
Although I do not consider myself a video-gamer addict, I grew up with these classics. We also had the game system Atari and eventually worked our way up to a Super Nintendo. My sister and I had to go up the street (early 90s) to play regular Nintendo, so you can imagine our excitedment when we got our very own. The best games on Atari were Frogger and Space Invaders. Playing these video games as young girls gave us the chance to bond with each other.
As the gaming systems got more advanced, we grew out of them. It wasn't until about four years ago that I brought another gaming system into my house - a Wii. Even though I don't spend much time playing on it, I guess it is still considered a video game. I'm definitely not addicted to them, but sometimes I get caught up in some games on my phone, like bowling and Hanging with Friends.
The visual effects and graphics in video games have also gotten more advanced. A player can have a 360 viewpoint or a straight-on viewpoint. Because the graphics have gotten so life-like, there are many critics that blame crime and adolescent anger issues on these video games. When I was young, I would get mad if I died or lost in a game. Sometimes I got so mad that I threw the remote at the television. Hence why I went outside to play! I think all things are fine in moderation. Maybe it's possible that people develope issues if they play murder games or GTA (Grand Theft Auto) for hours and hours at a time, but that's when parents need to step in and set time limits. Parents should also make sure they check the ratings on each game their child has. They are rated just like movies and depending on how graphic the content, the child has to be a certain age to play the game.
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