The rise of digital games

Now, if we fast-forward to the twentieth century, the invention of computers takes games into a completely new phase. This is the era of digital games.

In the 1950s, engineers began building simple games on computers, such as early digital versions of tic-tac-toe. They were limited, of course, but they marked the beginning of what we now call digital gaming.

By the 1970s and 80s, video games really took off. Companies like Atari and Nintendo brought out arcade classics such as Pong, Space Invaders, and Pac-Man. The machines were huge, and you had to go to an arcade and put coins in. That is exactly what created a very particular kind of arcade culture.

Then, as home computers became more common, games moved into everyday households. IBM launched the PC in 1981, which helped push forward both console and PC gaming. From there, continual upgrades to keyboards, mice, graphics cards, and processors kept expanding what games could do visually and technically. Today, AAA titles like The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 can reach a level of visual quality that is close to cinema.

And then, with smartphones, games became truly universal. After the iPhone launched in 2007, touchscreens and sensors opened up far more varied mobile gameplay. Games like Honour of Kings and Genshin Impact are no longer simply entertainment. They have become social spaces and cultural phenomena.

So, from the sound of coins dropping in an arcade to the swipe of a screen on the underground, the devices have changed dramatically. But one thing has not changed. That basic human joy of getting pleasure through interaction remains the same.