There was once a time when mobile phones were just that: they were devices used to actually make telephone calls. As time went by, and as technology developed, mobile users were suddenly able to send text messages and then even connect to the internet. The birth of smartphones saw the word ‘phone’ as almost redundant. Suddenly we all had devices in the palm of our hands that opened up a whole new world. In this article, we will delve deep and look into the use of technology in mobile games.
The rise of technology in the mobile games industry
Smartphones became gaming devices that we could take wherever we went. Mobile gaming has already been experienced on the likes of the Nintendo Gameboy and later incarnations, but what smartphones offered was something different. From educational games to games of strategy, from online casinos to shoot ‘em ups, smartphones suddenly had them all.
The early days of mobile games
Mobile games began to appear back in the 1990s. Back then, games were simplistic and lacked any interactivity. That’s not to say that they weren’t fun though. The basic puzzle games that were enjoyed back then still remain popular to this day as they just work well on mobile devices.
The fashions have changed and gone full circle when it has come to the screen size of smartphones. It was once they were large before moving to the stage where the smaller the screen the better. As the mobile gaming experience has improved and grown in popularity, there has been a move back to bigger screen sizes.
How the touchscreen changed it all
When we first got used to mobile phones, we had either QWERTY keyboards on the likes of a Blackberry or the keyboards with the need to press single key multiple times to display your letter of choice. Neither of these options was conducive to mobile gaming. What changed this was the arrival of touchscreens.
Touchscreens made playing games as easy as possible. Suddenly game developers realized that almost any game could be transferred to a mobile device along with controls that are easy to master. Touchscreens added so much to the gameplay and, well, just made the mobile experience better.
The rise of online casinos
Online casinos arrived in the 1990s and their popularity has exploded. As mobile devices continued to develop, game providers saw that there was a great opportunity to make their casinos mobile. The thought of being able to enjoy casino games on the go held great appeal and soon those being casinos were driving change.
There is now the ability to enjoy games such as roulette, blackjack, and slots in the palm of your hand, no matter where you are. There are even casino games where you can win a Tesla Model 3 while you play (this campaign ended a few months ago). One of the greatest developments in terms of mobile gaming and casinos has been live casino games. Casino fans can enjoy the live casino experience no matter where they are.
How HTML5 was a game changer
HTML5 is nothing new having been conceived some 17-18 years ago now. What changed with HTML5 is how it was used. Software developers had long been bringing out new releases in terms of slots and new versions of classics such as poker and blackjack. When these were played on a mobile device, the experience wasn’t quite the same as when you were sitting at a desktop. To ensure mobile casinos took off, this had to change. With over 6 billion mobiles in use, the market potential was huge.
When developers realized what HTML5 meant for mobile casino games, everything changed. This technology saw mobile games improving in terms of graphics, speed, and gameplay. Without this tech being taken advantage of, the chances are that mobile casinos would never have taken off in quite the same way.
Emergence of Unity Engine in Mobile Games
Unity Engine is the most popular game engine to build mobile games. The cross-platform game engine was first announced and released in June 2005 at Apple Inc.’s Worldwide Developers Conference as a Mac OS X-exclusive game engine. The engine has become very popular as it can be used to create three-dimensional (3D) and two-dimensional (2D) games, as well as interactive simulations.
According to Unity, apps made with their game engine account for 50 percent of all mobile games and are downloaded more than 3 billion times per month, and approximately 15,000 new projects are started daily with its software.
What are your thoughts on the rise and use of technology in mobile games? Drop your opinions in the comments below!
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