They're fun to play with, come in many different colors, and usually work on television sets. They're video games and kids love them. But even though people like them, they never take the time to think about what they really are. What do they do? How do they work? The answers to those questions and many more will be answered. Just read ahead to find out.
HISTORY
Before video games children entertained themselves with card games, stick games, board games and other made up games. Games are as old as Egyptian civilization. On the was of the tombs pictures were drawn showing children playing board games. But ever since electrical discoveries from Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Edison, the video game has become the ultimate game of choice. It was in 1949 when Ralph Baer had the job to build a television set. Baer wasn't supposed to build a regular television set it had to be the best kind of television set in the world. Ralph didn't have any trouble with it but he wanted to invent something better than a television. Baer wanted to incorporate a kind of game into the set. He didn't really know what kind of game that he wanted to make but he couldn't anyway because his managers said no. Ralph had to wait 18 years for his idea to be reality. After 18 years there would be lots of people like Willy Higinbotham and Steve Russell to share his fame with. After a successful business of video games, new kinds of games come out and upgraded versions of the classic ones. The history of video games isn't just about the people who made the games or who were a part of the making of it, it's partly about the companies and ironies. In the world that we live in today, there are violent video games that are only for teens with guns and bombs. Other games are for younger children so they don't have any violence in them. Others are a mixture and some are educational. Those are for kids of all ages. The video game world is still evolving. By reading the history of video games some people will think of new ideas for games and maybe figure out what will happen in the future. New computer technology will continue to guide advances to video games. One of the advances might be virtual reality. Some games make a virtual reality environment through special goggles that the player wears. They trick the brain into seeing a three dimensional world. Realistic virtual reality video games are possible.
Now
Video Games are now one of the most popular types of games in the world.
HOW THEY WORK
Every single video game has one thing in common. They all have computers inside of them. Some of the earliest video game systems introduced the simple components that are still used today. The computer inside of the video game is only a processor, which is a small electronic chip. It can be found inside of a console, a home computer, or a handheld unit. The games are shown on the television, computer screen, or a built-in screen. It would be impossible for you to play a video game if you didn't have controllers plugged into the system. There are many different versions of controllers. It could be a game pad with buttons on it, a joystick, a steering wheel, or a mouse and keyboard. The powerful processors allow a lot more complex graphics and action. The number of bits of data that it can handle measures the power of the processor. The computer program that is inside of the video game tells the processors to show the graphics, receive signals from other controllers, play sounds, and move graphics. The game controllers and the joysticks interpret the movement of the handles or direction keys into signals that are sent to the game program. They tell the program when and how to change the action on screen.
HOW TO MAKE A VIDEO GAME
1.
Get an idea for the game.
2.
Design what will happen and what the characters will look like.
3.
Plan all of the levels in the game and scenery for every move.
4.
Draw the characters and the scenery.
5.
Create story boards for what will happen and when.
6.
Write a script for the game.
7.
Make the animation.
8.
Make the game program putting the drawings, action, and animation together.
9.
Write the music and make sound effects.
10.
Add the music and the sounds to the game.
11.
Test the game repeatedly for problems.
12.
If there are any problems, fix them.
13.
Test once more after fixing problems to make sure the game is okay.
14.
Manufacture the game.
15.
Sell and advertise the game.
It takes about two months for the designers, director, and the producer to plan a game. Then the artists, composers, programmers, animators and testers have to make the game and that takes about a year to do. It would take as many people make a video game as it would to make a movie. When making a video game, the makers usually use the same equipment as the people who create movies.
Later
Parents wonder how video games effect their children. Do they promote violence and anti-social behavior? Do they improve learning? Does it induce schizophrenia? These questions remain unanswered but might be answered in the future.
My personal prediction for the future of Video Games is that all of the very popular games will have all of their sequels come out. I think that a new special kind of glasses will come out that allows the player to see secrets on the screen. The glasses would have a special magnetic wave that flows in the air. The wave connects to the system so that it will know if you have the glasses. If you are not wearing the glasses, then you won't be able to see or access the secrets. I predict that the rumble pack will be upgraded into a device that you wear. When you wear it, you would feel the rumble pack shake whenever you got hit in the game. The set would have arm, leg, and headgear. The rumble pack would have a disk inside of it so that you would be able to hook it up to any system. The world of Video Games is unlike any other. It is full of interesting facts and fun. My prediction is probably wrong, but maybe it will inspire some of the makers of the Video Game.
