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The Future of Online Games: 10 Trends

With the gaming industry gathering momentum like never before, there are lots of trends to look out in 2024 and beyond. Well, games are rapidly evolving and improving more than we anticipated. What today looks unsinkable may not even survive the storm of the technology evolution. Nevertheless, all these swift changes are meant to treat us with a better experience! Let us look at some of the key online gaming trends that will shape the future.

1. Cross-Platform Support

Gaming developers have always burnt the midnight oil crafting an effective way to expand their market reach. It has now become evident that creating games that can be played well across several different devices is a real game-changer in amassing more audiences.

With cross-platform gaming, gamers are now starting to play with other people in a distributed fashion. Yes, gamers no longer need an identical gaming platform to have fun. This has seen the likes of Sony unleashing a cross-play that allows gamers to use different devices to connect and play over the internet.

2. All-Inclusive Games

According to various research, the vast majority of online gamers prefer games that favor diverse tastes. They want games that are not biased to players of a certain gender, ethnicity, and social background. If game developers create games that factor in the diversity of potential audiences, then several players would be happy to dip their feet into these games. Various developers are now looking into some plausible ways to experiment with varied themes and storylines. This will help different users connect to specific games suiting their preferences. Even those physically impaired will have a chance to play games that are specifically tailored for their condition.

3. Immersive Online Casino

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Technology is also shaping the way people play and interact with their online casino games. With Virtual Reality gaining widespread popularity, several gamers are trying to adopt this technology and make the gaming experience incredibly amazing. You can imagine how technologies like VR slots and 3D games can transform the way players navigate their games. Technologies like Live dealers require only a computer and a web camera to play against real humans. As things unfold, casinos will continue to fine-tune in a bid to grab and trap more players into the industry. Things like 4k resolutions and more fascinating storylines will increasingly find a way into the online Casino matrix. You should perhaps learn more about responsible online gaming as this kicks in. Don’t get addicted, just have fun!

4. Cloud Gaming

The motivation behind a significant rise in the number of gamers using cloud service is that it allows users to seamlessly stream games across multiple platforms without the need for download or installation.

This is a raving trend in the gaming industry, as 10% of internet users and 16% of gamers prefer cloud gaming service. There are plenty of affordable cloud gaming services that are currently available and could change the gaming trajectory from the console world. Microsoft and Google have already launched their cloud solutions as other gaming brands line up for the same.

5. 5G Mobile Gaming

There is nothing that gamers don’t like more than buffering and latency in online game streaming. With the 4G network being dominant in several countries, only a few tech giants like China, USA, and the UK have tasted the delicacy of the real 5G networks. This network is roughly ten times faster than the 4G network implying it can clock to speeds of 4GBps. This enormous data rates will be good news to every gamer out there. When finally 5G technology is rolled out worldwide, streaming 4K videos across the world will be easier and interesting than ever. More information here.

6. Big Data Impact

According to statistics, the gaming industry generates lots of revenue around the world. In the U.S alone, it is getting even better than the movie industry. This means the industry drives huge data, which in itself has become a critical component in the gaming development fabric. The huge data is thoroughly analyzed by developers to help improve on their game release. With these data rising with time, it will no doubt become an essential component in game development for 2024 and beyond.

7. VR and AR

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VR is one of the most growing technologies, and its market share is projected to climb to $215 billion by the year 2024.

Although it is fast-growing, its adoption by gamers will likely experience a slow trajectory because of its huge cost. However, technology will improve, and cheap smaller headsets will rock the market. At this point, the popularity and interest of the immersive VR and AR will skyrocket as users enjoy the immersive experience.

8. Indie Games have a Place

The common notion of best games must come from the popular game giants has been proven wrong by trends. Several games that rose to immense fame do not originate from the major gaming developers. Indie developers are now taking up over 70% of the App Store, and Google Play Store published games. Their games do not generate enormous revenue, but their place in the heart of game development is formidable. It keeps healthy competition and will offer better games in 2024 and beyond.

9. Single Player Games

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Although multiplayer games have been predominant over the past years, single-player narrative games have staged a major comeback. The 2018’s God of War success showed developers exactly what gamers need. This does not condemn the multiplayer games to the abyss, but we should expect more of single-player narrative releases in 2024 and beyond.

10. Social Integration

While most gaming platforms have been solely transacting game business, things are currently changing. Most game developers are integrating social experiences into gaming applications. This can be done by linking social media accounts to allow players to share their content with friends and other players with ease. For instance, Sony’s Share button overshadowed PS4 release in 2013 because it allowed users to easily upload their gaming content to social media.

Wrap up

In a nutshell, things are just bubbling in the gaming industry. The trends of online gaming for 2024 and beyond point to a surreal future for games. Let us see how new tech takes over the industry!

About Suzan Vega