Gamening is a growing trend for many people of all ages, and it has become a very popular pastime for young and old alike. A video game or online computer game is simply an online computer game that entails interaction by a user with a computer hardware or user interface device – for example, a mouse, keyboard, joystick, or even finger-controllers. The primary difference between a computer game and a video game is that the player has to interact with the game to “play” it. However, video games can still be played in single player mode, and are often played alongside other players over the Internet using peer-to-peer (P2P) technologies such as World Wide Web servers and chat rooms.

Gamers have many different types of online game platforms. These include LAN gaming, which refers to any computer network, whether it is internally or externally sourced; broadband gaming, which is usually via a wired or wireless local area network such as a router or modem; and multiplayer online gaming (MOBA), which is more generic and abstract and involves playing a game over a computer network using a dedicated server rather than a specific hardware. Most popular LAN and broadband gaming platforms today offer many features that allow for the type of activity that characterizes gaming. These include chat rooms, lobbies, dedicated servers, a variety of game modes, detailed backgrounds, and graphics that provide a real visual experience. Some multiplayer online games are entirely text-based and other involve actually interacting with the game’s other players. There are even role-playing games, or ones that put the player into the role of a character in the game world.

Some of the earliest known console games were arcade gaming systems that were commonly used in arcades and video rental stores throughout the United States and Canada during the early 1980s. arcade gaming involves hitting a set of random keys to perform various actions. Video rental stores offered VHS tapes with built-in games on them, so gamers could rent any number of different video arcade games to play at any given time. Many of these early arcade gaming systems were fairly primitive by today’s standards, but they were quite fun to play. In fact, some of the earliest home consoles developed for this purpose had very similar features to what is now commonly available in a wide range of modern gaming consoles, including a screen display, key pads, and joysticks.

With the advent of personal computers and handheld devices such as handheld games consoles such as the Game Boy Advanced and Nintendo DS, the field of interactive gaming quickly grew. Within the next few years, with the help of more sophisticated technology, handheld consoles became fully-interactive with the introduction of video-game consoles like the Xbox and PlayStation 2. Between this period and the early to mid-2000s, advancements in both design and technology allowed for increased complexity in gaming, both in terms of game mechanics and in terms of graphics and sound. Many gamers consider these to be the two biggest periods in the history of console gaming.

With more advancements in both hardware and software, the quality of graphics improved, and the speed of playing video games improved as well. Gamers began to take advantage of the ability to create virtual reality on-line, to a degree not previously possible. With the introduction of both electronic and digital multi-media products such as CD-ROMs and DVD-ROMs, the field of multiplayer online role playing games exploded, attracting a significant portion of the adult population as well as growing numbers of children. With the popularity of massively multiplayer online role playing games, or MMORPGs, in the next few years, the global gaming industry will likely undergo multiple transformations.

The rapid growth of the global internet and the dramatic increase in the use of personal computers has also had a major impact on the global industry of games. Although video games may have fallen out of favor with the younger generations over the last few years, the market for electronic games has remained strong. Gamers are now opting for new technologies such as Bluetooth and wireless internet to be able to take advantage of their massive video games library. Many people also now prefer to play their favorite electronic games using their handhelds or portable devices such as the iPhone, iPod touch, and tablets. The continued growth of the global gaming industry is only expected to increase as more people get comfortable with the idea of personalizing and customizing their gaming experience.