4 predictions for the future of online gaming

If you’re a fan of all things online gaming, no doubt you do what I do – spend a large amount of time reading what the future could have in store! In terms of tech, we’re living in an exciting world, where advances are being made every day towards a gaming experience we can only imagine. Hold on to your joysticks… today, we’re listing some exciting predictions for the world of online gaming…

Virtual Reality

It’s been knocking around for a while, but in the next few years we can expect to see virtual reality really stepping things up a notch. Cost has always been an issue keeping the mainstream masses on the side-lines of VR, but over the next few years, we expect costs to come down considerably, meaning you’ll finally be able to get your hands on the hardware you need. While it’s difficult not to be impatient, good things take time. Rest assured, developers are hard at work behind the scenes creating immersive experiences that will knock our socks off. While current iterations of virtual reality games don’t quite deliver on the ‘reality’ side of the equation – in the future, virtual reality headsets should be able to create 3D graphics that end up being almost indistinguishable from real life…and we can’t wait!

In addition, moving forwards, expect to see VR merge with the social gaming space. Games such as VRChat are already allowing people to compete and collaborate with players from around the world. The future of virtual realityis about to get social!

Mobile gaming

Given the amount of time we spend staring at them, it doesn’t look like mobile phones are going anywhere! And this means, mobile gaming will continue to go from strength-to-strength. As more and more players switch to mobile play, game developers will have no choice but to work on their mobile solutions. This will apply across all varieties of games, from online poker and online slots, to resource strategy and multi-player online.

Augmented Reality

Remember when everyone went completely bonkers over Pokémon Go!? Well, expect more of the same, and better! The popularity of the game will have sent game developers across the world straight to that drawing board to work out how they can deliver something bigger and better. Much like virtual reality, augmented reality has been kicking about for a while. However, its full power has yet to be unleashed, particularly in the world of video games. Moving forward, expect big developments in AR/AR headsets and consoles, as well as the devices that allow you to get in on the action, such as smartwatches and Google Glass. 

A spectator sport

Twitch stats speak for themselves – with 120 million viewers per month, it’s clear that gamers really love watching people play. Moving forwards, we predict that game developers will put more thought into how their games can be viewed. To some extent, we can see this is already underway with games like Speed Runners and Goat Simulator clearly being created to appeal to Twitch streamers and YouTubers. We expect the viewing experience to be developed considerably in the next few years.

Additionally, expect to start paying to watch. While gaming competitions may be free of charge to watch right now, subscription packages are imminent – and who can blame them when viewing figures are growing so rapidly.