Mapping the Digital Gaming Landscape Across the U.S.

The United States has a bustling video game market. Some of the biggest developers in gaming come from the USA and the country is home to many of the most successful professional players. It is also true that a lot of the most well-known professional teams and tournaments have their origin in the country. The industry is thriving in part because of Americans who are making gaming their primary hobby.

Make no mistake; gaming is becoming a primary hobby for plenty of US residents. EA’s sports-based video games are especially popular in America and beyond. But what can we expect to see from the American gaming market in the years that follow? Are eSports going to integrate deeper into culture; or are video games going to prove a passing fad? That is what we would like to find out in this text.

Online Gaming on the Rise

The Google and Apple stores have become a digital gaming library for free and easy titles. Researchers have shown that gaming apps are the most popular app category in the United States, with mobile games getting more attention by mainstream gaming journalists in the country than ever before. Titles like Genshin Impact and Among Us have helped to push mobile gaming into the mainstream. The one thing these two games have in common is that they provide a fascinating online experience for everyone.

But we can’t talk about online gaming without bringing up the iGaming market that is sweeping the world. European countries have been quick to legalize and regulate the online gambling market. The U.S. Federal Government has not responded with such haste. There are currently eight states that have legalized poker rooms; with only seven of them going all in on running a safe and regulated gambling market. Getting a state-by-state look at where online poker is legal is simple when only 16% of the country has legalized the hobby.

The digital age is one of constant change and evolution. We can assume that new technology is going to have an effect on online gaming because it is so deeply tied to the world wide web. We should only expect online gaming to improve and grow more popular in the future. This is especially true in an era when games like Candy Crush are becoming popular among an older generation of players; who otherwise would not be interested in the gaming market whatsoever.

The New Era of Gaming

Gaming is now popular enough to be compared to baseball and called America’s favorite pastime. However, changes in technology are leading to a new era of gaming. Some are excited for new and improved AI tools to be integrated in the gaming industry. Of course, plenty oppose the idea, claiming that generative artificial intelligence is a plagiarism mechanic. But machine learning is not the only tool that is getting people excited.

Virtual reality is a big aspect of modern gaming. Innovations in the field are causing many to imagine cyber realities akin to what we see in Tron or Ready Player One. The industry is also moving towards cross-platform gaming experiences with titles like PUBG and Fortnite. However, VR games have their critics as well. Many gamers have voiced their disappointment with virtual reality games. They’ve criticized the clunky controls and subpar graphics. Modern VR is undoubtedly a far cry from what the science fiction filmmakers of the past have imagined.

The eSports sector is the one aspect of gaming that most people agree is great. Competitive gaming has been part of the industry since its very inception. The earliest arcade games had a two-player mode, prompting friends to challenge one another to perform better. The competitive spirit remains in gaming to this day. The difference is that it exists on a professional level. Top-tier gamers are being paid to go head-to-head, while fans watch from the sidelines as if they were attending the FIFA World Cup. It is a genuinely fascinating turn that very few expected would become as popular as it has.

Gaming’s Digital-only Future

There is a crisis in physical media ownership. Few game studios are releasing physical game cartridges or CDs anymore, and the majority of players have to download their games from a digital store. The first thought here might be that this is a great thing. Who would want to visit a store when the alternative is as simple as downloading a file, after all? Unfortunately, many have pointed out the problem with this new approach to gaming.

Digital stores have been known to pull games from their libraries. Few would see a problem with this at first. After all, physical stores often remove game titles from their own shelves for one reason or another. The problem is that players who’ve paid for these games at digital stores usually lose access to them when removed. The issue has gotten to a point where gamers have united in a “Stop Killing Games” movement to combat this growing problem.

Physical copies of games still exist. But the trouble is that many gaming retail markets are giving up on the idea of physical media. Best Buy announced two years ago that it would no longer be selling physical copies of games or films. The company made good on its statement by the start of last year.