Video Games: An Intergral Part of My Life

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Recommended: History of video game development

As I move my character down the alley, shots rings out. My buddy yells in my ear through the microphone, “Take cover!” I see the enemy and open fire, killing them and gaining a point. As I celebrate by bragging to my friend, the screen flashes red as a grenade goes off beside me. “Respawning in 10 seconds,” the game reads as my character is killed in the online video game.

There are many types of hobbies in the world. From skateboarding to painting to cooking, people find solace in a variety of things. Although I am open to trying new hobbies, I almost find myself coming back to video games, my favorite hobby. While other hobbies may seem more productive or beneficial, video games are almost purely for fun and entertainment.

Technological advancements in recent years have allowed video games to reach audiences across the world. The popularity of video games is widespread, a fact Bungie can attest to with more than 60,000 years of their blockbuster game, Halo 3, played online combined (urk). While movies and music provide ample entertainment, video games are the epitome of interactive entertainment. Games are even becoming better entertainment than traditional media. From the Telegraph, Claudine Beaumont explains “According to Media Control GfK, games represented more than half of all global packaged entertainment sales in 2008, beating DVDs for the first time” (Beaumont). So what are video games? Mark J.P. Wolf notes in his book, The video game explosion: a history from PONG to PlayStation and beyond, that “Although the term seems simple enough, its usage has varied a great deal over the years and from place to place” (Wolf 24). Wolf goes on to explain that “Most video games are one-player games in which the player fac...

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... : 3/2/2009 3:54 PM PST." Web log post. Bungie.net : 1 Billion Rumors Busted and Counting. 29 Mar. 2009. Web. 20 Feb. 2011.

Beaumont, Claudine. "Video Game Sales Outstripped Sales of DVDs in 2008, Say Analysts - Telegraph." Telegraph.co.uk - Telegraph Online, Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph - Telegraph. 27 Jan. 2009. Web. 20 Feb. 2011.

Cotter, Jack. "Microsoft’s Xbox 360 Gaming System Turned 5 Years Old on Thanksgiving : E-Gear." Latest News and Reviews on Consumer Electronics, HDTV, MP3, Convergence, DIY, PCs, Home Theater, Audio, Mobile Electronics, Cell Phones, Wireless, LCD, Plasma, Blu-ray, HD DVD : E-Gear. Feb. 2011. Web. 21 Feb. 2011.

Brookhaven National Laboratory - A Passion for Discovery. Rep. Web. 21 Feb. 2011.

"Electronic Games." The Penguin Encyclopedia. 2004. Print.

"Video Card." Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Encyclopedia. 2000. Print.

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