Editing History of video games (section)

==2010s==
{{Main|2010s in video games}}
In the 2010s, the traditional model of racing to a five-year console life cycle was reduced.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/gamesblog/2010/feb/26/games-microsoft |title=Natal vs Sony Motion Controller: is the console cycle over? |author=Stuart, K. |access-date=May 13, 2010 |location=London |work=The Guardian |date=February 26, 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105231735/http://www.theguardian.com/technology/gamesblog/2010/feb/26/games-microsoft |archive-date=November 5, 2013 }}</ref> Reasons included the challenge and massive expense of creating consoles that were graphically superior to the then-current generation, with Sony and Microsoft still looking to recoup development costs on their current consoles and the failure of content creation tools to keep up with the increased demands placed upon the people creating the games.

On June 14, 2010, during E3, Microsoft revealed its new Xbox 360 S or Slim. It is smaller and quieter, with a 250&nbsp;GB hard drive and 802.11n WiFi.<ref name="Slim Specs">{{cite web|last=Totilo |first=Stephen |title=These Are The New Xbox 360 Specs |url=http://kotaku.com/5563225/new-xbox-360-specs |website=Kotaku |date=June 14, 2010 |access-date=May 22, 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629044058/http://kotaku.com/5563225/new-xbox-360-specs |archive-date=June 29, 2011 }}</ref> It started shipping to US stores the same day, and in Europe on July 13.

The [[OnLive]] cloud-based gaming system is one of the first cloud gaming services.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Mangalindan|first=J. P.|date=October 15, 2020|title=Cloud gaming's history of false starts and promising reboots|url=https://www.polygon.com/features/2020/10/15/21499273/cloud-gaming-history-onlive-stadia-google|access-date=November 1, 2020|website=Polygon|language=en}}</ref>

===High-definition graphics in video game hardware===
{{Main|Eighth generation of video game consoles}}
Cathode ray tube-based display units had begun to phase out in the 2000s, replaced by inexpensive [[flat-panel display|flat-screen]] televisions and monitors which had far higher screen resolution and refresh rates. Video game hardware began introducing support for the new [[HDMI|High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI)]] standard, allowing for resolutions up to [[4K resolution|4K]] (3840 × 2160 pixels), which itself stressed the need for more powerful GPU cards with faster processors and larger memory. Game engines such as Unreal, Unity, and DirectX have added support for improved texture mapping to support high-resolution textures to give photorealistic graphics in games.

[[File:Xbox-One-Kinect.jpg|thumb|right|The Xbox [[Kinect]]]]

Microsoft and Sony both released their next console generations, the [[Xbox One]] and [[PlayStation 4]], in 2013. Both expanded on features from their previous consoles with the added support for high-resolution graphics, and more support for digital distribution of content with additional storage space. The Xbox One had an initial flubbed launch, as Microsoft wanted to require users to be always connected to the Internet, along with persistent use of the Kinect motion sensor, which in turn would have given certain benefits to players. However, these decisions were met with negative feedback in the months prior to release over their privacy concerns, and Microsoft revamped their policies. The Kinect, though initially bundled with the Xbox One, was made optional, and a year after launch, Microsoft opted to end Kinect's production for the Xbox One.

Nintendo still kept to its own path. The company decided that the Wii may have lost a portion of its core gamers and developed the [[Wii U]] to draw this group back in. The Wii U, released in 2012, included a tablet-like [[Wii U GamePad]] that included controls and a touchscreen display that acted as a second screen during gameplay, along with support for Wii Remote controllers, and included backward compatibility with Wii games. The Wii U was a commercial failure for Nintendo following the Wii; while the Wii had sold more than 100 million units, the Wii U only sold about 13 million in its lifetime. Nintendo attributed this to both the marketing of the Wii U which failed to make clear the purpose of the GamePad and which made consumers believe it was just another tablet system, and to the lack of third-party support on the console which dropped off quickly once initial console sale numbers were obtained.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://twinfinite.net/2016/03/every-single-way-the-nintendo-wii-u-failed/|title=Every Single Way the Nintendo Wii U Failed|date=March 2, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://videogamesuncovered.com/features/why-the-wii-u-really-failed/|title=Why the Wii U Really Failed|first=Liam|last=Gittins|website=VGU|date=July 3, 2015 }}</ref> and marketing reasons.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.polygon.com/2014/8/5/5970787/wii-u-nintendo-bad-name|title=The Wii U name is still hurting Nintendo|first=Ben|last=Kuchera|website=[[Polygon (website)|Polygon]]|date=August 5, 2014}}</ref>

[[File:Nintendo-Switch-wJoyCons-BlRd-Standing-FL.jpg|thumb|right|The Nintendo Switch]]
Nintendo had already been working on its next console once the Wii U had been released, but pushed ahead as to get another console to release sooner to financially recover from the Wii U.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://mashable.com/2018/01/31/nintendo-switch-wii-u-failure-success/#KvMr7kP1Ziq3|title=Thank Nintendo's failed Wii U for the Switch's wild success|first=Peter Allen|last=Clark|website=mashable.com|date=January 31, 2018}}</ref> Again, staying with their past blue ocean strategy to focus on innovation rather than technical superiority of their competitors, Nintendo released the [[Nintendo Switch]] in 2017, one of the first hybrid consoles, with the ability to be played as a handheld device but also can be placed into a docking station connected to a television and played like a home console. The Switch uses a detachable [[Joy-Con]] which function as both regular controllers and as motion-sensing devices like the Wii Remote. Alongside the Switch, Nintendo sought out third-party support for the console from both triple-A studios and indie developers. The Switch proved to be very successful, as of 2022, it is Nintendo's best-selling home console, succeeding the Wii, and helped Nintendo regain position in the hardware market.

The handheld market began to wane in the 2010s as mobile gaming supplanted it. Nintendo continued to refine the DS line; it released the [[Nintendo 3DS]] in 2011, which included a screen with an [[autostereoscopic]] display as to create a 3D effect without the need for special glasses. Sony released the [[PlayStation Vita]] in 2012 as a successor to the PSP, which included a front touch screen and a back-facing touchpad in addition to existing control.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2011/09/13/playstation-vita-hits-japan-on-december-17.aspx |title=PlayStation Vita hit Japan on December 17 |author=Kollar, Phil |magazine=[[Game Informer]] |date=September 13, 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111118013405/http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2011/09/13/playstation-vita-hits-japan-on-december-17.aspx |archive-date=November 18, 2011 }}</ref> The Vita failed to gain significant market share, and after Sony discontinued the product, have stated they have no plans for further handheld systems. Nintendo, on the other hand, released a modified version of the Switch, the [[Nintendo Switch Lite]], in 2019. The Switch Lite is a lower-cost version that directly integrates the Joy-Con into the unit and removes other features, as to create a device that supports handheld gameplay directly, but is otherwise fully compatible with the existing Switch library.

In personal computers, the graphics card market centered on progress made by industry leaders NVidia and [[AMD]], who also supplied GPUs for the new consoles. Starting in the late 2010s, the power of these GPU cards were being used by [[cryptocurrency]] "miners", as they were lower cost than other computing hardware for the same purposes, and created a run on GPU cards that inflated prices and card shortages over extended periods.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/22/amd-nvidia-must-do-more-to-stop-cryptominers-from-causing-shortages.html | title = AMD, Nvidia must do more to stop cryptominers from causing PC gaming card shortages, price gouging | first = Tae | last = Kim | date = January 22, 2018 | access-date = March 16, 2021 | work = [[CNBC]] }}</ref> [[Solid-state drive]]s (SSDs), which had been used for [[flash cartridge|flash card]] storage for video game consoles in the past, had advanced far enough to become consumer options for large volume storage. Compared to the traditional [[hard disk drive]] (HDD) which used electromechanical parts, SSD drives have no mechanical componentry and are capable of much higher data throughput, which made them popular options for computers designed for video games.

===Further advancements in online gaming: Cross-platform play and cloud gaming===
{{See also|Cross-platform play|Cloud gaming}}
Until the 2010s, online play for most platforms was limited to players on that same platform, though some games such as ''Final Fantasy XI'' had experimented with limited models. As new gaming consoles converged in design to personal computers and with common middleware libraries, it became technically feasible to allow for cross-platform play between different platforms, but business objectives by Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony, looking to maintain control on their online services, initially rejected this, most notably by Sony who had stated they wanted to maintain a family-friendly environment for its online services.<ref>{{Cite web | url= https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2013/10/console-makers-making-noises-about-relaxing-multiplayer-exclusivity/ | title = Console makers making noises about relaxing multiplayer exclusivity | first=  Kyle | last = Orland | date = October 15, 2013 | access-date  = March 17, 2016 | work = [[Ars Technica]] }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2016-03-17-sonys-shuhei-yoshida-on-playstation-4-and-xbox-one-cross-network-play | title = So, will Sony actually allow PS4 and Xbox One owners to play together? | work = [[Eurogamer]] | first = Tom | last= Phillips | date = March 17, 2016 | access-date = March 17, 2016 }}</ref> [[Epic Games]]' ''[[Fortnite Battle Royale]]'' first released in 2017, proved an instrumental driver of cross-platform play. ''Fortnite'' had quickly gained popularity in its first few months of release, and Epic had been able to prove the ease with which cross-platform play could be implemented between the Xbox, Windows, and mobile platforms with its backend libraries. Nintendo followed by allowing cross-play on the Switch, and eventually, by 2018, Sony agreed to allow selected games such as ''Fortnite'' to have cross-platform play.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://kotaku.com/sony-is-finally-allowing-cross-play-on-the-ps4-1829326043 | title = Sony Is Finally Allowing Cross-Play On The PS4 | first = Luke | last=  Plunkett | date = September 26, 2018 | access-date = September 26, 2018 | work = [[Kotaku]] }}</ref> Since then, numerous games have gained or were released with cross-platform play support across consoles, computers, and mobile devices.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2020-05-13-epic-games-announces-unreal-engine-5-with-first-ps5-footage | title = Epic Games announces Unreal Engine 5 with first PS5 footage | first = Rebekah | last = Valentine | date = May 13, 2020 | access-date = May 13, 2020 | work = [[GamesIndustry.biz]] }}</ref>

The first [[cloud gaming]] services emerged in 2009. These services allowed players to play games where the processing power was performed on a computer system at a hosted location, while the game's output and player's input were sent to that system over the Internet, using the power of [[cloud computing]]. This eliminated the need for a costly console or dedicated gaming computer for players. Early services like [[OnLive]] and [[Gaikai]] showed that cloud gaming was possible but was very much tied to the player's [[Network delay|latency]], as a slow network could easily stall the game's performance.<ref>{{cite web|last=Kelly |first=Kevin |url=http://www.joystiq.com/2009/03/24/gdc09-rearden-studios-introduces-onlive-game-service-and-micro/ |title=GDC09: Rearden Studios introduces OnLive game service and 'microconsole' |publisher=Joystiq.com |access-date=March 25, 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090325070851/http://www.joystiq.com/2009/03/24/gdc09-rearden-studios-introduces-onlive-game-service-and-micro/ |archive-date=March 25, 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.slashgear.com/wow-streamed-to-ipad-makes-fans-all-excited-0384076/|title=WoW streamed to iPad gets fans excited|date=May 3, 2010|access-date=May 26, 2011}}</ref>

Cloud gaming became more refined in the 2010s as total network capacity around the world increased with higher bandwidths made available to consumers, in addition to new technologies to try to overcome the latency issue. Sony acquired both OnLive and Gaikai in the mid-2010s, and used the former as the basis for its [[PlayStation Now]] cloud gaming service, allowing players to play older PlayStation games on newer consoles. Other players in the cloud gaming arena that emerged in this period include NVidia's [[GeForce Now]], Microsoft's [[Xbox Cloud Gaming|xCloud]], Google's [[Google Stadia|Stadia]], and [[Amazon Luna]].<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.ft.com/content/811ed9d0-6759-4f2a-8cd1-9ce97d26a5c8 | title = Gamers prepare for cloud computing power-up | first = Patrick | last= Mulholland | date = March 8, 2021 | access-date = March 20, 2021 | work = [[Financial Times]] }}</ref>

===New revenue models for video games===
{{see also|Video game monetization}}
With game development budgets for triple-A games growing larger, developers and publishers looked for ways to gain additional revenue for games beyond the first sale of the game. Multiple factors from the prior decade including the growth of the mobile game market and the introduction of in-app purchases, subscription-based games such as MMOs, and the digital distribution market, led to new avenues for recurring revenue by treating [[games as a service]] (GaaS).<ref>{{cite journal | last= McCaffrey | first= Matthew | title = The macro problem of microtransactions: The self-regulatory challenges of video game loot boxes | journal = [[Business Horizons]] | volume = 62 | issue = 4 | date = 2019 | pages = 483–495 | doi = 10.1016/j.bushor.2019.03.001 | s2cid= 86550018 }}</ref>

Larger expansions and downloadable content had existed prior to the mid-2000s, and players had become accustomed to the subscription-based model for MMOs by that point. Microsoft enabled developers to offer [[microtransaction]]s, content sold at a small price point typically under {{USD|5|long=no}}, for their games on the Xbox 360 around 2005, with one of the most well-known examples being a horse armor package for ''[[The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion]]'' in 2006. While mostly a cosmetic item in the game, the armor pack was one of the most popular items sold in for ''Oblivion'' by 2009, and cemented the idea of microtransactions.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://kotaku.com/5143151/top-oblivion-dlc-revealed-horse-armor-surprisingly-popular | title = Top Oblivion DLC Revealed, Horse Armor Surprisingly Popular | first = Michael | last = McWhertor | date = January 30, 2009 | access-date = October 11, 2017 | work = [[Kotaku]] }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.pcgamer.com/horse-armor-won/ | title = Horse armor won | first = Tom | last =Senior | date = December 24, 2019 | access-date = December 24, 2019 | work = [[PC Gamer]] }}</ref><ref name="usgamer history">{{cite web | url = http://www.usgamer.net/articles/the-history-of-gaming-microtransactions-from-horse-armor-to-loot-boxes | title = The Harsh History Of Gaming Microtransactions: From Horse Armor to Loot Boxes | first = Mike | last = Williams | date = October 11, 2017 | access-date = October 11, 2017 | work = [[US Gamer]] }}</ref>

[[File:Electronic Arts 2020.svg|thumb|right|[[Electronic Arts]] was criticized for their form of video game monetization]]
Games that followed ''Oblivion'' found ways to include additional microtransaction content to games to extend per-game earnings.<ref name="usgamer history"/> Publishers that produced games with online content created special online passes, such as Electronic Arts' "Project Ten Dollar", which required purchase to gain access to online features; this was also intended to stall secondary sales of games. This approach was heavily criticized by consumers and players, and abandoned by 2013. Instead publishers offered the [[season pass (video games)|season pass]] model, first appearing in games like ''[[L.A. Noire]]'' and ''[[Mortal Kombat (2011 video game)|Mortal Kombat]]''. Without a season pass, players would still have access to all fundamental features of a game including online play, but the season pass gave access to all planned expanded content for single player modes and new characters or items and cosmetics for online modes, all planned to be released typically within a year's period, typically at a discount compared to purchasing each individually. A game could thus offer repeating season passes year after year and generate revenue this way.<ref name="usgamer history"/> A related concept to the season pass is the [[battle pass]], first introduced in ''[[Dota 2]]''. Within a battle pass are a number of in-game items that a player can earn at various levels of the battle pass, but requires them to complete in-game challenges as to earn the levels within the pass. Some battle passes include a free tier of items but most incorporate a tier that requires purchase of the pass. Battle passes can be cycled like season passes, offering a fresh set of items with new challenges on a regular basis, and supply recurring revenue for a game.<ref name="usgamer history"/>

From mobile and free-to-play games, [[gacha game|''gacha'' games]] had grown popular in Japan by the early 2010s, based on the [[Gashapon|capsule toy vending machine]] concept, with the earliest known system being in ''[[MapleStory]]''. In-game, players would earn currency that they could use to earn a random draw from a set of items based on a preset rarities, often with the goal to collect all of a one set of items to gain a powerful in-game reward. While players could earn more currency through in-game actions, typically by [[grinding (video games)|grinding]], they could also can currency by spending real-world funds into the game. The ''gacha'' concept expanded out into [[loot box]]es through the Chinese game ''[[ZT Online]]'', and in Western games like ''[[FIFA 09]]'' and ''[[Team Fortress 2]]'' in the early 2010s; players would earn loot boxes through in-game actions, or which could be purchased through real-world funds, and when opened would contain a variety of items, randomly selected based on rarity. By 2016, numerous high-profile games had included loot box mechanics, but this drew attention of world governments and policy makers, fearing that loot boxes were too similar to gambling, since real-world money could be used to purchase them. Since many of these video games were being aimed at minors, some countries had passed laws banning or restricting games with loot box mechanics due to their gambling nature. Coupled with poor implementation of loot box mechanics in ''[[Star Wars Battlefront II (2017 video game)|Star Wars Battlefront II]]'' and Electronic Arts's ''FIFA'' Ultimate Team game mode, loot box mechanics began to lose favor with consumers by the end of the 2010s.<ref name="usgamer history"/>

China's impact in monetization played a key role during this period, which exceeded over 500 million players by the mid-2010s. While the console ban had been lifted, China's government still required that imported hardware be sold through Chinese companies, and requires Chinese operators to manage online games as to uphold the country's laws on censorship and gameplay limitations for minors. Chinese companies that were already publishing games within the country began to make partnerships or other arrangements with foreign firms to help bring their games and hardware into the company through the complex approvals process. Such companies include [[NetEase]] and [[Perfect World (company)|Perfect World]], but the largest mover had been [[Tencent]], which made numerous investments into foreign firms over the 2010s, which included full acquisition of [[Riot Games]] and partial ownership of [[Supercell]] and [[Epic Games]], as well as minority stake in publishers [[Ubisoft]], [[Activision Blizzard]] and [[Paradox Interactive]]. In exchange, Tencent had helped these companies refine their monetization approaches using their past experience with their own games.<ref name="uscc">{{cite report | url = https://www.uscc.gov/sites/default/files/Research/China%27s%20Digital%20Game%20Sector.pdf | title = China's Digital Game Sector | first1 = Matt | last1 =Snyder | date = May 17, 2018 | access-date = September 25, 2019 | publisher = [[United States-China Economic and Security Review Commission]] }}</ref>

===Mixed, virtual and augmented reality games===
[[File:Oculus-Rift-CV1-Headset-Front with transparent background.png|thumb|right|The [[Oculus Rift]] headset]]
{{see also|Virtual reality|Augmented reality}}
[[Virtual reality]] (VR) systems for video games had long been seen as a target for VR technology and had been in development as early as the 1990s, but had been hampered by their high cost and impractical for consumer sales. One of the initial attempts, Nintendo's [[Virtual Boy]] in 1996, used a monochromatic [[Stereoscopy|stereoscopic display]] to simulate 3D, but the unit was impractical and failed to gain developers, leading it to be a commercial failure for Nintendo. Breakthroughs in consumer-ready VR hardware came in the early 2010s with the development of the [[Oculus Rift]] by [[Palmer Luckey]]. The Rift was demonstrated at trade shows in 2013, and proved popular enough to lead [[Facebook]] to purchase the company and technology for {{USD|2 billion|long=no}} in 2014. Shortly afterward, Valve and [[HTC]] announced the [[HTC Vive]], first released in 2015, while Sony released its [[PlayStation VR]] in 2016. Valve later developed its own VR hardware line, the [[Valve Index]], released in 2019. While numerous VR games took advantage of VR effectively over "flat-screen" games (those lacking VR capabilities) for immersive experience, VR's "killer app" came by way of ''[[Half-Life: Alyx]]'', released by Valve in 2020. ''Half-Life: Alyx'' brought several new ideas for integrating first-person shooter gaming into a VR app, and spurred sales of the Index.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Robinson |first=Andrew |date=March 23, 2020 |title=Review: Half-Life Alyx is VR's stunning killer app |url=https://www.videogameschronicle.com/reviews/half-life-alyx |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200324213220/https://www.videogameschronicle.com/reviews/half-life-alyx |archive-date=March 24, 2020 |access-date=March 24, 2020 |website=VGC}}</ref>

[[Augmented reality]] (AR) games, where the game takes a real-time video game image and renders additional graphics atop it, had also existed before the 2010s. Some PlayStation console games used the [[EyeToy]], [[PlayStation Eye]], or [[PlayStation Camera]] as part of the gameplay, as well as [[Xbox 360]] and [[Xbox One]] games using the Kinect. Most of the games were more experimental since cameras were fixed and limited what interactions could be made. As handheld consoles including the PSP and the Nintendo DS line, and mobile phones incorporated video camera capabilities, new AR possibilities opened up on portable devices. Initial games were still more experimental and toys without comprehensive gameplay loops. AR-based games took off with the release of ''[[Pokémon Go]]'' in 2016, which combined AR with [[location-based game]]s. Players would use their mobile device to guide them to where a virtual Pokémon may be found, which they searched for and attempted to capture using AR atop their device's camera.<ref name="Augmented reality mainstream">{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/14/technology/unity-technologies-maker-of-pokemon-go-engine-swells-in-value.html | title=Unity Technologies, Maker of Pokémon Go Engine, Swells in Value | publisher=NYT | date=July 13, 2016 | access-date=July 16, 2016 | author=Wingfield, Nick | url-status=live | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160716003710/http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/14/technology/unity-technologies-maker-of-pokemon-go-engine-swells-in-value.html | archive-date=July 16, 2016 | df=mdy-all }}</ref>