Following is facts from The Entertainment Software Association ( and Swedish Game Industry ( Next: video games

Next: computer games

Next: computer games sales

Next: online games

Next: who plays?

1. U.S. computer and video game software sales grew 22.9 percent in 2008 to $11.7 billion – more than quadrupling industry software sales since (triple in 2008) 2. 68% of American households play computer or video games. (65% in 2008) 3. The average game player is 35 years old and has been playing games for 12 years. (no change) 4. The average age of the most frequent game purchaser is 39 years old. (40 in 2008) 5. 40% of all game players are women. In fact, women over the age of 18 represent a significantly greater portion of the game-playing population (34 ) than boys age 17 or younger (18%) (33% in 2008). 6. In 2009, 25% of Americans over the age of 50 played video games, an increase from 9% in (26% in 2008 but still 9%!) 7. 37% of heads of households play games on a wireless device, such as a cell phone or PDA, up from 20% in (36% in 2008 but still 20%) 8. 85% of all games sold in 2007 were rated "E" for Everyone, "T" for Teen, or "E10+" for Everyone 10+. (84% in 2008) 9. 92% of game players under the age of 18 report that their parents are present when they purchase or rent games. (92% in 2008) % of parents believe games are a positive part of their children’s lives. (no change)

 Zelda Series  Mario Series  Both examples of franchises  Usually given as examples of good learnability  Navigation essential gameplay part

 Sprung from board games ◦ Traditional Strategy  Civilization, 1990 ◦ Civilization IV, 2006  Victoria, 2003  Real-time Strategy ◦ Dune 2, 1992 ◦ Age of Empires, 1997  Resource management essential gameplay part

 First person perspective in 3D environments  id Software ◦ Wolfenstein 3D, 1992 ◦ Doom, 1993 ◦ Quake, 1996 ◦ Themes sprung from role- playing games…  Valve Software ◦ Half-Life,1998 (+ Counter- Strike)  Bungie ◦ Halo, 2001  Often most criticized ◦ Graphical violence (Columbine)  Navigation and shooting essential gameplay part

 FPS usually support deathmatch modes  Examples of games dedicated to online play ◦ Team Fortress Classic, 1999 ◦ Counter-Strike, 1999 ◦ Battlefield 1942, 2002  Gameplay as for FPS, plus team work and sometimes specialized roles

 Typically based upon role-playing games ◦ Ultima Online, Origin Systems, 1997 ◦ Everquest, Sony, 2000 ◦ Puzzle Pirates, Three Rings, 2001 ◦ Sims Online, Maxis, 2003 ◦ World of Warcraft, Blizzard Entertainment, 2004  Gameplay typical team work and character development but extra-game aspects as socializing also important

 Annual version ◦ FIFA 200X, Electronic Arts, 200X-1 ◦ Madden NFL 200X, EA Sports, 200X- 1 ◦ Tiger Woods PGA Tour, 200X-1  Tightly tied to real-world statistics ◦ Volunteers collect  Knowledge of real world domain important aspect of game

 Grand Theft Auto 3, Rockstar Games, 2001  Midtown Madness 3, Digital Illusions, 2003  Navigation essential gameplay part

 Platforms ◦ Game’n’Watch, 1980 ◦ Gameboy, 1989 ◦ Gameboy Advance, 2001? ◦ N-Gage, 2003 ◦ Gameboy DS, 2005 ◦ PSP, 2005