The Evolution of Sports Video Games

Sports video games have come a long way in the past 38 years. From the first game, Pong, in 1975 on a black and white screen with primitive graphics. However, a decade later with games Madden NFL football and Tecmo-Bowl wih Bo Jackson and NBA Jam in the late 1980s-90s. Video game software designers and developers added more detail to the graphics, making it more realistic and attractive for users to play. Professional athletes were getting recognized for their features in the games and sports organizations saw exponential growth in merchandise sales. Now, we love into the 90s and the demand for higher quality game consoles such as the first Playstation in 1994, grew and allowed players to see the quality of the games into higher definition and the expansion of sports leagues such as the NHL marketed their product and allowed player licensing. But, the big boom of sports video games came in the 2000s on the map. I can affirm this from personal experience as a 7-yr old at the time with my Playstation 2, with games such as Madden, NBA 2K2 being my favorites. I'd live vicuriously through NBA star Kobe Bryant and his 360 dunks and 60 pts per game and Madden with Terrell Owens and his 500 yrd reception games. Later in the decade, there would be online gameplay with the new XBox 360 and Playstation 3 "Playstation Network. In 2006, Nintedo launched the Wii with motion-sensored wireless controllers. This was a big hit and unlike anything seen before, it also included a re-vamped online gamplay system. And finally, the present day with the Xbox Kinect, Xbox'd version of Wii but updated and more interactive. It is safe to say that video games and the involvement with sports are here to stay. They gross over 1 bullion dollars worldwide and software designers and developers innovate for the next big thing. Follow me on Twitter @AlsRealTweets