Wait a second...I just realised this thread is about "gaming" in general. Sure, video games are implied, but bear with me for a second...
Board games are on somewhat of a renaissance since the zeroties. It's kind of strange to say it, because obviously cardboard and plastic hasn't seen much of a change outside of accessibility. But perhaps that is enough: kickstarter has exploded with interesting designs by creative people who need little more than their imagination (reason: regular and 3D printers can provide working products almost effortlessly, and thanks to desktop simulator, most board games can be tested online thoroughly before even anything physical is created).
...and one of the more recent hypes (say...since a year or two) is the inclusion of assistant apps that increase the availability by providing background music, make bookkeeping easier or act as dungeon master. I've played an 'escape the room' board game that reminded me more of a point-and-click game than I think to be coincidence, and a popular detective game (chronicles of crime) has you scanning cards to question suspects, check out objects or go to another area.
I honestly think that blending of 'video games' and 'board games' will continue. Whether it'll be successful is another story, but some prototypes of large 'board game' tablets speaks to the imagination (quick example). It's only a matter of time before developers truly realise that almost literally anyone has a smartphone on hand, which could mean a whole new genre of gaming.
For clarity: I don't think it'll be the dominant gamer market segment in ten years. Once I started learning about board games, I was surprised to find how many board game developers made video games and vice versa. So they've co-existed for many years already. The only thing I think there'll be different is that in board games, apps will become as natural as score blocks for scoring right now.
Board games are on somewhat of a renaissance since the zeroties. It's kind of strange to say it, because obviously cardboard and plastic hasn't seen much of a change outside of accessibility. But perhaps that is enough: kickstarter has exploded with interesting designs by creative people who need little more than their imagination (reason: regular and 3D printers can provide working products almost effortlessly, and thanks to desktop simulator, most board games can be tested online thoroughly before even anything physical is created).
...and one of the more recent hypes (say...since a year or two) is the inclusion of assistant apps that increase the availability by providing background music, make bookkeeping easier or act as dungeon master. I've played an 'escape the room' board game that reminded me more of a point-and-click game than I think to be coincidence, and a popular detective game (chronicles of crime) has you scanning cards to question suspects, check out objects or go to another area.
I honestly think that blending of 'video games' and 'board games' will continue. Whether it'll be successful is another story, but some prototypes of large 'board game' tablets speaks to the imagination (quick example). It's only a matter of time before developers truly realise that almost literally anyone has a smartphone on hand, which could mean a whole new genre of gaming.
For clarity: I don't think it'll be the dominant gamer market segment in ten years. Once I started learning about board games, I was surprised to find how many board game developers made video games and vice versa. So they've co-existed for many years already. The only thing I think there'll be different is that in board games, apps will become as natural as score blocks for scoring right now.