By Jacob Steckner

Thanks to several major innovations in computer hardware over the last decade, games are becoming increasingly realistic. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many are using games as a substitute for analogue experiences that are presently off-limits.Video games have been striving to become more realistic and immersive for decades. Many games today are making huge strides in the visual and auditory experience in their games. Pictured above is an unedited screenshot taken by the author in Red Dead Redemption 2, an open-world game released on PC by Rockstar Games in late 2019.

In both sales and volume of consumption, the video game industry has - particularly among online games - grown significantly since the outbreak of COVID-19.¹ Unlike most other media, the experience of the audience has remained largely unchanged, though there have been setbacks and obstacles to the development and release of new games, content, consoles, and technologies. Online games have become one of the only options for people to remain remotely connected with their friends and family during the pandemic. Even the World Health Organization has started encouraging people to take advantage of video games to minimize the psychological harm caused by isolation.²

The Gaming Industry During COVID-19

All forms of commercial enterprise have suffered setbacks and been forced to adapt to structural, procedural, and technological changes throughout the last year. But unlike in most sectors, sudden changes and new technologies are the norm in the video game industry, rather than the exception. Developers and publishers in the business exist in an environment of constant technological overhaul, where not only individual games but entire platforms and consoles usually come and go within two to five years. Because of its adaptability (not to mention its advantage as a naturally remote-based medium), online gaming has been one of the handful of multi billion-dollar industries which has seen an increase in sales and consumption throughout 2020.³

Of course, the industry has by no means been unaffected by the pandemic. Like other non-essential workers, employees of gaming companies have been forced to start working at home; while this transition is easier than in most industries (what with already being IT-based), it resulted in setbacks for content development and in the release of many major titles. Even major publishers with vast resources, such as Xbox Game Studios and Sony Interactive Entertainment, have pushed back the release of AAA game titles like Halo Infinite and The Last of Us Part II.⁴ ⁵ Ironically, the release of Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Quarantine (a game announced in June 2019 that centres around the quarantine implemented after a strange virus appears) was pushed back by Ubisoft from 2020 to late 2021/early 2022.⁶

The eSports industry has both suffered and prospered. Many larger companies have been hit hardest, since some eSport seasons/tournaments for major games (such as the Overwatch World Cup) are held in stadia or special theatres; in contrast, smaller companies with fewer employees and smaller projects have been better able to adapt thanks to streaming on platforms like Twitch and YouTube. Additionally, companies like Ubisoft and Blizzard that rely on events and conventions to announce and advertise new content and games have been forced to cancel shows.⁷ ⁸ For example, Blizzcon 2020 was cancelled back in May (pictured); the development of Overwatch 2 (which was announced at Blizzcon 2019 and the release was widely expected to follow Blizzcon 2020) has likely been slowed or suspended until these venues return.⁹

Moving Social Connections Online

Another major function, specifically of online games, is to provide social contact and human connection from the comfort of home. In particular, those games which replicate conventionally face-to-face activities in a virtual medium have become enormously popular. One of the best examples of this is Tabletop Simulator, a beautifully simple game which can replicate essentially any game that can be played at a table. With scores of default games and game pieces and thousands more community-made games, it’s possible to play Chess, Poker, Monopoly, Dungeons and Dragons, Settlers of Catan, and countless other games with friends. Pictured above is a puzzle I made and solved with two of my friends out of one of my favourite images of all time. (Link here.) One can even make puzzles out of animations and videos, which feels like something straight out of Harry Potter.

Some people who have never played video games before are now trying them as a means of staying connected. I plan to get a copy of Tabletop Simulator for everyone in my family for Christmas as it allows my parents and siblings to play games that we used to enjoy in-person as a special treat on holidays. And, thanks to tablets and mobile phones, some games are accessible even to those who don’t have computers. Facebook has Words with Friends (a miniature version of Scrabble), and a few cross-platform games like Among Us have taken the world by storm. In conjunction with free conference platforms like Skype and Discord, even multiplayer browser-based versions of age-old party games like Pictionary have been adapted to an accessible format. Camera features are similarly useful; over the past few months, I’ve used Discord to play Magic: The Gathering with a group of a half dozen friends on numerous occasions, and several of my friends have used it to continue their Dungeons and Dragons campaigns.

Developments in Technology & Industry

Several industries on the periphery of the gaming industry have thrived during the COVID-19 pandemic. Microsoft and Sony released the Xbox X and PlayStation 5 consoles, both of which have been a major source of revenue for software companies, manufacturers, and retailers. Boredom has also motivated many people with a passive interest in gaming to take their hobby more seriously. Within my own circle of friends, several people have invested in proper gaming computers, and several others have upgraded part or all of their machines to improve their experience. I personally built a computer with/for a friend of mine (pictured right) back in March 2020, and have helped three others with the design and/or construction of their computers. The surge in demand has resulted in shortages of many components; as of December 2020, it is next to impossible to find the latest series of AMD's popular Ryzen-series CPUs in any stores, online or otherwise.¹⁰

The manufacturing industry was something of a bottleneck in this, particularly early-on, as China is an enormous player in the primary resource market (mining and refining copper, gold, tantalum, and various rare earth metals), and is a leader in electronics manufacturing and assembly. Transportation and quarantine were both factors in this bottleneck, but there is still a major manufacturing shortage that goes far beyond the increase in demand. For example, NVIDIA recently released its new 3000-series graphics cards that were to be the leading edge of a wave of new mass-produced, low-cost, high-performance products.¹¹ This was their attempt at making a resurgence after half a decade of stagnating advancement and by rising prices, largely a result of cheap electricity and bitcoin mining. Unfortunately, the goal of using mass production to lower the cost of the new cards has been halted by supply-end limitations; the few shipments that reach North America and Europe are usually scooped up within seconds by bots and then resold on Amazon and eBay for double the price or more. (Last week, a credulous friend-of-a-friend of mine bought an NVIDIA 3070 - which has an MSRP of $640 - for $1700.)

Evolving Communities: Collaboration & Competition

The writer reaches a major milestone in RuneScape, being one of several million members of the RuneScape community who competed to complete a major release of new content in March 2020.

The COVID-19 pandemic has undoubtedly built larger competitive communities in many games by increasing both the number of players and the amount of time spent in games. Members of the "non-essential" workforce have had far more spare hours on their hands thanks to saved commute time and workflow mobility (i.e. more flexible start/finish times, and being able to spend lunch breaks and spare minutes on whatever one wishes). People are also less accountable when in the comfort/privacy of their home, and – to be blunt – many people have had a great deal of time freed up due to unemployment.

Some have used video games as a means of filling this time. Others use their greater freedom to play low-attention, non-intensive games in the background throughout the day; thus, some MMOs have seen a rise in their player-bases, often from returning players. To pick a personal example: RuneScape 3 is a game primarily based on training any or all of 28 different skills, a feature shared by most MMOs. (For context: a “skill" in this case, such as fishing, hunter, magic, or farming, is content where repeating certain actions awards a set amount of “experience”; gaining experience increases the player’s level and unlocks new content.) RuneScape released a new skill, known as Archaeology, on March 30th, 2020 this year.¹² There was a great race within the community to complete the new content, particularly to reach the maximum possible amount of experience (which caps at 200,000,000). An acquaintance of mine was one of the most invested in this competition, playing an average of 20 hours a day for nearly three weeks and reaching the cap on April 17th. (I really fear for his mental health, to be honest.) I also played quite a bit in the time after it came out (though nowhere near that rabidly), and reached the cap in June (pictured above). I’m not entirely proud of this “achievement,” but did give me some personal satisfaction to place within the top 3,000 players out of the millions of people who actively play RuneScape 3.

#PlayApartTogether: Video Games & Public Health

As noted, online games have provided a means by which physically isolated individuals can connect with family, friends, and new people. It didn’t take long for gaming companies to capitalize on this “public service” by starting the #PlayApartTogether on various social media platforms, which was then endorsed by health officials across the globe. Even Ray Chambers, the World Health Organization Ambassador for Global Strategy, endorsed the movement (pictured left) on behalf of the WHO, despite the Organization recently classifying video gaming as a health crisis.¹³

We live in strange times; the #PlayApartTogether is a curious hybrid of “health campaign for the public good” and “opportunistic advertising/an excuse to promote and sell games.”

 

Video Games & the Entertainment Industry During COVID-19

The video game industry has adapted much better than most sectors. Existing games have thrived, and new ones have suffered fewer setbacks than comparably large projects in industries like film, sports, and almost all other competitive activities. There are definite pros to this; some sports, such as Formula 1, have started transitioning to the online world, making them more accessible to players. Video games have many advantages over other competitive activities; to pick on Formula 1 again, transitioning into an eSport means that a dozen teams don’t each need to take a large jet to a new course a dozen times or more every year, each transporting scores of team members and technicians and multiple racecars. (Not to mention the environmental impact of the fans, statiums, and the races themselves, or the serious injuries that occur not infrequently.) It remains to be seen which changes will remain permanent in the transition to the online world; in much the same way that many employees in the post-COVID-19 world will continue to work remotely, perhaps many sports will remain partially or completely virtual in nature from now on.

Bibliography

  1. Wallach, Omri. "How Big Is the Global Mobile Gaming Industry?" Business Insider. December 10, 2020. Accessed December 10, 2020.
    www.markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/how-big-is-the-global-mobile-gaming-industry-1029879967
  2. Chambers, Ray. "We're at a Crucial Moment in Defining Outcomes..." Twitter. March 28, 2020. Accessed December 10, 2020.
    www.twitter.com/RaymondChambers/status/1244011120551022594
  3. Wallach, Omri. "How Big Is the Global Mobile Gaming Industry?" Business Insider. December 10, 2020.
  4. Roberts, Samuel, Tom Pritchard, Vic Hood, and Adam Vjestica. "Halo Infinite Release Date, Gameplay, Trailer and News." TechRadar. December 9, 2020. Accessed December 10, 2020.
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  5. Stuart, Keith. "The Last of Us Part II Delayed by Coronavirus – Is This the Start of a Trend?" The Guardian. April 3, 2020. Accessed December 10, 2020.
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  6. Parlock, Joe. "'Far Cry 6' And 'Rainbow Six Quarantine' Have Been Delayed Into The Next Financial Year." Forbes. October 30, 2020. Accessed December 10, 2020.
    www.forbes.com/sites/joeparlock/2020/10/30/far-cry-6-and-rainbow-six-quarantine-have-been-delayed-into-the-next-financial-year/
  7. E3. "The E3 Team Is Devastated to Share..." Twitter. March 11, 2020. Accessed December 10, 2020.
    www.twitter.com/E3/status/1237769050123534336
  8. Smith, Saralyn. "An Update on BlizzCon." Blizzard News. May 26, 2020. Accessed December 10, 2020.
    www.news.blizzard.com/en-gb/blizzcon/23434523/an-update-on-blizzcon
  9. Ibid.
  10. Hruska, Joel. "Every CPU, GPU, and Console Debut This Fall Was Effectively a Paper Launch." ExtremeTech. December 9, 2020. Accessed December 10, 2020.
    www.extremetech.com/computing/318114-every-cpu-gpu-and-console-debut-this-fall-was-effectively-a-paper-launch
  11. Kan, Michael. "Nvidia: It May Take a 'Few Months' for RTX 3000 Supplies to Catch Up With Demand." PC Magazine. November 19, 2020. Accessed December 10, 2020.
    www.pcmag.com/news/nvidia-it-may-take-a-few-months-for-rtx-3000-supplies-to-catch-up-with
  12. Jagex, Inc. "Game Update: The New Skill Archaeology Is Here! - News." RuneScape. March 30, 2020. Accessed December 10, 2020.
    www.runescape.com/m=news/game-update-the-new-skill-archaeology-is-here
  13. WHO Team. "Addictive Behaviours: Gaming Disorder." World Health Organization. September 14, 2018. Accessed December 10, 2020.
    www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/addictive-behaviours-gaming-disorder