How much gaming on mobile phones changed over the last 20 years

Mobile phones have been around for quite a long time with their initial released taking place in 1973. Of course, the concept didn’t take off quickly and the most profound changes have actually occurred over the past two decades. As new phones have been developed, there have also been important changes making them much more versatile devices. Today, mobile phones have become the primary gaming devices for most people.

In the beginning, the games that could be played on mobile phones looked vastly different than they do today. Despite their lack of aesthetics, the concepts still made them engaging. The first mobile games were designed for use with the Symbian operating system in the 1990’s. Snake and Pong were popular for use on these devices. Snake required players to manipulate a growing line around the screen without intersecting any obstacles. Pong was a bit different in that it was similar to table tennis. The next decade saw mobile phones being developed as gaming consoles such as the release of N-Gage by Nokia. Despite Nokia’s efforts it didn’t really take off as the design of the mobile phone made gaming a bit awkward. Nokia seemed to always be on the cutting edge coming up with ideas before the technology had caught up to make them work better.

The release of smartphones really was the pivotal event in mobile phones that led to the increased use of gaming. These new phones were able to access the internet resulting in a wider application of gaming. Online casinos which once could only be accessed by a computer could now operate on mobile phones. As times as gone by, there have even been accessories that could be added onto the phone which further expanded the gaming option.

In a relatively short amount of time, mobile phones have seen such significant changes. This leads many to wonder just what the future holds for gaming.