Sergey Karshkov: How Technology Has Revolutionised the Gaming Industry

Dwarfing both the music and film industries, gaming has firmly established itself as the largest consumer industry in the world. Its meteoric rise is due in no small part to huge technological advancements that have transformed gaming from mere entertainment to an immersive and holistic experience that can almost be described as a lifestyle.

Technology has made gaming more stimulating, creative and accessible. It has moulded the gaming community, culminating in an ecosystem that attracts participants for a variety of different reasons, not least establishing social connections and relationships.

Streaming lies at the heart of this trend, enabling players to record and broadcast their gaming experiences to viewers all over the world via platforms like YouTube and Twitch. Streaming covers a wide variety of different gaming arenas today, from speedrunning and Let’s Play-style gaming adventures to esports.

While streaming technology has been around for more than a decade, its appeal has skyrocketed in recent years, largely driven by the pandemic. With barriers to social interactions put in place to stem the spread of the virus, increasing numbers of millennials and Gen Zers turned to streaming to fill the social void.

Against that backdrop, it is unsurprising that Twitch – one of the world’s most popular gaming platforms – had its best year yet in 2020, with the number of hours watched increasing by up to 50% on a year-on-year basis. This mirrored the growth of the streaming sector as a whole from March 2020 to April 2021, when a 45% increase was reported.

Technological innovations have seeped into every element of online gaming, driving considerable changes in recent years and making the industry more advanced and progressive. Gaming cultures are huge in the modern world, with increasing numbers of gamers turning professional. From high-definition graphics, AR and VR to safe, easier payments and cloud-based technology, innovative advancements have helped gaming to move on in leaps and bounds too, making the sector more inclusive and accessible to all.

Advances in mobile phone technology have also been a major contributor to growth in the gaming industry, with an ever-increasing number of smartphones enabling users to access games irrespective of their physical location.

Sergey Karshkov is the founder of the 9 Pandas marketing agency. Leveraging his wealth of experience, 9 Pandas has collaborated on numerous high-profile campaigns, implementing the latest technology to help clients create impactful and high-converting ad campaigns. Sergey Karshkov will appreciate more than most why technology is such a powerful driving force in the gaming industry today, making gaming more accessible and poising the sector for huge growth in years to come – placing it on track to continue to exceed all expectations.