Video games have become one of the largest forms of entertainment within the last decade or two. People of all ages play these games to get out of the boring reality of things and experience the thrill of fantasy, combat, or adventure. But what kind of games gives you the experience you want? Some may want to control one person, a great being on a quest to restore his or her torn land, wielding great powers and becoming enveloped in a great story. Others may want to control a million persons, on a great battlefield, seizing land and bringing about destruction to all who come across his army. Or you may want to recreate your favorite sports team, leading them into the history books as the greatest team to ever step foot onto the field or court. Let us take a look at the different types of game genres that encompass the majority of games today and see what one you might wish to partake in.
First is the role player. This gamer enjoys going upon epic quests that usually involve saving a person, place, or object. He or she creates their character, customizes them in every which way possible, making them look as much or as little like themselves, and sets them off into a story based land filled with monsters unheard of, great kingdoms under peril, and much traveling around. Their character becomes more powerful as the game continues, until finally they come across the great being that has brought about such misery for the character. Defeating the final “boss,” as many call it, the game ends with the player feeling satisfied that he has saved the world from utter peril.
Games like this lately have begun exploring the internet, where not just one player, but thousands, can join up and fight each other or the lands creatures. Examples of these games include the Final Fantasy series and Everquest. Second is the action gamer. This person enjoys games that have him or her controlling a single person, usually in the first person view, and having them also accomplish their goal of saving one thing from the evil of another. These games usually involve missions for the player to partake in, and very beautiful environments for the player to explore, while slaying the many monsters that pursue him.
These games are designed for someone who wants to get right into the action, and being slaughtering away. These games also have great storylines and pivotal climaxes like the role playing games, but generally these types of games are not as in depth about customization as is the role playing genre. Examples of these are the Half Life series and the ever popular Halo series. Thirdly, the strategy gamer. This person enjoys the art of creating a large empire or controlling a massive army into uncharted lands, conquering and acquiring valuable resources in the process, up until there is nothing left to conquer for the player. These games involve the term resource management, where the player must start small, gathering as much as they can, then becoming more powerful as the game continues until the player is ready to partake in the games ultimate objective, usually defeating an enemy or acquiring an object or place.
These games begin slowly, and then come around quickly to compel the gamer to continue on. If you ever wanted to control the Roman Empire, or fight the bloody battles of World War II, this is your game. Games like the Civilization series and the very popular Warcraft series are great examples of these sort of games. The last genre that can be put into the majority of games category would be sports games. These games are pretty basic; you control a player or team, you defeat your opposing teams, you become a better team, rinse and repeat. These games, although basic, are some of the most enjoyable games available.
Being an Arizona Cardinals fan of the NFL, and also a Chicago White Sox fan, it’s not often I get to see my team in the Super Bowl or World Series, let alone the playoffs. But with sports games, I can make that come true, by controlling my team and having the satisfaction of defeating the Dallas Cowboys and New York Yankees. These kinds of games are usually restricted to people who enjoy sports, who know what they are getting right out of the box. The John Madden series, and games endorsed by the ESPN network are prime examples of these types of games.
As you can see, if you are ever interested in playing a video game, there really is something for everyone to enjoy. This is only a small list of the many game genres, but these compromise the majority of games published today. These games today make up only a small part of our lives, but the time they take up can be very fulfilling, just by being able to recreate something that is out of this world.