The history of gaming is a story of innovation, evolution and transformation. Simple pastimes involving natural materials like sticks and stones has evolved into immersive and interactive fun-filled adventures that allow gamers to explore new worlds and new opportunities to win real cash prizes.
Join our very own Vegas online casino for a journey that shows how the past, present and future are really one big entertainment happening.
Prehistoric Games
The desire to play games as a form of relaxation and recreation is as old as humanity. Anthropologists have found early evidence of games, including dice made from animal bones and stones. Stone slabs found in the Near East that feature rows of depressions suggest early mancala-like games played with seeds or pebbles as far back as 10,000 years ago.
In Egypt, there's ample evidence that Senet – a popular board game that was said to represent the soul's journey after death and is still played today in many parts of the world – entertained Pharaohs and their subjects more than 3000 years before the Common Era.
Another game from the Middle East, The Royal Game of Ur, was played in Mesopotamia more than 5000 years ago, creating a complex session that involved a two-player strategy race board game. Further East, the Chinese played a strategic board game called Go, while in India, the earliest form of chess, Chaturanga, emerged around the 16th century.
Medieval and Renaissance Era
The game of chess, which originated as the 6th-century Indian game of chaturanga, spread to Persia, where it was called "shatranj". The game was then introduced to Europe, where it developed with chess clubs and rulebooks. In the 19th century, tournaments and standardized sets put chess in a league of its own as a game that appealed to intellectuals and common players alike.
The first commercial board game, The Mansion of Happiness, appeared in 1800 as a game that taught Christian ethics to children and adults alike.
Modern Era
Gaming in the early 20th century encompassed card games like 500 and gin rummy, board games such as The Landlord's Game and Monopoly and early forms of pinball. The nascent seeds of electronic games could also be seen as early as the 1950s and 1960s, when university-based computer games emerged – games that would eventually lead to the video game industry.
The seeds of video gaming were planted in university labs with electronic games like Tennis for Two (1958) and Spacewar! (1962). Such computer experiments laid the fundamental groundwork for interactive entertainment that eventually evolved into the video gaming industry and into the online casino platform.
Early video games were played, for the most part, in arcades, though the first commercial home video game console, the Magnavox Odyssey, became available for purchase in 1972. Even so, early video game enthusiasts started their love affair with digital gaming when Atari released Pong, a simple, yet addictive game that drew in fans by the millions with its coin-operated gameplay.
Pac-Man was the next sensation to hit the golden age of arcade gaming. Like Pong, Pac-Man was simple and addictive as gamers tried to navigate a maze, eat Pac-Dots, and score points by eating bonus fruits while avoiding the four hunting ghosts. By 1981, the first Mario game, Donkey Kong, was available for arcade gaming and soon after, in 1985, Nintendo launched their Entertainment System that they bundled with the Super Mario Bros franchise, which gave them market dominance.
The late '80s and '90s were defined by the fierce "Console Wars" between Nintendo and its new rival, Sega. Nintendo was championed by Mario and Sega by Sonic the Hedgehog. 3D graphics became standard with the release of the Sony PlayStation (1994) and the Nintendo 64 (1996). New genres and a depth of gameplay previously unimaginable became the norm.
The Digital Era: Online and Mobile
Board games, card games and other physical games haven't lost their allure, but the 21st century has added Internet gaming options. You can play almost any traditional game in a digital format, but there are hundreds of new games from which to choose. Many games are played competitively, and pro gamers earn their livings by live-streaming their gameplay for fans to observe and learn, thanks to services like Xbox Live and platforms like Steam that have made online multiplayer the new standard.
Most online games are available on mobile, but there are still PC games which are preferred by gamers looking for multiplayer online role-playing gaming experiences.
Casino Games
Since the 1990s, casino enthusiasts have had access to their favorite casino games at the online casino. Slots, table games, lotteries and other specialty games can now be played for free or for real money prizes via the online casino platform. Each game option offers multiple betting choices, so you can play any of the online casino games at the betting level that suits your individual preferences and budget.
From the simple throw of some sticks or stones to a pixelated screen where you can live out your fantasies, the evolution of gaming is a testament to the power of imagination and the endless possibilities of play.
