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Move over movies and never mind Netflix! When it comes to the most era-defining entertainment industries of the 21st Century, digital gaming resides at the very top. What’s more, it’s only taken a couple of decades for this once-niche sector to blossom into a Big Tech powerhouse.
Sure, movies, music, and the binge-worthy serials hitting streaming sites are still pulling in the audiences, but gaming’s beginning to trump them all in terms of both revenue and global popularity—according to the ever-reliable PricewaterhouseCoopers, 2024’s revenue alone exceeded $223 billion.
Now, that’s all pretty impressive… but how did we get here?
In 2025, the online gaming landscape is a game-changer (pun intended!), injecting new life into traditional entertainment sectors, rivalling IMAX for immersion levels, and even having a direct influence on the rest of the entertainment and media sphere. It’s certainly not happened by accident, so come with us as we walk back through the last twenty-five years of digital gaming!
A Medium at its Peak
Take a glance across the modern gaming landscape, and it’ll be pretty clear just why the sector has outpaced its rivals…
First of all, AAA releases. We’re talking your Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom or the eagerly anticipated Grand Theft Auto 6 launch with big budgets and multi-channel marketing campaigns on a par with Hollywood blockbusters. Make no mistake, these aren’t just games, they’re full-on cultural phenomena, followed by millions of fans and analyzed and dissected across every nook and cranny of social media.
Meanwhile, virtual reality has graduated from a flashy gimmick that no self-respecting gamer would ever be caught dabbling in into a genuine mode of play. Slip on a headset (there’s plenty out there that are actually affordable!), and you’ll immediately inhabit games, instead of just passively watching them unfold.
It’s not just consoles and immersive tech, though. One corner of the digital gaming industry remains surprisingly underestimated, even though it’s evolved into a global force since the turn of the century. Which sector might that be? Why, online casino games, of course!
Any older Millennials reading this will certainly remember the “poker boom” of the early 2000s. Did that boom stop at Texas Hold’em? No, it did not! Over the past 2.5 decades, iGaming—the umbrella term encompassing digital versions of games like roulette, blackjack, and even the one-armed bandit—has emerged as one of the most innovative and fastest-growing gaming sectors.
Platforms deliver everything you could imagine from the original casino floor. You’ve got options aplenty, with table casino games particularly popular choices. Seriously! With their interactive elements and cutting-edge features, digital casino games have everything that the original games had to offer, with the added convenience of being able to play online. There’s no question, today’s top digital casino experiences can stand toe to toe with the best of what video gaming has to offer.
Now that you’ve got a good grasp of how multi-faceted gaming is, let’s take a few steps backward…
The Pandemic Effect
Although gaming was well-established as an entertainment industry that meant business by 2019, the pandemic years sent it into overdrive. With offices, cinemas, stadiums, and concert halls shut down, millions of us turned to games for both connection and welcome distractions. Titles like Animal Crossing: New Horizon became global phenomena, while eSports mainstays like Overwatch experienced a rush in user sign-ups as we went seeking comradeship and competition while separated by lockdowns.
The effect of all this was profound. According to published research, two-thirds of US residents were gaming during the pandemic—more than half of whom were playing for more than 7 hours a week. And it wasn’t just self-described gamers logging on; parents, grandparents, people who’ve never picked up a controller before, were all suddenly joining digital communities.
Rewinding the Journey
Of course, this seemingly overnight success story was, in reality, decades in the making. Let’s rewind now to the early 2010s, since that’s where the momentum really started to surge.
Cross-platform play and cloud gaming may have diminished the dividing lines between Xbox and PS5 users somewhat, but two decades ago, everyone was choosing sides. Our generation’s “console wars” provided an epicenter of innovation that effectively changed the course of digital gaming’s trajectory forever.
Sony and Microsoft became locked in a relentless battle to outdo the other. The former leaned into cinematic single-player epics, while Microsoft built an entire ecosystem of services. The hardware that was being unleashed in this era more than met player demand, while rapid tech advancements constantly reshaped the creative process.
What’s more, this was the decade when studios began to explore the full potential of game engines and procedural content. The best games of the 2010s launched mini worlds that felt—and still feel—infinite and reactive. Suddenly, games weren’t just about beating levels or chasing high scores; we were hooked on compelling narratives and expansive universes that evolved alongside us.
Why Gaming Pulled Ahead
In fact, it’s the inherent interactivity in digital gaming that explains why it’s been able to accelerate. Movies, TV shows, even live music concerts still remain relatively static. Playing a video game online, though, or spinning a progressive jackpot and hoping you’ll land a big prize… now, they’re pastimes that demand active participation.
Perhaps, instead of wondering why gaming pulled ahead, the real question to ask is, where is gaming taking us next?
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