Gaming
In the last decade, more than 335 million PC and console video games have been sold in the United Kingdom, meaning that gaming is now one of the leisure industry's most prominent sectors.
Games are now played by all ages, sexes and classes and - on average - regular gamers will play for 11 hours each week.
Before the introduction of powerful and high-tech consoles around 10 years ago - and before PC ownership became so high - games generally fell into the categories of sports simulation and "shoot 'em up".
Half of children aged 8 to 15 own a games console, while a further third use one in the household - Ofcom report 2006.
However, as technology has improved and popularity has increased, a number of different genres and playing styles have now become available. Alongside sport and "shoot 'em up" games we now have role-playing games, adventure series and life simulations.
The competition in the market sector, allied to the ever-increasing demands of gamers, has meant that games have developed added depth, elements of self-expression and greater personalisation. With the global popularity of gaming so high, people are now able to play online against other gamers from around the world. Follow the link below for more information about the various genres and styles of play available today:
Gaming
genres (Askaboutgames.com)
[External Site]
Age ratings for games
Influences such as cinema, television, youth culture and music have inevitably led to an increase in violent plotlines and images in some of the games available today.
The law now states that all computer and console games sold in the UK must have age ratings clearly marked on the front and back of their boxes.
The age ratings are allocated by two bodies - Pan-European Games Information (PEGI) and the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC).
PEGI rates games as 3+, 7+, 12+ and 16+, while some games can be referred to the BBFC, who rate games as 15 or 18.
Also, where necessary, games are asked to display icons on their boxes to give and idea of the content. These icons include drugs, violence, bad language and themes of a sexual nature. Follow the link below for more information on the ratings system:
Ratings
information (Askaboutgames.com)
[External Site]
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