Technology is changing the world around us. There’s hardly any field that’s been left untouched by technology, and been completely transformed — how we live and work has been completely upended by technology. But how we play has also been completely transformed by technology. Here’s how some of the most popular games have been changed through the use of technology.
1.Chess: Chess is at least 1400 years old, having first originated in India in the sixth century. Not much changed about the game for millennia. But the arrival of the internet changed everything. Chess players can now play with each other while sitting in different continents. They can also calculate their ratings in real time. And most importantly, they can play with computers. Computers have become extremely good at chess — since Deep Blue famously beat Gary Kasparov, computers have gone from strength to strength, and can now defeat even the best human players.
2. Cricket: Cricket is a sport that has been a pioneer in adopting technology. All the way back in 1992, cricket had used slow-motion replays to adjudicate run-outs, with Jonty Rhodes running out Sachin Tendulkar in the first ever instance of the third umpire being used. More recently, cricket has become even more futuristic — games regularly use Hawk Eye, which predicts the path of the ball, to determine LBWs. Hawkeye has fundamentally changed cricket, leading to better decisions and fewer umpire mistakes.
3. Football: Football is a pretty simple sport — all it requires is 22 players, a football, and a field to play — but even it hasn’t been untouched by technology. Football tournaments regularly use VAR to judge goals and offsides. The technology has slowed the game down a little — it can take a few seconds for the decisions to appear — but it’s helped cut down on refree errors and subsequent controversies.
4. Casino games: Casinos have been around for decades, but they’ve been also transformed by technology. Most casino games can now be played on a mobile phone or computer, including online slots and blackjack. Technology has allowed companies to bring the excitement of these games right into people’s homes, and online payments systems ensure that money is also settled instantly and seamlessly.
5. Video games: This last one might seem strange, but video games also make it to the list. Video games are based off technology themselves, but what’s remarkable is how much even video games have been changed by technology. The first video games had grainy graphics and were played on little hand-held devices, but videogames now have incredibly lifelike graphics and immersive storylines. And video games have crossed yet another chasm — with the development of virtual reality, video games can now be played in the virtual world. Video games of today are indistinguishable from video games of just over a few decades ago.