Video games are undergoing a transformation similar to the initiative taken by Stardew Valley. Various video games are altering their music to influence youth trends.
Video Games
The global video gaming industry generated an estimated $180 billion in 2020, surpassing the revenue of sports and films worldwide. It would be a mistake to suggest that video games only became mainstream in 2020; they have held a significant position for many years.
However, their prominence in mainstream culture is now more apparent:
- To both gamers and non-gamers alike
- At any time in recent memory.
Part of this shift can be attributed to savvy marketers seeking attention in a COVID-affected landscape of canceled events. While Coachella was on hold, Animal Crossing remained open for business.
Politicians eager to “Rock the Vote” turned to video games to connect with young voters. (See: Joe and Kamala’s virtual HQ and AOC streaming herself playing Among Us.) The longstanding tradition of older politicians trying to appear young and hip in the music scene has been replaced by older politicians attempting to seem youthful and trendy while playing a video game.
Image by Pexels.comIsolation played a role in this transformation. However, like many trends during the pandemic, Covid didn’t initiate this particular direction as much as it intensified it. Long before the lockdowns, video games had already become the most popular form of entertainment among youngsters.
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When Morning Consult, a consumer insight firm, reported that the controversial YouTube star PewDiePie had the same name recognition as — and higher positivity than — super-athlete LeBron James among Gen-Z American men, it made headlines. “Who’s PewDiePie?!” perplexed millennials wondered. (He’s a Swedish YouTuber who reviews video games. Teenagers enjoy watching videos of him playing. The shift was undeniable last spring when Adweek revealed that the gaming industry’s annual revenue, at $139 billion, had surpassed the NFL, NBA, MLB, and NHL combined. By December, lockdown life further inflated the industry. The global gaming industry is projected to reach $180 billion in 2020 — a 20% increase in revenue, surpassing sports and films worldwide.
