The 2020s has seen the rise of a number of fascinating and powerful technology trends that look set to revolutionise the way we think about, create and consume popular media.
From shifting the way we interact with our environments, to opening up new vistas of storytelling that blur the lines between games and traditional media, there’s never been a more exciting time to be a fan of movies, television and gaming. But what are the leading threads that are most worth your attention? Let’s explore our top picks below.
VR and ARMany people conflate AR, VR and the metaverse – though these are, in fact, quite distinct albeit interrelated concepts. Augmented Reality (AR) is a form of technology that creates a digital overlay over your existing environment.
Most people are familiar with this from smartphone games like Pokemon Go which projected pokemon for players to battle and capture onto their surroundings, as viewed through the digital viewfinder of the phone’s camera. AR headsets use this same technology, but offer deeper integration and options for people to explore. Virtual Reality, on the other hand, immerses a completely virtual environment – this could be a game, or a virtual space.
The metaverse, is in effect, a name used for the experience of browsing the internet through a VR interface. We’re still some years off from this becoming viable or popular, but with the recent announcement of Apple’s Vision Pro AR/VR headset, developer and consumer interest will likely begin to move in this direction in the coming years, offering up wholly novel and innovative media experiences to explore.
iGaming
The popular online gaming and betting sector known as iGaming has enjoyed continuous and sustained growth over the course of the 21st century, riding the wave of digitization to bring the enduring classics of brick-and-mortar casinos into the homes and screens of gamers around the world.
While this is one media format that has enjoyed steady growth for many years, the repeal of the federal legislation bill PASPA in the United States in 2017 has ushered in a new renaissance for digital table gaming. This is because it has helped pave the way for its widespread adoption at the state level, facilitating access to the world’s largest economy.
Another key driver in this phenomenon is the widespread adoption of smartphones, with prominent platforms such as Wildz.com offering mobile optimizations that have made these near-ubiquitous devices a key driver in the industry’s ongoing accessibility and penetration into new markets.
Interactive TV
Interactive media is, in essence, nothing new, with the literary genre known as “choose your own adventure” producing thousands of intricately branching stories going back generations. The noteworthy change today, however, is that media creators across diverse sectors now have the resources, means, and public interest behind them, to bring this novel form of fiction to new formats.
The most popular example of this phenomenon in recent years was Netflix’s special feature spin-off of the dystopian episodic sci-fi drama, Black Mirror. Known as Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, it featured over 5 endings and multiple distinct storylines influenced by user input and decisions.
This was very well received, with critics and audiences alike praising its innovative design. Naturally, it may be some time before we see examples of this type of media becoming more common as it is necessarily more resource-heavy than the average production as a result of requiring the filming of multiple distinct scenes.
However, with the arrival of generative AI on the scene, this is one form of media that could stand to benefit directly from the efficiencies afforded by such models. |
