Fun Facts About Video Game Subgenres
A game is a well-structured type of play, normally undertaken for fun or entertainment, and occasionally used as an educational instrument. Most games are discrete, unlike action or adventure games, in which the storyline appears throughout the course of play. Often games are different from work, which normally is done for remuneration, or from literature, which is often more of an expressive or aesthetic elements. Games can also incorporate elements of strategy, such as working to build up a series of cards to pass to the next player, or using time limits and skill sets to develop strategies.
Text-Based Adventure Games – Based entirely on text, these games have no graphics or sound, but rely on player interpretation of events and clues to move through the narrative. In some cases, this is combined with audio sounds, although most text-based adventure games are silent. These text adventures vary widely in their themes, from fairy tales to science fiction, from computer puzzles to real life adventures. The plots of most text-based adventure games follow a familiar pattern: a young person in a magical or mysterious land encounters some sort of mysterious occurrence that changes his or her life forever. The player, then, has a variety of options, beginning with simply facing the challenges in the game itself.
Action-adventure games – These are very popular, with the majority of the game genre. In an action-adventure game, the player is placed in situations where he or she must make choices about what actions to take and how to proceed within those situations. As the protagonist in these games, the player has the opportunity to make many different choices, many of which are environmental in nature, such as how to fight against a seemingly unbeatable foe, or to complete one level before being forced to go on to another. Some games feature a non-linear storyline, giving the player only one option to follow throughout the game; others allow the player to choose various endings based on various decisions.
There are two major subgenres of adventure gaming, action and puzzle. Despite their general differences, they share a number of core features, such as adventure, puzzles, combat, characters and the ability to mix logic with physical effort. The adventure genre is particularly popular among casual gamers who like to play titles that require minimal investment and offer hours of entertainment. A fun fact about the game genre, however, is that it has developed a number of sub-genres within itself, including MMORPGs (which stands for massively multi-player online role playing games), RTS, console-based games, and casuals. A fun fact about this, too, is that many of these genres continue to develop new titles every year.
Real-time strategy games – This subgenre involves turn-based battles between human players, who are trying to achieve particular objectives by applying strategies in game play. Players can either use a set of real-time strategy games, or develop their own strategy through the use of a series of computer generated games. The player can either control a group of characters or direct all of them at a specific objective. One of the best-known and most popular real-time strategy games is Age of Empires.
Adventure games – Also known as point-and-click adventures, this subgenre involves navigating video game screens, examining items and objects that the player finds, clicking on certain buttons or moving objects using the mouse. In many cases, an in-depth inventory is not required to complete a game; however, a detailed guide may be available for some games. Another fun fact about this subgenre is that there are several different types of adventure games. For example, many text-based adventure games use a text interface, while others use a visual interface, or even audio play.