Is the Future of Handheld Gaming at Risk from Online Casinos?
The online gaming industry is a recent development. In just over twenty years, this new market has shown unprecedented growth. At the end of 2021, the global online gaming market was estimated to be worth 175 billion dollars. It is expected that this market will continue to grow not less than 10% per year in the years to come. Moreover, about 40% of the revenue of the entire online gaming market comes from online casinos, including mobile casinos. Mobile casinos are being actively developed in the USA and Europe, in particular, in Estonia. Its transparent legal framework has allowed many companies to actively pursue this field. Many legal and reliable online casinos are registered in Estonia, and users can use specialised platforms, such as eestionlinekasiinod.com, to find the best online casinos on the market.
Much of this rapid growth in online gambling is due to the rise of online casinos as well as the development of mobile technology that allows users to literally gamble on the go. At the same time, some experts predict that this rapid development of the online gambling market may lead to a decline in the popularity of other segments of the gaming market, such as handheld games and game consoles.
What are console games and what are their advantages?
As the name suggests, console games are video games that require a special game console. Game developers specifically release versions of games designed to run on these consoles. There are two types of consoles: handheld consoles and game consoles.
Handheld consoles are also known as standalone consoles; they work independently and do not require additional devices. The most prominent examples of handheld consoles are Nintendo DS and PlayStation Portable. These handheld consoles are increasingly favoured by gamers due to their portability.
Gaming consoles, on the other hand, are connected to audio and image output devices such as a monitor. Examples of such games consoles include Xbox and PlayStation.
That said, console games have a few undeniable advantages over PC games:
- Easy to use,
- suitable for multiplayer games and
- less expensive than PCs.
Games available in online casinos
Visitors of online casinos will find a completely different array of games. Many are primarily analogues of games from traditional land-based casinos with some being more modern online versions. For example, a slot machine in a land-based casino has a limited number of reels and a limited number of pictures that can fit on each reel. An online slot game, however, has no such restrictions. These can have an unlimited number of pictures and, accordingly, countless winning combinations.
In general, most online casinos offer these types of games to their guests:
- Slots. It is the most popular game category in both land-based and online casinos, and many online casino platforms offer their guests a choice of hundreds or even thousands of slots.
- Card Games. Here, as in traditional casinos, you can choose from poker, blackjack and baccarat. In addition, many online casinos offer players the option to play live games with a live dealer.
- Roulette. This popular game of chance has also migrated to the virtual halls of online casinos. In addition to traditional roulette games such as French roulette or American roulette, online casinos also offer variations such as turbo roulette and multiplayer roulette.
- Bingo. This is another traditional game that has a strong following in online casinos.
- Craps or dice. This simple game is also often a popular choice among visitors to online casinos. As in the traditional version, the player has to guess the exact amount of numbers that will come up on a roll.
Apart from these popular games, online casinos also offer various games with instant winnings, such as scratch cards and lotteries.
How online casinos differ from video games
Many users think that video games and online casino games have a lot in common, but this is not true. Indeed, both types of games can be played from a PC or mobile device, but that’s where the similarities end.
First of all, unlike video games, gambling uses the theory of probability. Moreover, online casino gambling manufacturers immediately set the game’s Return to Player (RTP) percentage. This percentage estimates the number of situations in which the player will win. In video games, there are no such percentages.
In addition, many casino games, including the online versions, are games of chance. They usually do not require much knowledge or skill. The player simply spins the slot reel, rolls the dice or removes the scratch-off field on a lottery ticket to find out whether or not they have won. In contrast, video games require skill and perseverance. To get ahead in a video game, you have to practice and learn different game strategies. It is difficult to progress to new levels in a video game relying solely on luck.
Accordingly, online casino games are often easier to play than video games, unless it’s a competitive event such as a poker tournament. Visitors can pop into an online casino for a few minutes and still have time to play a game or two. This is one of the main reasons for the current success of numerous online casinos.
What is the future of the online gaming market
As we have already stated, the online gaming market is a rapidly expanding industry. The online casino segment is, in particular, growing faster than the other segments. A logical conclusion is that some elements of games of chance will gradually appear in other types of online games as well. Accordingly, it can be expected that all segments of the global online gaming market will continue to grow in the near future, but online casinos will continue to hold a leading position.
