The Monetization of Gaming "Moments"
Gaming, like all other entertainment media, has gone through periods of design or clichĂ©s. Traditional art went through Impressionism to Post-Impressionism, Literature hit a streak of young adult dystopian fiction, and Film was âplaguedâ by an infection of Zombie-themed thrillers. However, modern gamingâs biggest trend isnât in a specific visual or aesthetic but rather in a feeling, in a visceral endorphin rush that keeps players coming back for more: moments.
A moment can be defined simply: it is a snapshot of player success and victory. Moments encompass the abstract high-points from a game. They serve as the mental snap-shots that players share with each other online, on stream, and in person. Moments power the longevity to a game, and the modern gaming marketplace rewards those can cash in on the dopamine hits.
The rise of moments can be traced back to the rise of multiplayer online gaming, as they are forged most easily in between competitiveness and relative randomness. The Call of Duty franchise kicked it off with the Game/Round Winning KillCam in Modern Warfare 2. This feature served as the pinnacle of what a gaming moment should do: capture a maneuver that makes the player feel awesome. By putting this literal game-winning play on display for every other person in the match, it forces players to pay attention and give respect where respect has been earnedâwith the final shot.
Many other shooters picked up on the KillCam given its perfection at grabbing gamerâs eyes and helping them show others their accomplishments. The gaming development scene chased after more opportunities to craft momentsâconsciously or notâinto the 2000s. This is when many an MMO and MOBA title hit shelves, all eager to get players hooked for hours on end playing with their friends. While these games rarely had an innate moment capture mechanic (at least until Twitch and advanced GIF grabbers came along), they instead lent themselves to creating moments more often. The issue with a model like the KillCam is that it only occurs once a round, while the excitement pay-off can be huge-it requires commitment. MMOs and MOBAs are so chock-full of spells, effects, and interactions that they create those unique highs faster and more often than any others. This is why a title like League of Legends can stay relevant so long; it creates those stories and memories so efficiently.
With the most modern trend in gaming no longer arena FPSâs or MOBAs, but instead Battle Royales, we can see the moment principle stretched to its limit. A Battle Royale game is nothing but a SIN wave of highs and lows between anticipation and off-the-wall action. Every encounter is unique from the player size and randomization, and players want more and more. The fast pace and pure player count in a match ensures SOMETHING will always happen; and if you die too early, just queue up for another leap off the Battle Bus. Players are incentivized to keep parachuting to the ground, grabbing guns, fighting each other, and repeating, until they as cool as the streamers they watchâuntil they have a highlight to record and âclipâ to send to their Discord channel. And it works! Players keep rushing back to get that small moment of pure euphoria.
It is impossible to try to use the ideas of moments to predict where gamingâs next big genre-rush will be, but it does provide insights into how weâve arrived at PUBG, Fortnite, and Apex. Maybe the next title will be an even crazier roller-coaster of making the player feel as talented as Ninja, or maybe expanding tech like VR will enable every moment to feel wholly individual. Either way, wherever gaming heads next, be sure to notice it will come in a gradual social media takeover, as players post highlight after highlight online, until grabbing a moment of your own is the only thing anyone looks forward to.