Fast Links
Until just a decade or two ago, the main way that a person could play games online was by heading to their browser and opening up a game like Runescape or O2 Jam. Then, everything suddenly changed: the rise of the console and the emergence of mobile phone apps meant that browser io gaming was distinctly old-fashioned.
Yet everything comes full circle in the end — and the reality now is that browser games are top class once more. People are heading to .io websites to play all sorts of games — often with their friends and often for free. While console games and mobile phone app games have certainly not been pushed back out of fashion, some moves have definitely been made to offer maximum consumer choice. How has this full circle of events come about? This blog post will examine the issue.
What is browser gaming?
Whether you’re wondering how to play casino games in your browser or you’re curious about ways to fill your work break in the office, it’s a good idea to look closely at what browser gaming actually is and what its history entails. Playing games in a browser is a relatively old phenomenon: it was made popular in the 1990s with games like Gunbound and Habbo Hotel. Browser games are generally free to play, with users instead receiving advertisements in return for free access.
The .io revolution, as it is sometimes known, is not much different. The “.io” simply refers to the top-level domain name suffix that many of the new browser games appear to have clustered around. The .io is the less significant part of the story: what matters most is that there’s been a re-emergence of a trend that had previously been deemed out of fashion. The domain name suffix .io is widely considered to feature a cultural cache of innovation and modernity, so it suits the story of the gaming sites associated with it.
What’s the history?
 When browser gaming first came about, the internet’s novelty factor was high — and it was often used as a source of procrastination or distraction during the era of the digitization of the office cubicle. Later, it slipped out of fashion as more sophisticated gaming options, such as consoles, took over.
The .io revolution, however, appears to have married these two elements. It’s now entirely possible to head to your browser to play what feels on the surface like a traditional, simple browser game while also enjoying modern features like seamless multiplayer compatibility. Some games, such as those offered on Microsoft’s xCloud, can be played in a multi-channel way and across platforms, including in browsers, on phones, and consoles.
It’s entirely possible that changing patterns of work have played a role in the return of browser games in the last decade or two. Studies show that many people are expected to work longer hours than in the past — suggesting that there’s more demand than ever for people to be glued to their computer screens and subsequently need some sort of break.
What’s the choice?
Whatever sort of io browser game you want to play, it’s likely that you’ll be able to find it in the gaming world. Of course, the most obvious options are the action games: there are countless shooter-based games available to pick from and other action-oriented games in wild and exciting universes. The emergence of browser-based games reflects the diversity of browser-based game choices available as well. It’s now possible to play everything at the tips of your browser, both for excitement and just for fun.
Another example of the rise in browser-based games is the explosion of skill and trivia games now on the market. This may reflect an increasing trend towards self-improvement or perhaps borrows from the popularity of the game show genre on television. Either way, it’s a pleasant reminder that no matter what kind of gaming experience you want to secure, you’re likely to be able to find it using browser games.
Ultimately, IO browser gaming has become famous for bringing back a tradition that many thought had been lost. The console and the mobile app, it appears, we’re at the end unable to stamp out the browser game — and it appears that browser gaming is now back with a vengeance, and for good.