Industrial Design In Video Game Systems
When it comes to industrial design in the realm of video games, there have been some true classic. In this article we'll examine some of the best known ones, and identify what effect they have had on overall video game design.
Of course, people were more interested in the graphics and sound when they bought some of these products, and with this in mind some video games consoles were quite sparse. But even the simplest had their own charm. Take the old Commodore 64 for example. This machine was very popular, but in the eyes of many people, it was a little ugly. The processing power and the associated games titles was such that it was successful in spite of its neanderthal dark grey looks.
Then it was updated, but internally it remained largely the same. It shows just how popular this machine was, that it received a makeover externally, but nothing internally needed to be improved. The second version of this classic piece of industrial design was a smaller, lighter coloured, prettier version.
Later on came the hand held games systems, some of which shaped the way such systems would look for many years. The Atari Lynx was a striking piece of video game industrial design, and one that went head to head with the more suburban looking Nintendo Gameboy. In the end, however, the colour screen and flashy graphics of the Atari Lynx succumbed to the pressure of the Gameboy. The Gameboy had far greater battery life; it would make any Lynx user bankrupt if they were to use AA batteries for any length of time.
The Playstation 2 marked a really big departure from classic video game industrial design. It was a non-symettrical retro-looking piece of kit, that became hugely successful. As an illustration of how industrial design matters on the outside, we just have to recall the situation faced by Xbox, where Japanese people wouldn't buy it because it was too bulky and boxy. The PS2, on the other hand, looked sleek and modern, and the Japanese loved it. People from around the world, in fact, loved it.
Nowadays, we have the PS3 and XBOX 360, which have both taken a lot from video game industrial design, and many would say are the evolution of video game design. It takes more than high processing power and a pretty design however, you need lots of fun, playable games. And this is what many would say the Xbox 360 has in bucket loads.
About the Author:
Anna Stenning is an industrial designer with many years of experience in the industry. Find out more about industrial design at http://www.appliedproductdesign.co.uk/
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