Get a real job - seeking the “video games” of the future

"If you spend anymore time in front of that thing it’ll give you square eyes!" A phrase no doubt heard the world over by kids in from early 90’s when their parents would be sick of them spending hours playing video games rather than interacting with the real world.

In fact, as video games grew in sophistication and popularity, this sentiment from the generation that just missed the first wave of arcade machines and home computing has only grown stronger. There are countless videos online of fed up parents emptying out their child's video game collection into a wood chipper because they've been "leeching off mum and dad" and "need to move out and go get a job".

It's perfectly reasonable of course for a parent to want their child to fly the nest and start excelling financially and socially, but while some parents have had strong opinions about what kids should be doing with their time and what constitutes "an honest day's hard work", others are now celebrating the success - both financial and social - of the most recent strain of eSports stars.

Only in recent years has gaming got to the stage where individuals the world over could start considering it a viable career choice, looking back to where this community started 40 years ago, the notion that having the highest score on Pac-man could set you up for life would have seemed pretty far-fetched.

So with history once again showing that the youth are the ones who dictate future trends, what should be considered the "video gaming" of today? What is the thing that parents are sick of their kids being glued to that just might be the next mega-industry to rise up in the coming decades?

One fairly well established possibility is short-form video. From Vines to Tik Tok, Snapchat to Instagram and YouTube it seems that there is an endless supply of apps that allow for video clips to be recorded and uploaded, often with a little post-production effects added. While these videos may generally have modest audiences, shared mainly amongst friends, there is big money for anyone able to attract a sizeable audience, with advertising and endorsement revenue pouring in for "influencers" who show their content is worth tuning in for.

It also seems the case that these videos don't even need to be especially well produced or cover particular topics and the key to success can come from anything that is niche. With the whole world online it stands to reason that whatever obscure topic or mix of disciplines you enjoy, there's probably an audience for it.

Aside from the individual though, there are new commercial services being launched such as Quibi which specialises specifically in TV shows with short length episodes. While it may sound like a fad, it does perhaps point to the medium of short-form content being the preference of a growing market. With attention spans dwindling maybe it's time for this new genre, something that is quick and to the point and allows the younger viewer to get to the next thing. At least the investors of Quibi must think so, and so too do Netflix who, with the addition of their adjustable playback speeds now allow viewers to watch TV shows and Movies at up to 1.5 times regular speed. The film industry may not be happy about it and it may seem an odd concept to many, but maybe that's because the younger audience this feature is aimed at aren't yet in control of film production.. Yet.

Maybe these platforms have a deeper link in the consciousness of kids today and many of us simply aren't on the same level? It's odd that given the examples throughout history of the youth driving change that the older generation never seem to see it coming, or is it just a case of trying to hold onto relevance?

Perhaps it's time we paid heed to Bob Dylan's warning from 1964;

Come mothers and fathers throughout the land, and don't criticise what you can't understand. Your sons and daughters are beyond your command, your old road is rapidly aging. Please get outta' the new one if you can't lend a hand, for the times they are a-changin'...