Wearable gaming devices are starting to make a bigger impact on the gaming market. Addictive mobile apps and online casinos especially have begun to find ways to synergise with this modern technology. The smartwatch in particular is a sector of the wearables market which, after some initial misgivings from critics, is finding ways to improve its gaming experience.
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When the smartwatch first came about, it faced criticism as a gaming platform because of its size. The main problem was that by touching the screen, you would block your view of the game. Most smartwatches come with the option of using the touch screen or pressing buttons at the side. They can also be used in tandem with smartphones and tablets for gaming purposes. These are just a couple of ways the developers used to try and rectify the problem.
But there is also an innovative plan in place to enhance the way the screen is manipulated that could be a major breakthrough. Skin track technology is sure to be the future of smartwatch gaming, as it allows players to use their arm as a touch pad, giving them a full, unobstructed view of the screen. Games like Angry Birds and Candy Crush that enjoyed such success on mobile are sure to exploit this feature, along with casino games.
Online casinos have always been at the forefront of new technology, working out ways to enhance their games and allow players to play them on various platforms, wherever they are in the world. For example, there are a number of 32Red roulette games for Aussie players that can be enjoyed on either desktop, mobile, tablet, or smartwatch. Casino Mate is another online casino that has understood how lucrative it can be to span across various platforms, and players get a 100% match up bonus upon downloading their app and depositing funds. The roulette game available at 32Red is a century-old classic based on the original wheel pioneered by Francois Blanc, and players get $32 free on every $10 deposited when they join. Playing these games on the move is easy on mobile, and the site has detailed instructions about how to download the smartphone app and play. Players play roulette on the move by tapping the screen of their mobile or tablet. This could be even easier and more enjoyable using the skin track technology on a smartwatch – maybe players could have the thrill of spinning the wheel themselves?
Sites that specialise in slot games, like Jackpot City, could improve their experience by branching out to smartwatch gaming as well. Using skin touch technology they could enhance the side games, or harking back to the original one-armed bandits, players could swipe an imaginary lever on their arms.
A brief history
Smartphones are the platform of choice for most gamers now, but smart watches could soon take over. Companies have been dabbling with watches that double up as game playing platforms and calculators since the 1980s. The Casio Data Bank series and the Data 2000 watch from Seiko were two of the better known offerings. With so many watch wearers in the world, the item has frequently been at the forefront of new technology. But as mobile phones rose in prevalence, fewer people continued to wear watches. Research from Erinn Murphy of Piper Jaffray found that in 2014, 440 million people worldwide were still wearing watches, a figure greatly diminished from the estimated 900 million ten years prior to that. However, it is still a fairly significant number, and Apple is estimating that in the near future these figures will rise once again.
This is because the latest smartwatches can do so much more than their predecessors, and are now, in essence, wearable computers. Just as the mobile phone took over from the watch years ago, could the tides be about to shift once again? If watches can do all the same things and are easier to carry around, then why not? Interestingly, in the Apple watch’s debut year, the sales were double those of the iPhone’s first assault on the market. Part of what helped the iPhone take the world by storm was the amount of new and addictive games available to play on it. If smartwatches can follow in the footsteps of mobile and also tap into this huge area of the market, then they too could be about to boom. What is sure to be a contributing factor to their potential success is how the massive online casino market embraces the technology.
The future
The stage is set for the smartwatch to be the platform for some really innovative enhancements to games that players already know and love. As the skin track technology and other developments come into play, wearable gaming is sure to hit the big time. Who knows, watches may soon reign supreme over the smartphone, and once again become an essential item.
[photo credits: LWYang & clsnky]
