5 games that sparked the 'casual' player movement

Now more than ever, the line drawn between the ‘gamer’ and the ‘non-gamer’ is incredibly blurred

The gaming industry is arguably one of the most diverse in the world. It represents a dynamic, shifting, and multitalented environment in which developers and tech giants are continuously pushing forward, creating and catering to gamer trends, and working to achieve new levels of gameplay that only augment interest in the world of gaming.

Perhaps one of the most profitable arenas within this industry is in the casual player market, which symbolises something of a gateway into the wider world of Triple-A titles and dedicated gaming platforms, and represents an incredibly varied and lucrative market on phones, tablets, and non-gaming PCs.

Since the release of the first wave smartphones, the casual player movement has been gaining momentum at an unprecedented rate year upon year. Here are just ten of those seminal titles that continue to introduce the ‘non-gamers’ to the wider world of gaming.

The Online Casino

From PC to mobile, the world of the online casino has retained its position at the forefront of the gaming industry for more than two decades now. Developers are forever creating new and immersive gameplay styles that evoke the same level of excitement as the real-deal, and enable the industry to thrive among casual and professional gamers alike. The sheer velocity with which this industry evolved has new and seasoned fans alike turning to sites like Dogslots, which sources the latest slots games from around the web to ensure gameplay optimised for players.

Angry Birds

First released onto the App Store back in 2009, this puzzle game managed to marry together simple, easy-to-learn mechanics with ever more difficult levels, making it accessible to new gamers, and just compelling enough to keep them hooked without growing frustrated and throwing in the towel.

The Sims

First released back in February of the year 2000, The Sims offered an entertaining simulation-style game that did not rely on a player’s dexterity or perseverance to create an immersive style of gameplay. Instead, fans could create their own worlds from scratch and lose themselves within the stories they created for their characters, and with the release of Sims 2, 3, 4 – and, of course, the highly anticipated release of The Sims 5, rumoured for 2021 – this franchise continues to draw in creative players seeking an absorbing title free from the high-pressure, high-stakes environments found in other popular genres.

Pokémon Go

Very few of us were able to remain ignorant of the initial wave of interest in Pokémon Go back in 2016. The game managed to exhibit the latest in augmented reality tech in a way that appealed to long-running fans of the franchise, and newcomers alike. It brought gaming out into the open – literally – and offered a compelling entrance into the world of casual, mobile gaming for many people who, until then, would not have considered themselves ‘gamers’.

Mario Kart

Mario Kart is widely regarded as one of Nintendo’s most successful games. At a time when gaming remained something of a niche, it introduced a new wave of players to the world of communal gameplay. While the mechanics were easy to learn – and showed off the Wii’s motion sensing capabilities which were, at the time, relatively new to the scene – the unpredictable nature of the game meant that players continued to return, even years after its initial release. Now, Nintendo continues to release new editions for fans that will continue to draw non-gamers into the world of gaming.

Now more than ever, the line drawn between the ‘gamer’ and the ‘non-gamer’ is incredibly blurred. The vast majority of us have now dipped into the world of gaming, and cherry picked those titles which appeal to us, meaning that the casual gamer movement continues to gain momentum each and every year.