The year 2013 was a big big year for the gaming industry. From social gaming seeing a new high, and smart phones becoming the major hub of coolest games, to the launch of the two biggest consoles- barely a week apart, 2013 proved to be a significant year for the gaming industry. Innovators were seen pushing the envelope in every segment to surge the industry ahead.

Let’s look at some of the trends which will drive the gaming industry in 2014.

PC gaming will find new life

PlayStation and Xbox One dominated the living room space in 2014, but with manufactures starting to release the new found Steam machines, the PC gaming just turned to be more delightful and accessible experience. With notable releases of Steam machines by valve, the year saw a tremendous growth in the PC gaming, and with Valve gearing up to launch Steam Controller, 2014 is going to be tremendously exciting for PC gaming.

Apple to provide new avenues for gamers

iPhone and iPad have been the most popular smartphones for gaming. With such huge fan base, we won’t be surprised if apple will try to leverage this opportunity to turn the users in playing games on Apple smart HDTV sets. Techies all over the world are looking forward for some great built in-game features on the much rumored Apple Smart TV which allows users to play the biggest game hits on these TV sets. Users will be thrilled if they can play Angry Birds or Where’s my water on the Apple TV using their iPhone or an iPad. The year can also see great innovation in gamepad accessories that work with iPad and iPhone devices.

Radical changes in Free-To-Play games

Free-to-play games will continue to rule the gaming platforms. It will be no surprise if console gaming follows the footsteps and emerge with its own version of F2P. Of course, the free tag sometimes becomes a facade to entice the players to spend more money through in-app purchases, be it buying of exciting power-ups or more lives for the players. Freemium‎ model definitely paved the way to make mobile games accessible to a larger user base, allowing them to enjoy the thrills of mobile gaming, and leaving the decision on players whether they want to shell out more money or not.

Cloud Gaming

Since the big announcement of Sony to launch cloud gaming powered by Gaikai, Players are waiting with bated breath, to play their PS3 games on the new PS4. The service will allow the players to access the library of critically acclaimed games of PS3. Cloud gaming being the next possible step for major players, it is believed Microsoft will soon flag its cloud gaming services, but the big new is yet to hit the markets.

Games will come one step closer to reality

The much touted Oculus Rift headset is the most awaited reality gaming device of year 2014. This future gaming device is expected to change how we play and experience the games. It promises to make games immersive than ever before. Since its multi-dollar Kick starter campaign, Oculus Rift is trending as the most sought after gaming device. It is out there to challenge every attempt at virtual reality games made in the past. Let’s hope that the device will live to its hype and give us an unforgettable gaming experience. The power of this powerful device has been barely scratched as developers all over the world are looking to fully utilize the hardware.

More and more mobile games

The mobile gaming space is steadily increasing its hold on the gaming industry. With so many smartphones, the mobile games have managed to outshine the console gaming sales. With consoles not getting any cheap, and a slew of cheap smart phones available in market dedicated to making mobile games better, mobile games are sure to grow in 2014 .The games will be better, the gameplay immersive and graphics will be heightened to give surreal experience to the new generation of the mobile game lovers.

Social Gaming

With casual gamers fully using the power of social media like Facebook and Twitter , Social gaming has seen a great uprise in 2013, and with consoles using Twitch to record, edit and share gaming clips right from the their consoles, Social gaming has unleashed its full power on the gaming community. Social gaming has big plans for 2014 where it will take the gaming community on a big ride to share and enjoy games like never before.

With 2013 coming to an end, gaming industry is showing no signs of slowing down, but it is lowering every technical barrier to make the games even more immersive, entertaining and innovating.We will have to wait and watch to see what exciting new developments the year 2014 has in store for us.