After reading through Newman’s chapter about ball and paddle games, I instantly thought of the past and thought of the impact of technology on society. With the rapid rate at which technology has been expanding, the numerous amounts of revolutionary video game consoles that have been released are growing in number as time goes on; Having started with the ball and paddle games like pong, compared to modern games such as Half Life: Alyx, a realistic virtual reality game where you basically can control a human being in video game world. In virtual reality games, the amount of immersive controls that are available to the player stack up, making me ask the question; how much more immersive can a video game get. VR games are completely changing the landscape of video games in general, shifting the area immensely, adding in new controls, a VR headset and controller, and much more. However, I think of this quote from Newman’s chapter that challenges some of my thoughts about the progression of video games, and their purpose. “Ball and paddle games carried on a tradition of family play in domestic space, but they also transformed the typically feminized space of the home into a playground for masculine competition and technological innovation” (Newman, 209). To start, there were many progressions in video games to name just from this quote. For instance, I never really thought of how all early games were played; in the family room, on the one television in the house. Back then, I could sense the competitive nature of video games in relation to how it is today. Even though this is one of the more obvious shifts in technology, it plays a role in why video games were considered to be a masculine hobby. Firstly, since the first video games were sports games, the sense of competition was drawn to the male gender. No early games allowed for female gamers to really connect with the game that they are playing. Most girls would end up taking part in other hobbies due to the lack of technology not allowing them to connect to something virtually. Hence, as technology expanded, so did the growth of more female gamers. More platforms are evolving for everybody to feel comfortable while gaming. More games are available for console that can relate, ad connect to not only female gamers, but the LGBTQ community as well. With more controls to control a game with nowadays, it is easier for somebody to feel connected to a game’s narrative and its character. As time goes on, more systems will be introduced, and more people will start gaming. Even the more simple and basic games such as mobile apps will remain popular because they still attract an audience. My mother will play her phone games for a few hours a day because of the simplicity to them, and their relaxing nature. It doesn’t have to take being the new VR game Half Life to become immersed in a video game; it could be as simple as pong.