In the words of the immortal bards comprising The Who, I am indeed talking about my generation, and specifically how it pertains to the console gaming market. It is interesting to note the steady vicissitudes of consoles, and how gaming trends and technology have incessantly catered to an aging target demographic, whose chief constituents are persons just like me.

When the original Nintendo Entertainment System was released in the United States in 1986, and was able to successfully negotiate economically unstable times (particularly for the home console market) to establish itself as the mainstream frontrunner, much gaming at this time was geared towards young children (myself being the tender age of 6, and resting comfortably in that portion of the social dichotomy, found this development to be quite agreeable).

The Nintendo games were simple in nature, not unlike their Atari counterparts, and thus facilited prepubescent intrigue. However, as this relatively nascent market began to expand and evolve, it was clear that the target audience was also in flux.

Foremost, gaming was not just child's play anymore, as the early to mid-90s saw the inception of more mature content into home video games (such as the violence prevalent in the early Mortal Kombat games, much to the chagrin of parents and Congressmen alike).

Games were often being developed that contained more complex gameplay, or served as the proxy for a skilled raconteur. Again, I found myself the beneficiary of such advancements in the industry, as software developers were striving to attract people of my ilk, by introducing new innovations that would cause teenagers to become even less productive members of society. This effort was furthered with the release of the current generation consoles, and still those children who had coveted their precious Nintendos in days of yore, had all the more reason to continue playing games in their early adulthood.

Now fast forward to the present, in the year 2005, where home consoles have once again precipitated an upward swing in the age of the average gamer. Sports games, like Madden NFL 06 feature actual team playbooks and realistic blitz packages and audible calls, allowing for an incredibly authentic experience, not far removed from a real NFL game.

These games have far advanced from having the ability to score a touchdown every carry with Walter Payton of the 1985 Bears in Tecmo Bowl (Sweetness was not that sweet, after all). Sports only encompasses one of the genres whose style of play has adapted to include all manner of finger gesticulating sophistication. Action and stealth games such as the Metal Gear Solid series utilizes real-life weapons and equipment, as well as close-quarters combat manuevers taught to soldiers in the present day. Role-playing games tackle polemical and adult themes, as is evidenced by the Xenosaga series, which manages to juxtapose egregious Christian references and Nietzschean philosophy. Much of the subject matter that has promulgated itself throughout the industry is mature in nature, and is neither appropriate, nor intended to be appreciated by those younger in age. The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) even contends the average age of today's gamer is placed squarely at thirty. Others studies have variegated results all within the range of a few years under thirty, but all convey a similar conclusion: that gaming is now very much in the realm of the adult. Even some current pricing schemes seem to alienate the adolescent gamer and the parents they would depend on for a console purchase (the speculated 500 dollar price tag of the upcoming Sony Playstation 3), and favor the twenty-something young professional with more disposable income and a proclivity towards gaming.

There is no doubt that more money is being spent on home gaming (up to 7.3 billion dollars last year, rivaling the gross revenues of the movie industry, and nearly double what the gaming market realized in 1996), and I think it's safe to say the vast majority of this substantial sum is not coming from the frenetically smashed piggybank of an effusive eight year old, but rather the wallets, coin bags, purses, man purses (it's European, I swear!), and various electronic accounts of young adults. These are, in fact, the very same people who were once the children marketed to by the gaming industry so many years ago (not unlike yours truly).

In summary, continuing advances in the industry have driven age trends steadily upward, following in close propinquinty to the aging process of my own peers. Speaking as a member of this group, it has been quite a boon to be the recipient of such innovation and always having cutting edge games crafted with my age bracket firmly in mind. After all, this is my generation, baby.