The invention of the computer is perhaps the critical achievement in the technological evolution of the human race of these days. Through computing (and the Internet) we have brought the World – and the people of the World – to our very fingertips. And the power and flexibility of computing has adapted itself to every application – especially entertainment: just as the television rapidly became ‘must-have’ entertainment in every home, computers have become our most engaging and captivating playmates.

Almost from the very beginning, computer video games have played a crucial role in bringing astounding computing power to the common people. The yearning for better entertainment has fuelled a race for not only more powerful CPUs every year, but more sophisticated graphics and sound cards – both of which are necessary for the best and most immersive experience in what are increasingly complex and realistic game worlds. Even so, rarely can contemporary hardware realize the latest game`s audio and visual potential to the fullest.

Increasingly sophisticated computer graphics and animation software and hardware controllers technology have also allowed man to realize their flights of fancy in a way that was once the sole province of movies and television, and share it worldwide. Early game art involved static pieces of art, little more than scanned artwork to represent people, places, and things – though the artwork is of much higher quality and produced by veteran artists under strict art direction such as Baldur’s Gate, Icewind Dale, and especially Romance of the Three Kingdoms XI – which boasts almost 1,000 beautiful historically inspired illustrations of male and female warriors, courtiers, and commoners in a feudal China setting. Since then, video games have quickly taken imagination and player engagement to new levels with lifelike animation and attention to light, shadows, gravity, and other laws of physics.

Science fiction and fantasy has always captivated adults and children alike, and computer video game makers have cashed in on the ability to vividly represent in digital art and digital animation what was once described in words and left to vague imagination. Where once words in books had to excite our minds to fill in the blanks, now CVG challenge us to take in all the sights and sounds. And the truly original and innovative game art and concepts in some games expose us to new sights and even new ways of thinking.

With the computer to bring fantasy artwork to life with digital art and senses by means of controllers, video game makers were quick to realize that all the beautiful and incredible artwork could only be enhanced with compelling, touching, thrilling stories. And with the interactivity a computer allows, game players can feel they are part of the story, and indeed determining its outcome with not just choices, but with varying combinations of strategy, strategic and fast thinking, experimentation and problem solving, and of course (but not always) good hand-eye coordination – typically with escalating levels of challenge, forcing the player to grow and improve.

Throughout this evolution, however, the highest quality in digital art and sound for the most vivid experience of fantasy artwork and fantasy game worlds has been foremost. Perhaps as never before, people judged ‘books’ by their cover.

Storytelling combined with increasingly realistic digital reproductions of human protagonists has tried to catch up with the sense of identification and investment we have when we are caught up with the characters in a well-written novel. The lifelike characters – how they move, how their faces display emotion, how they wince with pain – all contribute to an immense involvement on the player`s part, and many games were quick to adopt a first-person point of view for even more immersion when 3D became mainstream.

And combined with the interactivity and choice available in CVGs, people could participate in a story as never before. In such games as Heroes of Might and Magic V, players from all over the world engage in discussions of how to best ‘build’ a powerful or simply interesting character, combining considerations such as game play strategies and innovative and unexpected combinations. And some games offer much more choice in how the heroes develop, sometimes orders of magnitude more. All further enhanced by dynamically changing the character in the game with artwork for weapons, armour, and other equipment.