There
are many genres of video game, the first commercial video game, Pong was
a simple simulation of table tennis. Increased processing power enabled
the development of action and adventure games which involved a player guiding a character from a third person perspective through a series of obstacles.This
"real-time" element cannot be easily reproduced by a board game, which
is generally limited to "turn-based" strategy; this advantage allows
video games to simulate situations such as combat more realistically.
Additionally the playing of video games does not require the same physical skill, strength and/or danger as a real-world representation of the game, and can provide either
very realistic, exaggerated or impossible physics, allowing for
elements of a fantastical nature, games involving physical violence, or
simulations of sports. Lastly,
a computer can, with varying degrees of success, simulate one or more
human opponents in traditional table games such as chess, leading to simulations of such games that can be played by a single player. In
more open-ended computer simulations, also known as sandbox-style
games, the game provides a virtual environment in which the player may
be free to do whatever they like.