Since 1972, the game system has the really successful game system, the core part has a strong technology, so as to provide some technical foundation for developers contemporaries, it can be realized as the cornerstone of their artistic vision.
However, "the great video game experience can only be built on strong technology" is not accurate - you only need to return to the time we created a whole industry pioneer Pong (the world's first home video game) who can refute the view - but there is no doubt that this view is helpful.
In fact, the game has been frequently challenging possibilities, which prompted many in the field of Hi-Tech technology supplier, especially in the semiconductor field suppliers, continually rethink and create the possibility of consumer electronic devices.
In order to respond to the needs of major game developers, GPU and CPU to almost always faster and more efficient development direction. Screen density increases, the network while wireless technology increases bandwidth, reduces latency, battery technology are making progress, all of which are driven by the demands of the game.
Only once at home or arcade amusement park connected to the grid in order to enjoy things, and now you can carry in your pocket, and you can play all day between charges. It brings the world's most complex, the most exciting technological advances of semiconductor devices only make these cases is achieved, the focus of technological progress is clearly energy efficiency.
You might ask, what energy efficiency is, why is it so important? Now, in the computer to do anything else, consumption of electricity, which uses electron flow to control all devices in extremely small transistors within the chip embedded in the core part, and these devices form part of modern life.
The key is that all the energy required for the switching transistor (i.e., transistor 1 and memory mechanisms behind 0) will be converted into heat. So, when your computer or mobile phone while doing something useful, it performs the work of all the energy consumed by the chip must leave, otherwise it will overheat and stop working.
Energy efficiency can make you do not need to have a loud fan or water cooling system equipped with a video game, you can make energy efficiency anywhere in the smart phone time to play for hours visually rich and exciting games or handheld game machine, and not situation due to the emergence of too hot to touch.
Thus, as we need more computing devices (gaming systems, including those that we cherish and love in the device), the industry also need to attach great importance to progress in power control, and to find new ways to achieve a given power consumption budget to do more things. For the handheld device can pocket their limited power budget, even more so!
Therefore, when you learn Imagination Technologies emphasis on energy efficiency, we will not be surprised. In the Imagination, as we will own a world-class, once run in graphics technology your personal computer or video game steering mobile devices, energy efficiency has always been that we do when promoting the product roadmap and deliver technology to customers over a decade a factor of almost every decision of the highest priority.
Sega (Sega) of the Dreamcast game console is a leading PowerVR graphics technology is a key consumer applications, but also a great success this Japanese game giant. The Dreamcast version NAOMI arcade platform into a home game, after Sega went on to the platform for "Crazy Taxi" (Crazy Taxi), "Dead or Alive 2" (Dead or Alive 2) and "VR tennis" (Virtua Tennis) and other games.
Dreamcast uses a compact design to fit its inner member, which limits the amount of heat inside the chip without additional and expensive cooling systems can be generated by the case, so it is energy efficient GPU a higher requirement. If not required, then Sega hardware partners NEC will not be realized as a game machine designed to do, and you can not make a game machine work smoothly without a fan in the housing situation. Code-named Katana original development kit comes with a fan, but in the end consumer hardware you do not need a fan.
When Sony needed a reliable, low-power GPU to support its PlayStation Portable (PSP) is the successor to PS Vita, we are ready to implement customized solutions PowerVR SGX543MP4 to deal with Sony's stringent specifications. With the support of the PowerVR GPU can play anytime, anywhere "Uncharted" (Uncharted), "Little Big Planet" (LittleBigPlanet) and "Assassin's Creed" (Assassin's Creed) and other games, more versatile compared to the effect of Sony's game console model change is small, and it looks great on the Vita groundbreaking OLED display, these advantages to promote the game machine to succeed on a global scale.
High performance, ideal feature set and energy efficiency we have repeatedly mentioned combined, giving special PS Vita handheld gaming performance levels, Nintendo (Nintendo) took six years to achieve catch-up with its Switch consoles.
Most believe that an objective estimate, in 2020 the size of the mobile end of the game will be more than the sum of computer games and console games, and this incredible market growth, largely derived from the popular smartphones (especially iPhone ) promote the rapid growth of game features.
Our block deferred rendering architecture has incredible energy efficiency, since its launch, it has appeared in every generation of iPhone hardware, so that Apple can produce a compelling first-class gaming platform - including the iPad in a more powerful version - the platform now occupy most of the world's portable game time, whether it is playing "Pokémon GO" (Pokemon Go), " Roblox" or "fortress night" (Fortnite).
From the first PCX1 3D accelerator for personal computers, to the Dreamcast, and then to the handheld gaming experience incredible progress we have achieved in the PS Vita and modern smartphones, these 20 years, our energy efficiency the firm continues to focus on pushing forward the development of their own. Almost all the decisions we took in developing its own product line and the underlying micro-architecture is its effect on performance per watt based.
From the personal computer to the device in your pocket, 20 years gaming experience ever undergone change, and the pursuit of a transistor so that each have to play the best performance has been one of the secret. Today, this is still the key to our product development.
Author: Rys Sommefeldt, Imagination Technologies PowerVR senior director of product management
