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Video games have not only changed from the tiny blips on a black screen in the 1980s to the realistic graphics known today, but they are also changing the electronics business as a new entertainment technology marketable to the masses.

For the better part of Blockbuster Inc.'s 23-year career as the number one video rental chain, they have been known for movies. But as online downloading and DVD rental-by-mail competition has cut into the company's profit, it has shifted a large portion of its business to a new avenue: gaming.

Last year the company switched from just having rental games to carrying the complete package, said Danny Harris, Blockbuster district manager for the Cincinnati area.

The stores now carry all of the current gaming systems — Nintendo Wii, Microsoft's Xbox 360 and the Sony PlayStation 3 — as well as accessories, equipment and games to rent or purchase, he said.

"It's been very successful so far," Harris said. "You would be surprised how many different kinds of people want to play games today, especially with the Wiis right now. There are a lot of elderly people who want to buy the Wii because they can play games and get the energy with it like exercising."

Meanwhile, executives from the No. 2 rental chain, Hollywood Video, are discussing the fate of the chain, which has "experienced a sharp decline in our rental business," CEO Joe Malugen said in a statement.

However, their Game Crazy brand continues to generate "solid profits," leaving the possibility of discontinuing the Hollywood Video brand and sticking with the video game business instead, he said.

An addictive business

Middletown resident Christian Roark, 28, said he's spent hundreds of dollars upgrading his PC computer to better play his favorite game, World of Warcraft.

"Pretty much I go to work, I go home and I play it until I go to bed and then repeat the process," he said.

The obsession constantly drives a wedge between Roark's relationship with his wife and four children, but "it's an addiction. I've never been on drugs, but I imagine it's like that," he said.

He's tried to quit several times, even going so far as to sell his characters online at a site called auctionbay.com for more than $200 — a common business but strictly forbidden by maker Blizzard Entertainment.

Despite the taboo, gamers have been known to sell characters for more than $1,000 if they've reached the maximum experience level and carry all the best gear for playing.

For instance, a night elf rogue character named Zeuzo carrying two extremely rare swords as well as other hard-to-find gear sold for $9,700 in Great Britain, according to the game's Web site.

World of Warcraft — a never-ending game where players are offered new challenges daily — has more than 10 million subscribers and raked in $296.97 million for Blizzard in the first-quarter 2008. The company is set to release its second expansion pack, Wrath of the Lich King, later this year.

A new (expensive) family activity

Since Joe Lonicker, 32, was a child, he said he has loved playing video games. He lived through the Atari years and Nintendo system revolution. Now he fosters the same love of games in his two children.

"I am remodeling our basement into a gamers' haven with a bar, home theater and multiple high-end gaming PCs which I also build on my own," he said.

For his family's gaming pleasure, Lonicker has purchased thousands of dollars in equipment, including a 61-inch HDTV, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, two Nintendo DS systems, two Sony PSPs and five gaming PCs.

It's how the family spends quality time, Lonicker said.

"We use them to play (online and strategy) games together," he said.

Helping children, elderly

At Little Psychological Services, PLLC in Kentucky, psychologist Laurie Little and her husband, Kirk, have been using video games to help treat serious ailments.

"(We use video games) as a treatment option for both children and adults for a variety of conditions such as Attention Deficit Disorder, migraines, depression and anxiety," Laurie Little said.

In general, 66 percent of parents who have a child ages 3-11 said they believe video games help their children learn if they contain some educational content, according to a new survey by ConsumerQuest.