1980s: You have to walk to the arcade, you have to stand to play, and you are charged for every minute of play time.
1990s: Computer technology has improved to the point that anyone can have the arcade in their home, you sit to play, and you are charged once for the game and can play for as long as you want.
2010s and onward: Home internet connections are now ubiquitous, enabling instant digital money transactions from anywhere, so the games industry can now nickel and dime you for everything. Video games are casinos. The coin machines are back.
There's a golden age of gaming starting with the introduction of home consoles and ending when they started needing an internet connection.