[4] The concept of a "magic circle" draws from the work of Johan Huizinga, who describes the boundaries of play.
[6] Since then the term has become ambiguous, taking on multiple definitions, from using "non standard input devices" to a game that "blends with everyday experiences".
In definitive work by Markus Montola,[4] pervasive games are summarily defined as having "one or more salient features that expand the contractual magic circle of play spatially, temporally, or socially", in other words "expand the boundaries of play".
[8] The program was designed such that computers were to cater to the wishes of the user, being of various sizes, aware of their location and easy to use.
In 1998, Mark Bregman at IBM introduced "pervasive computing" as a commercial aspect where people have quick access to services anytime and anywhere.
The pre-game phase is usually used to reconfigure or author the game to a particular context, for example a location.
Such tools, among other things, can help process the potentially massive amounts of event information game masters must deal with.
Examples of pervasive games include Pokémon Go,[14] Négone,[15] The Killer, The Beast, Shelby Logan's Run, BotFighters, Pac-Manhattan, Uncle Roy All Around You, Amazing Race.
[4] Pervasive game examples built on the EQUIP 2 software architecture, used in Equator and thereafter in IPerG, include Can You See Me Now?, Rider Spoke, Day of the Figurines, and Love City.