-
Sega
In 1951 Sega was launched -
Pong
A coin-op arcade game by Atari Inc
Based on table tennis
First game to gain widespread popularity - launched the industry boom
Led to a successful patent-infringement lawsuit from the Magnavox Odyssey -
Period: to
First Generation
-
1974 - Gran Track 10
A single-player racing arcade game by Atari
Player races against the game clock, accumulating points
Early diode-based ROM was used
Controls, steering wheel, shifter, accelerator, and brake pedals were all firsts for arcade games -
8bit home systems
-
Fairchild Channel F
The world's second cartridge-based video game console, after the Magnavox Odyssey Sold for $169.95 Originally called Video Entertainment System (VES), but when Atari released VCS, it was renamed -
Period: to
second gen gaming
By the mid-1970s cartridges moved to CPU-based consoles
Games now consisting of microprocessor-based code; games burned onto ROM chips mounted inside plastic cartridge casings that could be plugged into slots on the console
Consumers could acquire large libraries of game cartridges -
Atari 2600
Popularized game cartridges - popular in the 1980s
Originally Atari VCS; later changed to "Atari 2600" in 1982, after the release of Atari 5200 Two joysticks, two paddle controllers, and a cartridge game - initially Combat later Pac-Man -
Chuck E Cheese’s
First family entertainment centers aimed at young children
Pizza restaurant with arcade games, amusement rides, an animatronics show, climbing equipment, tubes, and slides
Helped improve the image of video games -
Space Invaders
Created in Japan - later licensed in US
Shooting game - players defeat waves of aliens with a laser and earn points
So successful it caused a temporary shortage of coins in Japan
Grossed $2 billion worldwide by 1982
Pixilated alien has become a pop culture icon, often used as a symbol representing video games as a whole -
astroids
-
Pac Man
Namco - considered among the most famous arcade games of all time
Became a social phenomenon that sold related merchandise and inspired an animated television series and a top-ten hit single
Appealed to both genders
Generated more than $2.5 billion in quarters by the 1990s
Highest brand awareness of any video game character -
Donkey Kong
By Nintendo - platform
Move the character across a series of platforms while dodging and jumping over obstacles
Rescue a damsel in distress from a giant ape - Donkey Kong
The hero and ape became two of Nintendo's most popular characters
Nintendo licensed to Coleco, which developed home console versions
Dominated the market in the 1980s and early 1990s -
Froggers
Move frogs home by crossing a busy road and navigate a river - skillful players obtain bonuses
A classic - noted for its novel gameplay and theme
Used two Z80 processors
By 2005, sold 20 million worldwide, 5 million in the US -
Galaga
Fixed-shooter game
Control a space ship while aliens fly in formation and come down at the player's ship to either shoot or collide
Players fire at enemies, and once all enemies are vanquished, at which point the player moves to the next stage -
Tron
Game was based on the Disney movie
A computer hacker is trapped inside a digital world and forced to participate in gladiatorial-type games -
Q-Bert
By Gottlieb
Isometric platform with puzzle elements where the player controls the character from a third-person perspective
Object is to make all cubes the same color
Uses a joystick -
Pole Position
Arcade racing by Atari
Most popular coin-op arcade game of 1983
Use a steering wheel and a gear shifter for low and high gears
Featured an accelerator and brake pedal -
1984 - Video Game Crash
ET games -
Tetris
Tile-matching from the Soviet Union
Name is from the Greek numerical prefix tetra- four segments
Electronic Gaming Monthly's 100th issue had Tetris in first place as "Greatest Game of All Time“
For Commodore 64 and IBM PC
Sold more than 70 million copies
In January 2010, it was announced that Tetris has sold more than 100 million copies for mobile phones alone since 2005 -
NES
8-bit console by Nintendo
Most successful of its time; sold over 60 million worldwide
Helped revitalize the US industry following crash of 1984 - set the standard for consoles
First console to play and openly court third-party developers
Slogan "Now You're Playing With Power!" -
Nintendo's Wii
