-
1950
computer scientists began designing simple games and simulations on mainframe computers, with MIT's Spacewar! -
early 1970
first consumer ready video game hardware. the first home video game console, the Magnavox Odyssey, and the first arcade video games, Computer Space and Pong, -
mid 1970
low-cost programmable microprocessors replaced the discrete transistor–transistor logic circuitry of the early hardware, and the first ROM cartridge-based home consoles arrived, including the Atari Video Computer System (VCS). Coupled with rapid growth in a golden age of arcade video games with titles such as Space Invaders and Pac-Man, the home console market also flourished. -
1983
A major crash of the United States home video game market occurred in 1983 as the market was flooded by too many games and the sector saw competition from inexpensive personal computers and new types of games being developed for them -
1985
Nintendo released its Nintendo Entertainment System in the United States in 1985 -
late 1980s early 1990s
The latter part of the 1980s and early 1990s saw video games driven by improvements and standardization in personal computers, and the console war competition between Nintendo and Sega as they fought for market share in the United States. -
1990s
The first major handheld video game consoles appeared in the 1990s, led by Nintendo's Game Boy platform. -
early 1990s
The early 1990s saw two major shifts in technology, the introduction of optical media via CD-ROMs, and the ability to perform real-time polygonal 3D graphic rendering -
late 1990s
By the late 1990s, the Internet also gained widespread consumer use, and video games began incorporating online elements -
early 2000
Microsoft entered the console hardware market in the early 2000s with its Xbox line, fearing that Sony's PlayStation positioned as both a game console and entertainment device would displace personal computer. Nintendo opted to focus on innovative gameplay, and developed the Wii with motion-sensing controls, which helped to draw in non-traditional players and helped to resecure Nintendo's position in the industry; Nintendo followed this same model in the release of the Nintendo Switch. -
2000-2010
From the 2000s and into the 2010s, the industry has seen a shift of demographics as mobile gaming on smartphones and tablets displaced handheld consoles, and casual gaming had become an increasing larger sector of the market, as well as a growth in the number of players from China and other areas not traditionally tied to the industry.