The History of Video Games

THE BASICS

"I want some crumpets and tea!" Welcome to our world. Before we start your tour through time, here is a simple thing. First, all of things called bits (ie. 16-bit), are really Megabytes of RAM (Random-Acess-Memory). This is the reason that things took a long time to progress. In 1983, makers of an 8-bit game such as Super Mario Bros. had little memory to work with. They had 8 megabytes for sound, graphics, worlds, and control. Now, developers have up to 68 megabytes to work with now that Nintendo unvield its expansion pack. Soon people will have 128 megabytes. WOW!!

Early Years

HEY!!!!!! You have entered the history of games. A lot of interesting things happened here. There were good times and rough times. Classic games and failures. Remakes that brought no interest. Just remember, when all else fails, there is always Pong!! First, it all started out with huge arcade games. They were HUGE!!! No joke. The first game ran on a computer that was the size of a small house!! Its name was Spacewar, released in 1961.

In 1966 Sega, short for Services and Games came out with its first game- THE PERISCOPE. At first I was released with Pong in our own game in 1972 as a normal arcade game, looking like a normal arcade game you can find today. In 1974 I became a home system. Hundreds of thousands of my buddy and I were sold.

This is a sample of how Pong looked like. Two paddles on either side would knock a tiny ball at each other, trying to force each other to miss. It was simple but hugely popular. Newer, more advanced versions are still made today. In fact, by going to the Links page, you can play some versions online for free!
"wuz up on the west side!!!" Other companies began making home systems, all trying to advance on Pongs landmark achievements. Nothing really took off. In 1976 Exidy games made Deathrace where cars won by running over the most stick figures. By then the country was beginning to revolt on video game violence. Soon, the video game industry made a major advancement with the first major console game in which you could play different games simultaneously. It was the Atari 2600(In time, Atari introduced the 5200, 7800, and 400, 800, and 1200 home computers).
This was very popular for 9 years (from 1977 to around 1983) until the gaming industry completely crashes. Big games like best-seller Asteroids, PAC Man, Donkey Kong, and Frogger are nearly forgotten. Before that though, Battlezone was released which in time was enhanced by the government for military training. In 1981, the first and only fatality ever recorded because of a video game was where a man died because of a heart attack while playing a game called Berserk. In 1982, Ms. Pac-Man was released. It is still a favorite of people.

MAKING A COMEBACK

Many thought video games were a fad and their theory was almost proved until the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) came out in 1986. It was launched with landmark game Super Mario Bros. In many versions, Duck Hunt came out. This was totally revolutionary because of the gun that came with it. Fire at the screen and if you have good aim, the duck will crash down to the ground.
At this time, Sega Master was released. It was not nearly as popular as the NES. In 1987 came the Legend of Zelda, the game which started a series that has been insanely popular and has had different games in the saga in multiple consoles of Nintendo's. In 1988, the biggest selling puzzle game, Tetris, was released. It was and instant success. In 1989, Nintendo released the Game Boy, a small handheld system to play most black-and-white games. (also made in the Game Boy series was the Game Boy Pocket, Super Game Boy, and new Game Boy Color). In 1990, the third and final Mario game for the NES was released, Super Mario 3. It is the biggest selling game of all time.
In 1991, the Super Nintendo (SNES) was released at the same time as the Sega Genesis. Super Mario World and Sonic the Hedgehog battle it out for king of the 16 bit system. The public leaned toward Mario as the main character in the world of 16 bit games. Other games for the Sega included Echo the Dolphin, Super Monaco GP, and other games in the Sonic Series. The SNES included games like Super Mario all-stars, Donkey Kong Country, and more games in the Zelda series.

"I AM GOING TO PARIS AFTER THIS!!"

THE BLUE PERIOD IN VIDEO GAMES

As time passed, more games systems came out, most of them mediocre. These included the Sega CD, which had a bad experience with slow loading times and choppy graphics. Nintendo was planning to make a CD system compatible with the Phillips CD-i. Sony, upset over this, finished its last SNES games and then scrapped the PlayStation for Nintendo to make a new 32 bit system.
Before this new system came out the 3DO introduced the newest 32 bit technology in 1993. It was supposedly impossible to dethrone as the king of technology but ended up failing. The same time Atari released the Jaguar the first 64 bit system with graphics equal to that of the Genesis. Lame games from small companies caused the end of the system almost before the beginning. Also going on was the investigation from senators Joseph Liberman and Herbert Kohl, believing that video game violence was on the rise and that some should not be sold to kids. They believed that blood and gore was instigating violent acts by children, trying to be their favorite character.
In 1994 the 32X and Super Game Boy were released from Sega and Nintendo. The 32X was attached to the Genesis and had games that had 32 bit graphics displayed with much better display, speed and other things. The Super Game Boy was attached to the SNES so that the Game Boy games could be played in full color with better graphics. The 32X had no impact and the Super Game Boy was, though better, had a small effect on the gaming world.

NOW IN VIDEO GAMES

1994 also had the launchings of Sega Saturn and Sony Playstation in Japan. These two were 32
+bit consoles that ran on CD-roms. It was a revolutionary time for video games, though sales were very low compared to those of earlier years. 1995 brought these two systems over to the US and Nintendo released the Virtual Boy, a thing to keep people from getting impatient over the delays of "Project Reality," renamed Ultra 64. It had terrible sales, and production stopped almost before it started. During this time, the Jaguar just kept slipping. Sega, with numerous additions to old systems, decided to kill the Neptune something to connect the Genesis to the Saturn.


Super Mario 64 was shown to the public, and though people were amazed, they thought not enough games were going to be made. The next year prices were dropped for the Playstation and Saturn, and new improved games just kept coming. Nintendo sold its billionth cartridge, and 16 bit games were dumped from store shelves. Games such as the Tekken series do well, and some highly anticipated games bombed. The Nintendo 64 is released and in a period of three months, 1.7 people bought this console. Mario 64 is a total hit, but sales drop dramatically because there are not nearly enough games made. Sony stays on top.
In 1997 Sony and Nintendo again drop prices, and Saturn becomes desperate and gives away its best selling games with the purchase of a console.

THE FUTURE IN VIDEO GAMES

Games continue to be made with more technology, advanced accessories, and experiences more realistic than your life. Games like Zelda 64, with the standard setting high quality graphics, will be like Pong is now in a few years, a trend setter that eventually will be some of the worst graphics compared to that of the 128 bit Sega Dreamcast, and the new 128 bit system from Playstation, not yet released, are expected to set the standards for video games. These are going to be expensive, yet with internet access to play with friends, the sound won't be matched and will have some of the most advanced computer technology. But, whatever you do, always remember me -- PONG!!!

Thanks to: http://library.thinkquest.org/5153/History.htm