What was the first video game ever released?
19992532#1
Following the 1947 invention of the cathode-ray tube amusement device, the earliest known interactive electronic game as well as the first to use an electronic display, the first true video games were created in the early 1950s. Initially created as technology demonstrations, such as the "Bertie the Brain" and Nimrod computers in 1950 and 1951, video games also became the purview of academic research. A series of games, generally simulating real-world board games, were created at various research institutions to explore programming, human–computer interaction, and computer algorithms. These include "OXO" and Christopher Strachey's draughts program in 1952, the first software-based games to incorporate a CRT display, and several chess and checkers programs. Possibly the first video game created simply for entertainment was 1958's "Tennis for Two", featuring moving graphics on an oscilloscope. As computing technology improved over time, computers became smaller and faster, and the ability to work on them was opened up to university employees and undergraduate students by the end of the 1950s. These new programmers began to create games for non-academic purposes, leading up to the 1962 release of "Spacewar!" as one of the earliest known digital computer games to be available outside a single research institute.
Early history of video games
44470422#2
20th Century Fox commenced work on what it planned to be the first ever "Planet of the Apes" video game in 1983. The game was developed for the Atari 2600; John Marvin served as programmer. Marvin completed enough of the work to bring the prototype game through initial playtesting, but he left Fox for a new job at Epyx before finishing the project. The game remained unfinished when Fox closed its video game division three months later amid the video game crash of 1983, and "Planet of the Apes" never saw release.
Revenge of the Apes
41149431#15
Krahulik and Holkins announced the first ever Penny Arcade video game. Titled "On The Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness: Episode One", (which has since been released) and that the game would feature PA characters in episodic adventures. Details were few; when asked what the game was about, Holkins replied "Gabe. Tycho. And Cthulhu."
History of PAX
46928#19
Numerous Forgotten Realms video games were released Between 1990 and 2000. The "Eye of the Beholder" PC game was released in 1990. This game was later followed by two sequels, the first in 1991, and the second in 1992. All three games were re-released for DOS on a single disk in 1995. Another 1991 release was "Neverwinter Nights" on America Online, the first graphical Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG). In 1998, "Baldur's Gate" was released, the first in a line of popular role-playing video games developed by BioWare and "considered by most pundits as the hands-down best PC roleplaying game ever". The game was followed by a sequel, "" in 2000 as well as "Icewind Dale", a separate game that utilized the same game engine as "Baldur's Gate". "" was released in 2001. Several popular Forgotten Realms characters such as Drizzt Do'Urden and Elminster made minor appearances in these games.
Forgotten Realms
2387806#83
There are thirteen "Harry Potter" video games, eight corresponding with the films and books and five spin-offs. The film/book-based games are produced by Electronic Arts, as was "", with the game version of the first entry in the series, "Philosopher's Stone", being released in November 2001. "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" went on to become one of the best-selling PlayStation games ever. The video games were released to coincide with the films, containing scenery and details from the films as well as the tone and spirit of the books. Objectives usually occur in and around Hogwarts, along with various other magical areas. The story and design of the games follow the selected film's characterisation and plot; EA worked closely with Warner Bros. to include scenes from the films. The last game in the series, "Deathly Hallows", was split, with "Part 1" released in November 2010 and "Part 2" debuting on consoles in July 2011. The two-part game forms the first entry to convey an intense theme of action and violence, with the gameplay revolving around a third-person shooter style format.
Harry Potter
5656738#18
At release, critics negatively compared the port to its original arcade form, panning the audio-visuals and gameplay. On May 11, 1982, "Electronic Games Magazine" published its first bad review ever for an Atari video game, saying, "Considering the anticipation and considerable time the Atari designers had to work on it, it’s astonishing to see a home version of a classic arcade contest so devoid of what gave the original its charm". "Video Magazine" admitted it was "challenging, and there are a few visual pluses", before lamenting, "Unfortunately those who cannot evaluate Pac-Man through lover's eyes are likely to be disappointed". The premiere issue of "Video Games Player" from Fall 1982 called Pac-Man "just awful".
Pac-Man (Atari 2600)
19257023#8
In 2013 he worked on the Spike Jonze movie "Her" as animation director on the sequences where the characters are playing video games. His work there inspired him to explore developing real video games for release. His first was "Mountain", released in July 2014 in partnership with Double Fine Productions for personal computers and mobile devices. "Mountain" features little interactivity but allows the player to create and watch a solitary mountain floating in space as it offers its thoughts to the player, and as random objects collide and become embedded within it. It was generally praised by critics, noting it as a subversion what one normally expects for a video game.
David OReilly (artist)
867085#3
As Jarvis worked on pinball games at Williams in the late 1970s, "Space Invaders" was released, sparking great interest in microprocessor video games. Jarvis wanted to try making a video game. When thinking of design ideas with famed pinball designer Steve Ritchie, they developed the concept for "Defender" — a side-scroller with the player flying over the surface of a planet. "Defender" (1980) was Jarvis's first video game and turned out to be a huge hit, helping kick off the golden age of arcade games and eventually becoming one of the highest grossing video games ever. Williams expanded greatly with the success of "Defender", but Jarvis left to found an independent game development firm called Vid Kidz with Larry DeMar in February 1981. After four months of tag-team programming between DeMar and Jarvis, they produced Vid Kidz's first game: "Stargate" (1981), an enhanced sequel to "Defender" that they sold to Williams.
Eugene Jarvis
7225705#14
In 1972, the first commercially available video game console, the Magnavox Odyssey, had a light gun accessory, the Shooting Gallery. This was the first involvement of Nintendo in video games. According to Martin Picard in the "International Journal of Computer Game Research": "in 1971, Nintendo had -- even before the marketing of the first home console in the United States -- an alliance with the American pioneer Magnavox to develop and produce optoelectronic guns for the Odyssey (released in 1972), since it was similar to what Nintendo was able to offer in the Japanese toy market in 1970s".
History of Nintendo
372478#10
In 1971, the arcade game, "Computer Space was released." The following year, Atari, Inc. released the first commercially successful video game, "Pong", the original arcade version of which sold over 19,000 arcade cabinets. That same year saw the introduction of video games to the home market with the release of the early video game console, the Magnavox Odyssey. However, both the arcade and home markets would be dominated by "Pong" clones, which flooded the market and led to the video game crash of 1977. The crash eventually came to an end with the success of Taito's "Space Invaders", released in 1978, sparking a renaissance for the video game industry and paving the way for the golden age of video arcade games. The game's success inspired arcade machines to become prevalent in mainstream locations such as shopping malls, traditional storefronts, restaurants and convenience stores during the golden age. "Space Invaders" would go on to sell over 360,000 arcade cabinets worldwide, and by 1982, generate a revenue of $2 billion in quarters, equivalent to $4.6 billion in 2011.
Video game industry
188580#40
In December 2009, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment announced the first ever "Voltron" video game would be released on mobile phones in the US, including the iPhone. The game would have 30 levels and 6 acts, isometric gameplay and gamers will command robot lions to traverse the galaxy and take on King Zarkon’s evil droid armies. In 2011, "", produced by THQ and Behaviour Interactive, was developed for home console play. A 1-5 player co-op game, it was released on November 29, 2011 for the PlayStation Network and November 30, 2011 for the Xbox Live Arcade. The First Trailer has been announced on IGN.com and tentatively priced at $10. Players will be able fight as the individual lions in an overhead shooter style gameplay to then form Voltron to take on Robeasts in a fighter style combat.
Voltron