Minecraft, Fortnite, Tetris, Grand Theft Auto V, Assassin’s Creed, Valorant, and PUBG: Battlegrounds are just a few among many video games that exist in the present gaming world. With advancements in AI, AR&VR, and other technical concepts, Gaming experts are creating video games of all kinds, and this story is never-ending.
Traveling back to the 20th century, when humans evolved with technology, many new inventions took place. It was a turning point, or I would say the beginning of the Gaming world. Introducing “Video Games” into the world.
Video games are considered a noun, and it means “an electronic game in which players control images on a video screen.” in simple terms, I would say “a virtual world where everything is possible,” provided they’re programmed accordingly. Where did it all begin? Where did video games originate from?
The mastermind behind video games? How did they do it? What is considered a video game in the early days? These are just a few questions that I could jot down after thinking about the first video game ever.
“Gamers have been gaming” for quite a lot of time now. Have they ever wondered when it all began? Hopefully yes. But even if you never thought about it, you’re here today to find an answer to this question.
Yes, that’s right, this is the first-ever video game that was developed, named “Tennis for Two” by the famous physicist William Alfred Higinbotham.
The Mastermind
He is no joke. Remember the first-ever nuclear bomb? He and his team invented it. His primary interest includes controlling nuclear arms and weapons. He didn’t want to seek a patent for his game as he didn’t consider it worth a patent, and neither was his government interested in it, but he has 20 other patents on electronic circuits to his credit.
Following his educational background, he graduated from Williams College in 1932. He worked in the radiation laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology after doing graduate work at Cornell University.
Curious to know what he looked like?
There there! That’s him. For 47 years, Mr. Higinbothom lived in Brookhaven until his retirement in the year 1984 as a senior consultant. Everyone loved his game, and they even took turns playing the game.
Tennis for Two (1958)
Can you believe that a game with fewer graphics and very few controls was famous? Taking only hours to design, this game was a hit among the gamers of that era. Well, he just wanted to tell us science was more than experiments, war, and medicines. So that was the beginning of the gaming era. Since then, we’ve had many games that we’ve heard of and others we haven’t heard of.
This game allowed two players to engage in a simulated game of tennis on an oscilloscope screen, which paved the way for many more inventions.
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Spacewar (1962)
Moving on to the year 1962, “Spacewar.” A multiplayer game developed by Steve Russel from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology using a DEC PDP-1 mainframe computer. It works similarly to “Tennis for Two,” enabling two players to control their spaceships and encounter a cosmic dogfight. This was also warmly welcomed by gaming enthusiasts and was widely accepted as the first-ever video game. This game was inspired by a science fiction book by E.E. Doc Smith. Some characteristics match real-world physics too.
“Brown Box” (1966)
Developing numerous test units, Baer and Bob trembly, the technicians of Sanders Associates Inc., invented the prototype for their first-ever game, “Brown Box.” Sanders licensed this game to Magnavox, and then they released it officially as Magnavox Odyssey in 1972.
Well, it was not considered successful due to poor marketing strategies, and Magnavox didn’t give the support it deserved. Eventually leading to its downfall.
Pong (1975)
Bushnell, along with his team player Ted Dabney released Pong in 1972. It was a Ping Pong game. After the Public version had too many flaws, like machine jamming. Atari, formed by Bushnell and Ted Dabney, decided to design a successful home version, and many other companies began to produce their version of this game. With various first gen video games, the most successful one was Coleco Telstar with the help of Ralph Baer.
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Spitfire (1977)
Have you ever heard about Channel F? It is a second-gen video game console for many games like Coleco and Atari2600. Channel F (F stands for “Fun”) built a dogfighting game that aimed at shooting their opponents. This game also provided the “play-against-the-computer” version for single players. Sounds interesting!
These games might not have the same effect on the current games, but they made a huge difference in how the gaming industry works, and this, my friends, cannot be underestimated. Video games have been part of every individual who was born after the video game era, entertaining and challenging their daily performance and a push towards improving themselves on every stage.
All we have to do is appreciate everyone who has played a major role in the technological advancements of our gaming industry and helps people to overcome the “boring” period that everyone faces in their lifetime.
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