Gaming Console History

When one looks back at just the style of the old gaming consoles, there is very little about them that would compare to the ones that are on the market today.

The First Console

It was in 1967 that the first game console came about. It was created by Ralph H. Baer who earned himself the title of “Father of Video Games”. His creation was comprised of a rather bulky brown box made of wood that was capable of being hooked up to a standard television. It had two large controllers attached to it. The games that created all the excitement in this gaming era were sports like tennis and handball, also volleyball. There were some cheap types of games and ping-pong as well. Surprisingly there was a gun game but compared to those of today it was considered to be minimally invasive.

Magnavox Odyssey

This became what was know as the first office game console for home. It was released in1972. There were no sounds, and the videos were basic.

The Competition Begins

During 1975 and 1977 home game consoles began to climb in popularity mostly as the result of increased productions of these that became competitive. Atari came out with the Atari console in 1973. Then Magnavox did an overhaul of their console and released two better versions. Both with only minimal improvements. Atari was not going to be outdone and continued to produce new consoles. Then other companies joined in the game console industry such as RCA and Coleco along with a few others.

The Arrival of Nintendo

A name that is probably the most well known today that carried forward from the early beginnings is Nintendo. They brought their first video game console out In 1977. Their production of coloured video games could only be bought in Japan.

The Rise of the Popularity of Video Games

It really wasn’t until 1981 through to 1985 that a real boom in the video console market took hold and grew quickly in popularity. This is the era of the well known classic games came about. This included games like Pack Man, Mario Brothers and The Legend of Zelda.

From here on in the console revolved into what it has become today.