Gaming Consoles History

Gaming Consoles History by Generation

While far from official, gaming consoles history can largely be broken down into seven reasonably distinct generations. It can be a little hard to believe, but commercially-available home video games have been available since the '70s!

1970s: Introducing Pong

The original concept for a video game came from thinking of it as an "interactive television." Pursuing this endeavor, the world was then introduced to the Magnavox Odyssey in 1972. This video game console was certainly crude by today's standards. It was also around this time, in 1975, that saw the introduction of the Atari/Sears Telegames Pong. Most people are more familiar with the arcade version of Pong, as the home version was remarkably expensive.

Early 1980s: Atari and Home Gaming

Home gaming really started to gain in popularity in the early 1980s. It was during this time that several video game systems were popularized, including the Atari 2600. You could say that this was the true start to home gaming consoles history, as the Atari brought us such classics as Defender, Missile Command, and Pitfall. To date, over 30 million Atari 2600 video game systems have been sold worldwide.

Later 1980s: The 8-Bit Era of Nintendo

After the video game crash of 1983, Nintendo rose to the occasion to make home gaming popular again with the introduction of the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), which was known as the Nintendo Family Computer (Famicom) in the country's native Japan. We were better introduced to the character of Mario, the Italian plumber who went on to become Nintendo's mascot.

As the 1980s progressed, Nintendo was also introduced to its first major competitor. Sega started selling the Sega Master System in 1985 in Japan and 1986 in North America. The feud would only develop further in future generations through gaming consoles history.

Early 1990s: Jumping Up to 16-Bit Gaming

Continuing with the rivalry between the two firms, the Sega Mega Drive (Sega Genesis) was launched in 1988, followed shortly afterward by the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) in 1990. Marketing the two systems really went into high gear over the next few years. Sega proclaimed that its system did what "Nintendon't" via a feature called "Blast Processing."

Comparing game footage of Sonic the Hedgehog and Super Mario World, it was clear that Sega wanted to prove its system was faster and more powerful. Nintendo largely stood its ground, but the competition was incredibly fierce. Both systems were 16-bit, representing a significant increase over the 8-bit era which preceded it.

Late 1990s: The Emergence of PlayStation

The next generation of home gaming consoles history brought about a lot more competition, as several companies entered the fray. Alongside the new Nintendo 64 (N64) and Sega Saturn were a number of notable entries into the marketplace, including the 3DO Interactive Multiplayer and Atari Jaguar.

Perhaps the most important innovation was the unveiling of the first Sony PlayStation. Originally designed as part of a project for Nintendo, Sony went on to create its own video game system instead and enjoyed many years of success after that. Whereas the Nintendo 64 still relied on cartridges, the PSX (or PSone) used a CD-ROM.

Early 2000s: Goodbye to Bit-Counts

Up until then, it seemed that the defining factor for many video game systems was the bit-count. After the 8-bit NES, we saw the 16-bit Sega Genesis, 32-bit Sony PlayStation, and 64-bit Nintendo 64. Entering the sixth generation, bit-counts were no longer a matter of concern.

Approaching the new millennium, we saw the ill-fated Sega Dreamcast, the DVD-running Sony PlayStation 2, and the first Xbox, as well as the Nintendo GameCube. Nintendo was largely a shadow of its former self, not garnering nearly as much market share as it once enjoyed.

Current Generation: Xbox 360, Sony PS3, Nintendo Wii

Today, we have a whole new generation of options for playing video games at home. Some people are faced with the decision of choosing between the Wii or PS3, whereas many others have continued supporting Microsoft with the Xbox 360.

Nintendo has truly revitalized itself with the Wii, introducing more casual gameplay into the household. The PS3, on the other hand, is pushing the technological envelope with incredible Blu-ray technology. The Xbox 360 is perhaps best known for its terrific Xbox Live online gameplay implementation. No matter which system you choose (or all three of the above), you're bound to have a great time.