History of video games
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2008-07-15T10:03:59Z
MattieTK
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Reverted edits by [[Special:Contributions/124.106.115.73|124.106.115.73]] to last version by 24.18.150.115 (using [[WP:HG|Huggle]])
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{{VG history}}
'''[[Video game]]s''' were introduced as a commercial entertainment medium in [[1971 in video gaming|1971]], becoming the basis for an important entertainment industry in the late 1970s/early 1980s in the United States, Japan, and Europe. After a disastrous [[North American video game crash of 1983|industry collapse in 1983]] and a subsequent rebirth two years later, the [[video game]] industry has experienced sustained growth for over two decades to become a $10 billion industry, which rivals the motion picture industry as the most profitable entertainment industry in the world.
==Origins==
{{main|First video game}}
A device called the ''[[Cathode ray tube|Cathode-Ray Tube]] Amusement Device'' was [[United States patent law|patented in the United States]] by [[Thomas T. Goldsmith Jr.]] and [[Estle Ray Mann]].<ref>{{Cite patent|US|2455992}}, also available from http://www.jmargolin.com/patents/2455992.pdf</ref> The patent was filed on [[January 25]], [[1947]] and issued on [[December 14]], [[1948]]. It described using eight [[vacuum tube]]s to simulate a missile firing at a target and contains knobs to adjust the curve and speed of the missile. Because [[computer graphics]] could not be drawn electronically at the time, small targets were drawn on a simple overlay and placed on the screen.
[[Image:Tennis for Two - Screen.png|right|thumb|''[[Tennis for Two]]'']]
In February [[1951]], [[Christopher Strachey]] tried to run a [[draughts]] programme he had written for the NPL Pilot ACE. The program exceeded the memory capacity of the machine and by October, Strachey had recoded his program for a machine at Manchester with a larger memory capacity.
''[[OXO]]'', a graphical version of [[tic-tac-toe]], was created by [[A.S. Douglas]] in [[1952]] at the [[University of Cambridge]], in order to demonstrate his thesis on human-computer interaction. It was developed on the [[EDSAC]] computer, which uses a [[cathode ray tube]] displaying memory contents as a visual display. The player competes against the computer (which incorporates basic [[Artificial Intelligence]]) using a [[rotary dial]].
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In [[1958]] [[William Higinbotham]] created a game using an [[oscilloscope]] and analog computer.<ref name="1983magazine">{{cite web
| author=John Anderson
| title=WHO REALLY INVENTED THE VIDEO GAME?
| url=http://www.atarimagazines.com/cva/v1n1/inventedgames.php
| work=[http://www.atarimagazines.com Atari Magazines]
| accessdate=November 27
| accessyear=2006}}</ref> Aptly titled ''[[Tennis for Two]]'', it was used to entertain visitors of the [[Brookhaven National Laboratory]] in [[New York]].<ref>{{cite web
| author=Unknown
| title=The First Video Game
| url=http://www.bnl.gov/bnlweb/history/higinbotham.asp
| work=[http://www.bnl.gov Brookhaven National Laboratory]
| accessdate=November 27
| accessyear=2006}}</ref> ''Tennis for Two'' showed a simplified [[tennis court]] from the side, featuring a [[gravity]]-controlled ball that needed to be played over the "net", unlike its successors. The game was played with two box-shaped controllers, both equipped with a knob for [[trajectory]] and a button for hitting the ball.<ref name="1983magazine" /> ''Tennis for Two'' was exhibited for two seasons before its dismantlement in [[1959]].<ref>{{cite web
| author=Unknown
| title=Video Games – Did They Begin at Brookhaven?
| url=http://www.osti.gov/accomplishments/videogame.html
| work=[http://www.osti.gov Office of Scientific & Technical Information]
| accessdate=November 27 | accessyear=2006}}</ref>
== 1960s ==
The majority of [[early]] [[computer game]]s ran on [[university]] [[mainframe computer]]s in the [[United States]] and were developed by individuals as a hobby. The limited accessibility of early computer [[hardware]] meant that these games were small in number and forgotten by posterity.{{Fact|date=April 2008}}
[[Image:Spacewar1.png|left|thumb|180px|''[[Spacewar!]]'' is credited as the first widely available and influential computer game.]]
In [[1961]], a group of students at [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|MIT]], including [[Steve Russell]], programmed a game titled ''[[Spacewar!]]'' on the [[PDP-1|DEC PDP-1]], a new computer at the time. The game pitted two human players against each other, each controlling a [[spacecraft]] capable of firing missiles, while a [[black hole]] in the center of the screen created a large hazard for the crafts. The game was eventually distributed with new DEC computers and traded throughout the then-primitive [[History of the Internet|internet]]. ''Spacewar!'' is credited as the first widely available and influential computer game.
In [[1966]], [[Ralph Baer]] created a simple video game named ''Chase'' that displayed on a standard [[television]] set, the first to do so. With the assistance of Baer, [[Bill Harrison]] created the [[light gun]] and developed several video games with [[Bill Rusch]] in [[1967]].
Ralph Baer continued development, and in [[1968]] a [[prototype]] was completed that could run several different games such as table tennis and target shooting.
In [[1969]], [[AT&T]] computer programmer [[Ken Thompson (computer programmer)|Ken Thompson]] wrote a game called ''[[Space Travel (video game)|Space Travel]]'' for the [[MULTICS]] operating system. This game simulated various bodies of the solar system and their movements and the player could attempt to land a spacecraft on them. AT&T pulled out of the MULTICS project, and Thompson ported the game to [[FORTRAN]] code running on the [[GECOS]] operating system of the [[General Electric]] GE 635 mainframe computer. Runs on this system cost about $75 per hour, and Thompson cast about for a smaller, less expensive computer to use. He found an underused [[PDP-7]], and he and [[Dennis Ritchie]] started porting the game to PDP-7 [[assembly language]]. In the process of learning to develop software for the machine, the development process of the [[UNIX]] operating system began, and ''Space Travel'' has been called the first UNIX application.
<ref>{{cite web
| last =Ritchie
| first =Dennis
| authorlink =
| coauthors =
| title =Yes, A video game contributed to Unix Development
| work =
| publisher =
| date =
| url =http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~lib215/reference/history/spacetravel.html
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| accessdate =2007-04-05 }}
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==Circa 1970==
At this time, computer and video game development split to many areas, such as [[arcade game|arcade]] machines, university computers, [[handheld]]s, and home computers.
===Golden age of arcade games===
{{main|Golden age of arcade games}}
<!-- Commented out because images no longer exists. [[Image:Spaceinvaders.png|thumb|180px|Space Invaders is one of the most well known games of [[Golden age of arcade games|The Golden Age]].]] -->
In September of 1971, the ''[[Galaxy Game]]'' was installed at a [[student union]] at [[Stanford University]]. Based on ''Spacewar!'', this was the first coin-operated video game. Only one was built, using a DEC [[PDP-11/20]] and vector display terminals. In [[1972]] it was expanded to be able to handle four to eight consoles.
Also in [[1971]], [[Nolan Bushnell]] and [[Ted Dabney]] created a coin-operated [[arcade game|arcade]] version of ''Spacewar!'' and called it ''[[Computer Space]]''. [[Nutting Associates]] bought the game and manufactured 1,500 ''Computer Space'' machines, with the release taking place in November of 1971. The game was unsuccessful due to its difficulty, but was a landmark, being the first mass-produced video game and the first offered for commercial sale.
Bushnell and Dabney felt they did not receive enough earnings by licensing ''Computer Space'' to Nutting Associates. [[Atari, Inc| Atari]] was founded in [[1972]]. The first arcade [[video game]] with widespread success was Atari's ''[[PONG]]'', released the same year. The game is loosely based on [[table tennis]]: a ball is "served" from the center of the court and as the ball moves towards their side of the court each player must maneuver their bat to hit the ball back to their opponent. Atari sold 19,000 ''PONG'' machines, creating many imitators.
The arcade game industry entered its Golden Age in [[1978]] with the release of ''[[Space Invaders]]'' by [[Taito]], a success that inspired dozens of manufacturers to enter the market. In the same year, Atari released ''[[Asteroids (game)|Asteroids]]''. Color arcade games became more popular in [[1979]] and [[1980]] with the arrival of titles such as [[Pac-Man]]. The Golden Age saw a prevalence of arcade machines in [[mall]]s, traditional storefronts, [[restaurant]]s and [[convenience store]]s.
===University mainframe computers===
University mainframe game development blossomed in the early 1970s. There is little record of all but the most popular games, as they were not marketed, or regarded as a serious endeavor. The people, generally students, writing these games often were doing so illicitly, making questionable use of very expensive computing resources, and thus were not anxious to let very many people know what they were doing. There were, however, at least two notable distribution paths for the student game designers of this time.
The [[PLATO (computer system)|PLATO system]] was an educational computing environment designed at the [[University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign|University of Illinois]] and which ran on mainframes made by [[Control Data Corporation]]. Games were often exchanged between different PLATO systems.
[[DECUS]] was the [[user group]] for computers made by [[Digital Equipment Corporation]] (DEC), and distributed programs, including games, that would run on the various types of DEC computers.
A number of noteworthy games were also written for [[Hewlett Packard]] minicomputers such as the [[HP2000]].
Highlights of this period, in approximate chronological order, include:
* [[1971 in video gaming|1971]]: [[Don Daglow]] wrote the first [[Baseball (Computer Game)|computer baseball]] game on a DEC [[PDP-10]] mainframe at [[Pomona College]]. Players could manage individual games or simulate an entire season. Daglow went on to team with programmer [[Eddie Dombrower]] to design ''[[Earl Weaver Baseball]]'', published by [[Electronic Arts]] in 1987.
* 1971: ''[[Star Trek (text game)|Star Trek]]'' was created, probably by [[Mike Mayfield]] on a [[Sigma 7]] [[minicomputer]] at [[MIT]]. This is the best-known and most widely played of the 1970s Star Trek titles, and was played on a series of small "maps" of galactic sectors printed on paper or on the screen. It was the first major game to be ported across hardware platforms by students. Daglow also wrote a popular ''[[Star Trek (Script Game)|Star Trek]]'' game for the PDP-10 during 1971–1972, which presented the action as a script spoken by the [[Star Trek: The Original Series|TV program]]'s characters. A number of other Star Trek themed games were also available via PLATO and DECUS throughout the decade.
* [[1972 in video gaming|1972]]: [[Gregory Yob]] wrote ''[[Hunt the Wumpus]]'' for the PDP-10, a hide-and-seek game, though it could be considered the first text adventure. Yob wrote it in reaction to existing hide-and-seek games such as ''[[Hurkle]]'', ''[[Mugwump (game)]]'', and ''[[Snark (game)|Snark]]''.
* [[1974 in video gaming|1974]]: Both ''[[Maze War]]'' (on the [[Imlac PDS-1]] at the [[NASA]] [[Ames Research Center]] in California) and ''[[Spasim]]'' (on PLATO) appeared, pioneering examples of early multi-player 3D [[first person shooter]]s.
* [[1974 in video gaming|1974]]: Brad Fortner and others developed [[Airfight]] as an educational flight simulator. To make it more interesting, all players shared an airspace flying their choice of military jets, loaded as desired with weapons, fuel and the desire to shoot down other players. Despite mediocre graphics and slow screen refresh, it became a popular game on the [[PLATO (computer system)|PLATO system]]. Airfight was the inspiration for what became the Microsoft Flight Simulator.
* [[1975 in video gaming|1975]]: [[Will Crowther]] wrote the first [[interactive fiction|text adventure]] game as we would recognize it today, ''[[Colossal Cave Adventure|Adventure]]'' (originally called ''ADVENT'', and later ''Colossal Cave''). It was programmed in [[Fortran]] for the PDP-10. The player controls the game through simple sentence-like text commands and receives descriptive text as output. The game was later re-created by students on PLATO, so it is one of the few titles that became part of both the PLATO and PDP-10 traditions.
* 1975: Before the mid-1970s games typically communicated to the player on paper, using [[teletype]] machines or a [[line printer]], at speeds ranging from 10 to 30 characters per second with a rat-a-tat-tat sound as a metal ball or belt with characters was pressed against the paper through an inked ribbon by a hammer. By 1975, many universities had discarded these terminals for [[Cathode ray tube|CRT]] screens, which could display thirty lines of text in a few seconds instead of the minute or more that printing on paper required. This led to the development of a series of games that drew "graphics" on the screen.
* 1975: Daglow, then a student at [[Claremont Graduate University]], wrote the first Computer [[role playing game]] on PDP-10 mainframes, ''[[Dungeon (computer game)|Dungeon]]''. The game was an unlicensed implementation of the new role playing game ''[[Dungeons & Dragons]]''. Although displayed in text, it was the first game to use ''[[Line of sight (gaming)|line of sight]]'' graphics, top-down dungeon maps that showed the areas that the party had seen or could see, allowing for light or darkness, the different vision of elves and dwarves, etc.
* 1975: At about the same time the RPG ''[[dnd (computer game)|dnd]]'', also based on ''Dungeons and Dragons'' first appeared on PLATO system CDC computers. For players in these schools ''dnd'', not ''Dungeon'', was the first computer role-playing game.
* [[1977 in video gaming|1977]]: [[Kelton Flinn]] and John Taylor create the first version of ''[[Air (computer game)|Air]]'', a text air combat game that foreshadowed their later work creating the first-ever graphical online multi-player game, ''[[Air Warrior]]''. They would found the first successful online game company, [[Kesmai]], now part of [[Electronic Arts]]. As Flinn has said: "If Air Warrior was a primate swinging in the trees, AIR was the text-based amoeba crawling on the ocean floor. But it was quasi-real time, multi-player, and attempted to render 3-D on the terminal using ASCII graphics. It was an acquired taste."
* 1977: The writing of the original ''[[Zork]]'' was started by [[Dave Lebling]], [[Marc Blank]], [[Tim Anderson (Zork)|Tim Anderson]], and [[Bruce Daniels]]. Unlike Crowther, Daglow and Yob, the Zork team recognized the potential to move these games to the new personal computers, and they founded [[text adventure]] publisher [[Infocom]] in 1979. The company was later sold to [[Activision]]. In a classic case of "connections", Lebling was a member of the same D&D group as Will Crowther, but not at the same time. Lebling has been quoted as saying "I think I actually replaced him when he dropped out. ''Zork'' was 'derived' from ''Advent'' in that we played ''Advent'' … and tried to do a 'better' one. There was no code borrowed … and we didn’t meet either Crowther or Woods until much later."
* [[1980 in video gaming|1980]]: [[Michael Toy]], [[Glenn Wichman]] and [[Ken Arnold]] released [[Rogue (computer game)|Rogue]] on BSD Unix after two years of work, inspiring many [[roguelike]] games ever since. Like ''[[Dungeon (computer game)|Dungeon]]'' on the PDP-10 and ''[[dnd]]'' on PLATO, ''Rogue'' displayed dungeon maps using text characters. Unlike those games, however, the dungeon was randomly generated for each play session, so the path to treasure and the enemies who protected it were different for each game. As the ''Zork'' team had done, ''Rogue'' was adapted for home computers and became a commercial product.
===Home computers===
While the fruit of development in early video games appeared mainly (for the consumer) in video arcades and home consoles, the rapidly evolving [[home computer]]s of the 1970s and 80s allowed their owners to program simple games. [[Hobbyist]] groups for the new computers soon formed and game software followed.
[[Image:Trs80 2.jpg|thumb|145px|The Tandy [[TRS-80]], the first Tandy computer and one of the machines responsible for the personal computer revolution.]]
Soon many of these games (at first clones of mainframe classics such as Star Trek, and then later clones of popular arcade games) were being distributed through a variety of channels, such as printing the game’s [[source code]] in books (such as David Ahl’s ''[[Basic Computer Games]]''), magazines (''[[Creative Computing]]''), and newsletters, which allowed users to [[type-in program|type in the code for themselves]]. Early game designers like Crowther, Daglow and Yob would find the computer code for their games—which they had never thought to copyright—published in books and magazines, with their names removed from the listing. Early home computers from [[Apple Computer|Apple]], [[Commodore International|Commodore]], [[Tandy Corporation|Tandy]] and others had many games that people typed in.
Another distribution channel was the physical mailing and selling of floppy disks, cassette tapes and [[read-only memory|ROM]] cartridges. Soon a small [[cottage industry]] was formed, with amateur programmers selling disks in plastic bags put on the shelves of local shops, or sent through the [[mail]]. [[Richard Garriott]] distributed several copies of his 1980 [[computer role-playing game]] ''[[Akalabeth]]'' in plastic bags before the game was published.
===1977===
In 1977, manufacturers of older obsolete consoles and pong clones sold their systems at a loss to clear stock, creating a glut in the market and causing [[Fairchild Semiconductor|Fairchild]] and [[RCA]] to abandon their game consoles. Only Atari and [[Magnavox]] stayed in the home console market.
===Second generation (1977–1983)===
{{main|History of video game consoles (second generation)}}
In the earliest consoles, the computer code for one or more games was hardcoded into microchips using [[discrete logic]], and no additional games could ever be added. By the mid-1970s video games were found on [[cartridge (electronics)|cartridge]]s. Programs were burned onto [[Read-only memory|ROM]] chips that were mounted inside plastic cartridge casings that could be plugged into slots on the console. When the cartridges were plugged in, the general-purpose [[microprocessor]]s in the consoles read the cartridge memory and ran whatever program was stored there. Rather than being confined to a small selection of games included in the box, consumers could now amass libraries of game cartridges. The first of these consoles to use the [[ROM cartridge]] format was the [[Fairchild Channel F| Fairchild 'Video Entertainment System (VES)']], released in 1976.
Three machines dominated the second generation of consoles in North America, far outselling their rivals:
* In 1977, Atari released its ROM cartridge based console called the '''Video Computer System (VCS)''', later called [[Atari 2600]]. Nine games were designed and released for the holiday season. It would quickly become by far the most popular of all the early consoles.
* [[Intellivision]], introduced by [[Mattel]] in 1980. Though chronologically part of what is called the "8-bit era", the Intellivision had a unique processor with instructions that were 10 bits wide (allowing more instruction variety and potential speed), and registers 16 bits wide. The system, which featured graphics superior to the older Atari 2600, rocketed to popularity.
* [[ColecoVision]], an even more powerful machine, appeared in 1982. Its sales also took off, but the presence of three major consoles in the marketplace and a glut of poor quality games began to overcrowd retail shelves and erode consumers' interest in video games. Within a year this overcrowded market would crash.
In 1979, [[Activision]] was created by disgruntled former Atari programmers. It was the first [[video game developer|third-party developer]] of video games. Many new developers would follow their lead in succeeding years.{{Fact|date=May 2008}}
==1980s==
In the early 1980s, the computer gaming industry experienced its first major growing pains. Publishing houses appeared, with many honest businesses (and in rare cases such as [[Electronic Arts]], successfully surviving to this day) alongside [[Fly by night|fly-by-night]] operations that cheated the games' developers. While some early 80s games were simple clones of existing arcade titles, the relatively low publishing costs for personal computer games allowed for many bold, unique games, a legacy that continues to this day. The primary gaming computers of the 1980s emerged in 1982: the [[Commodore 64]], [[Apple II]] (although the [[Apple II]] started in 1977) and [[ZX Spectrum]]. The ZX Spectrum was mostly used and known only in the UK, whilst the USA had the Apple II, Commodore 64, and [[Atari 800]]. Over the run of 15 years, the Apple II had a total of almost 20,000 programs, making it the 8-bit computer with the most software overall.
The [[Golden Age of Arcade Games]] reached its full steam in the 1980s, with many technically innovative and genre-defining games in the first few years of the decade. ''[[Defender (game)|Defender]]'' (1980) established the [[scrolling shooter]] and was the first to have events taking place outside the player’s view, displayed by a radar view showing a map of the whole playfield. ''[[Battlezone (1980 video game)|Battlezone]]'' (1980) used wireframe [[vector graphics]] to create the first true three-dimensional game world. ''[[3D Monster Maze]]'' (1981) was the first 3D game for a home computer, while ''[[Dungeons of Daggorath]]'' (1982) added various weapons and monsters, sophisticated sound effects, and a "heartbeat" health monitor. ''[[Pole Position]]'' (1982) used sprite-based, [[pseudo-3D]] graphics when it pioneered the "rear-view racer format" where the player’s view is behind and above the vehicle, looking forward along the road with the horizon in sight. The style would remain in wide use even after true [[3D graphics]] became standard for racing games. ''[[Pac-Man]]'' (1979) was the first game to achieve widespread popularity in mainstream culture and the first game character to be popular in his own right. ''[[Dragon's Lair]]'' (1983) was the first [[laserdisc]] game, and introduced [[full-motion video]] to video games.
With ''Adventure'' establishing the genre, the release of ''[[Zork]]'' in 1980 further popularized text adventure games in [[home computers]] and established developer [[Infocom]]’s dominance in the field. As these early computers often lacked graphical capabilities, text adventures proved successful. When affordable computers started catching up to and surpassing the graphics of consoles in the late 1980s, the games' popularity waned in favor of [[Graphic adventure game|graphic adventures]] and other genres. The text adventure would eventually be known as [[interactive fiction]] and a small dedicated following has kept the genre going, with new releases being nearly all free.
Also published in 1980 was [[Roberta Williams]]' ''[[Mystery House]]'', for the [[Apple II]]. It was the first graphic adventure on home computers. Graphics consisted entirely of static monochrome drawings, and the interface still used the typed commands of text adventures. It proved very popular at the time, and she and husband Ken went on to found [[Sierra On-Line]], a major producer of adventure games. ''Mystery House'' remains largely forgotten today.
[[Image:Commodore64.jpg|thumb|left|The Commodore 64 system]]
In August 1982, the [[Commodore 64]] was released to the public. It found initial success because it was marketed and priced aggressively. It had a [[BASIC programming language|BASIC]] programming environment and advanced graphic and sound capabilities for its time, similar to the [[ColecoVision]] console. It also utilized the same port popularized by the Atari 2600, allowing gamers to use their old joysticks with the system. It would become the most popular home computer of its day in the USA and many other countries and the best-selling single computer model of all time internationally.
At around the same time, the [[ZX Spectrum]] was released in the [[United Kingdom]] and quickly became the most popular home computer in many areas of Western Europe, and later the [[Eastern bloc]] due to the ease with which clones could be produced.
[[SuperSet|SuperSet Software]] created ''[[Snipes]]'', a text-mode networked computer game in 1983 to test a new [[IBM PC]] based computer network and demonstrate its capabilities. ''Snipes'' is officially credited as being the original inspiration for [[Novell NetWare]]. It is believed to be the first network game ever written for a commercial personal computer and is recognized alongside 1974’s ''[[Maze War]]'' (a networked multiplayer maze game for several research machines) and ''[[Spasim]]'' (a 3D multiplayer space simulation for time shared [[Mainframe computer|mainframes]]) as the precursor to multiplayer games such as ''[[Doom (video game)|Doom]]'' and ''[[Quake]]''.
The true modern adventure game would be born with the [[Sierra On-Line|Sierra]] ''[[King's Quest]]'' series in 1984. It featured color graphics and a third person perspective. An on-screen player-controlled character could be moved behind and in front of objects on a 2D background drawn in [[perspective (graphical)|perspective]], creating the illusion of pseudo-3D space. Commands were still entered via text. [[Lucasarts]] would do away with this last vestige feature of text adventures when its 1987 adventure ''[[Maniac Mansion]]'' built with its [[SCUMM]] system allowed a [[point-and-click]] interface. Sierra and other game companies quickly followed with their own mouse-driven games. ''For more on the history of adventures games, see [[Adventure game#History|Adventure games, history of]]''
With ''[[Elite (computer game)|Elite]]'' in 1984, [[David Braben]] and [[Ian Bell (programmer)|Ian Bell]] ushered in the age of modern style 3d graphics in the home, bringing a convincing vector world with full 6 degree freedom of movement and thousands of visitable planetary systems into the living room. Initially only available for the [[BBC Micro]] and [[Acorn Electron]], the success of this title caused it eventually to be ported to all popular formats, including the [[Commodore 64]], [[ZX Spectrum]], [[Commodore Amiga]], [[Atari ST]] and even the [[Nintendo Entertainment System]], although this version only received a European release.
The [[IBM PC compatible]] computer became a technically competitive gaming platform with [[IBM]]’s [[PC/AT]] in 1984. The new 16-color [[Enhanced Graphics Adapter|EGA]] display standard allowed its graphics to approach the quality seen in popular [[home computer]]s like the [[Commodore 64]]. The primitive 4-color [[Color Graphics Adapter|CGA]] graphics of previous models had limited the PC’s appeal to the business segment, since its graphics failed to compete with the C64 or Apple II. The sound capabilities of the AT, however, were still limited to the [[PC speaker]], which was substandard compared to the built-in [[sound chip]]s used in many home computers. Also, the relatively high cost of the PC compatible systems severely limited their popularity in gaming.
The [[Apple Macintosh]] also arrived at this time. It lacked the color capabilities of the earlier [[Apple II]], instead preferring a much higher pixel resolution, but the operating system support for the [[GUI]] attracted developers of some interesting games (e.g. ''[[Lode Runner]]'') even before color returned in 1987 with the Mac II.
In computer gaming, the later 1980s are primarily the story of the [[United Kingdom]]’s rise to prominence. The market in the UK was primely positioned for this task: personal computer users were offered a smooth scale of power versus price, from the [[ZX Spectrum]] up to the [[Amiga]], developers and publishers were in close enough proximity to offer each other support, and the NES made much less of an impact than it did in the United States, due to the enormous popularity of personal computers there, even though it outsold all the other home consoles (such as the [[Sega Master System]])
The arrival of the [[Atari ST]] and [[Commodore Amiga]] in 1985 was the beginning of a new era of 16-bit machines. For many users they were too expensive until later on in the decade, at which point advances in the IBM PC’s open platform had caused the [[IBM PC compatible]]s to become comparably powerful at a lower cost than their competitors. The [[Video Graphics Array|VGA]] standard developed for IBM’s new [[IBM Personal System/2|PS/2]] line in 1987 gave the PC the potential for 256-color graphics. This was a big jump ahead of most 8-bit [[home computers]] but still lagging behind platforms with built-in sound and graphics hardware like the Amiga, causing an odd trend around '89-91 towards developing to a seemingly inferior machine. Thus while both the ST and Amiga were host to many technically excellent games, their time of prominence proved to be shorter than that of the 8-bit machines, which saw new ports well into the 80s and even the 90s.
[[Image:Yamaha YM3812.jpg|thumb|140px|The [[Yamaha YM3812]] sound chip.]]
Dedicated [[sound card]]s started to address the issue of poor sound capabilities in [[IBM PC compatible]]s in the late 1980s. [[AdLib]] set an early de facto standard for sound cards in 1987, with its card based on the [[Yamaha YM3812]] sound chip. This would last until the introduction of [[Creative Labs]]' [[Sound Blaster]] in 1989, which took the chip and added new features while remaining compatible with [[AdLib]] cards, and creating a new de facto standard. However, many games would still support these and rarer things like the [[Roland MT-32]] and [[Disney Sound Source]] into the early 90s. The initial high cost of sound cards meant they would not find widespread use until the 1990s.
[[Shareware]] gaming first appeared in the mid 1980s, but its big successes came in the 1990s. {{Fact|date=May 2008}}
===Early online gaming===
Dialup [[bulletin board system]]s were popular in the 1980s, and sometimes used for online game playing. The earliest such systems, in the late 1970s and early 1980s, had a crude plain-text interface, but later systems made use of terminal-control codes (the so-called [[ANSI art]], which included the use of IBM-PC-specific characters not actually part of an [[American National Standards Institute|ANSI]] standard) to get a [[pseudo-graphics|pseudo-graphical]] interface. Some BBSes offered access to various games which were playable through such an interface, ranging from text adventures to gambling games like blackjack (generally played for "points" rather than real money). On multiuser BBSs (where more than one person could be online at once), there were sometimes games allowing the different users to interact with one another; some such games of the fantasy role-playing variety were known as [[MUD]]s, for "multi-user dungeons". These games eventually evolved into what are known today as [[MMORPG]].
Commercial online services also arose during this decade, starting with a plain-text interface similar to BBSs (but operated on large mainframe computers permitting larger numbers of users to be online at once), and moving by the end of the decade to fully-graphical environments using software specific to each personal computer platform. Popular text-based services included [[CompuServe]], [[The Source (service)|The Source]], and [[GEnie]], while platform-specific graphical services included [[PlayNET]] and [[Quantum Link]] for the [[Commodore 64]], [[AppleLink]] for the [[Apple II]] and [[Apple Macintosh|Macintosh]], and [[PC Link]] for the [[IBM PC]], all of which were run by the company which eventually became [[America Online]]; and a competing service, [[Prodigy (ISP)|Prodigy]]. Interactive games were a feature of these services, though until 1987 they used text-based displays, not graphics.
===Handheld LCD games===
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[Image:Game and watch-fire.jpg|thumb|right|One of the Game & Watch handhelds.]] -->
[[Nintendo]]’s [[Game & Watch]] line began in 1980. The success of these LCD [[handheld electronic game|handhelds]] spurred dozens of other game and toy companies to make their own portable games, many being copies of Game & Watch titles or adaptations of popular arcade games. Improving [[liquid crystal display|LCD]] technology meant the new handhelds could be more reliable and consume less batteries than [[light-emitting diode|LED]] or [[Vacuum fluorescent display|VFD]] games, most only needing watch batteries. They could also be made much smaller than most LED handhelds, even small enough to wear on one’s wrist like a watch. [[Tiger Electronics]] borrowed this concept of videogaming with cheap, affordable handhelds and still produces games in this model to the present day.
===Video game crash of 1983===
{{main|North American video game crash of 1983}}
At the end of 1983, the industry experienced losses more severe than the 1977 crash. This was the "crash" of the video game industry, as well as the bankruptcy of several companies that produced North American home computers and video game consoles from late 1983 to early 1984. It brought an end to what is considered to be the second generation of console video gaming. Causes of the crash include the production of poorly conceived games such as ''[[E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (Atari 2600)|E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial]]'' and ''[[Pac-Man (Atari 2600)|Pac-Man]]'' for the [[Atari 2600]]. It was discovered that more Pac-Man cartridges were manufactured than there were systems made. In addition, so many ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' cartridges were left unsold that Atari [[Atari video game burial|buried thousands of cartridges in a landfill in New Mexico]].
===Third generation (1985–1989)===
{{main|History of video game consoles (third generation)}}
In 1984, the computer gaming market took over from the console market following the crash of that year; computers offered equal gaming ability and since their simple design allowed games to take complete command of the hardware after power-on, they were nearly as simple to start playing with as consoles.
[[Image:Nintendo entertainment system.jpeg|left|thumb|180px|The [[Nintendo Entertainment System]] or Famicom.]]
In 1985, the North American video game console market was revived with Nintendo’s release of its [[8-bit]] console, the [[Nintendo Entertainment System|Famicom]], known outside Asia as [[Nintendo Entertainment System]] (NES). It was bundled with ''[[Super Mario Bros.]]'' and instantly became a success. The NES dominated the North American and the Japanese market until the rise of the next generation of consoles in the early 1990s. Other markets were not as heavily dominated, allowing other consoles to find an audience like the [[Sega Master System]] in Europe, Australia and Brazil (though it was sold in North America as well).
In the new consoles, the [[gamepad]] took over [[joystick]]s, [[Paddle (game controller)|paddle]]s, and [[keypad]]s as the default [[game controller]] included with the system. The gamepad design of an 8 direction [[Directional-pad]] (or D-pad for short) with 2 or more action buttons became the standard.
The [[Dragon Quest|''Dragon Quest'' series]] made its debut in 1986 with ''[[Dragon Quest (video game)|Dragon Quest]]'', and has created a phenomenon in Japanese culture ever since. Also at this time, the Japanese company [[Square Co.|Square]] was struggling and [[Hironobu Sakaguchi]] decided to make his final game, titled ''[[Final Fantasy (video game)|Final Fantasy]]'' (1987), a [[computer role-playing game|role-playing game]] (RPG) modeled after ''Dragon Quest'', and the [[Final Fantasy|''Final Fantasy'' series]] was born as a result. ''Final Fantasy'' would later go on to become the most successful RPG franchise. At around the same time, the [[The Legend of Zelda series|''Legend of Zelda'' series]] made its debut on the NES with ''[[The Legend of Zelda]]'' (1986). [[Hideo Kojima]]’s [[Metal Gear (series)|''Metal Gear'' series]] also made its debut with the release of ''[[Metal Gear (video game)|Metal Gear]]'' (1987) on the [[MSX2]] computer, giving birth to the [[stealth-based game]] genre. ''Metal Gear'' was ported to the NES shortly after. In 1989, [[Capcom]] released ''[[Sweet Home (video game)|Sweet Home]]'' (1989) on the NES, which served as a precursor to the [[survival horror]] genre.
In 1988, Nintendo published their first issue of ''[[Nintendo Power]]'' magazine, becoming what could be considered the first newsletter dedicated to video games, inspiring such magazines as ''[[Game Informer]]'' and ''[[PSM (magazine)|PlayStation Magazine]]''.
==1990s==
If the 1980s were about the rise of the industry, the 1990s were about its maturing into a mainstream form of entertainment. The 1990s saw the beginning of a larger consolidation of publishers, higher budget games, increased size of production teams and collaborations with both the music and motion picture industries. Examples of this would be [[Mark Hammil]]'s involvement with [[Wing Commander III]] or [[Quincy Jones]]' introduction of [[QSound]].
With the increasing computing power and decreasing cost of processors as the [[Intel 80386]], [[Intel 80486]], and the [[Motorola 68030]], the 1990s saw the rise of [[3D graphics]], as well as "[[multimedia]]" capabilities through [[sound card]]s and [[CD-ROM]]s. Early 3D games began with [[Flat shading|flat-shaded graphics]] ([[Elite (computer game)|Elite]], [[Starglider 2]] or [[Alpha Waves]]<ref>{{cite web| author=[[Christophe de Dinechin]]| title=The Dawn of 3D Games | url=http://grenouille-bouillie.blogspot.com/2007/10/dawn-of-3d-games.html| }}</ref> ), and then simplified forms of texture mapping ([[Wolfenstein 3D]]).
In the early 1990s, [[shareware]] distribution was a popular method of publishing games for smaller developers, including then-fledgling companies such as Apogee (now [[3D Realms]]), Epic Megagames (now [[Epic Games]]), and [[id Software]]. It gave consumers the chance to try a trial portion of the game, usually restricted to the game’s complete first section or "episode", before purchasing the rest of the adventure. Racks of games on single 5 1/4" and later 3.5" [[floppy disk]]s were common in many stores, often only costing a few dollars each. Since the shareware versions were essentially free, the cost only needed to cover the disk and minimal packaging. As the increasing size of games in the mid-90s made them impractical to fit on floppies, and retail publishers and developers began to earnestly mimic the practice, shareware games were replaced by shorter [[Demo (computer gaming)|demo]]s (often only one or two levels), distributed free on CDs with gaming magazines and over the Internet.
1992 saw the release of [[real-time strategy]] ('''RTS''') game ''[[Dune II]]''. It was by no means the first in the genre (several other games can be called the very first RTS, see the [[Real-time strategy#History|History of RTS]]), but it set the standard game mechanics for later blockbuster RTS games such as ''[[Warcraft: Orcs & Humans]]'', ''[[Command & Conquer (series)|Command & Conquer]]'', and ''[[StarCraft]]''. The RTS is characterized by an overhead view, a "mini-map", and the control of both the [[economic]] and [[Armed force|military]] aspects of an army. The rivalry between the two styles of RTS play—''Warcraft'' style, which used [[GUI]]s accessed once a building was selected, and ''C&C'' style, which allowed construction of any unit from within a permanently visible menu—continued into the start of the next millennium.
[[Alone in the Dark (series)|''Alone in the Dark'']] (1992) while not the first [[survival horror]] game, planted the seeds of what would become known as the [[survival horror]] genre of today. It established the formula that would later flourish on CD-ROM based consoles, with games such as ''[[Resident Evil (video game)|Resident Evil]]'' and ''[[Silent Hill]]''.
Adventure games continued to evolve, with [[Sierra Entertainment|Sierra]]’s ''[[King's Quest]]'' series, and LucasFilms'/[[LucasArts]]' ''[[Monkey Island (video games)|Monkey Island]]'' series bringing graphical interaction and the creation of the concept of "point-and-click" gaming. ''[[Myst]]'' and its sequels inspired a new style of puzzle-based adventure games. Published in 1993, ''Myst'' itself was one of the first computer games to make full use of the new high-capacity [[CD-ROM]] storage format. Despite ''Myst''’s mainstream success, the increased popularity of action-based and real-time games led adventure games and [[simulation game]]s, both mainstays of computer games in earlier decades, to begin to fade into obscurity.
It was in the 1990s that [[Maxis]] began publishing its successful [[List of Sim games|line of "Sim" games]], beginning with ''[[SimCity]]'', and continuing with a variety of titles, such as ''[[SimEarth]]'', ''[[SimCity 2000]]'', ''[[SimAnt]]'', ''[[SimTower]]'', and the wildly popular day to day life simulator, ''[[The Sims]]'' in 2000.
In 1996, [[3dfx]] released the '''Voodoo''' chipset, leading to the first affordable [[3D accelerator card]]s for [[personal computers]]. These devoted 3D rendering daughter cards performed a portion of the computations required for more-detailed three-dimensional graphics (mainly texture filtering), allowing for more-detailed graphics than would be possible if the CPU were required to handle both game logic and all the graphical tasks. First-person shooter games (notably ''[[Quake]]'') were among the first to take advantage of this new technology. While other games would also make use of it, the FPS would become the chief driving force behind the development of new 3D hardware, as well as the [[yardstick]] by which its performance would be measured, usually quantified as the number of frames per second rendered for a particular scene in a particular game.
Several other, less-mainstream, genres were created in this decade. [[Looking Glass Studios]]' ''[[Thief (series)|Thief]]'' and its sequel were the first to coin the term "first person sneaker", although it is questionable whether they are the first "first person stealth" games. Turn-based strategy progressed further, with the ''[[Heroes of Might and Magic]]'' (''HOMM'') series (from 3DO) luring many main-stream gamers into this complex genre.
The 90s also saw the beginnings of Internet gaming, with MUDs ([[Multi-User Dungeon]]s) in the early years. [[Id Software]]’s 1996 game ''[[Quake]]'' pioneered play over the Internet in [[first-person shooter]]s. Internet multiplayer capability became a de facto requirement in almost all FPS games. Other genres also began to offer online play, including RTS games like [[Microsoft]]’s ''[[Age of Empires]]'', [[Blizzard Entertainment|Blizzard]]’s ''[[Warcraft universe|Warcraft]]'' and ''[[StarCraft]]'' series, and [[turn-based]] games such as ''Heroes of Might and Magic''. MMORPGs ([[MMORPG|Massively Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Games]]), such as ''[[Ultima Online]]'' and ''[[EverQuest]]'' freed users from the limited number of simultaneous players in other games and brought the MUD concept of [[virtual world|persistent worlds]] to graphical multiplayer games. Developments in [[web browser]] [[plugin]]s like [[Java (programming language)|Java]] and [[Macromedia Flash]] allowed for simple [[browser game|browser-based games]]. These are small single player or multiplayer games that can be quickly downloaded and played from within a web browser without installation. Their most popular use is for puzzle games, classic arcade games, and multiplayer card and board games.
Few new genres have been created since the advent of the FPS and RTS, with the possible exception of the [[third-person shooter]]. Games such as ''[[Grand Theft Auto III]]'', ''[[Splinter Cell]]'', ''[[Enter The Matrix]]'', and ''[[Hitman (computer game series)|Hitman]]'' all use a third-person camera perspective, but are otherwise very similar to their first-person counterparts.
===Decline of arcades===
With the advent of 16-bit and 32-bit consoles, home video games began to approach the level of graphics seen in [[arcade game]]s. An increasing number of players would wait for popular arcade games to be ported to consoles rather than going out. Arcades experienced a resurgence in the early to mid 1990s with games such as [[Street Fighter II]] and [[Mortal Kombat]] and other games in the one-on-one [[fighting game]] genre, and [[NBA Jam]]. As patronage of arcades declined, many were forced to close down. Classic coin-operated games have largely become the province of dedicated hobbyists.
The gap left by the old corner arcades was partly filled by large amusement centers dedicated to providing clean, safe environments and expensive game control systems not available to home users. These are usually based on sports like skiing or cycling, as well as [[Music video game#Rhythm games|rhythm game]]s like ''[[Dance Dance Revolution]]'', which have carved out a large slice of the market. [[Dave & Buster's]] and [[GameWorks]] are two large chains in the United States with this type of environment. Aimed at adults, they feature full service restaurants with full liquor bars and have a wide variety of video game and hands on electronic gaming options. [[Chuck E. Cheese]] is a similar type of establishment focused towards children.
===Handhelds come of age===
In 1989, Nintendo released the [[Game Boy]], the first [[Handheld game console|handheld console]] since the ill-fated [[Microvision]] ten years before. The design team headed by [[Gunpei Yokoi]] had also been responsible for the [[Game & Watch]] systems. Included with the system was ''[[Tetris]]'', a popular puzzle game. Several rival handhelds also made their debut around that time, including the [[Sega Game Gear]] and [[Atari Lynx]] (the first handheld with color LCD display). Although most other systems were more technologically advanced, they were hampered by higher battery consumption and less third-party developer support. While some of the other systems remained in production until the mid-90s, the Game Boy remained at the top spot in sales throughout its lifespan.
===Fourth generation (1989–1996)===
{{main|History of video game consoles (fourth generation)}}
The [[Sega Mega Drive]] (known in North America as the Sega Genesis) proved its worth early on after its debut in 1989. Nintendo responded with its own next generation system known as the [[Super Nintendo Entertainment System|Super NES]] in 1991. The [[TurboGrafx-16]] debuted early on alongside the Genesis, but did not achieve a large following in the U.S. due to a limited library of games and excessive distribution restrictions imposed by Hudson.
<!-- This use of this image has no rationale on the image's page. Please read [[Wikipedia:NFCC#10c]] [[Image:Mortal Kombat.png|thumb|left|200px|[[Mortal Kombat (video game)|Mortal Kombat]], released in both SNES and Genesis consoles, was one of the most popular game franchises of its time.]] -->
The intense competition of this time was also a period of not entirely truthful marketing. The TurboGrafx-16 was billed as the first 16-bit system but its central processor was an 8-bit [[HuC6280]], with only its [[HuC6260]] graphics processor being a true 16-bit chip. Additionally, the much earlier [[Mattel Intellivision]] contained a 16-bit processor. Sega, too, was known to stretch the truth in its marketing approach; they used the term [[Blast Processing]] to describe the simple fact that their console's CPU ran at a higher clock speed than that of the SNES (7.67 [[Megahertz|MHz]] vs 3.58 MHz).
In Japan, the 1987 success of the '''PC Engine''' (as the TurboGrafx-16 was known there) against the [[Nintendo Entertainment System|Famicom]] and [[CD]] drive peripheral allowed it to fend off the [[Sega Mega Drive/Sega Genesis|Mega Drive]] (Genesis) in 1988, which never really caught on to the same degree as outside Japan. The PC Engine eventually lost out to the [[Super Nintendo Entertainment System|Super Famicom]], but retained enough of a user base to support new games well into the late 1990s.
CD-ROM drives were first seen in this generation, as add-ons for the PC Engine in 1988 and the Mega Drive in 1991. Basic [[3D graphics]] entered the mainstream with flat-shaded polygons enabled by additional processors in game cartridges like ''[[Virtua Racing]]'' and ''[[Star Fox (video game)|Star Fox]]''.
[[SNK Playmore|SNK]]'s [[Neo Geo (console)|Neo-Geo]] was the most expensive console by a wide margin when it was released in 1990, and would remain so for years. It was also capable of 2D graphics in a quality level years ahead of other consoles. The reason for this was that it contained the same hardware that was found in SNK's arcade games. This was the first time since the home Pong machines that a true-to-the-arcade experience could be had at home.
===Fifth generation (1994–1999)===
{{main|History of video game consoles (fifth generation)}}
[[Image:MGS screen psx.jpg|thumb|''[[Metal Gear Solid]]'', notable for its innovative use of [[Machinima|in-game generated]] [[Cinematic|cinemas]], detailed integration of [[haptic]] effects, and theatrical story delivery. The ''[[Metal Gear (series)|Metal Gear]]'' series primarily defined the [[stealth game]] genre.]]
In November 1993, Atari released the [[Atari Jaguar]], a 64-bit gaming system which hadn't had much success because the players knew Sony and Sega would capture the market. One year later, in 1994–1995, Sega released the [[Sega Saturn]] and [[Sony]] made its debut to the video gaming scene with the [[PlayStation]]. Both consoles used [[32-bit]] technology; the door was open for 3D games, though the Sega Saturn launch in the US started with a controversial advert launch which saw a [[PlayStation]] console being thrown out of a window of a tower block in an attempt to convince viewers that the Sega Saturn was much better than the PlayStation. Sony's PlayStation would become the world's most successful console in the 32/64-bit era, with only the PlayStation 2 topping this accolade at the beginning of the 21st century.
After many delays, Nintendo released its [[64-bit]] console, the [[Nintendo 64]] in 1996. The flagship title, ''[[Super Mario 64]]'', became a defining title for 3D platformer games.
''[[PaRappa the Rapper]]'' popularized [[music video game|rhythm, or music video games]] in Japan with its 1996 debut on the [[PlayStation]]. Subsequent music and dance games like ''[[beatmania]]'' and ''[[Dance Dance Revolution]]'' became ubiquitous attractions in Japanese arcades. While ''Parappa'', ''DDR'', and other games found a cult following when brought to North America, music games would not gain a wide audience in the market until the next decade.
Other milestone games of the era include [[Rare (company)|Rare]]'s Nintendo 64 title ''[[GoldenEye 007]]'' (1997), which was critically acclaimed for bringing innovation as being the first major first-person shooter that was exclusive to a console, and for pioneering certain features that became staples of the genre, such as scopes, headshots, and objective-based missions.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time]]'' (1998), Nintendo's 3D debut for the ''[[The Legend of Zelda (series)|The Legend of Zelda]]'' adventure game series featured innovations such as Z-targeting, used in later games of similar genres.
Nintendo's choice to use cartridges instead of CD-ROMs for the Nintendo 64, unique among the consoles of this period, proved to have negative consequences. In particular, [[Square Co.|SquareSoft]], which had released all previous games in its ''[[Final Fantasy]]'' series for Nintendo consoles, now turned to the PlayStation; ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]'' (1997) was a huge success, establishing the popularity of [[Computer role-playing game|role-playing games]] in the west and making the PlayStation the primary console for the genre.
By the end of this period, Sony had become the leader in the video game market. The Saturn was successful in Japan but a failure in North America and Europe, leaving Sega outside of the main competition, while the N64 achieved huge success in North America and Europe even though it never surpassed Playstation's sales. The N64 was also successful in Japan, even though it failed to repeat the tremendous succes of NES and SNES there due to stiff competition by Playstation and the Sega Saturn.
==2000s==
{{Cleanup-laundry|date=January 2008}}
{{Refimprovesect|date=November 2007}}
The most recent decade has shown innovation on both consoles and PCs, and an increasingly competitive market for portable (handheld) game systems.
The phenomena of user-created modifications (or "mods") for games was one trend that began around the turn of the millennium. The most famous example is that of ''[[Counter-Strike]]''; released in 1999, it is still the most popular online first-person shooter of all time, even though it was created as a mod for a separate game called ''[[Half-Life (video game)|Half-Life]]'' by two completely independent programmers. Eventually, game designers realized the potential of mods and custom content in general to enhance the value of their games, and so began to encourage its creation. Some examples of this include ''[[Unreal Tournament]]'', which allowed players to import 3dsmax scenes to use as character models, and [[Maxis]]' ''[[The Sims]]'', for which players could create custom objects.
===Sixth generation (1998–2006)===
{{main|History of video game consoles (sixth generation)}}
'''[[1998 in video gaming|1998]]'''
*Sega released the [[Dreamcast]].
*''[[Dance Dance Revolution]]'' was released in Japan.
*Nintendo released the [[Game Boy Color]].
'''[[2000 in video gaming|2000]]'''
*Sony released the [[PlayStation 2]].
*''[[The Sims]]'' was released. It was an instant hit and became the [[List of best-selling video games|best-selling computer game]] of all time, surpassing ''[[Myst]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gamespot.com/pc/strategy/simslivinlarge/news_2857556.html |title=The Sims overtakes Myst |accessdate=2008-03-15 |author=Walker, Trey |date=2002-03-22 |work=[[GameSpot]] |publisher=[[CNET Networks]]}}</ref>
'''[[2001 in video gaming|2001]]'''
*Nintendo released the [[Nintendo GameCube]] and the successor to the Game Boy Color, the [[Game Boy Advance]].
[[Image:Xbox whitebg.jpeg|thumb|181px|The [[Xbox]], Microsoft's entry into the videogame console industry.]]
*[[Microsoft]] entered the videogame console industry by releasing its home console, [[Xbox]]. Its flagship game, ''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]'', is also available at the system's launch.
*[[Sega]] announced they would no longer manufacture hardware and discontinue the Dreamcast. However, from that time through 2006, the DC saw continued publication of hardcore games like arcade shooters, graphic adventures, and homebrew software.
*''[[Grand Theft Auto III]]'' is released. In the Australian market, it was banned due to breaches of [[Office of Film and Literature Classification (Australia)|Office of Film and Literature Classification]] guidelines and pulled off shelves. It was later re-released with modified code.
'''[[2002 in video gaming|2002]]'''
*Sega became a third-party developer and publisher for all other current machines and the PC.
'''[[2003 in video gaming|2003]]'''
*[[Infogrames]], owner of the [[Atari]] [[intellectual property|intellectual properties]], changed its name to Atari.
*Nintendo released the improved [[Game Boy Advance SP]] in March.
*[[Nokia]] entered the handheld market with its N-Gage game-phone hybrid on [[October 7]].
*PS2 Linux Kit is launched.
'''[[2004 in video gaming|2004]]'''
*''[[Halo 2]]'' was released.
*''[[Half-Life 2]]'' was released.
'''[[2005 in video gaming|2005]]'''
*''[[Guitar Hero (2005 video game)|Guitar Hero]]'' was released.
===Seventh generation (2004–Present )===
{{main|History of video game consoles (seventh generation)}}
'''[[2004 in video gaming|2004]]'''
*Nokia releases a re-tooled N-Gage, the [[N-Gage QD]].
*Nintendo released the [[Nintendo DS]] on [[November 21]].
*Sony released the [[PlayStation Portable]] on [[December 12]].
'''[[2005 in video gaming|2005]]'''
*Nintendo reveals early details of their next-generation video game console, the [[Wii]] (then codenamed "Nintendo Revolution") during E3. At TGS Nintendo reveals their "revolutionary" controller. It includes tilt, position, and movement sensors, and is one-handed (though an attachment can occupy the other hand for some games.)
*The [[Hot Coffee minigame controversy|Hot Coffee Mod]] is released for the PC version of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas which enables a previously disabled "sex minigame." Hacks to enable this previously unavailable content on other platforms are quickly created by the users. The game's rating is raised to AO in the US, which removes it from virtually all mainstream stores. Rockstar Games re-releases the game without the hidden content, bringing it back to an M rating—as well as a patch to remove the minigame from existing PC versions.
*Sony demonstrates the [[PlayStation 3]] during a pre-E3 press conference. Anticipation for the console's release grows steadily. It is announced that it will have an MSRP of either US$500 or US$600, depending on included features.
*Nintendo redesigns the Game Boy Advance again with the [[Game Boy Micro]] on [[October 2]].
*In November, Nokia announces the N-Gage will be discontinued until at least 2007.{{Verify source|date=October 2007}}
*Microsoft releases their second video game console, the [[Xbox 360]] on [[November 22]]. It is well received in America,<!-- US or North America? -->{{Clarifyme|date=March 2008}} with resold units going for much higher than MSRP on the secondary market but suffered in the Japanese market, with many retailers having to go to extreme measures just to get them off the shelves.<ref>{{cite web| author=Unknown| title=Xbox 360 Cold Debut in Japan| url=http://www.consolewatcher.com/2005/12/xbox-360-cold-debut-in-japan/| work=Console Watcher}}</ref> Although widely regarded as a superb console, stock shortages as well as system instability or poorly manufactured systems have marred this otherwise-successful launch.
*The video game ''[[Spore (2008 video game)|Spore]]'' is shown at the GDC, and is received well, due to its [[procedural generation]] and massively single-player style.
'''[[2006 in video gaming|2006]]'''
[[Image:Nintendo DS Lite (top open on).jpg|thumb|155px|The [[Nintendo DS Lite]].]]
* The [[Nintendo DS Lite]], a redesign of the [[Nintendo DS]] is announced on [[January 26]], with a release set for [[March 2]].
* Nintendo announces [[Wii]] on [[April 27]]. Wii (pronounced "we") features a new controller with an unorthodox, remote control-like shape, and, to encourage new users to play, features motion sensitivity (where you move the remote in real life affects the on screen gameplay).
* At E3 2006, The Bungie Team announces the 3rd game in the [[Halo (series)|''Halo'' trilogy]].
* Again, Sony demonstrates the [[PlayStation 3]] at a pre-E3 press conference. First- and third-party games are revealed. The redesigned controller is said to have tilt-sensitivity, looks more like the [[DualShock]] controllers, and has lost rumble functionality in order to accommodate a motion sensor within the controller and comply with legal action taken against them. It is confirmed that there will be two packages. One is sold for about $499 with a 20 GB hard drive, and the other $599 with 60 GB and [[Wi-Fi]]. Prices in the [[PAL region]] are set to be as much as 33% higher or more. The system launched with 80,000 consoles in Japan on [[November 11]] and 400,000 consoles in North America on [[November 17]], with the PAL region following in March 2007. Originally the PAL markets were also going to have a November 2006 release, but was pushed back due to a shortage of parts.<ref>{{cite web| author=Unknown| title=playstation 3 delayed in australiasia and Eurasia | url=http://www.consolewatcher.com/2006/09/playstation-3-delayed-in-australasia-and-eurasia/| work=[http://www.consolewatcher.com/ Console Watcher]}}</ref>
*Envizions Computer Entertainment announced [[Evo: Phase One]], a "next generation media hub" that "allows customers to pause, rewind and record live TV, store family photos, play 3D PC games, and access console like applications." Though noted as being a powerful system, its price tag is higher than that of any other console this generation; its RRP is set at US$679.99.
*[[Sony]] releases the PlayStation 3 on [[November 11]].
*[[Nintendo]] launched the [[Wii]] on [[November 19]].
'''[[2007 in video gaming|2007]]'''
*In March, [[Microsoft]] announces a new version of the Xbox 360 dubbed "Elite" that includes HDMI video output and upgrades the hard drive capacity to 120 GB. The new version also comes in a new color: black. Microsoft also introduces existing accessories in black alongside the release of the upgraded system. First speculation thought it to be on a limited production run, but then later revealed to be added as a third model to the lineup. In addition to the new Xbox 360, Microsoft increased the warranty of the Xbox 360 from 1 year to 3 years due to the number of complaints of the consoles "[[Red Ring of Death]]" problems.
*Sony announces the discontinuation of their 20 GB version of the PS3 in North America due to Americans favoring the 60 GB version.<ref>[http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18081134/ Sony discontinues lower-end PlayStation 3 - Games - MSNBC.com<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
*Despite predictions of poor sales due to its backwards-compatibility problems and pricing controversies, the Playstation 3 enjoyed a strong late-March launch in Europe, selling 600,000 units in the first two days.
*In early July, [[Sony]] dropped the price of the 60 GB PS3 by $100 (now $499) to increase sales in the American market (no price reduction in the Europe market), however no new 60 GB units were to be assembled and the 60 GB stocks were reported to last only a few months. Also announced was an 80 GB PS3 bundle (with ''[[MotorStorm]]'') that would replace the 60 GB version on the shelf at $599.
*At E3 2007, Sony released information that a new version of the [[PlayStation Portable]], known as the [[PlayStation Portable Slim]] (also called ''PSPLite''—in similarity with [[DS Lite]] or PSP-2000). It was released on [[September 10]], for all regions.
*''[[Halo 3]]'' is released by Microsoft and becomes the fastest-selling video game in history, generating a revenue of $170 million in [[North America]] during its first 24 hours of release. In addition, it also became the fastest-selling entertainment release in history, beating the previous record holder, the movie ''[[Spider-Man 3]]'', by a significant margin.<ref>[http://videogames.yahoo.com/news-532002 Halo 3 outsells every other entertainment release in history - Video Game News - Yahoo! Video Games<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
*On September 12, 2007, it was reported by the Financial Times that the Wii had surpassed the Xbox 360, which was released one year previously, to become the market leader in worldwide home console sales for the current generation.<ref name="wiileads">{{citeweb |url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/51df0c84-6154-11dc-bf25-0000779fd2ac.html| date=[[September 12]] [[2007]]|Author=Mariko Sanchanta|title= Nintendo’s Wii takes console lead|accessdate=2007-09-12}}</ref>
*''[[Rock Band]]'' is released by [[MTV Games]]. The game comes [[Product bundling|bundled]] with a guitar, drums, and a microphone in which up to four players can play a song together.
'''[[2008 in video gaming|2008]]'''
*[[Nokia Corporation]] launched its [[N-Gage 2.0|2nd generation N-Gage]] platform on [[April 3]], [[2008]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.n-gage.com/ngi/ngage/web/g0/en/community/articles.Detail.general-anewdayforngage.1.html |title= A New Day for N-Gage |publisher=Nokia |accessdate=2008-04-03}}</ref>
*''[[Grand Theft Auto IV]]'' is released. The fourth numerically named game in the series has several features new to the series, such as online multiplayer gameplay. In addition, [[Rockstar Games]]'s partnership with Amazon.com allows for an in game music download system unique to the game.
*''[[Super Smash Bros. Brawl]]'' is released on March 9 after several delays.
*''[[Mario Kart Wii]]'' was released on April 24. This game comes bundled with the [[Wii Wheel]] peripheral.
*''[[Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots]]'' is released worldwide on June 12th.
==See also==
*[[Chronology of console role-playing games]]
*[[Home computing]] (the [[8-bit]] era)
==Further reading==
*''[[Phoenix: The Fall & Rise of Videogames]]'' by [[Leonard Herman]]
*''[[The first quarter: A 25-year history of video games]]'' by [[Steven L. Kent]]
*''[[From Sun Tzu to Xbox: War and Video Games]]'' by [[Ed Halter]]
*''[[Game Over: the maturing of mario]]'' by [[David Sheff]]
*''[[High Score!: The Illustrated History of Electronic Games]]'' by Rusel DeMaria and Johnny Wilson (McGraw-Hill Osborne Media)
*''[[Joystick Nation]]'' by [[J.C. Herz]]
*''[[Masters of Doom: How Two Guys Created an Empire and Transformed Pop Culture|Masters of Doom]]'' by [[David Kushner]]
*''[[Opening the Xbox: Inside Microsoft's Plan to Unleash an Entertainment Revolution]]'' by [[Dean Takahashi]]
*''[[Play Between Worlds: Exploring Online Game Culture]]'' by [[TL Taylor]]
*''[[SMARTBOMB: The Quest for Art, Entertainment, and Big Bucks in the Videogame Revolution]]'' by [[Heather Chaplin]] and [[Aaron Ruby]].
*''[[The Video Game Theory Reader]]'' edited by [[Mark J.P. Wolf]] and [[Bernard Perron]].
*''[[Videogames: In The Beginning]]'' by [[Ralph Baer]]
*''[[The Ultimate History of Video Games]]'' by [[Steven L. Kent]]
*''[[Power-Up: How Japanese Video Games Gave the World an Extra Life]]'' by [[Chris Kohler]].
==References==
{{reflist}}
*{{cite book | author=Herman, Leonard | title=Phoenix: The Fall & Rise of Videogames| publisher=Rolenta Press | year=3rd edition - 2001 | id=ISBN 0-9643848-5-X}} [http://www.rolentapress.com]
*{{cite book | author=Kohler, Chris | title=[[Power-Up: How Japanese Video Games Gave the World an Extra Life]] | publisher=Brady Games | year=2005 | id=ISBN 0-7440-0424-1}}
*{{cite book | author=Forster, Winnie | title=The Encyclopedia of Game Machines - Consoles, handheld & home computers 1972-2005 | publisher=Gameplan | year=2005 | id=ISBN 3-00-015359-4 | url=http://www.gameplan-books.com/gameplan_01.5_NA/ }}
*{{cite book | author=DeMaria, Rusel | title=[[High Score!: The Illustrated History of Electronic Games]] | publisher=McGraw-Hill Osborne Media | year=2 edition (December 18, 2003) | id=ISBN 0-07-223172-6}}
*Day, Walter. ''[http://www.twingalaxies.com/index.aspx?c=17 The Golden Age of Video Game Arcades]'' (1998) - A 200-page story contained within ''Twin Galaxies' Official Video Game & Pinball Book of World Records''. ISBN 1-887472-25-8
*[http://www.pbs.org/kcts/videogamerevolution/index.html ''The Video Game Revolution''] (2004) is a documentary from [[Public Broadcasting Service|PBS]] that examines the evolution and history of the video game industry, from the 1950s through today, the impact of video games on society and culture, and the future of electronic gaming.
*''Video Game Invasion: The History of a Global Obsession'' (2004) (Documentary. [http://www.gsn.com/corporate/press.php?release_id=18 Press Release], [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0464299/ IMDb])
*[http://www.bnl.gov/bnlweb/history/higinbotham.asp The First Video Game] a description at Brookhaven National Laboratory
*{{cite web|title=The History of Video Games|author=Leonard Herman, Jer Horwitz, Steve Kent, and Skyler Miller|url=http://gamespot.com/gamespot/features/video/hov/index.html|date=2002|work=Gamespot|publisher=CNET Networks International Media}}
*[http://arstechnica.com/articles/paedia/gaming-evolution.ars/ Ars Technica's ''The evolution of gaming: computers, consoles, and arcade'']
*http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/ps2/data/928520.html "Guitar Hero Info" details the Release Date and Credits of Guitar Hero
*[http://uk.gamespot.com/ps3/adventure/metalgearsolid4/news.html?sid=6192778&om_act=convert&om_clk=gsupdates&tag=updates;title;1]"MGS4 boosts PS3 sales in Japan" - GameSpot
==External links==
* {{dmoz|Games/Video_Games/History|{{pagename}}}}
{{History of Video Games}}
[[Category:History of video games| ]]
[[ca:Història dels videojocs]]
[[cs:Dějiny počítačových her a videoher]]
[[de:Geschichte der Videospiele]]
[[es:Historia de los videojuegos]]
[[fr:Histoire du jeu vidéo]]
[[it:Storia dei videogiochi]]
[[he:היסטוריה של משחקי הווידאו]]
[[lt:Kompiuterinių žaidimų istorija]]
[[ja:コンピュータゲームの歴史]]
[[pl:Historia gier komputerowych]]
[[pt:História dos videogames]]
[[ru:История компьютерных и видеоигр]]
[[simple:History of computer and video games]]
[[sv:Datorspelshistoria]]
[[zh:電子遊戲歷史]]