Using an Oscilloscope as a screen, it is the precursor to modern videogames.
Spacewar! - 1962:
It took approximately 200 hours of work to create the initial version. the basic gameplay involved two armed spaceships called 'the needle' and 'the wedge' attempting to shoot one another while manoeuvring in the gravity well of a str. The ships filed missiles that were unaffected by gravity ( due to the lack of processing time). Each ship had a limited number of missiles and supply of fuel.
Pong - 1972:
Where Spacewar! had been complex and difficult to learn this game was simplicity itself. A two player game of table-tennis, each player has a bat for which to hit the square ball across the screen to score points.
Space Invaders - 1978:
Japenese publisher Taito unleashes the biggest videogame hit to date. The player is put in charge of a lone ship and has to defend the Earth from oncoming attack. The game is phenomenally successful in arcade and home conversions.
Galaxian - 1979:
Although it added some gameplay ingredients to the Space Invaders formula, Namco's game is notable primarily for being the first videogame with colour graphics.
Pacman - 1980:
Not only did this game signal a change from shooting games but also unleashed a recognisable character that could be marketed and sold, giving rise to breakfast cereals and a cartoon series.
Donkey Kong - 1981:
Nintendo's game introduced one of videogame's most enduring characters - Mario, although in this game, his earliest Japanese appearance, the character was simply called 'Jumpman.'
Tetris - 1984:
The game (or one of his many variants) is available for nearly every day videogame consoles and computer operating systems, as well as on devices such as graphing calculators, mobile phones, portable media players, PDA's, network media players and even an Easter egg on non-media products like oscilloscopes. It has even inspired serving Tetris dishes and been played on the sides of the various buildings.
Super Mario Brothers - 1985:
The Nintendo took Japan, the USA, and then Europe by storm with a series of innovative titles including this game and The Legend Of Zelda. Many of the series are still going strong today. The Nintendo became practically synonymous with videogaming. The objective of this game is to race through the Mushroom Kingdom, survive the main antagonist Bowser's forces and save Princess Toadstool.
Sonic The Hedgehog - 1991:
Where Nintendo were largely dominant in the later 1980's, the early 1990's would see stiffer competition from Sega with their MegaDrive console (Genesis USA). This game introdced a blue hedgehog who lives on South Island with his animal friends. He encounters an evil scientist called Doctor Ivo Robotnik, known as Dr. Eggman in the Japanese version.
Tomb Raider - 1996:
This game is an action-adventure video game developed by Core Design and published by Eidos Interactive. The story opens with a prologue in Los Alamos County, New Mexico. A great explosion causes an earthquake and exposes an ancient device buried beneath the desert surface. The device unlocks and reveals a person in suspended animation. The story then continues in the present day. The game was commercially and critically successful, and is considered widely influential. It spawned a number of sequals and a franchise of related media.
Grand Theft Auto IV - 2008:
The game is a sand-box-style action-adventure video game developed by Rockstar North, and released for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 video game consoles in Europe, North America and Oceania. It is the all-time highest-scoring game on three professional critic review aggregating websites: TopTenReviews; GameRatio and GameTab. The game is set in a redesigned rendition of Liberty City, a fictional city based heavily on modern day New York City. It follows Niko Bellic, a war veteran from an unspecified country in Eastern Europe.
Tomb Raider - 1996:
This game is an action-adventure video game developed by Core Design and published by Eidos Interactive. The story opens with a prologue in Los Alamos County, New Mexico. A great explosion causes an earthquake and exposes an ancient device buried beneath the desert surface. The device unlocks and reveals a person in suspended animation. The story then continues in the present day. The game was commercially and critically successful, and is considered widely influential. It spawned a number of sequals and a franchise of related media.
Grand Theft Auto IV - 2008:
The game is a sand-box-style action-adventure video game developed by Rockstar North, and released for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 video game consoles in Europe, North America and Oceania. It is the all-time highest-scoring game on three professional critic review aggregating websites: TopTenReviews; GameRatio and GameTab. The game is set in a redesigned rendition of Liberty City, a fictional city based heavily on modern day New York City. It follows Niko Bellic, a war veteran from an unspecified country in Eastern Europe.
