Video game systems for the home are a multi-million dollar industry and the current popular consoles from companies like Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft are technological marvels with games that look more like movies than like video games. The thing all of these systems have in common is they owe their existence to one of the earliest arcade video games that was translated into a home version and was responsible for the beginning of the video game industry. The game released in 1972 by Atari is PONG which is a game based on tennis and has simple graphics by today’s standards but was a phenomenon when it was first released. Atari founder Nolan Bushnell assigned the task of designing the game to Allan Alcorn as a training exercise. Alcorn was experienced with electrical engineering and computer science but had never designed games before so this was way to get him accustomed to creating games. Bushnell based his idea on an electronic table tennis game he had seen for the Magnavox Odyssey video game system. The game is played either by one player versus to computer or two players against each other by controlling a paddle that moves vertically on the screen. A ball is volleyed back and forth and points are scored by hitting to ball past the opponents paddle. Shortly after the game was released in bars and arcades, other companies created their own versions of PONG.

Atari added features to their designs and to stay ahead of the competition and they pushed their employees to design and create new games. In 1974, an Atari employee named Harold Lee suggested making a version of Pong for the home that would work with television sets. Atari promoted the idea to some companies who thought the product was too much of a risk and turned them down. Sears was interested in the product and offered an exclusive deal to sell the product with the Sears Tele-Games logo. The product launched on a limited basis during the Christmas season of 1975 and was an instant success selling approximately 150,000 units. Predictably, other companies jumped on the band wagon and released their own home versions of the game adding variations and other features. To try and stay ahead, Atari released new versions over the years with elements such as 4 players working together in pairs or playing against each other.

Magnavox wound up suing Atari after PONG became such a success claiming they had violated their patent and Nolan Bushnell settled with them out of court in 1976. As part of the settlement, Magnavox would get rights to Atari products for one year so Atari decided to delay releasing anything for that year. Magnavox sued other companies that produced similar games and either settled or won. Regardless of the beginning of the idea, it is widely believed that Atari Pong was the game that laid the foundation for the success of video games in arcades and also in the home.

History Store History DVDs Replica Guns Replica Swords Scale Model Kits

History Collectors: We offer a wide selection of museum quality replicas and authentic items representing nearly every century of the Common Era and the most significant civilizations of ancient history. Once you browse through our online catalogue, we are certain you’ll find the perfect gift for yourself or a loved one with an interest in history.

Tags: 1972, 1974, 1975, 1976, Allan Alcorn, Atari, Harold Lee, History DVDs, history of video games, History Store, Magnavox Odyssey, Microsoft, Nintendo, Nolan Bushnell, pong video game, replica guns, Replica Swords, scale model kits, Sears, Sears Tele-Games, Sony, video game history, video game systems