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The 1970s was the first decade in the history of the video game industry. The 1970s saw the development of some of the earliest video games, chiefly in the arcade game industry, but also several for the earliest video game consoles and personal computers.

Notable games released in the 1970s included Computer Space, The Oregon Trail, Pong, Maze, Tank, Colossal Cave Adventure, Death Race, Sea Wolf, Breakout, Zork, Combat, Space Invaders, Lunar Lander, Galaxian, and Asteroids.

Arcade history

Notable early arcade video games of the early-to-mid-1970s include Computer Space (1971), Pong (1972), Space Race (1973), Gotcha (1973), Speed Race (1974), Gun Fight (1975), Heavyweight Champ (1976), Fonz (1976), Night Driver (1976), Breakout (1976), Death Race (1976), Sea Wolf (1976), and Space Wars (1977).

Golden age of arcade video games (1978–1979)

Classic arcade games of the late 1970s include Space Invaders (1978), Galaxian (1979), Asteroids (1979), Barrier (1979), Speed Freak (1979), Warrior (1979), Tail Gunner (1979), and Lunar Lander (1979).

Consoles of the 1970s

First-generation consoles (1972–1979)

The first generation of consoles were on sale between 1972 and 1980 and included the Magnavox Odyssey, Telstar, Home Pong, and Color TV-Game.

Typical characteristics of the first generation of consoles:

• Discrete transistor-based digital game logic.
• Games were native components of consoles rather than based on external or removable media.
• Entire game playfield occupies only one screen.
• Players and objects consist of very basic lines, dots or blocks.
• Colour graphics are basic (mostly black and white or other dichromatic combination; later games may display three or more colors).
• Either single-channel or no audio.
• Games had a high score based system.

• Lacked features of second generation consoles, such as microprocessor logic, ROM cartridges, flip-screen playfields, sprite-based graphics, and multi-color graphics.

Second-generation consoles (1976–1983)

The second generation of consoles, on sale between 1976 and 1988, made several leaps forward technologically. Consoles first available in the late 1970s included the Fairchild Channel F, Atari 2600, Bally Astrocade, and Magnavox Odyssey². The first handheld console, the Microvision, was released in 1979.

Typical characteristics of the second generation of consoles:

• Microprocessor-based game logic.
• AI simulation of computer-based opponents, allowing for single-player gaming.
• ROM cartridges for storing games, allowing any number of different games to be played on one console.
• Game playfields able to span multiple flip-screen areas.
• Blocky and simplistic-looking sprites, with a screen resolution of around 160 × 192 pixels.
• Basic color graphics, generally between 2-color (1-bit) and 16-color (4-bit).
• Up to three channel audio.
• Lacked features of third-generation consoles, such as scrolling tile-based playfields.

Notable video game franchises established in the 1970s

Arcade

• 280 ZZZAP (1976)
• The Amazing Maze Game (1976)
• Anti-Aircraft (1975)
• Asteroids (1979)
• Astro Fighter (1979)
• Barrier (1979)
• Blockade (1976)
• Breakout (1976)
• Canyon Bomber (1977)
• Circus (1977)
• Computer Space (1971)
• Crash 'N Score (1975)
• Death Race (1976)
• Destruction Derby (1975)
• F-1 (1976)
• Fire Truck (1978)
• Fonz (1976)
• Football (1978)
• Galaxian (1979)
• Galaxy Wars (1979)
• Gee Bee (1978)
• Gotcha (1973)
• Gran Trak 10 (1974)
• Gun Fight (1975)
• Head On (1979)
• Heavyweight Champ (1976)
• Hi-way (1975)
• Indy 4 (1976)
• Indy 800 (1975)
• Jet Fighter (1975)
• LeMans (1976)
• Lunar Lander (1979)
• Night Driver (1976)
• Pong (1972)
• Rebound (1974)
• Sea Wolf (1976)
• Shark Jaws (1975)
• Sheriff (1979)
• Space Invaders (1978)
• Space Race (1973)
• Space Wars (1977)
• Speed Freak (1979)
• Speed Race (1974)
• Sprint (1976)
• Star Fire (1978)
• Steeplechase (1975)
• Stunt Cycle (1976)
• Super Breakout (1978)
• Super Bug (1977)
• Tank (1974)
• Tail Gunner (1979)
• Warrior (1979)

Home computers and console

• Battlestar Galactica (1976)
• Combat (1977)
• Empire (1977)
• dnd (1975)
• Flight Simulator (1979)
• The Oregon Trail (1971)
• Sargon (1978)
• Superman (1979)
• Star Trek (1979)
• Star Wars (1979)
• Zork (1977)

Notes:

• Game franchises that also accompany major film or television franchises.

Financial performance

Best-selling arcade games of the decade

The following titles were the best-selling arcade games of each year in the 1970s.

Best-selling home systems of the decade

Hardware timeline

The following gallery highlights hardware used to predominantly play games throughout the 1970s.

• Pong arcade machine (1972)
• Home Pong console (museum recreation)
• Magnavox Odyssey (1972)
• Death Race (1976)
• Fairchild Channel F (1976)
• Apple II (1977)
• TRS-80 (1977)
• Color TV-Game (1977)
• Commodore PET (1977)
• Atari CX40 joystick (1978)
• VT100 (1978)
• Intellivision (1979)
• Asteroids (1979)
• Microvision (1979)
• Galaxian (1979)

References

1. "After Pong". ACE. No. 6 (March 1988). 4 February 1988. pp. 29-32 (29).
2. Sullivan, George (1983). "The First Big Hits". Screen Play: The Story of Video Games. F. Warne. p. 38-47 (40). ISBN 978-0-7232-6251-0.
3. "結果ベスト3" [Best 3 Results] (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 90. Amusement Press, Inc. 15 February 1978. pp. 2–3.
4. ^ "調査対象5年間のベスト1" [Best 1 of the 5 Years Surveyed] (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 159. Amusement Press, Inc. 15 February 1981. p. 1.
5. "Top Arcade Games". Play Meter. November 1977.
6. "Profit Chart". RePlay. October 1976.
7. Steven L. Kent (2000), The first quarter: a 25-year history of video games, BWD Press, p. 83, ISBN 0-9704755-0-0, retrieved 2011-04-09, Sea Wolf, which was another creation of Dave Nutting, did solid business, selling more than 10,000 machines.)
8. "本紙アンケー 〜 ト調査の結果" [Paper Questionnaire: Results of the Survey] (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 65. Amusement Press, Inc. 1 February 1977. pp. 2–3.
9. ^ Baer, Ralph H. (2005). Videogames: In the Beginning. Rolenta Press. pp. 10–3. ISBN 978-0-9643848-1-1.
10. Barack, Lauren (8 May 2003). "In Blast From the Past, Atari Video Games Plan a Return". New York Post. p. 34. Archived from the original on 2012-05-12. Its first hit game, "Pong," launched in 1972, made $11 million in revenue in just one year.
11. Horowitz, Ken (2020-07-30). "Video Killed the Electromechanical Star". Beyond Donkey Kong: A History of Nintendo Arcade Games. McFarland & Company. p. 27. ISBN 978-1-4766-4176-8.
12. Rubin, Michael (2006). "Eighteen: A Hole in the Desert [1982–1983]" (PDF). Droidmaker: George Lucas and the Digital Revolution. Triad Publishing Company. pp. 291-314 (293-4). ISBN 978-0-937404-67-6.
13. Herman, Leonard (1997). Phoenix: the fall & rise of videogames (2nd ed.). Union, NJ: Rolenta Press. p. 20. ISBN 0-9643848-2-5. Retrieved 16 February 2012. Coleco released Telstar in 1976. Like Pong, Telstar could only play video tennis but it retailed at an inexpensive $50 that made it attractive to most families that were on a budget. Coleco managed to sell over a million units that year.
14. Reimer, Jeremy (2005-12-15). "Total share: 30 years of personal computer market share figures". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on 2012-06-07. Retrieved 2021-11-27.
    • Jeremy Reimer (2012-12-07). "Total Share: Personal Computer Market Share 1975-2010". Jeremy Reimer.
15. Smith, Alexander (November 27, 2019). They Create Worlds: The Story of the People and Companies That Shaped the Video Game Industry. Vol. 1: 1971 – 1982. CRC Press. pp. 207–9. ISBN 978-1-138-38990-8.
16. Edwards, Benj (January 22, 2015). "The Untold Story Of The Invention Of The Game Cartridge". Fast Company. Retrieved July 29, 2020.
17. ^ "昔(1970年代）のテレビゲームは何台売れた？" [How many old (1970s) video games sold?]. Classic Videogame Station Odyssey (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2014-01-09. Retrieved 16 April 2021.
18. Ellis, David (2004). "Dedicated Consoles". Official Price Guide to Classic Video Games. Random House. pp. 33–36. ISBN 0-375-72038-3.
19. West, Joel (January 1996). "Moderators of the Diffusion of Technological Innovation: Growth of the Japanese PC Industry" (PDF). Center for Research on Information Technology and Organizations. University of California, Irvine. pp. 9–10. alternate url

History of video games

v t e Chronology of video games Early history 1947–1972 1970s 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980s 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990s 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000s 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010s 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020s 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 Near future v t e Video game history by platform By platform Early mainframe games History of arcade video games Golden age Timeline History of video game consoles Crash of 1983 Console war History of mobile games By console generation First (1972–1980) Second (1976–1992) Third (1983–2003) Fourth (1987–2003) Fifth (1993–2005) Sixth (1998–2013) Seventh (2005–2017) Eighth (2012–) Ninth (2020–) v t e Video game genres List of video game genres Action Platformer Endless runner Platform fighter Shooter Arena First-person Hero Light gun Shoot 'em up Bullet hell Rail Twin-stick Tactical Third-person Survival Battle royale Survival horror Other Beat 'em up Hack and slash Fighting Platform fighter Maze Pac-Man clone Snake Stealth Action-adventure Grand Theft Auto clone Metroidvania Adventure Escape room Graphic adventure Interactive fiction Interactive film Visual novel Walking sim Digital tabletop Deck-building Roguelike deck-building Digital collectible card Puzzle Hidden object Sokoban Tile-matching Role-playing Action role-playing Looter shooter Soulslike Dungeon crawl MMORPG Monster-taming Roguelike Roguelike deck-building Tactical role-playing Simulation Life Dating Farming God Social Virtual pet CMS Business City-building Government Sports Fishing Racing Kart racing Sim racing Vehicle Flight simulation Combat Lunar Lander Space Submarine simulator Train simulator Vehicular combat Other Falling-sand Immersive sim Strategy 4X Auto battler MOBA Real-time strategy Time management Real-time tactics Tactical role-playing Tower defense Turn-based strategy Turn-based tactics Artillery Wargame Grand strategy Other genres Cozy Fitness Horror Survival horror Incremental Music Rhythm Non-game Party Photography Programming Typing Related concepts Themes Advergame Bishōjo Christian Comedy Educational Girls Licensed Otome Sexual Eroge Nonviolent Personalized Sci-fi Serious Art Climate change News Player modes Multiplayer Co-op MMO PVP Single-player Production AAA Indie Doujin soft Fan game Design Casual Hypercasual Emergent gameplay FMV Gacha Kaizo Masocore Nonlinear gameplay Open world Sandbox Side-scrolling Twitch gameplay Vertically scrolling Other Minigame Toys-to-life Video game clone Video game modding Video game remake v t e Video games by country Africa Ghana Kenya Nigeria South Africa Americas Latin America Brazil Colombia Canada United States Asia Bangladesh China India Indonesia Iran Japan South Korea Malaysia Philippines Russia Thailand Turkey Europe Belgium Czech Republic Finland France Germany Greece Ireland Italy Lithuania Netherlands Norway Poland Russia Spain Sweden Switzerland Turkey Ukraine United Kingdom Oceania Australia New Zealand

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