Blog Post #5: Each One Teach One - The History of Video Games - The 1940s to 2023

Over time, it has been interesting to see the new advancements of technology within our surrounding environments. Many people have made new discoveries to improve existing technologies, and I become really excited to know how we are making games look better, feel cool to play, load faster than before, all with new tests, results, and ideas. However, we did not get to video games being like they are today without proper cause. Video games got their humble start to become the global entertainment machine they are today.

Video games first emerged around the 1940s, but did not come more into the public view until the introduction of "Spacewar" in 1962, created by students from MIT. The game served as a basis for more to come down the line, especially with the growth of new, lifechanging technologies after the end of the war. The Magnavox Odyssey was the "first home video game system", created by Ralph Baer in 1968.

Moving into the 1970s and 1980s, the world saw the development of educational video games, such as "Oregon Trail", as well as the introduction of Pong, Atari's rise as a recognizable video game company, and its unfortunate fall, and the establishment of more modern game companies we see today. The Video Game Crash took place in 1983, as a result of a crowded market, too many options, and a severe lack of sales. The Nintendo Entertainment System, released in 1985, helped pave the way for many of the most recognizable characters to take the forefront, all starting with Super Mario.  A personal favorite, the first "The Legend of Zelda" was released in 1987, giving rise to one of Nintendo's more popular franchises, with a number of releases over the years and in different forms of media.

A video of the game "Pong", released in 1972.

The 1970s also introduced new technologies that would improve how games and code were stored and played. Jerry Lawson, the first African-American game designer, was a leading developer in the industry for inventing the Fairchild Channel F, the first game console to use cartridges that the player is able to swap. After this new invention, many companies took after his work. Jerry Lawson is a personal inspiration to me, especially being a leading African-American working to improve how we all play video games today.

The first PlayStation, released by Sony in 1994.

Throughout the 1990s, gaming starts to take more of a trend towards 3D capabilities. As more technology was introduced, more companies were taking advantage of the new capabilities that 3D games could offer. New companies were created, and more established companies were getting used to the expanding competition. Sega, a company in competition with Nintendo, needed a good mascot who could connect to players, as well as being a sort of foil to Mario. They came up with Sonic the Hedgehog, a blue mammal with a cool personality and the ability to run at high speeds. Sega released Sonic's first outing in 1991, along with the release of their new console, the Sega Genesis. During the 1990s, one of the game industry's heavy hitters, as well as being a lead competitor in today's environment is PlayStation, established by Sony in 1994. The first PlayStation console started out with 3D graphics, and was targeted at a much older audience, often people who grew up playing video games. Because of these reasons, games developed for the PlayStation often tended to be more mature in content compared to Nintendo, to better fit their target audience. The Entertainment Software Ratings Board, otherwise known as the ESRB, was created in 1993 in response to a concern of increased violence, graphical content, and explicit themes in video games. The ESRB is still used today, as well as more establishment of regional rating systems in other countries, such as CERO and PEGI.

A Nintendo Wii bundle featuring Mario Kart Wii, one of the more popular Wii games.

Moving into the 2000s, the first Xbox was released in 2001, to much fan appeal. The Xbox released with a popular franchise that continues to live on today in the Halo series. The further development and improvement of the internet today also led to more improvements in online play as the years go on. Mobile gaming sees a rise in popularity and accessibility as more phones become easily accessible for everyone to have, among the most popular being Angry Birds in 2009. Nintendo releases the Wii in 2006, a console that changed the way many video games are played, as the console introduced motion controls into many games on the platform. The Wii was also marketed as a family console, so many families could come together to play games from their favorite Nintendo franchises.

The 2010s get us closer to the modern age of gaming, as more indie games take center stage. Before being bought out, Minecraft, created in 2010, was at the forefront of many gamers' minds, kids to adults alike. The 2010s also saw the rise in toys-to-life gaming, which was the marketing strategy of buying figures or physical toys that could interact with the game using an NFC reader. The main toys-to-life gaming series were the Skylanders series, created by Activision, Disney Infinity, and Warner Bros.' LEGO Dimensions. All three sold well over the course of their lifetime and gathered many fans of their respective franchises with what each series allowed the player to do or become within the respective game worlds. E-Sports starts to take hold as a growing media platform through platforms such as YouTube and Twitch, allowing users to stream media live around the world. Augmented and Virtual Reality, abbreviated as AR and VR, respectively, began to emerge as a forefront. Augmented Reality games, among one of the most popular being Pokémon Go, which released in 2016, led many people to think about how games and gameplay could be creatively merged within the real world. After the commercial failure of the Nintendo Wii U, as well as lagging behind their competitors, Nintendo releases the Switch in 2017, a hybrid console allowing the user to play games docked and connected to a TV or to take on-the-go throughout their day. The competitors came out with the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One a few years before, and were dedicated to traditional couch console gaming.

Finally landing at the 2020s, COVID likely caused a greater rise to playing video games, as COVID locked everyone in their houses for months at a time. Animal Crossing: New Horizons, was a game that helped alleviate the boredom many players felt having to constantly sit in their homes. The adorable life simulator enabled players to connect with friends near and far by visiting their islands, collecting materials, and making gifts to give to your wandering villagers on your personal island. New big names have been released, and "The Game Awards", a Hollywood-type awards show for the biggest games has gotten its name out to many people worldwide as the most prestigious show to celebrate our love of video games not simply as a pastime, but as a part of our expanding pop culture.

From a young age, I have loved playing video games. Video games have become a meaningful part of my identity, and is what I am studying right now. The industry is always changing and expanding because of the emergence of new tech and ways to create videogames, so there is a lot to learn and a lot of hard work in order to become a game designer. There are also huge numbers of teams working on video games over the course of a few years, that have the chance of being really good, or something that could flop. I feel that when people were originally working with programs in the 1940s, their aim was to create simple simulations or tests of scientific experiments. Little did these computer engineers know, they started one of the most popular pastimes globally, one which is still growing today.

Looking back at how video games have made its way into the mainstream, many good and bad things have resulted from it. Gaming has allowed people to connect with one anther on a large scale, especially during the mainstream pandemic, when people were unable to physically see one another. Games have served as an output of creative stories and lovable characters for all ages. No game is the same, and each game is marketed towards a targeted audience or fanbase. However, there have been many reported incidents of gender discrimination and harassment from various companies, as well as there not being enough minority representation within the industry, something I hope to change. Games also take a lot of time to make, and because there is no one universal set plan for creating a game that a business can rely on, the varied game industries often don't have the type of workers' support as some other industries have employed. As more of these issues come to light, more change is being made in a flexible, ever-growing industry.