Take a nostalgic trip down memory lane and explore the history of video games from the 1970s and beyond. Scroll down for a nostalgic overload from our visual timeline and be sure to add your own memories to our interactive page.
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Join MemoriesMemories Team Pong is the first arcade game ever released and it became an instant classic. The table tennis sports game, featuring simple two-dimensional graphics, was created by Allan Alcorn as a training exercise assigned to him by Atari co-founder Nolan Bushnell.
Memories Team The Atari 2600 became one of the first video game consoles. It would go on to sell 27,640,000 units worldwide.
Space Invaders is created by Tomohiro Nishikado - the world's first fixed shooter arcade game. Initially manufactured and sold in Japan, more than 60,000 machines would be licensed in the US to meet demand.
Memories Team A missing slice of pizza inspired Namco’s Toru Iwatani to create Pac-Man. The game sold 350,000 arcade units and earned $2 billion in revenue. Two years later, Ms. Pac-Man became the best-selling arcade game of all time.
Memories Team The world is introduced to Mario when he appears in the Donkey Kong arcade game. The title would sell 60,000 units.
Memories Team Russian mathematician Alexey Pajitnov created Tetris. Five years later it would be included with every Nintendo Game Boy.
Memories Team Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is released, with the 8-bit third-generation home video game console selling 61,910,000 units. Nintendo initially released 17 games at launch, which included Super Mario Bros and Duck Hunt.
Memories Team The Sega Master System was a third-generation 8-bit home video game console manufactured by Sega. The Master System was released in competition with the NES, offering better processor speeds, graphics and colours.
Memories Team The Sega Genesis, known as the Mega Drive outside North America, was a 16-bit fourth-generation home video game console developed and sold by Sega. Though the launch was overshadowed by Nintendo's release of Super Mario Bros, Sega would sell 30.7 million units.
Nintendo's Game Boy changed what people thought was possible from gaming. The handheld system reaching worldwide sales of 118,690,000.
Memories Team Microsoft included a video game version of Solitaire with Windows 3. The title introduced millions of users to the world of video games.
Memories Team Nintendo released the Super Nintendo (SNES) - a 16-bit home video game console. The SNES introduced advanced graphics and sound capabilities compared with other systems at the time.
Sega introduced Sonic the Hedgehog to its Mega Drive console. The game was developed after Sega requested a mascot character to compete with Nintendo's mascot Mario. Its success helped Sega become one of the leading video game companies during the 16-bit era of the early 1990s.
Memories Team Mortal Kombat became one of the first two-player fighting games released in arcades. The game became and instant hit, but attracted criticism for the extreme violence featured. The controversy prompted the creation of a video game rating system. It's also the year first-person shooter Doom was released
Sony released PlayStation to compete with Nintendo and Sega. It later becomes the first "computer entertainment platform" to ship over 100 million units - a record reached nine years after its initial launch.
Memories Team Lara Croft debuted as the star of Eidos's adventure game Tomb Raider. Tomb Raider was a huge success, but attracts criticism for portraying sexism in video games. https://www.memories.net/
Memories Team The Nintendo 64 was the company's third console and the first to have four controller ports. Nintendo's games - stored on larger 32 or 64 MB cartridges - were some the most advanced for the time. The Nintendo 64 sold 32 million units worldwide, but failed to reach the popularity of its predecessor.
Memories Team GoldenEye 007 was a 1997 first-person shooter developed by Rare and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. Based on the 1995 James Bond film GoldenEye, it featured a single-player campaign and a split-screen multiplayer mode. Goldeneye's creator says the super popular James Bond video game almost didn’t see the light of day. Read the full story here: https://tinyurl.com/yagkcn2d
Memories Team Sony released the highly-anticipated PlayStation 2 - it would become the best-selling video game console of all time after it sold over 155 million units worldwide The PS2 offered backward-compatibility for its predecessor's DualShock controller and games.
Memories Team Microsoft entered the video game market with Xbox and hit games like Halo: Combat Evolved. The Xbox was closer to a PC than most traditional consoles and was the first to feature a built-in hard disk. The same year, Nintendo released the failed GameCube and the Game Boy Advance.
Memories Team Games like Grand Theft Auto demonstrated how far graphics have come, transforming from the bird's-eye view to a three-dimensional and fully explorable world. The game was later banned in some countries for its explicit nature, with censored versions sold.
Microsoft continued to push boundaries and releases the Xbox 360 - the first console to feature HD graphics. The Xbox 360 introduced online service, Xbox Live, which allowed the console to receive regular updates - another first.
Memories Team Guitar Hero created a series of music rhythm games in which players use a guitar-shaped game controller to simulate playing different guitars across numerous rock songs.
Memories Team Sony entered the portable gaming market with the PSP. The portable PlayStation changed what people thought was possible from hand-held gaming devices. It would sell more than 80 million units worldwide. Nintendo hit back with force and released the Nintendo DS. The device became an instant best-seller with more than 145 million units sold.
Nintendo Wii got gamers moving with innovative, motion-sensitive remotes. The interactive console attracted a new breed of casual gamers and helped Nintendo fight against Sony and Microsoft.
Memories Team Sony released the PlayStation 3, with the PS3 was the first console to offer Blu-Ray technology and integrate social gaming services. The system was negatively received due to its high price, however the PS3 still sold more than 87 million units.
Memories Team The indie game movement gained momentum following the release of Minecraft. The addictive brick-building game from Swedish developer Markus Persson was first released on PC, before moving to consoles.
Microsoft released the next-generation Xbox One, with the console receiving generally positive reviews for its refined controller design, multimedia features, and voice navigation. The original Xbox One model was succeeded by the Xbox One S in 2016, with the new model offering support for 4K video playback and upscaling of games from 1080p to 4K. ...
Memories Team The PlayStation 4 placed an increased emphasis on social interaction and integration with other devices and services. Sony's controller was redesigned to include an integrated touchpad. The console also supported high-dynamic-range video and playback of 4K resolution multimedia. Sony later unveiled the PlayStation 4 Slim and a high-end version called the PlayStation 4 Pro, which supported 4K gaming.
Memories Team The twelfth entry in the Call of Duty series Black Ops III became the best-selling game of 2015. There are currently 16 games in the franchise not counting add-ons and DLCs. The first seven games - excluding Modern Warfare - are set during World War II, the rest of the series takes place in present times.
Nintendo’s Switch introduced the first hybrid mobile/home video game console into a game market to compete with smartphones and tablets. The innovative system included titles such as Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Super Mario Odyssey.
Memories Team Fortnite - an online battle royale video game developed by Epic Games - was released. Revenue from Fortnite was estimated in the hundreds of millions of dollars per month, with more than 127 million players worldwide.
Memories Team Gamers now look forward to the next-generation of consoles with the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X set to be released in the next 12 months.
Memories Team This Memories Page has been created as a trip down memory lane for video game fans as we explore the evolution. Come on this nostalgic journey or create a Memories account and contribute your own memories to the page: https://www.memories.net/
Video games continue to be refined as technology improves. A new trend is seeing studios remake old games with better graphics to meet the demand for nostalgia. Michael Jordan fan? Check our our Memories Page on 'The Last Dance' to find out some fun facts about the series: https://www.memories.net/page/5410/michael-jordan#!/
Memories Team The video game industry has come a long way since its humble beginnings, with gaming having estimated revenue of more than $67.51 billion annually - larger than last year’s global box office ($61.2b) and streaming revenues ($40.2b).