Timeline of Video and Computer Games

1947

• Patent filed in the US for a gadget known as the Cathode-Ray Tube Amusement Device.

1952

• AS Douglas of the University of Cambridge created a game known as OXO, a graphical version of noughts and crosses on the EDSAC computer.

1958

• Tennis for Two, the first video game made available to the public was created at Brookhaven National Laboratory, New York.

1961

• Spacewar!, the first widely available computer game was developed to run on university mainframe computers.

1966

• The first video game to be displayed on a standard television set was created by Ralph Baer, known as 'Chase'.

1971

• A coin-operated arcade version of 'Spacewar!' created by Ted Dabney and Nolan Bushnell, and manufactured by Nutting Associates.
• The first computer baseball game was written by Don Daglow on a PDP-10 mainframe at Pomona College, California.
• The first Star Trek themed game was created by Mike Mayfield of MIT on a Sigma 7 minicomputer.

1972

• Hunt the Wumpus, the first text adventure was written by Gregory Yob for the PDP-10.
• A coin-operated game known as 'PONG' released with widespread success.
• Magnavox Odyssey released; the first commercial video game console.
• Waco released the first handheld electronic game, called 'OXO' based on the game Noughts and Crosses.

1974

• Pioneering examples of early multi-player 3D first person shooters such as Maze War and Spasim appeared.
• Mattel introduced a number of handheld games played on a 7x3 array of LED dots such as Auto Race and Mattel Football I.

1975

• ADVENT (later known as Colossal Cave or Adventure), a hugely popular text adventure game was written by Will Crowther.
• Atari released a home video console version of the coin-operated game 'PONG'.
• The first computer role playing game, Dungeon, was written by Don Daglow on PDP-10 mainframes.

1976

• The first CPU based video game console that included game cartridges was released (the Fairchild Channel F).

1977

• One of the first interactive fiction computer games, Zork, was written by Lebling, Tim Anderson, Marc Blank and Bruce Daniels of MIT.
• The first-ever graphical multi-player game, Air Warrior, was created by Kelton Flinn and John Taylor of the University of Virginia.
• The first home video game console market crash.

1978

• The first example of a multi-user dungeon game (MUD) was developed by Richard Bartle and Roy Trubshaw at Essex University on a DEC PDP-10.
• Magnavox released its CPU based home video game console, the Odyssey 2 (known as the Philips Videopac G7000 in Europe).
• The arcade game Space Invaders released.

1979

• Microvision, the first true handheld game console with interchangeable cartridges was released.
• The arcade games Asteroids and Pac-Man released.

1980

• Rogue, a role playing game that was able to generate a random dungeon and a new set of enemies for each play session was released on BSD Unix by Glenn Wichman, Michael Toy and Ken Arnold.
• The introduction of a home video game console system known as Intellivision by Mattel, which had a unique processor with instructions that were 10 bits wide, allowing more instruction variety and potential speed.
• Game & Watch released by Nintendo, a line of LCD handheld games.

1982

• The Colecovision home video game console was introduced, which used 32 KB ROMs.

1983

• Snipes was created by SuperSet Software; thought to be the first network game ever written for a commercial personal computer, and a forerunner to multi-player games such as Doom and Quake.
• The second home video game console market crash.

1984

• The first true modern adventure game was released (King's Quest series), featuring colour graphics and a third person perspective.
• Islands of Kesmai was released, a text-based game considered to be the first commercial MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role-playing game).
• The first modern style 3D graphics were used in a home computing game, with a space-based game called Elite.

1985

• Nintendo releases the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), an 8-bit home video console, which came bundled with the breakthrough platform game, Super Mario Bros.

1986

• Legend of Zelda series first released for Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), widely considered one of the most influential video game franchises ever created.

1987

• Maniac Mansion was released by Lucasarts, the first computer adventure game that used a point-and-click interface.
• VGA standard was developed, giving PCs the potential for 256-colour graphics.
• Final Fantasy series, a role-playing game (RPG) first released for Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), and going on to become the most successful RPG franchise of all time.
• The Metal Gear series made its debut, giving birth to the stealth-based game genre.
• NEC PC Engine released; the start of the fourth generation (16-bit era) of home video consoles.

1989

• Nintendo released the Game Boy, a handheld console that included interchangeable cartridges; the top-selling title being Tetris.
• Atari Lynx handheld console released, featuring the first backlit colour screen, with hardware capable of accelerated 3d drawing.
• Sega Mega Drive 16-bit home video console released.

1990

• NEC TurboExpress released, the most advanced handheld of its time, including features such as a TV tuner and two-player link mode.
• Sega Game Gear handheld console released.
• Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) 16-bit home video console released.

1991

• The first graphical MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role-playing game), Neverwinter Nights, was released for PC owners.

1992

• A home computer game called Alone in the Dark was released, becoming the first in what was to become known as the survival horror genre.

1993

• Star Fox, a game for the SNES was released; the first to provide basic 3D graphics with flat-shaded polygons.
• Doom for the PC, a game that was largely responsible for defining the first-person shooter (FPS) genre.

1994

• Sony PlayStation, a fifth generation home video console released.
• Sega Saturn, a fifth generation home video console released.

1996

• Meridian 59, one of the first Internet MMORPGs launched by 3DO.
• Nintendo 64, a fifth generation home video console released.
• Realm Online, an Internet MMORPG was released, featuring fully animated 2D graphics and a large number of visual character customisation options.
• Tomb Raider, a critically acclaimed and widely influential game that followed the exploits of Lara Croft, a British female archaeologist, was released for PlayStation and Sega Saturn.
• Quake released by Id Software, an online first-person shooter (FPS) game.
• Resident Evil released, helping to popularise the Survival Horror genre.

1997

• Ultima Online released, popularising the MMORPG genre in the West.

1998

• Game Boy Colour handheld console released by Nintendo, featuring a colour screen along with twice as much memory and processing speed.
• Lineage, an MMORPG was released, becoming one of the most popular of its genre even today.
• Sega Dreamcast (sixth-generation home video console) released.

1999

• EverQuest, a hugely popular and immersive MMORPG launched by Verant Interactive.

2000

• Sony's PlayStation 2 (sixth-generation home video console) released, with the additional ability to play DVDs and audio CDs.

2001

• Game Boy Advance handheld console released by Nintendo, featuring a larger screen, two shoulder buttons and more computing power.
• Dark Age of Camelot, a 3D medieval fantasy MMORPG released by Mythic Entertainment.
• Nintendo GameCube (sixth-generation home video console) released.
• Sega Dreamcast discontinued and Sega withdraws entirely from the console hardware business.
• Microsoft Xbox (sixth-generation home video console) released, featuring online services.

2002

• Final Fantasy XI released for the PC and Playstation 2, bringing fans of the single-player standalone game to multiplayer online gaming.

2003

• Nokia N-Gage released; a combination mobile phone, mp3 player, PDA, radio and gaming device.
• Game Boy Advance SP handheld console released by Nintendo, featuring a clamshell design, rechargeable battery and a frontlit colour display.
• Second Life released by Linden Lab, an online virtual world game.

2004

• Nintendo DS handheld console released, featuring two screens (one of which was a touch screen), wireless connectivity and a microphone.
• Sony PlayStation Portable (PSP) handheld console released, combining music and video playback in addition to gaming.
• NCSoft releases City of Heroes, an MMOPRG that featured the most extensive number of possible visual character appearances.
• Blizzard Entertainment's World of Warcraft (WoW), released for the PC, becoming the most popular and most-widely subscribed MMOPRG with over 8 million customers.

2005

• Game Boy Micro handheld console released by Nintendo, featuring a dramatic reduction in total size and a brighter backlit screen.
• Microsoft Xbox 360 (seventh-generation home video console) released, selling more than 10.4 million worldwide by the end of the following year.

2006

• Nintendo releases its 7th generation home video console, the Wii, featuring a wireless controller that can detect rotation and motion in three dimensions.
• Nintendo DS Lite handheld console released, featuring a cleaner design and a brighter quality display than the original version.
• Sony's 7th generation home video console, the Playstation 3, released in North America and Japan.

2007

• Playstation 3 released in Europe.