Game History 1950-70's. SCIENCE TIME!

So, video and computer game history. Which clever blighter do I have to thank for making a future in the games industry a possibility? And what made them decide that the computer should be used for entertainment purposes?

Well after a little bit of research, it wasn't that clear. Information is not always stored too well, or there is limited recorded information on this topic. After a bit of prying it would appear that the very first concept of a video game came from a guy called Ralph Bear who came up with idea in 1951. He was working for Loral a TV company and he was asked to create the world best Television. So his concept was to create a television that you could play video games on, something that had never been done before. But it wasn't until 1966 that he actually went back to this concept and started to produce prototypes of this 'game machine.'

Other notable games from this period were in 1952 a cathode ray tube version of ‘Tic-Tac-Toe’, which was created by PhD student of Cambridge A.S.Douglas. The university had an EDSAC vacuum-tube computer which used a cathode ray tubes which were organized as 35 by 16 dots. The purpose for Douglas creating a Tic-Tac-Toe game on this (in the time) High tech computer was to do with his thesis on the human-computer interaction. He used this simple game to illustrate this. 

As technology advanced more basic and conceptual ideas for games appeared. In 1958 the next notable program was conceived. A Willy Higginbotham employee at the Brookhaven National Laboratories used an oscilloscope used as the display linked to an Donner Model 30 analog computer. His program was know as ‘Tennis Programming’, but more commonly referred to as ‘Tennis for Two’.  The program was for two players both using hand controls. 

It was then in 1961 that three students of the MIT invented a game on a DEC PDP-1 vector graphics computer which consisted of two spaceships shooting at each other. This was the original ‘Spacewars.’

These three programs were more notable prototypes of what the video game was to become. These were not created for commercial reasons, mainly all for science. I guess that’s a very important point to consider, that what now a day has been given somewhat of a bad reputation and is seen as a none academic and ‘brain numbing’ pass time, that it should be born from many intelligent peoples minds. 

It wasn’t until 1966 that the first potential commercial video game was conceived. Ralph Baer came back to his 1951 TV game concept and designed several prototypes. This first being a game consisting of two squares chasing each other, ‘Chase Game.’ His final prototype was the ‘Brown Box’ which had several games such as ball and paddle games, target shooting games and more. This was the product he presented to the TV manufacturers and he signed an agreement with Magnavox in 1971 that lead to the release of the Magnavox Odyssey in 1972, the very first video game system.

After the birth of the video game system in 1972, the 70’s were the start of Atari, in 1971 co founder of Atari Nolan Bushnell is convinced of the commercial viability video games possessed. he left his job to work full time on producing an Arcade version of 'Spacewars.' But after it's not so well received release in bars and other entertainment venues, Bushnell realizes that the games have to be easy to understand from the off, no half-pissed local in a bar is going to want to work out how to do something seemingly complicated. In 1972 when Atari was incorporated Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney hired Al Alcorn to help programing their latest project PONG. PONG fulfilled the simple game play and controls so that it appealed to a wide audience, and after brilliant marketing sold very well. This started the arcade revolution from 1974-1976 sees 110 arcade games hitting the market! It is also important to highlight in 1975 when two young computer enthusiasts Bill Gates and Paul Allen saw personal computing as the way forward and formed a partnership called Microsoft. This was going to start a movement from arcade to PC gaming in the 80's and 90's.

Going back to my comments earlier it is important to consider why it was decided that computers would be used to have fun. It seems the people who have decided this are all from a scientific/technology background, and maybe didn’t necessarily plan to use these for fun. Most games stemming from scientific projects or to meet a brief set by an employer.  I guess this shows a major change in the games world comparing the 50-70s to today. Games in this period were all created with knowledge and with purpose, plain maths and calculation, unlike now when the games have the fundamentals based on maths (programming) but there is now a much more artistic and creative side. For example, I am on a course to get me into a career in creating games, I am no mathematician my background is all fine art and design work. It is significant as it shows a massive change since then. Most importantly how it has turned into an art form with the birth of the Game Artist.
So I guess I have (once again) to thank science and technology for the things that make my life better, and in this case, even my careers future. Good ol' science eh?

http://www.pong-story.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atari
http://www.designboom.com/eng/education/pong2.html
http://windows.microsoft.com/is-IS/windows/history