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1975 saw several critical influences in the history of video games, including the first commercial games utilizing large-scale integrated circuits and microprocessors, as well as the first role-playing video games.
On the back end of the Pong boom, the coin-operated video game industry achieved new expressions of gameplay and animation in arcade games. Racing games and competitive shooting games became particularly popular. Local multiplayer games accommodating more than four players were released by Atari, featuring advanced implementations of transistor-transistor logic hardware. Several games utilizing microprocessors debuted in coin-op, including the influential Gun Fight from Midway Mfg.
The console industry saw its first competitive environment in the United States with Magnavox, Atari, and smaller competitors introducing systems utilizing advanced circuit designs. Atari’s Pong home console featured a sophisticated custom chip created in-house. [1] [2] European dedicated consoles remained isolated to specific regions, but offered some of the first console lines from companies like Videomaster. Japan’s first native console was developed and released by toy company Epoch.
Computer networks saw a mass proliferation of game variants written in the BASIC programming language which influenced the emerging field of microcomputers. Games introduced in publications like People’s Computer Company and 101 BASIC Computer Games were frequently played via teletypes on time-sharing connected terminals; some were distributed via the remote connected ARPANET. The PLATO network likewise experienced a massive uptick in titles following the popularity of Empire and Spasim . Midwestern universities connected to the PLATO system were early recipients of the spread of Dungeons & Dragons , which prompted several student groups to develop the earliest computer role-playing games.
Total unit sales: 50,000–79,000. [8] [9] [Note 1]
Total Revenue (machine sales): $68–76 million. [9] [Note 2]
Title | Arcade cabinet units (Estimates) | Manufacturer | Developer | Genre |
---|---|---|---|---|
Gun Fight | 8,600 [10] | Midway Manufacturing | Dave Nutting Associates | Multi-directional shooter |
Wheels | 7,000 [11] [Note 3] 2,400 [12] | Midway Manufacturing | Taito Corp | Racing |
Wheels II | 3,000 [11] | Midway Manufacturing | Taito Corp | Racing |
PT 109 | 1,500 [11] | Mirco Games | Mirco Games | Action |
Avenger | 1,200 [11] | Electra Games | Universal Research Laboratories | Fixed shooter |
Tank II | 1,000 [11] | Kee Games | Atari Inc. | Multi-directional shooter |
Super Flipper | 538 [13] | Chicago Coin | Model Racing | Sports |
Crash 'N Score | 500 [11] | Atari Inc. | Atari Inc. | Racing |
Jet Fighter | 500 [11] | Atari Inc. | Atari Inc. | Multi-directional shooter |
Shark Jaws | 500 [11] | Atari Inc. | Atari Inc. | Action |
Steeplechase | 500 [11] | Atari Inc. | Atari Inc. | Racing |
RePlay magazine published its first popularity chart for coin-operated games in the United States in March 1976, covering games of the previous year. The lists were based on polling operators regarding their opinions of games receiving the most attention in their locations. [14] RePlay's charts were based only on a subset of operators and are not on imperial metrics such as earnings reports, but they give a strong indication of games which were of the most value to arcades and street locations.
The RePlay rankings included both video and electro-mechanical games which ran in close competition through the 1970s until video games became dominant. Outside of the top twenty ranked in order, forty-eight other games were also listed. [14]
Rank | Arcade video games | ||
---|---|---|---|
Title | Genre | Manufacturer | |
1 | Tank / Tank II | Multi-directional shooter | Kee Games |
2 | Wheels / Wheels II | Racing | Midway Manufacturing |
3 | Gun Fight | Multi-directional shooter | Midway Manufacturing |
4 | Indy 800 | Racing | Kee Games |
5 | Gran Trak 10 / Gran Trak 20 | Racing | Atari Inc. |
6 | Twin Racer | Racing | Kee Games |
7 | BiPlane | Multi-directional shooter | Atari Inc. |
8 | Racer | Racing | Midway Manufacturing |
9 | Demolition Derby | Racing | Chicago Coin |
10 | Street Burners | Racing | Allied Leisure Industries |
Home consoles
Total unit sales: 250,000-400,000 consoles. [9] [15]
Total revenue (retail): $32-40 million. [15] [16]
Title | Game console units (1975) | Manufacturer | Developer |
---|---|---|---|
Odyssey | 80,000 [11] | Magnavox | Sanders Associates/Magnavox |
Odyssey 100 / Odyssey 200 | 100,000 [11] | Magnavox | Sanders Associates/Texas Instruments |
Pong | 85,000 [16] | Atari Inc. | MOS Sorcery/Atari Inc. [1] |