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1979 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Space Invaders Part II and Super Speed Race , along with new titles such as Asteroids , Football , Galaxian , Head On , Heiankyo Alien , Monaco GP , Sheriff and Warrior . For the second year in a row, the highest-grossing video game was Taito's arcade game Space Invaders and the best-selling home system was the Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS).
Space Invaders was the top-grossing video game worldwide in 1979, [1] having become the arcade game industry's all-time best-seller by 1979. [2] The following table lists the year's top-grossing arcade game in Japan, the United Kingdom, United States, and worldwide.
Market | Title | Cabinet sales | Developer | Distributor | Genre | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Japan | Space Invaders | 300,000 [1] [3] | Taito | Taito | Shoot 'em up | [4] [5] |
United Kingdom | Space Invaders | Unknown [lower-alpha 1] | Taito | Midway Manufacturing | Shoot 'em up | [1] |
United States | Space Invaders | 55,000 | Taito | Midway Manufacturing | Shoot 'em up | [6] [7] |
Worldwide | Space Invaders | 355,000+ | Taito | Shoot 'em up | [1] |
In Japan, the following titles were the highest-grossing arcade games of 1979, according to the annual Game Machine chart. Taito's Space Invaders was the highest-grossing arcade game for a second year in a row. [4] [5]
Rank [4] | Title | Points | Developer | Distributor | Genre | Cabinet sales | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
#1 | #2 | #3 | Total | ||||||
1 | Space Invaders | 40 | 4 | 3 | 131 | Taito | Taito | Shoot 'em up | 300,000 [1] [3] |
2 | Galaxian | 9 | 13 | 9 | 62 | Namco | Namco | Shoot 'em up | Unknown |
3 | Monaco GP | 9 | 11 | 8 | 57 | Sega | Sega | Racing | |
4 | Head On | 0 | 11 | 2 | 24 | Sega/Gremlin | Sega | Maze | |
5 | Super Speed Race V | 2 | 5 | 1 | 17 | Taito | Taito | Racing | |
6 | Speed Race CL-5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 6 | Taito | Taito | Racing | |
Space Chaser | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | Taito | Taito | Maze | ||
Special Dual | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | Sega/Gremlin | Sega | Compilation | ||
Space Stranger | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | Taito | Hoei Sangyo | Shoot 'em up | ||
10 | Heiankyo Alien (Digger) | 0 | 1 | 3 | 6 | Theoretical Science Group | Denki Onkyō | Maze | |
Sheriff (Bandido) | 0 | 1 | 3 | 6 | Nintendo R&D1 | Nintendo | Shoot 'em up |
The following titles were the top ten highest-grossing arcade video games of 1979 in the United States, according to Cash Box , Play Meter and RePlay magazines.
Rank | Cash Box [8] | Play Meter [9] | RePlay [6] | Cabinet sales |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Space Invaders | 55,000 [7] | ||
2 | — | Football | < 10,405 [10] | |
3 | — | Star Fire | Sprint 2 | Unknown |
4 | — | Space Wars | Head On | |
5 | — | Head On | Star Hawk | |
6 | — | Sprint 2 | Space Wars | |
7 | — | Crash | Star Fire | |
8 | — | Super Breakout | ||
9 | — | Star Hawk | Crash | |
10 | — | Video Pinball |
Rank | System(s) | Manufacturer(s) | Type | Generation | Sales | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS) | Atari, Inc. | Console | Second | 1,000,000 | [11] |
2 | Personal computer (PC) | Various | Computer | — | 580,000 | [12] |
3 | TRS-80 | Tandy Corporation | Computer | 8-bit | 200,000 | [12] |
4 | NEC PC-8001 | NEC | Computer | 8-bit | 150,000 | [13] |
5 | Atari 400 / Atari 800 | Atari, Inc. | Computer | 8-bit | 100,000 | [12] |
6 | Commodore PET | Commodore International | Computer | 8-bit | 45,000 | [12] |
7 | Apple II | Apple Inc. | Computer | 8-bit | 35,000 | [12] |
Electronic Games magazine hosted the first Arkie Awards in 1980, for games in 1979. [14] [15]
Award | Winner | Platform(s) |
---|---|---|
Game of the Year | Space Invaders | Arcade |
Best Pong Variant | Video Olympics | Atari VCS |
Best Sports Game | Football | Bally Professional Arcade |
Best Target Game | Air-Sea Battle | Atari VCS |
Best S.F. Game | Cosmic Conflict | Odyssey² |
Best Solitaire Game | Golf | Odyssey² |
Most Innovative Game | Basketball | Atari VCS |
Best Audio and Visual Effects | Bally | Arcade / Bally |
An arcade video game takes player input from its controls, processes it through electrical or computerized components, and displays output to an electronic monitor or similar display. All arcade video games are coin-operated or accept other means of payment, housed in an arcade cabinet, and located in amusement arcades alongside other kinds of arcade games. Until the early 2000s, arcade video games were the largest and most technologically advanced segment of the video game industry.
Space Invaders is a 1978 shoot 'em up arcade video game developed and released by Taito in Japan, and licensed to Midway Manufacturing for overseas distribution. Commonly considered as one of the most influential video games of all time, Space Invaders was the first fixed shooter and set the template for the genre. The goal is to defeat wave after wave of descending aliens with a horizontally moving laser to earn as many points as possible.
Namco Limited was a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company, headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo. It held several international branches, including Namco America in Santa Clara, California, Namco Europe in London, Namco Taiwan in Kaohsiung, and Shanghai Namco in mainland China.
Frogger is a 1981 arcade action game developed by Konami and manufactured by Sega. In North America, it was released by Sega/Gremlin. The object of the game is to direct five frogs to their homes by dodging traffic on a busy road, then crossing a river by jumping on floating logs and alligators.
1983 has seen many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Mario Bros. and Pole Position II, along with new titles such as Astron Belt, Champion Baseball, Dragon's Lair, Elevator Action, Spy Hunter and Track & Field. Major events include the video game crash of 1983 in North America, and the third generation of video game consoles beginning with the launch of Nintendo's Family Computer (Famicom) and Sega's SG-1000 in Japan. The year's highest-grossing video game was Namco's arcade game Pole Position, while the year's best-selling home system was Nintendo's Game & Watch for the third time since 1980.
Defender is a horizontally scrolling shooter video game developed by Williams Electronics in 1980 and released for arcades in 1981. The game is set on either an unnamed planet or city where the player must defeat waves of invading aliens while protecting astronauts. Development was led by Eugene Jarvis, a pinball programmer at Williams; Defender was Jarvis's first video game project and drew inspiration from Space Invaders and Asteroids. Defender was demonstrated in late 1980, before entering production in early 1981. It was distributed in Japan by Taito.
Galaxian is a 1979 fixed shooter arcade video game developed and published by Namco. The player assumes control of the Galaxip starfighter in its mission to protect Earth from waves of aliens. Gameplay involves destroying each formation of aliens, who dive down towards the player in an attempt to hit them.
The golden age of arcade video games was the period of rapid growth, technological development, and cultural influence of arcade video games from the late 1970s to the early 1980s. The release of Space Invaders in 1978 led to a wave of shoot-'em-up games such as Galaxian and the vector graphics-based Asteroids in 1979, made possible by new computing technology that had greater power and lower costs. Arcade video games switched from black-and-white to color, with titles such as Frogger and Centipede taking advantage of the visual opportunities of bright palettes.
In computer graphics, a sprite is a two-dimensional bitmap that is integrated into a larger scene, most often in a 2D video game. Originally, the term sprite referred to fixed-sized objects composited together, by hardware, with a background. Use of the term has since become more general.
The following article is a broad timeline of arcade video games.
1993 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Dragon Ball Z: Super Butōden, Mortal Kombat II, Secret of Mana, and Super Street Fighter II, alongside new titles such as Star Fox, FIFA International Soccer, Doom, Gunstar Heroes, Myst, Samurai Shodown, Ridge Racer, NBA Jam, Disney's Aladdin, and Virtua Fighter.
1986 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Super Mario Bros. 2, along with new titles such as Arkanoid, Bubble Bobble, Castlevania, Dragon Quest, Ikari Warriors, The Legend of Zelda, Metroid, Out Run and R.B.I. Baseball. The year's highest-grossing arcade video games were Hang-On in Japan, Hang-On and Gauntlet in the United States, and Nemesis (Gradius) in London. The year's best‑selling home system was the Nintendo Entertainment System (Famicom) for the third year in a row, while the year's best-selling home video games in Western markets were Super Mario Bros. in the United States and Yie Ar Kung-Fu in the United Kingdom.
1985 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Super Mario Bros. and Kung Fu, along with new titles such as Commando, Duck Hunt, Gauntlet, Ghosts 'n Goblins, Gradius, Hang-On, Space Harrier, Tetris and The Way of the Exploding Fist. The year's highest-grossing arcade video games were Hang-On and Karate Champ in the United States, and Commando in the United Kingdom. The year's best‑selling home system was the Nintendo Entertainment System (Famicom) for the second year in a row, while the year's best‑selling home video game was Super Mario Bros and duck hunt.
1984 saw many sequels and prequels along with new titles such as 1942, Boulder Dash, Cobra Command, Jet Set Willy, Karate Champ, Kung-Fu Master, Yie Ar Kung-Fu and Punch-Out!! The year's highest-grossing arcade games were Pole Position in the United States, for the second year in a row, and Track & Field in the United Kingdom. The year's best-selling home system was Nintendo's Family Computer (Famicom), which was only sold in Japan at the time.
1982 was the peak year for the golden age of arcade video games as well as the second generation of video game consoles. Many games were released that would spawn franchises, or at least sequels, including Dig Dug, Pole Position, Mr. Do!, Zaxxon, Q*bert, Time Pilot and Pitfall! The year's highest-grossing video game was Namco's arcade game Pac-Man, for the third year in a row, while the year's best-selling home system was the Atari 2600. Additional video game consoles added to a crowded market, notably the ColecoVision and Atari 5200. Troubles at Atari late in the year triggered the video game crash of 1983.
Fueled by the previous year's release of the colorful and appealing Pac-Man, the audience for arcade video games in 1981 became much wider. Pac-Man influenced maze games began appearing in arcades and on home systems. Pac-Man was the highest-grossing video game for the second year in a row. Nintendo's Donkey Kong defined the unnamed platform game genre, while Konami's Scramble established forced-scrolling shooters. The lesser known Jump Bug combined the two concepts into both the first scrolling platform game and the first platform shooter. Other arcade hits released in 1981 include Defender, Frogger, and the Galaxian sequel Galaga.
1980 saw the release of a number of games with influential concepts, including Pac-Man, Battlezone, Crazy Climber, Mystery House, Missile Command, Phoenix, Rally-X, Space Panic, Stratovox, Zork, Adventure, and Olympic Decathlon. The year's highest-grossing video game was Namco's arcade game Pac-Man, while the best-selling home system was Nintendo's Game & Watch. The Atari VCS also grew in popularity with a port of Space Invaders and support from new third-party developer Activision.
1978 saw the release of new video games such as Space Invaders. The year is considered the beginning of the golden age of arcade video games. The year's highest-grossing video game was Taito's arcade game Space Invaders, while the best-selling home system was the Atari Video Computer System.
The 1970s was the first decade in the history of the video game industry. The 1970s saw the development of some of the earliest video games, chiefly in the arcade game industry, but also several for the earliest video game consoles and personal computers.
An arcade video game is an arcade game where the player's inputs from the game's controllers are processed through electronic or computerized components and displayed to a video device, typically a monitor, all contained within an enclosed arcade cabinet. Arcade video games are often installed alongside other arcade games such as pinball and redemption games at amusement arcades. Up until the late 1990s, arcade video games were the largest and most technologically advanced sector of the video game industry.