A sports video game is a video game that simulates the practice of sports. Most sports have been recreated with video games, including team sports, track and field, extreme sports, and combat sports. Some games emphasize playing the sport, whilst others emphasize strategy and sport management. Some, such as Need for Speed, Arch Rivals and Punch-Out!!, satirize the sport for comic effect. This genre has been popular throughout the history of video games and is competitive, just like real-world sports. A number of game series feature the names and characteristics of real teams and players, and are updated annually to reflect real-world changes. The sports genre is one of the oldest genres in gaming history.
In the history of video games, the fourth generation of video game consoles, more commonly referred to as the 16-bit era, began on October 30, 1987, with the Japanese release of NEC Home Electronics' PC Engine. Though NEC released the first console of this era, sales were mostly dominated by the rivalry between Sega and Nintendo across most markets: the Sega Mega Drive and the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. Cartridge-based handheld game consoles became prominent during this time, such as the Nintendo Game Boy, Atari Lynx, Sega Game Gear and TurboExpress.
FIFA International Soccer is a 1993 association football video game developed by EA Canada's Extended Play Productions team and published by Electronic Arts. The game was released for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis console in December 1993 and ported to numerous other systems in 1994. It is the first game in the FIFA series.
Madden NFL '94 is an American football video game released for the Sega Genesis and Super NES in 1993. Developed by Visual Concepts and published by Electronic Arts, Madden NFL ‘94 is the fourth game to be released as a part of the Madden series. It marked a significant step forward in the popular Madden NFL series, known for bringing realistic football gameplay to home consoles and laying the groundwork for modern football video games. As the first game in the Madden series with an official National Football League team license, the introduction of official NFL teams and improved gameplay mechanics made it a standout title in the series and a nostalgic favorite for fans of retro sports games.
John Madden Football '93 is a 1992 sports video game developed by Blue Sky Productions and Electronic Arts and published by EA Sports. Based on the sport of American football, the player controls a football team in modes such as tournament play and sudden death. Officially endorsed by John Madden, it was the third Madden game for home consoles and the first one that saw a simultaneous release on both, the Sega Genesis and Super NES.
Bram Stoker's Dracula is a 1993 video game released for the Mega Drive/Genesis, Nintendo Entertainment System, Super NES, Game Boy, Master System, Sega CD, Game Gear, MS-DOS, and Amiga. It is based on the 1992 film Bram Stoker's Dracula which in turn is based on the 1897 novel Dracula by Bram Stoker. Most versions are platform games. The Sega CD and Amiga releases are beat 'em ups, and the MS-DOS version is a first-person shooter. The Amiga version was released in 1994 for North America and Europe. A CD-ROM version for MS-DOS compatible operating systems was released in 1995.
The Sega Genesis, known as the Mega Drive outside North America, is a 16-bit fourth generation home video game console developed and sold by Sega. It was Sega's third console and the successor to the Master System. Sega released it in 1988 in Japan as the Mega Drive, and in 1989 in North America as the Genesis. In 1990, it was distributed as the Mega Drive by Virgin Mastertronic in Europe, Ozisoft in Australasia, and Tectoy in Brazil. In South Korea, it was distributed by Samsung Electronics as the Super Gam*Boy and later the Super Aladdin Boy.
EA Sports College Football is an American football video game series developed by EA Sports in which players control and compete against current Division I FBS college teams. It served as a college football counterpart to the Madden NFL series. The series began in 1993 with the release of Bill Walsh College Football. EA eventually acquired the licensing rights to the NCAA name and officially rechristened the series with the release of NCAA Football 98.
Wayne Gretzky Hockey NHLPA All-Stars is a Super NES and Genesis/Mega Drive hockey video game that features Wayne Gretzky and other NHLPA players.
ESPN Sunday Night NFL is a sports video game that was released for the Super NES, Sega CD, and Sega Genesis in 1994.
ESPN National Hockey Night is a multiplatform traditional ice hockey simulation video game for the Super NES, Sega Genesis, Sega CD, and personal computers with MS-DOS capabilities.
WWF Super WrestleMania is a multiplatform wrestling video game based on the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), released in 1992 for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System and the Sega Genesis.
NHL 95 is an ice hockey video game developed by Electronic Arts Canada. It was released in 1994 for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System and the Sega Genesis. The team rosters and player attributes in the game reflect that of the 1994–95 season.
NHL 96 is a 1995 sports video game developed by EA Tiburon for the SNES, High Score Productions for the Sega Genesis, EA Canada for DOS, and Probe Entertainment for the Game Boy. EA Sports published all versions of the game except the Game Boy version, which was published by THQ. The game is based on the sport of ice hockey and puts the player in control of a hockey team in modes of play such as exhibitions, seasons and playoffs. It is the fifth installment in the NHL game series.
John Madden Football, released as John Madden American Football in Europe, is an American football video game released by Electronic Arts. Loosely based on the 1988 video game of the same title, it was the first entry in what eventually became the yearly Madden NFL series on home consoles, initially released for the Sega Genesis in 1990. It is sometimes called Madden '90 or Madden '91 to distinguish it from subsequent entries in the series.
NHL '94 is an ice hockey game by EA Sports for the Sega Genesis, Super NES, and Sega CD, as well as the first release for the PC (DOS), simply titled NHL Hockey, without the "'94" in the title. The third game in the NHL series media franchise, it was released in September 1993 for the Sega Genesis and November 1993 for the Super Nintendo. The game was the first in the series to be officially licensed by both the National Hockey League (NHL) and the NHL Players' Association (NHLPA). NHL '94 launched to critical acclaim, and it has since been referred to as one of the greatest sports video games of all time.
NHLPA Hockey '93 is a Sega Genesis and Super Nintendo Entertainment System ice hockey game developed by Park Place Productions and published by Electronic Arts Sports Network. It is the second installment of the NHL series and the first to be released for the Super NES.
Brett Hull Hockey '95 is an ice hockey simulation video game released in December 1994 for Sega Genesis, and then, January 1995 for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System and personal computers running DOS.
NBA Live 95 is the follow-up to NBA Showdown and the first NBA Live title in the NBA Live video games series from EA Sports. It was published by EA Sports and released in October 1994. The cover features an action shot from the 1994 NBA Finals.
College Football USA 96 is a sports game released in 1995 by EA Sports. It is the follow-up to Bill Walsh College Football '95 and part of EA's NCAA Football series of games. College Football USA 96 is the first game in the series that included all of the Division l-A teams and was also the first to include actual bowl games. With Bill Walsh's retirement from coaching after the 1994 season, the game no longer carried an endorsement.
