The document discusses the evolution of gaming from its origins in the 1950s to modern consoles. It describes some of the earliest games created for computers like "Noughts and Crosses" and "Tennis for Two". Major consoles like the Odyssey, Nintendo Entertainment System, Super Nintendo, PlayStation, and others are examined. Each new console brought improvements in technology, graphics, and games. Competition between companies like Nintendo and Sony drove further innovation and meeting consumer needs.

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Austin Conway
Ms. Bennett
British Literature
9 September 2011
Evolution of Gaming
The history of computer gaming goes back to the early 1950’s. It has then expanded into
the most popular form of entertainment around the country; becoming a huge, successful
industry. Gaming has evolved in many ways; including many different gaming consoles, a
variety of different controllers, and the complexity of the games. A. S. Douglas created the first
documented video game (“Interactive timeline of game history.”) called “Noughts and Crosses”.
It ran on the big computer in Cambridge University called “Electronic Delay Storage Automatic
Calculator” (“Interactive timeline of game history.”). The creation “Noughts and Crosses” of
started a trend for many people to start learning how to develop new and improved games. The
next game to come out for the computer was “Tennis for Two”. It was created by the man who
helped build the first Atomic Bomb, William A. Higginbotham “A History of Video Game
Consoles.”). Four years later, Steven Russel, created “Space War”. This game became the
biggest hit of all time. It spread quickly around the country to universities and research facilities
(“The best and worst video games of all time.”). A video game console did not come out until
1972. It was called the “Odyssey”, which was created by Magnavox. The Odyssey played twelve
different games, one including Ping Pong (“A History of Video Game Consoles.”). The only
downside to this system was that it only worked on Magnavox televisions. The evolution of
gaming is the backbone to the entertainment industry.

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With such a huge variety of gaming consoles at the current time, game and console
creatures such as; Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo, have been able to meet everyone’s needs and
particular interests. Fulfilling everyone’s needs is very difficult, considering that the United
States is the second most populated country in the world. Nintendo came out with the NES
(Nintendo Entertainment System) and developed the most popular game in the country called
“Super Mario Brothers”. Later they came out with the SNES (Super Nintendo Entertainment
System), which gave better graphics and more intricate game play. The games available for this
new system were much better than the games for the NES because the cartridges used could hold
more data and had better technology that allowed them to reach a greater graphic level.
Therefore, the games could be longer and more interesting to play.
Sony then entered the gaming industry and started a competition with Nintendo. Sony
came out with the PlayStation, which is the first of many. The PlayStation was designed to be
able to read a CD and it enabled you to play whatever game you put in that was made by Sony.
The GameCube was a significant mile marker in the gaming industry. After this event, it became
a race to see who could come up with the best system. Sony set the bar high with their much
improved graphics and the immense amount of gameplay the CD offered, so Nintendo came out
with the “GameCube”. This was a complete failure for Nintendo because it was not better than
the PlayStation and no one bothered to buy one. The only difference was the controller, the size
of the CD used, and the name. Even though Nintendo had suffered from the creation of the
GameCube, they were still alive with their Gameboys being so popular. Sense the success of the
PlayStation 1, Sony hurried to complete their next system. They came out with the PlayStation 2,
which offered DVD capabilities, and better graphics. Even though this the PlayStation 2 had the
exact same controller as the PlayStation 1, people still loved everything about it and continued to

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buy the PlayStation 2 instead of the GameCube. Sony was very successful with their gaming
consoles and gave people everywhere the entertainment they needed.

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Works Cited
BBC News. “The evolution of game controllers.” BBC. BBC, Mar.-Apr. 2007. Web. 7 Sept.
2011. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/‌2/‌hi/‌technology/‌6418779.stm>.
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2011. <http://www.pbs.org/‌kcts/‌videogamerevolution/‌history/‌best-n-worst.html>.
“Essays.” Video game revolution. PBS, n.d. Web. 8 Sept. 2011. <http://www.pbs.org/‌kcts/‌
videogamerevolution/‌impact/‌essays.html>.
“A History of Video Game Consoles.” Time Magazine: n. pag. Time Business. Web. 7 Sept.
2011. <http://www.time.com/‌time/‌interactive/‌0,31813,2029221,00.html>.
“Interactive timeline of game history.” PBS. N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Sept. 2011. <http://www.pbs.org/‌
kcts/‌videogamerevolution/‌history/‌timeline_flash.html>.