Q 01/05

Which company released Pong in 1972?

A) Magnavox

B) Nintendo

C) Atari

D) Midway

Answer · why

C) Atari

Atari released Pong in November 1972; Allan Alcorn built it as a training exercise set by Nolan Bushnell, and the prototype proved too good not to sel...

Q 02/05

Pong's concept was borrowed from a ping-pong game on which console, prompting a patent lawsuit?

A) Fairchild Channel F

B) Magnavox Odyssey

C) Coleco Telstar

D) Atari VCS

Answer · why

B) Magnavox Odyssey

The Magnavox Odyssey, developed from Ralph Baer's 'Brown Box' prototype, reached stores in September 1972 as the first commercial home console; Magnav...

Q 03/05

What was the first commercially available arcade video game, released in 1971?

A) Computer Space

B) Galaxy Game

C) Space Race

D) Gun Fight

Answer · why

A) Computer Space

Computer Space, built by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney from the mainframe game Spacewar!, was sold by Nutting Associates in fibreglass cabinets; rough...

Q 04/05

How did players of the first home console, in 1972, get colour graphics for its games?

A) A colour add-on cartridge sold separately

B) Plastic overlays stuck to the TV screen

C) Hand-painted lenses clipped over the tube

D) They didn't; it only ever showed white dots

Answer · why

B) Plastic overlays stuck to the TV screen

Plastic overlays stuck to the TV screen supplied the colour: the console's hardware drew only white squares and lines, so each game shipped with a tra...

Q 05/05

Which Japanese company released the 1978 alien-shooting hit that started the arcade golden age?

A) Taito

B) Namco

C) Sega

D) Konami

Answer · why

A) Taito

Taito released Tomohiro Nishikado's alien shooter in 1978; by 1982 it had taken an estimated $3.8 billion in coins, and it set off the wave of arcade ...