It all began when Thomas T. Goldsmith Jr. and Estle Ray Mann found inspiration from radar displays in 1947. The system was extremely simple and used a cathode ray tube along with clunky analog circuitry. Graphics could not be inserted so simple overlays where used.
Shortly after the first ever form of computer entertainment (1950) Claude Shannon devised a chess playing program, one of, if not the first form of computer game A.I.
In 1952 A.S. Douglas created the first graphical computer game. The game again was presented on a type of cathode ray tube display and was a simple game of Tic-Tac-Toe. Ten years later in 1962 the first ever true computer game created for computer use was born, Steve Russell invented Space War!. The game was full of advanced features for its time including gravity simulation and accurate graphics of the night sky which slowly scrolled in the background. The game was based on two space ships that attempted to shoot each other whilst being pulled into a center star. The ships had limited fuel and ammo supply.
After the entertainment success of Space War! Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney created the first arcade game. Computer Space was based on Space War! and was created in 1971 shortly followed by Pong in 1972. Nolan and Ted went on to create Atari Computers that same year and released Pong in 1975 as a home video game.
My History
I remember going round to my friends and playing Space Invaders on the Sega Megadrive in his attic. I can’t remember how old I was but it was close to the release of the PS1. This must have been the first computer game I ever played. I remember my Dad having games like ‘Advanced Dungeons and Dragons: Eye of the Beholder’ and exclaiming I’d never be able to do it, he was right, I remember running in circles down endless halls being scared to turn round. The first console we, as a family purchased was the PSX by Playstation and I remember getting it a long time after its release but had played it at other peoples houses for forever. It came with Gran Turismo and I remember thinking there was no way graphics could get better than this. From that moment I became totally engrossed in computer games, getting up before my parents and sneaking down late at night so I could fit in some more play time. I stayed true to Playstation until the release of PS3 which at the time I had no chance of affording so quickly converted to XBOX 360. The last game I played was Tomb Raider Underworld, I’ve always had a thing for the Tomb Raider games even though they are inevitably loosing their touch. I like the environmental puzzle game play as apposed to other genres. Although this was the last game played, the last game completed was Bioshock which I had been holding back on since the massive hype and now can’t wait till the second.
My addiction to having to play games has long worn off and I now hunt for graphic and game play quality. I love getting immersed in the environments and am constantly amazed with the detail in the physics and environment. I suppose that’s what kept me gaming, the evolution of the visual quality ever since seeing Gran Turismo 1 and I really look forward to how it will develop in the future.
