Game Consoles Evolved

Game Consoles Evolved

The 1980s gave birth to one of the greatest, most popular technological trends in history.  The early "old school" gaming consoles, such as Atari, gave your parents hours of fun and entertainment by bringing the arcade into their homes.  Games such as Frogger, Asteroids and of course we can't forget Pong, were the groundbreaking video games that eventually gave way to Grand Theft Auto and other realistic games.  Now gamers can watch mini movies between each level and the graphics are so realistic it is difficult at times to determine whether they are actual people or computer generated graphics.  The game consoles have also evolved with sleeker lines and even wireless remotes - a far, far cry from your parents' bulky Atari that took up nearly an entire kitchen table.

Sony Playstation

When Sony came along in 1995 when they launched the Sony PlayStation in the United States.  Originally, Sony and Nintendo had plans to merge somewhat so that their games would be compatible with both gaming consoles.  However, the owner of Nintendo realized that signing the agreement would give Sony too much control of the licenses of the Phillips machines.  Nintendo backed out at the last minute so Sony went it alone.

The launch of Sony in America was extremely successful, particularly with their initial titles of Twisted Metal, Warhawk, Ridge Racer and others.  Nearly all of the Sony titles have offered many sequels to its avid gaming fans.  The Sony PlayStation 2 followed in 2000 and the Sony PlayStation 3 came along in March of 2007.

Much of Sony's popularity has been driven by extremely clever hype, propelled by ambiguous ad campaigns.  The gaming consoles have not seen much change over the years, except for becoming more streamlined and offering a selection of "skins" allowing hardcore gamers to pimp their PlayStations.

The most remarkable aspect of the Sony PlayStation, however, has been through the evolution of graphics.  PS2 had pretty realistic graphics, but PS3 is off the hook.  The graphics are awesome!  The realism makes you feel like you are really there.

Microsoft Xbox

Xbox is Microsoft's attempt to cash in on the gaming craze.  Introduced to North America in early 2002, the Microsoft appeared to be a little slow on the draw when it came to jumping on the gaming console bandwagon.  But don't let the dragging heels fool you.  This is a pretty sweet gaming console system.  With an ultra cool gaming console, hot looking logo and some very inventive marketing, the Xbox has risen quite rapidly through the ranks and made an impressive name for itself.  And the movement through the industry was pure genius.  Just three short years after introducing the Xbox to the gaming world, Microsoft made a grand slam with the Xbox 360, giving it its great debut on MTV of all places, and the world went crazy.

Suddenly everyone who was anyone wanted one of the outrageously priced Xbox 360's and the stores could not keep them on the shelves.  There were Xbox 360s on eBay for several times more than the retail price, it was a hot commodity.  Microsoft had made it and entered into yet another technological market.

The console of the Xbox 360 went from funky gamer look to sleek, high tech look and this seemed to only fuel the "gotta have it" fire of gamers worldwide.  Graphics became even more realistic and the games became way cooler.  The Xbox and the Xbox 360 definitely put Microsoft on the gaming console map.

Nintendo

Nintendo has the distinction as being the oldest company and gaming system.  Nintendo had its humble beginnings as a small Japanese business in 1889.  Originally Nintendo Koppai, it was based in Kyoto, Japan and marketed a game played with cards called Hanafuda.  This is a true story of evolution as Nintendo slowly made its way through the entertainment industry.

Nintendo made the cross over to the United States in 1956 when he obtained access to the Disney characters to use them on playing cards.  As sales soared, the owner of the company saw that the playing card industry was limited, but there was much, much more that Nintendo could do.  The company began to extend into other areas of business.  These ventures included a taxi company, a "love hotel" chain, a TV network, a food company and even a toy remote controlled vacuum cleaner.  The only business venture that did not fail was the toy making. 

The first Nintendo gaming console emerged in 1977.  It was a color TV game series and featured five different dedicated consoles.  Each console was dedicated to a specific game or game set which were quite similar to the legendary Pong home console.

The early 1980s saw a growth in Nintendo's technology when they introduced Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) and released it in North America, Brazil, Europe, Asia and Australia.  It is the NES that is credited with setting the standard for future gaming consoles from game design to business practices.

The next wave of evolutionary technology came with the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in early 1990.  This came on the heels of the NES and was a step up in technology.  At this time Sega was attempting to emerge onto the scene, but SNES smoked them when they became the best selling console in the 16 bit era.

The next decade was a whir of activity as the Nintendo 64 was introduced in 1996, the Nintendo GameCube came along in 2001 (and is still going strong today) and moved seamlessly right into the Nintendo Wii in 2006.  Over this period of growth, the game consoles became more streamlined, looking more like contemporary art than a piece of advanced technology.

The graphics have also changed substantially from a single dimension, pong-like look to three dimensional, real life feel.  The gaming controls have also changed from a stationary joy stick to a handheld control to one that includes motion sensing.  Nintendo began as the cutting edge leader in gaming consoles and has continued to lead the way.

Related Content
www.Xbox.com
www.Playstation.com
www.Nintendo.com

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