Pong

Here is one console that is still talked about today, it’s called Pong and was released by Atari in 1972 as an arcade game. When you play the game it’s obvious that it’s based off of the game table tennis. Computer Space created by Nutting Associates had beaten Pong in 1971 as the first Arcade game released.

Archiving vast popularity upon release Pong both the arcade and the home console had basically started the video game industry being a first generation console. It wasn’t until 1973 - 1975 however that Pong was able to be taken home and unlike the arcade version it had colored graphics.

Compared to its competitor the Odyssey it had a range of differences including sound though an sound speaker that was built inside the console. Pong in 1975 sold for $100.00 which is $400.00 by today’s prices.

One main issue with Pong was that there was a high risk with extended play that it would damage television sets. It would eventually leave white lines on the TV that would almost burn into it’s display. This would be un-repairable however the Pong manual suggested playing for shorter periods of time and turning down the contrast on the TV to prevent damage.

Like many more consoles back then and still today clones appeared sold by other manufactures and soon the Pong in the last 70’s had ceased production due to new consoles emerging such as the Atari 2600.