Where It All Began

Hopewell Valley Student Podcasting Network 

Show Name: From Pong To Pixels

Episode Title: When It All Began

Episode #1

You are listening to From Pong To Pixels the podcast with your host Andrew.

In this episode of From Pong To Pixels the Podcast we discuss: the idea and development behind the creation of video games, some prototypes of the first games made, and how the gaming industry was built from the ground up.

Segment 1: Why Does This Exist Anyway?

The reason as to why video games were created in the first place is a bit rough, but it was largely because they were tied to research projects at universities and large corporations. Though these games weren’t made for entertainment, they set the foundation and groundwork for video games in the near future. But to see the first development in video games, we look back all the way to the 50s to when physicist William H. created the first official video game, Tennis for Two. Tennis for Two was created for a display at the Brookhaven National Laboratory’s annual public exhibition after learning that the government research institution Donner Model 30 analog computer (which was just a really fancy computer at the time) could simulate trajectories and wind resistance, perfect for a tennis-like game. Tennis for Two was the first game to be made solely for entertainment, with every game before it being just a step in technological advancement. The game would become extremely popular, with people lining up to see it at the 3-day exhibition. Tennis for Two marked the start of video game creation and opened people's minds to the possibilities of the industry for the first time.

Segment 2: The Prehistoric Age of Video Games

Now moving on to the 60’s, this was probably the most important year for the development and shaping of video games. 1962 was the making of the earliest digital computer game to be available outside of an institution, Spacewar!. The whole process began when computer scientists started to create simple games and simulations on the minicomputer. The minicomputer being an all-around, smaller computer used for testing and running software. This led to the creation of Spacewar!, developed by Steve Russell in collaboration with other students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (or MIT). Spacewar! was an extremely simple space combat game, consisting of two players having to destroy the other player's ship by shooting at it. Although the premise and gameplay were simple, they became very influential in the early development of video games. Also during this time the very first home game console was released, being the Magnavox Odyssey. The design of the Magnavox Odyssey was simple, a black, white and brown box connected by wires with two rectangular controllers. It came with extremely simple games, such as Table Tennis, Football and Hockey. Although it didn’t have any revolutionary titles, it single-handedly created the market for home game consoles. Now going back a bit, although the marketing and commercialism for video games at the time were small, due to the cost of computers limiting their distribution to research institutions and big corporations, many were still made by programmers and spread by computer manufacturers. Following the spread of Spacewar!, further computer games developed by programmers at universities were also developed and...