1st Generation – Pong

Pong was designed by Ralph Baer and it was the first game for home consoles, released on the Magnavox Odyssey. The game was controlled by using two knobs on each side of the device; one for each player. This tennis sports game features simple two-dimensional graphics; two paddles and a ball represented in white, on a black background. The game had no sound and no on screen scoring, and it is the only game for the Odyssey console that does not require fixing a color overlay to the television screen.

The goal of the game is for the players to use the paddles to hit the ball back and forth and try to keep the ball on screen. If the player fails to return the ball, the opponent gains a point.

Figure 1 - Ralph Baer playing Pong

Pong, also known as Table Tennis, was a great success, mainly because it was the first game that people could play at home on their television set. After its release, several companies began producing games similar to Pong, including Atari, which built the first commercially successful arcade video game machine inspired by Magnavox’s Table Tennis.

In 1973 Ralph Baer wanted to make the games of the Odyssey look more realistic, so he created advanced cartridges that he added to the console, but Magnavox rejected his ideas.

Bibliography:

Mobygames.com, (2006). Table Tennis (Odyssey). [online] Available at: http://www.mobygames.com/game/table-tennis [Accessed 4 March 2015]

Pong-story.com, (2015) Technology of the Odyssey. [online] Available at: http://www.pong-story.com/odyssey.htm#P10 [Accessed 4 March 2015]