by Matthew Adams

Created on: October 01, 2010

The first video games emerged in the 1970s. During this time, a number of classic game titles emerged in both arcades and for game consoles. In 1972 came the Magnavox Odyssey which had the first game console games. However, the game console did not make a great impact.

It was in fact in the arcades that the most notable first video games emerged. Among these were Computer Space in 1971 and Atari's Pong which was released in 1972. Pong was a game which was similar to table tennis. It involved two rectangles which were used to return the ball with. Pong was one of the first hit video games that helped ensure the rise of arcade games.

Therefore, further classic game titles emerged in the arcades during the 1970s. One of the most notable of these was that of Space Invaders in 1978. This was one of the first shooting games which involved the use of spacecraft to shoot at the approaching extra-terrestrials. Space Invaders soon began to dominate the arcade scene, and was one of the best coin-op games.

During this period, the game consoles also began to gain momentum. Atari's Pong was one of the first game titles, and the Atari game console the Atari 2600 was perhaps the first to have a notable impact in 1977. Therefore, the first golden generation of games emerged for the Atari 2600.

Among the most notable games for this console included Pit-Fall, Missile Command, and Pac-Man. Namco's Pac-Man was the hit arcade game of the early 1980s that went some way to setting new records. Pac-Man soon began to eclipse Space Invaders as the top coin-op game, and also emerged as the Atari 2600 top game title.

Given this, Nintendo had little part in the first video games of the 1970s. However, in the early 1980s they soon began to make their mark with their first game titles which were actually arcade games. Donkey Kong was the first game to star Donkey Kong, and a red hatted plumber called Mario who jumped barrels to save Princess Peach.

Mario's first game title was released soon after. The Mario Bros arcade game was the first Mario game in 1983. However, hereafter Nintendo began to embrace game consoles, and to this extent Mario's first console game Super Mario Bros became a key game for the NES game console. The rest is history as Super Mario Bros set new records for console games.

These were some of the first most notable game titles in the arcades and for game consoles. From the game of Pong, Space Invaders, Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, Mario Bros, and Super Mario Bros Atari, Namco, and Nintendo had set the gaming trend in the '70 and early '80s. Space Invaders and Pong were two games that began the rise of arcade gaming, while the Atari 2600 and the NES were two game consoles that helped ensure a decline in the arcades.

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