History of video game consoles: Difference between revisions
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The history of [[video game console]]s, both home and handheld consoles, had their origins in the 1970s. |
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#REDIRECT [[History of video games]] |
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==Origins== |
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While both home and handheld game consoles strive to allow consumers to play video games on personal devices, their point of origins game from different fields, and only more recently can be seen as deriving from common principles. |
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===Home consoles=== |
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{{main|Early history of video games}} |
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[[File:BrownBox.jpg|thumb|right|[[Ralph H. Baer]]'s "Brown Box", the first prototype of a home video game console]] |
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The first video games were created on [[supercomputers]] in the 1960s, typically with text-only displays or computer printouts, and limited to simple games like [[Tic Tac Toe]] or [[Nim]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bnl.gov/about/history/firstvideo.php|title=The First Video Game|publisher=Brookhaven National Laboratory, U.S. Dept. of Energy|accessdate=April 15, 2008}}</ref> Eventually displays with rudimentary [[vector display]]s for graphics were available, leading to titles like ''[[Spacewar!]]'' in 1962.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=The origin of Spacewar |magazine=[[Creative Computing (magazine)|Creative Computing]] |url=http://www.wheels.org/spacewar/creative/SpacewarOrigin.html |date=August 1981 |first=Martin |last=Graetz |volume=6 |issue=8 |pages=56–67 |issn=0097-8140}}</ref> ''Spacewar!'' directly influenced [[Nolan Bushnell]] and [[Ted Dabney]] to create ''[[Computer Space]]'' in 1971, the first recognized [[arcade game]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.technologizer.com/2011/12/11/computer-space-and-the-dawn-of-the-arcade-video-game/ |last=Edwards |first=Benj |title=Computer Space and the Dawn of the Arcade Video Game |date=December 11, 2011 |work=[[Technologizer]] |accessdate=April 13, 2016 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160322174236/http://www.technologizer.com/2011/12/11/computer-space-and-the-dawn-of-the-arcade-video-game/ |archivedate=March 22, 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> While ''Computer Space'' had only a limited number of machines made, Bushnell and Dabney took the success of ''Computer Space'' to establish [[Atari, Inc.]] and subsequently created the first commercially successful arcade game, ''[[Pong]]''.<ref name="Ultimate-2">{{cite book| title = Ultimate History of Video Games| first = Steven| last = Kent| pages = 40–43| chapter = And Then There Was Pong| publisher = [[Three Rivers Press]]| isbn = 0-7615-3643-4| year = 2001}}</ref> |
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At the same time that arcade games were being developed, [[Ralph H. Baer]] had devised of the idea of a home console and created a prototype "Brown Box" in 1966 that could be connected to a standard television to play a game based on [[table tennis]]. This design led to the first home video game console, the [[Magnavox Odyssey]], released in 1972, and further refinements in the years that followed.<ref>{{cite book|last=Baer|first=Ralph H.|date=2005|title=Videogames: In The Beginning|pages=52–59|publisher=Rolenta Press|isbn=978-0-9643848-1-1}}</ref> Coincidentally, Atari saw the potential to take ''Pong'' into the home market by developing its own ''Pong'' console, which was first released in 1974. Baer and Bushnell had conflicted over the origins of the idea of a home console for a table tennis-like game, but ultimately Magnavox and Atari settled out of court on the matter.<ref name="Ultimate-Legal">{{cite book| title = Ultimate History of Video Games| first = Steven| last = Kent| pages = 45–48| chapter = And Then There Was Pong| publisher = Three Rivers Press| isbn = 0-7615-3643-4| year = 2001}}</ref> This did not stop numerous other manufacturers from developing and releasing their own table tennis home video game consoles, aided by the lower cost of microprocessors in the following years. This led to a large number of [[video game clone|clones]] of the Odyssey and ''Pong'' home consoles, and creating the market for home video game consoles.<ref name="tandy underdog">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=k5bNBQAAQBAJ|title=CoCo: The Colorful History of Tandy's Underdog Computer|last=Pitre|first=Boisy G.|last2=Loguidice|first2=Bill|date=2013-12-10|publisher=CRC Press|year=|isbn=9781466592483|location=|pages=11|language=en}}</ref> |
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===Handheld consoles=== |
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[[File:Milton-Bradley-Microvision-Handheld-FL.jpg|right|upright|thumb|The [[Microvision]], considered the first handheld video game, included interchangable faceplates (the lighter piece) to play different games, also a first for handhelds.]] |
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{{Main|Handheld electronic game}} |
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The origins of handheld game consoles are found in handheld and tabletop electronic game devices of the 1970s and early 1980s. These electronic devices are capable of playing only a single game,<ref name="nintendo popular"/> they fit in the palm of the hand or on a tabletop, and they may make use of a variety of video displays such as [[Light-emitting diode|LED]], [[Vacuum fluorescent display|VFD]], or [[Liquid crystal display|LCD]].<ref name="electronic handheld definition">{{cite book| last = Demaria| first = Rusel|author2=Johnny L. Wilson| title = High Score! The Illustrated History of Video games| url = https://books.google.com/?id=HJNvZLvpCEQC&printsec=frontcover&dq=High+Score!+The+Illustrated+History+of+Video+games| publisher = [[McGraw-Hill]]| year = 2002| page = 30| isbn = 978-0-07-222428-3}}</ref> Handheld electronic games, in turn, were derived from previous handheld and tabletop [[Electromechanics|electro-mechanical]] devices such as [[Waco (toymaker)|Waco]]'s ''Electronic Tic-Tac-Toe'' (1972)<ref name="electronic handheld definition"/> Cragstan's ''Periscope-Firing Range'' (1951),<ref name="handheldmuseum">{{cite web| last = Morgan| first = Rik| title = Cragstan Periscope-Firing Range| publisher = Handheld Museum| date = August 5, 2008| url = http://www.handheldmuseum.com/Misc/CragstanPeriscope.htm| accessdate = December 27, 2008}}</ref> and the emerging [[Optoelectronics|optoelectronic]]-display-driven calculator market of the early 1970s.<ref name="LED Calculators">{{Cite journal| title = Optoelectronics Arrives| journal = [[Time (magazine)|Time]]| volume = 99| issue = 14| date = April 3, 1972| url = http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,903443,00.html}}</ref><ref name="Cohen Interview">{{cite web| last = Morgan| first = Rik| title = Interview with Howard Cohen.| publisher = Handheld Museum| date = August 5, 2008| url = http://www.handheldmuseum.com/Mattel/Trivia.htm| accessdate = October 1, 2009}}</ref> |
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The first such handheld electronic game came out of [[Mattel]] in 1976, where Michael Katz, Mattel's new product category marketing director, told the engineers in the electronics group to design a game the size of a calculator, using LED technology."<ref name="ultimate history">{{cite book| last = Kent| first = Steven| title = The Ultimate History of Video Games| url = https://books.google.com/?id=C2MH05ogU9oC&q=%22The+Ultimate+History+of+Video+Games%22&dq=%22The+Ultimate+History+of+Video+Games%22| publisher = Prima Publishing| year = 2001| page = 200| isbn = 978-0-7615-3643-7}}</ref> This effort lead to the 1976 game ''Auto Race'',<ref name="1up">{{cite web| last = Parish| first = Jeremy| title = PSPredecessors| publisher = 1up| date = March 28, 2005| url = http://www.1up.com/features/pspredecessors| accessdate = January 10, 2008| url-status = dead| archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20160721193503/http://www.1up.com/features/pspredecessors| archivedate = July 21, 2016| df = mdy-all}}</ref> by ''Football'' in 1977.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.handheldmuseum.com/Mattel/FB.htm|title=Mattel's Football (I) (1977, LED, 9 Volt, Model# 2024)|work=handheldmuseum.com|accessdate=July 16, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.retroland.com/mattel-electronics-football/|title=Mattel Electronics Football|work= Retroland|accessdate=July 16, 2016}}</ref> The two games were so successful that according to Katz, "these simple electronic handheld games turned into a '$400 million category.'"<ref name="electronic handheld definition"/> Another Ralph Baer invention, ''[[Simon (game)|Simon]]'', published by [[Milton Bradley Company|Milton Bradley]] in 1978, followed, which further popularized such electronic games and remained an enduring property by Milton Bradley (later [[Hasbro]]) that brought a number of copycats to the market.<ref name=Building>{{cite web |url=http://www.1up.com/features/simon-turns-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121004165531/http://www.1up.com/features/simon-turns-30 |archive-date=4 October 2012 |title=Simon Turns 30|work=1up.com |accessdate=4 April 2011 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url =https://www.fastcompany.com/40491956/40-years-of-simon-the-electronic-game-that-never-stops-reinventing-itself | title = 40 Years Of Simon, The Electronic Game That Never Stops Reinventing Itself | first= Ross | last= Rubin | date = November 10, 2017 | accessdate = July 27, 2020 | work = [[Fast Company]] }}</ref> Soon, other manufacturers including [[Coleco]], [[Parker Brothers]], [[Entex Industries|Entex]], and [[Bandai]] began following up with their own tabletop and handheld electronic games.<ref name="competitors"/> |
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The transition from handheld electronic games to handheld video game control game with the introduction of LCD screens which today have the capability to present a large number of pixels across a display, approaching the video format used by home consoles, and giving the unit more flexibility in playing a range of games. Milton Bradley's [[Microvision]], released in 1979, is often considered the first such handheld video game console, as well as the first handheld to use interchangeable consoles, though the unit never caught on due to short-term technical struggles. Revolutionary at the time, the Microvision featured a 16x16 pixel LCD that a variety of games could be played by swapping out its faceplate, which contained the game's ROM data and controls.<ref name="phoenix">{{cite book| last = Herman| first = Leonard| title = Phoenix: The Rise and Fall Of Video Games| url = https://books.google.com/?id=JHOAAAAACAAJ&dq=%22Phoenix%22+video+games| publisher = Rolenta Press| year = 2001| page = 42| isbn = 0-9643848-5-X}}</ref><ref name="Microvision ONM"/> The Microvision game ''Cosmic Hunter'' (1981) also introduced the concept of a [[D-pad|directional pad]] on handheld gaming devices.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://psp.about.com/od/hardwarefirmware/a/psphistorymicrovision.htm|title=Sony's PlayStation Portable and Milton Bradley's Microvision - The PSP and the History of Handheld Video Gaming, Part 2|author=Niko Silvester|work=about.com|accessdate=July 16, 2016}}</ref><ref name="handheldmuseum2">{{cite web| last = Morgan| first = Rik| title = CosmiHunter| publisher = Handheld Museum| date = August 5, 2008| url = http://www.handheldmuseum.com/MB/MVCosmicHunter.htm| archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20110628172547/http://www.handheldmuseum.com/MB/MVCosmicHunter.htm| archivedate = June 28, 2011| accessdate = June 25, 2009}}</ref> |
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Nintendo's line of ''[[Game & Watch]]'' titles, first introduced in 1980, was based on inspiration from [[Gunpei Yokoi]] after seeing a man playing on an LCD [[calculation]] while passing time on a [[bullet train]], and had devised the idea of an electronic game that doubled as a watch.<ref>{{cite web|last=Crigger |first=Lara |url=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/issues/issue_87/490-Searching-for-Gunpei-Yokoi |title=The Escapist: Searching for Gunpei Yokoi |publisher=Escapistmagazine.com |date=March 3, 2007|accessdate=July 17, 2016}}</ref><ref name="game and watch">{{cite news| last = Pollack| first = Andrew| title = Gunpei Yokoi, Chief Designer Of Game Boy, Is Dead at 56| newspaper =The New York Times| date = October 9, 1997| url = https://www.nytimes.com/1997/10/09/business/gunpei-yokoi-chief-designer-of-game-boy-is-dead-at-56.html?n=Top%2FReference%2FTimes%20Topics%2FSubjects%2FD%2FDeaths%20(Obituaries)}}</ref> Taking advantage of the technology used in the credit-card-sized calculators that had appeared on the market, Yokoi designed the series of LCD-based games to include a digital time display in the corner of the screen.<ref name="game over">{{cite book| last = Sheff| first = David| authorlink = David Sheff| title = Game Over: Press Start to Continue| url = https://books.google.com/?id=0dK2AAAAIAAJ&q=Game+Over:+Press+Start+to+Continue&dq=Game+Over:+Press+Start+to+Continue| publisher = GamePress| year = 1999| page = 28| isbn = 978-0-9669617-0-6}}</ref> While the ''Game & Watch'' series were considered handheld electronic games rather than handheld video game consoles, their success led Nintendo, through Yokoi's design lead, to produce the [[Game Boy]] in 1989, considered to be the defining basis of the current handheld game console.<ref name="GBsales">{{cite web|url=http://images.businessweek.com/ss/06/10/game_consoles/source/7.htm |title=Game Boy |accessdate=March 22, 2008 |work=A Brief History of Game Console Warfare |publisher=[[BusinessWeek]] |url-status=unfit |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070509094404/http://images.businessweek.com/ss/06/10/game_consoles/source/7.htm |archivedate=May 9, 2007 }}</ref> |
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== {{anchor|video game console generation}}Console generations == |
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The history of video game consoles are typically segmented into "generations" which are used to group consoles that have shared a competitive market.<ref name="winner take some">{{cite report | url = https://www.pitt.edu/~ckemerer/Video%20Game%20Reexamination%2020170216-submitted.pdf | title = Winners-Take-Some Dynamics in Digital Platform Markets: A Reexamination of the Video Game Console Wars | first1 = Chris F. | last1 = Kemerer | first2 = Brian Kimball | last2 = Dunn | first3 = Shadi | last3= Janansefat | date = February 2017 | accessdate = July 23, 2020 | publisher =[[University of Pittsburgh]] }}</ref><ref name="gen def"/> These console generations typically last about five years, following a [[Moore's law]] progression where processing power doubles every 18 months or increases ten-fold after five years.<ref>{{cite journal | title = The Impact Of Platform On Global Video Game Sales | first1 = Jeffry | last1= Babb | first2 =Neil | last2 = Terry | first3 = Kareem |
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| last3 = Dana | journal = International Business & Economics Research Journal | volume = 12 | issue = 10 | pages = 1273-1288 | date = 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | title = Use of a Game Over: Emulation and the Video Game Industry, A White Paper |first1 = James |last1= Conley | first2 = Ed | last2 = Andros | first3 = Priti | last3 = Chinai | first4 = Elise | last4 = Lipkowitz| first5 = David |last5= Perez | date = Spring 2004 | journal = Northwestern Journal of Technology and Intellectual Property | volume =2 | issue =2 | pages =261 }}</ref> This has resulted in an industry-wide adoption of the [[razor and blades model|razorblade model]] in selling consoles at minimal profit margin while making revenue from the sale of games produced for that console, and then transitioning users to the next console model at the fifth year of the generation as the new generation comes on line, and thus incorporate [[planned obsolescence]] into the products to continue to bring consumes into the newer generations.<ref>{{cite report | title = Competing with your own products: Endogenous planned obsolescence in the video game industry | first1 = Yifei | last1 = Ding | first2 = Daniel | last2 = Hicks | first3= Jiandong | last3 = Ju | date = July 2011 | publisher = [[University of Oklahoma]] }}</ref> |
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{{Image frame |
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<timeline> |
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PlotArea = left:180 bottom:80 top:0 right:20 |
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Alignbars = justify |
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DateFormat = mm/dd/yyyy |
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Period = from:01/01/1970 till:12/31/2014 |
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Legend = orientation:vertical position:bottom columns:4 |
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Colors = |
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id:First value:blue legend:First |
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id:Second value:red legend:Second |
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id:Third value:green legend:Third |
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id:Fifth value:rgb(0.2,0.4,0.4) legend:Fifth |
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barset:Consoles text:"Major console releases" |
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bar:dummy1 |
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bar:GP02 text:"Gallagher and Park (2002)" |
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bar:HP06 text:"Prieger and Hu (2006)" |
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bar:CL08 text:"Corts and Lederman (2008)" |
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bar:G10 text:"Gretz (2010)" |
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bar:G10a text:"Gretz (2010a)" |
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bar:SV10 text:"Srinivasan and Venkatraman (2010)" |
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bar:D11 text:"Derdenger (2011)" |
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bar:Z11 text:"Zhou (2011)" |
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# Consoles |
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barset:Consoles width:10 |
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shift:(5,-5) |
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mark:(line,mark1) |
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at:09/01/1972 text:"[[Magnavox Odyssey]]" |
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at:07/01/1975 text:"[[Pong|Pong (home)]]" |
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at:11/01/1976 text:"[[Fairchild Channel F]]" |
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at:09/11/1977 text:"[[Atari 2600]]" |
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at:12/03/1979 text:"[[Intellivision]]" |
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barset:break |
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at:08/01/1982 text:"[[ColecoVision]]" |
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at:10/01/1982 text:"[[Atari 5200]]" |
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at:07/15/1983 text:"[[Nintendo Entertainment System|NES]]" |
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at:10/20/1985 text:"[[Master System]]" |
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at:05/01/1986 text:"[[Atari 7800]]" |
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barset:break |
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at:10/30/1987 text:"[[TurboGrafx-16]]" |
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at:10/29/1988 text:"[[Sega Genesis]]" |
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at:11/21/1990 text:"[[Super Nintendo Entertainment System|SNES]]" |
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barset:break |
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at:10/04/1993 text:"[[3DO Interactive Multiplayer|3DO]]" |
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at:11/23/1993 text:"[[Atari Jaguar]]" |
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at:11/22/1994 text:"[[Sega Saturn]]" |
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at:12/03/1994 text:"[[PlayStation (console)|PlayStation]]" |
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at:06/23/1996 text:"[[Nintendo 64]]" |
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barset:break |
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at:11/27/1998 text:"[[Dreamcast]]" |
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at:03/04/2000 text:"[[PlayStation 2]]" |
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at:07/14/2001 text:"[[GameCube]]" |
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at:11/15/2001 text:"[[Xbox (console)|Xbox]]" |
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barset:break |
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at:11/22/2005 text:"[[Xbox 360]]" |
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at:11/11/2006 text:"[[PlayStation 3]]" |
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at:11/19/2006 text:"[[Wii]]" |
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width:11 textcolor:black align:left |
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shift:(0,-0) |
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bar:GP02 from:11/01/1976 till:12/31/1978 color:First |
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bar:GP02 from:01/01/1979 till:12/31/1984 color:Second |
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bar:GP02 from:01/01/1985 till:06/30/1988 color:Third |
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bar:GP02 from:07/01/1988 till:06/30/1992 color:Fourth |
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bar:GP02 from:07/01/1992 till:12/31/1999 color:Fifth |
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bar:GP02 from:01/01/2000 till:12/31/2004 color:Sixth |
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bar:HP06 from:01/01/1999 till:12/31/2002 color:Sixth |
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bar:CL08 from:01/01/1985 till:12/31/1985 color:Third |
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bar:CL08 from:01/01/1989 till:12/31/1991 color:Fourth |
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bar:CL08 from:01/01/1992 till:12/31/1998 color:Fifth |
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bar:CL08 from:01/01/1999 till:12/31/2004 color:Sixth |
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bar:G10 from:01/01/1976 till:12/31/1984 color:First |
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bar:G10 from:01/01/1985 till:12/31/1990 color:Second |
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bar:G10 from:01/01/1991 till:12/31/1998 color:Third |
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bar:G10 from:01/01/1999 till:12/31/2004 color:Fourth |
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bar:G10a from:01/01/1976 till:12/31/1984 color:First |
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bar:G10a from:01/01/1985 till:06/30/1988 color:Second |
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bar:G10a from:07/01/1988 till:06/30/1992 color:Third |
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bar:G10a from:07/01/1992 till:12/31/1998 color:Fourth |
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bar:G10a from:01/01/1999 till:12/31/2004 color:Fifth |
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bar:G10a from:01/01/2005 till:12/31/2012 color:Sixth |
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bar:SV10 from:01/01/2000 till:12/31/2004 color:Sixth |
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bar:D11 from:01/01/2000 till:12/31/2004 color:Sixth |
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bar:Z11 from:07/01/1994 till:12/31/1998 color:Fifth |
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bar:Wiki from:01/01/1972 till:12/31/1975 color:First |
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bar:Wiki from:01/01/1976 till:12/31/1982 color:Second |
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bar:Wiki from:01/01/1983 till:06/30/1987 color:Third |
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bar:Wiki from:07/01/1987 till:06/30/1992 color:Fourth |
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bar:Wiki from:07/01/1992 till:12/31/1998 color:Fifth |
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bar:Wiki from:01/01/1999 till:12/31/2004 color:Sixth |
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bar:Wiki from:01/01/2005 till:12/31/2012 color:Seventh |
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</timeline> |
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|caption = Comparative timeline of organization of video game console generations from various sources, based on year of console introduction, adapted from Kemerer ''et al.'' (2017).<ref name="winner take some"/> Dates given for console introductions are based on first release in any market (typically either Japan or North America). Cited references from Kemerer ''at al.'' are as follows: Gallagher and Park (2002)<ref name="ieee history"/>; Hu and Prieger (2006)<ref>{{cite journal | title = An Empirical Analysis of Indirect Network Effects in the Home Video Game Market | first1 = James | last1= Prieger | first2 = Wei-Min |last2 = Hu | date = November 2006 | journal= [[SSRN Electronic Journal]] | doi = 10.2139/ssrn.941223 }}</ref>; Corts and Lederman (2008)<ref>{{cite journal | title = Software exclusivity and the scope of indirect network effects in the U.S. home video game market | first1 = Kenneth | last1 = Corts | first2 = Mara | last2 = Lenderman | journal = [[International Journal of Industrial Organization]] | volume = 27 |issue = 2 | date = March 2009 | pages = 121-136 | doi = 10.1016/j.ijindorg.2008.08.002 }}</ref>; Gretz (2010)<ref>{{cite journal | title = Hardware quality vs. network size in the home video game industry | first = Richard | last = Gretz | journal = [[Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization]] | volume = 76 | issue = 2| date = November 2010 | pages = 168-183 | doi = 10.1016/j.jebo.2010.07.007 }}</ref>; Gretz (2010a)<ref>{{cite journal | title = Console Price and Software Availability in the Home Video Game Industry | first = Richard | last = Gretz | journal = Atlantic Economic Journal | volume = 38 | pages = 81-94 | date = 2010 | doi = 10.1007/s11293-009-9209-3 }}</ref>; Srinivasan and Venkatraman (2010)<ref>{{cite journal | title= Indirect Network Effects and Platform Dominance in the Video Game Industry: A Network Perspective | first1 = Arati | last1 = Srinivasan | first2 = N. |
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| last2 = Venkatraman | journal = IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management | volume = 57 | issue = 4| pages =661-673 | date = November 2010| doi = 10.1109/TEM.2009.2037738 }}</ref>; Derdenger (2011)<ref>{{cite journal | title = Technological tying and the intensity of price competition: An empirical analysis of the video game industry | first = Timothy | last = Derdenger | journal = Quantitative Marketing and Economics volume | volume = 12 | pages = 127-165 | date = 2014 | doi = 10.1007/s11129-014-9143-9}}</ref>; Zhou (2011)<ref>{{cite report | title = Bayesian estimation of a dynamic equilibrium model of pricing and entry in two-sided markets: application to video games | first = Yiyi | last = Zhou | doi = 10.1.1.219.4966 | date = November 2011 }}</ref>}} |
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However, the exact definition and delineation of console generations has not been consistently defined in the literature. Some schemes have been based on direct market data (including a seminal work published in an [[IEEE]] journal in 2002),<ref name="ieee history"/> while others are based on technology shifts. Wikipedia itself has been noted for creating its own version of console generation definitions that differ from other academic sources, which has been adopted by other sources but without having any true rational behind it.<ref name="winner take some"/> The discrepancies between how consoles are grouped into generations and how these generations are named have caused confusion when trying to compare shifts in the video game marketplace compared to other consumer markets.<ref name="winner take some"/> Kemerer ''et al.'' (2017)<ref name="winner take some"/> provide a comparative analysis of these different generations as shown. |
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For purposes of organization, the generations described here and subsequent pages maintain the Wikipedia breakdown of generation, generally breaking consoles apart by technology features whenever possible and with other consoles released in that same period incorporated within that same generation. |
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This approach uses the concepts of [[bit|"bits"]], or the size of individual [[word length]] handled by the [[processors]] on the console, for the earlier console generations. Longer word lengths generally led to improved gameplay concepts, graphics, and audio capabilities than shorter ones.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://m.ign.com/articles/2001/12/18/interview-ibm-details-gekko-part-ii|title=Interview: IBM GEKKO (part II)|accessdate=January 30, 2014}}</ref> The use of bits to market consoles to consumers started with the [[TurboGrafx 16]], a console that used an 8-bit central processing unit similar to the [[Nintendo Entertainment System]] (NES), but included a 16-bit graphical processing unit. [[NEC]], the console's manufacturer, took to market the console as a "16-bit" system over the NES' "8-bit" to establish it as a superior system. Other advertisers followed suit, creating a period known as the "bit wars" that lasted through the fifth generation, where console manufactures tried to outsell each other simply on the bit-count of their system.<ref name="Therrien">{{cite journal|last1=Therrien|first1=Carl|last2=Picard|first2=Martin|date=April 29, 2015|title=Enter the bit wars: A study of video game marketing and platform crafting in the wake of the TurboGrafx-16 launch|url=|journal=[[New Media & Society]]|volume=18|issue=10|pages=2323–2339|doi=10.1177/1461444815584333|via=}}</ref> Aside from some "128 Bit" advertising slogans at the beginning of the sixth generation, marketing with bits largely stopped after the fifth generation. Though the bit terminology was no longer used in newer generations, the use of bit-count helped to establish the idea of console generations, and the earlier generations gained alternate names based on the dominant bit-count of the major systems of that era, such as the third generation being the 8-bit era or generation.<ref name="Therrien"/> |
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Later console generations are based on groupings of release dates rather than common hardware as base hardware configurations between consoles have greatly diverged, generally following trends in generation definition given by video game and mainstream journalism. Handheld consoles and other gaming systems and innovations are frequently grouped within the release years associated with the home console generations; for example the growth of [[digital distribution]] is associated with the [[seventh generation of video game consoles|seventh generation]].<ref name="gen def">{{cite book | title = Video Games and Esports: The Growing World of Gamers | first = Mike | last = Maley | date= 2019 | pages =20-22 | isbn=1534568212 | publisher = [[Greenhaven Publishing]] }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | title = Prolonging the Magic: The political economy of the 7th generation console game | first = David B. | last = Nieborg | date = 2014 | volume = 8 | issue = 1| pages = 47-63 | journal = Eludamos. Journal for Computer Game Culture }}</ref> |
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===Console generation timeline=== |
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!style="width:5%"|Source |
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|style="width:95%"|{{efn|group=note|name=First|The first generation of video game consoles began with the release of the [[Magnavox Odyssey]], the first commercial home video game console, released in September 1972.<ref name="ODYSSEY: 35 YEARS LATER">{{cite web|url=http://www.ign.com/articles/2007/06/01/odyssey-35-years-later|title=ODYSSEY: 35 YEARS LATER|last=Buchanan|first=Levi|date=May 31, 2007|website=IGN|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20161201214452/http://www.ign.com/articles/2007/06/01/odyssey-35-years-later|archivedate=December 1, 2016|url-status=live}}Between 1970 and 1972, Magnavox and Baer work together to fully develop the Odyssey. The set release date: May 1972. The era of video games is about to explode.</ref> This generation came to an end when Nintendo discontinued the [[Color TV-Game]] series in 1980.<ref name="highscore">{{cite book|title=High Score!: The Illustrated History of Electronic Games|last=DeMaria|first=Rusel|last2=Wilson|first2=Johnny L.|publisher=[[McGraw-Hill]]|edition=2|year=2003|pages=[https://books.google.com/books?id=HJNvZLvpCEQC&pg=PT5&vq=%22color+tv+game%22 363], [https://books.google.com/books?id=HJNvZLvpCEQC&pg=PT20&vq=%22color+tv+game%22 378]|isbn=978-0-07-223172-4|title-link=High Score!: The Illustrated History of Electronic Games}}</ref>}}{{efn|group=note|name=Second|The second generation of video game consoles began when the [[Fairchild Channel F]] was released in November 1976.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://thedoteaters.com/?bitstory=channel-f|title=Channel F {{!}} The Dot Eaters|website=thedoteaters.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131023161958/http://thedoteaters.com/?bitstory=channel-f|archive-date=October 23, 2013|url-status=live|accessdate=November 30, 2016}}</ref> This generation came to an end when Atari discontinued the [[Atari 2600]] on January 1, 1992.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gamesradar.com/consoles-of-the-80s/4/|title=Consoles of the '80s|last=Patterson|first=Shane|date=June 18, 2008|publisher=[[GamesRadar]]|author2=Brett Elston|accessdate=April 1, 2011}}</ref>}}{{efn|group=note|name=Third|The third generation of video game consoles began with both Sega and Nintendo releasing [[SG-1000]] and [[Nintendo Entertainment System]] (known in Japan as the Family Computer), respectively, on July 15, 1983 in Japan.<ref name="PC-Engine UK2">{{cite web|url=http://www.pc-engine.co.uk/?section=systems |title=PC-Engine |publisher=PC-Engine |date= |accessdate=January 9, 2018}}</ref> This generation came to an end when Nintendo discontinued the Nintendo Entertainment System on September 25, 2003 in Japan.<ref name="famicom">[https://web.archive.org/web/20140329053251/http://www.gamespot.com/articles/nintendo-to-end-famicom-and-super-famicom-production/1100-6029220/ Nintendo to end Famicom and Super Famicom production]. GameSpot.com (May 30, 2003). Retrieved on August 23, 2013.</ref>}}{{efn|group=note|name=Fourth|The fourth generation of video game consoles began when the [[TurboGrafx-16]] was released on October 30, 1987.<ref name="PC-Engine UK">{{cite web|url=http://www.pc-engine.co.uk/?section=systems|title=PC-Engine|website=Pc-engine.co.uk|accessdate=December 25, 2017}}</ref> This generation came to an end when SNK discontinued the [[Neo Geo (system)|Neo Geo]] in 2004.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/longest-support-for-an-arcade-system|title=Longest support for an arcade system|newspaper=Guinness World Records|access-date=November 30, 2016}}</ref>}}{{efn|group=note|name=Fifth|The fifth generation of video game consoles began when [[Panasonic]] released the [[3DO Interactive Multiplayer]] on October 4, 1993.<ref name="NGen12">{{cite magazine|last=|first=|date=December 1995|title=Which Game System is the Best!?|magazine=[[Next Generation (magazine)|Next Generation]]|publisher=[[Imagine Media]]|issue=12|pages=36–85}}</ref> This generation came to an end when Sony discontinued the [[PlayStation (console)|PlayStation]] on March 31, 2005.<ref name="shipments">{{cite web|url=http://scei.co.jp/corporate/data/bizdataps_e.html|title=PlayStation Cumulative Production Shipments of Hardware|publisher=Sony Computer Entertainment|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110722094946/http://scei.co.jp/corporate/data/bizdataps_e.html|archivedate=July 22, 2011|accessdate=December 12, 2012}}</ref>}}{{efn|group=note|name=Sixth|The sixth generation of video game consoles began when Sega released the [[Dreamcast]] on November 27, 1998 in Japan.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://o.canada.com/technology/gaming/segas-failed-dreamcast-actually-outsold-the-wii-u|title=Press Start: Sega’s failed Dreamcast console has actually outsold Nintendo’s Wii U (sort of)|last=Reserved.|first=. All Rights|date=April 17, 2014|newspaper=canada.com|language=en-US|access-date=November 30, 2016}}</ref> This generation came to an end when Sony discontinued the [[PlayStation 2]] on January 4, 2013.<ref name="Guardian end">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/jan/04/playstation-2-manufacture-ends-years?INTCMP=SRCH|title=PlayStation 2 manufacture ends after 12 years|date=January 4, 2013|newspaper=The Guardian|accessdate=January 4, 2013}}</ref>}}{{efn|group=note|name=Seventh|The seventh generation of video game consoles began when [[Microsoft]] released the [[Xbox 360]] on November 22, 2005,<ref name="nalaunch">{{cite web | url=https://www.engadget.com/2005/09/15/xbox-360-launch-date-is-november-22/ | title=Xbox 360 launch date is November 22 | publisher=Engadget | date=September 15, 2005 | accessdate=March 14, 2013 | author=Dybwad, Barb}}</ref> several months before [[Sony Interactive Entertainment|Sony Computer Entertainment]]'s release of the [[PlayStation 3]] on November 17, 2006.<ref name="NAdate">{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/tech/gaming/2006-11-17-ps3-debut_x.htm| title=Sony's PS3 makes U.S. debut| date=November 17, 2006| newspaper=USA Today| accessdate=January 14, 2008}}</ref> The first console of this generation to be discontinued was the [[Xbox 360]] on April 20, 2016.<ref name="360discontinuation">{{cite web|url=http://news.xbox.com/2016/04/20/xbox-360-celebrating-10-years/|title=Achievement Unlocked: 10 Years – Thank You, Xbox 360|website=Xbox Wire|accessdate=January 22, 2017}}</ref> This generation came to an end when [[PlayStation 3]] was discontinued on May 29, 2017<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cnet.com/news/at-long-last-end-of-the-line-for-the-sony-playstation-3/ |title=Sony PlayStation 3 ends shipments, fulfilling 10-year promise |last=Ackerman |first=Dan |date=May 30, 2017 |website=CNET |language=en |access-date=August 16, 2017}}</ref> and last version of [[Wii]] called Wii Mini was discontinued in 2017 as well.}}{{efn|group=note|name=Eighth|The eighth generation of video game consoles began when Nintendo released the Wii U on November 18, 2012.<ref name="pricerelease">{{cite web|url=http://wiiu.dcemu.co.uk/wiiu-price-and-release-date-announced-491879.html|title=WiiU Price and Release Date Announced|date=September 13, 2012|publisher=WiiU News|accessdate=September 13, 2012}}</ref> This is the current generation of video game consoles. The first console of this generation to be discontinued is the Wii U, on January 31, 2017;<ref name="wiiudiscontinuation">{{cite web|url=http://www.siliconera.com/2017/01/31/wii-u-production-has-officially-ended-in-japan/|title=Wii U Production Has Officially Ended in Japan|website=Siliconera|date=January 31, 2017}}</ref> the other major consoles from Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony remain in production.}} |
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== Console history timeline by generation == |
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=== First generation (1972–1983) === |
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[[File:Magnavox-Odyssey-Console-Set.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Magnavox Odyssey]] was the first video game console, released in 1972]] |
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{{main|First generation of video game consoles}} |
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{{see also|Early history of video games|List of first generation home video game consoles}} |
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The first generation of home consoles were generally limited to [[dedicated consoles]] with just one or two games pre-built into the console hardware, with a limited means to alter gameplay factors. |
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As described above, this generation was led by the introduction of the [[Magnavox Odyssey]] and the home version of ''[[Pong]]'', both which spurred a number of other manufacturers to make their own dedicate home video game consoles.<ref name="tandy underdog"/> |
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=== Second generation (1976–1992) === |
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{{main|Second generation of video game consoles}} |
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[[File:Atari-2600-Wood-4Sw-Set.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Atari 2600]] became the most popular game console of the second generation.]] |
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The second generation of home consoles was distinguished by the introduction of the [[ROM cartridge|game cartridge]], where the game's code is stored in [[read-only memory]] (ROM) within the cartridge. When the cartridge is slotted into the console, the electrical connections allow the main console's processors to read the game's code from the ROM. While ROM cartridges had been used in other computer applications prior, the invention of the ROM game cartridge is credited to [[Jerry Lawson (engineer)|Jerry Lawson]], an engineer at [[Fairchild Semiconductor]] and which was first implemented in the [[Fairchild Channel F|Fairchild Video Entertainment System]] (VES) in 1976.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/14/technology/personaltech/14lawson.html | work=The New York Times | first=Bruce | last=Weber | title=Gerald A. Lawson, Video Game Pioneer, Dies at 70 | date=April 13, 2011}}</ref> Additional consoles during this generation, all which used cartridge-based systems, included the [[Atari 2600]] (know as the Atari Video Console System or VCS at launch), the [[Magnavox Odyssey²]], [[Mattel Electronics]]' [[Intellivision]], and the [[ColecoVision]]. In addition to consoles, newer processor technology allowed games to support up to 8 colors and up to 3-channel audio effects.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.lib.umich.edu/online-exhibits/exhibits/show/cvga-disassembled/gamegen2 |title = CVGA Disassembled - Second Generation (1976-1984) | accessdate = July 20, 2020 | publisher = [[University of Michigan]] }}</ref> |
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With the introduction of cartridge-based consoles came the need to develop a wide array of games for them. Atari was one of the forefronts in development for its Atari 2600, retaining control of all development aspects of the games. Game developments coincided with the [[Golden age of arcade video games]] that started in 1978–1979 with the releases of ''[[Space Invaders]]'' and ''[[Asteroids (video game)|Asteroids]]'', and home versions of these arcade games were ideal targets. The Atari 2600 version of ''Space Invaders'', released in 1980, was considered the [[killer app]] for home video game consoles, helping to quadruple the console's sales that year.<ref>{{cite book |title=Ultimate History of Video Games |first=Steven |last=Kent |page=190 |publisher=[[Three Rivers Press]] |isbn=0-7615-3643-4 |year=2001}}</ref> At the same time, Atari has been acquired by [[Warner Communications]] from Bushnell, and internal policies led to the departure of four key programmers [[David Crane (programmer)|David Crane]], [[Larry Kaplan]], [[Alan Miller (game designer)|Alan Miller]], and [[Bob Whitehead]], who went and formed [[Activision]]. Activision proceeded to develop their own Atari 2600 games as well as games for other systems. Atari attempted legal action to stop this practice but ended up settling out of court, with Activision agreeing to pay royalties but otherwise able to continue game development, making Activision the first third-party game developer.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.forbes.com/forbes/2009/0202/052.html#788254c31a16 |title=Activision's Unlikely Hero |first=Peter |last=Beller |date=January 15, 2009 |accessdate=February 12, 2019 |work=[[Forbes (magazine)|Forbes]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170806105646/https://www.forbes.com/forbes/2009/0202/052.html#788254c31a16 |archive-date=August 6, 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref> |
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{{main|Video game crash of 1983}} |
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Numerous other companies saw Activision's success and jumped into game development to try to make fast money on the rapidly expanding North America video game market. This led to a loss of publishing control and dilution of the game market by the early 1980s.<ref name="mj19821226">{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=nwsdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=QX8EAAAAIBAJ&pg=3635%2C1989311 |title=Stream of video games is endless |work=Milwaukee Journal |date=December 26, 1982 |accessdate=January 10, 2015 |pages=Business 1}}</ref> Additionally, in following on the success of ''Space Invaders'', Atari and other companies had remained eager for licensed video game possibilities. Atari had banked heavily on commercial sales of ''[[Pac-Man]]'' and ''[[E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (video game)|E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial]]'' in 1982, but both were rushed to market and were poorly-received, and failed to make Atari's sales estimates. Along with competition from inexpensive home computers, the North American home console market crashed in 1983.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.usgamer.net/articles/greatest-years-in-gaming-history-1983 | title = Greatest Years in Gaming History: 1983 | first= Jeremy | last =Parish | date = August 28, 2014 | accessdate = September 13, 2019 | work = [[USGamer]] }}</ref> |
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{|class="wikitable" style="margin: 1em auto 1em auto;" |
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! |
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!Japan |
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!North America |
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!Europe |
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!Units sold |
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|- |
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![[Fairchild Channel F]] |
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|1977 |
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|1976 |
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|''none'' |
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|250,000 |
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|- |
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![[Atari 2600]] |
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|1983 |
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|1977 |
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|1978 |
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|30,000,000 |
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|- |
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![[Magnavox Odyssey²]] |
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|1982 |
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|1979 |
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|1978 |
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|2,000,000 |
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|- |
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![[Intellivision]] |
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|1982 |
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|1980 |
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|1982 |
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|3,000,000 |
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|- |
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![[ColecoVision]] |
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|''none'' |
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|1982 |
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|1983 |
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|2,000,000 |
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|- |
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![[Atari 5200]] |
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|''none'' |
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|1982 |
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|''none'' |
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|1,400,000 |
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|} |
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==== Handhelds of the second generation ==== |
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[[File:Game_&_Watch.png|thumb|right|One of the original ''[[Game & Watch]]'' handheld games]] |
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[[Handheld electronic game]]s had already been introduced on the market, such as ''[[Mattel Auto Race]]'' in 1976 and ''[[Simon (game)|Simon]]'' in 1978. While not considered video games as lacking the typical video screen element, instead using [[light-emitting diode|LED lights]] as game indicators, they still established a market for portable video games. |
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The first [[handheld game console]] emerged during the second home console generation, using simple [[LCD display]]s. Early attempts at cartridge-based handheld systems included the [[Microvision]] by [[Milton-Bradley]] and the [[Epoch Game Pocket Computer]], but neither gained significant traction. [[Nintendo]], on the other hand, introduced its line of ''[[Game & Watch]]'' portable games, each with a single dedicated game, as its first venture into the video game market. First introduced in 1980, the ''Game & Watch'' series ran for over a decade and sold more than 40 million units.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.cbr.com/nintendo-game-watch-turns-40/ | title = Game & Watch Turns 40: A Look Back at Nintendo's First Gaming Success | first = Odel | last = Rwada | date = April 20, 2020 | accessdate = July 20, 2020 | work = [[Comic Book Resources]] }}</ref> |
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=== Third generation (1983–2003) === |
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[[File:NES-Console-Set.jpg|right|thumb|The [[Nintendo Entertainment System|NES]] made home console video games popular again in America after the 1983 crash]] |
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{{main|Third generation of video game consoles}}Frequently called the "8-bit generation", the third generation's consoles used 8-bit processors, which allowed up to five bits of color (32 colors), five audio channels, and more advanced graphics capability including [[sprite (computer graphics)|sprites]] and [[Tile-based video game|tiles]] rather than block-based graphics of the second generation. Further, the third console saw the market dominance shift from the Unites State to Japan as a result of the 1983 crash.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.lib.umich.edu/online-exhibits/exhibits/show/cvga-disassembled/gamegen3 | title = CVGA Disassembled - Third Generation (1983-1990) | publisher = [[University of Michigan]] | accessdate = July 20, 2020 }}</ref> |
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Both the [[Sega]] [[SG-1000]] and the Nintendo [[Nintendo Entertainment System|Famicom]] launched near simultaneously in Japan in 1983. The Famicom, after some initial technical recalls, soon gained traction and became the best selling console in Japan by the end of 1984.<ref name="Ultimate History">{{cite book |last=Kent |first=Steven L. |authorlink=Steven L. Kent |title=The Ultimate History of Video Games: The Story Behind the Craze that Touched our Lives and Changed the World |year=2001 |publisher=Prima Publishing |location=Roseville, California |isbn=0-7615-3643-4}}</ref> By that point Nintendo wanted to bring the console to North America but recognized the faults that the video game crash had caused. It took several steps to redesign the console to make it look less like a game console and rebranded it as the "Nintendo Entertainment System" (NES) for North America to avoid the "video game" label stigma.<ref>{{Cite episode |title=NES |url=http://g4tv.com/gamemakers/episodes/4844/NES.html |series=Icons |serieslink=Icons (TV series) |credits= |network=[[G4 (U.S. TV channel)|G4]] |airdate=December 1, 2005 |season=4 |number=5010 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121016233741/http://www.g4tv.com/gamemakers/episodes/4844/NES.html |archivedate=October 16, 2012 |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://archive.gamespy.com/articles/july03/25smartest/index22.shtml |title=25 Smartest Moments in Gaming |publisher=[[GameSpy]] |page=22 |date=July 21–25, 2003 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120902124439/http://archive.gamespy.com/articles/july03/25smartest/index22.shtml |archivedate=September 2, 2012 |df=mdy-all }}</ref> The company also wanted to avoid the loss of publishing control that had occurred both in North America as well as in Asia after the Famicom's release, and created a [[CIC (Nintendo)|lockout system]] that required all game cartridges to be manufactured by Nintendo to include a special chip. If this chip was not present, the console would fail to play the game. This further gave Nintendo direct control on the titles published for the system, rejecting those it felt were too mature.<ref name="lockout">{{cite news |title= The Games Played For Nintendo's Sales|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/12/21/business/the-games-played-for-nintendo-s-sales.html?pagewanted=all|accessdate=June 28, 2010|date =December 21, 1989|work=[[The New York Times]] | first=Anthony | last=Ramirez}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2013/07/time-to-feel-old-inside-the-nes-on-its-30th-birthday/ | title = The NES turns 30: How it began, worked, and saved an industry | first= Andrew | last= Cunningham | date = July 15, 2013 | accessdate = September 21, 2018 | work = [[Ars Technica]] }}</ref> The NES launched in North America in 1985, and helped to revitalize the vidoe game market there.<ref name="cgw198806">{{cite news | title=The Nintendo Threat? | work=Computer Gaming World | date=June 1988 | page=50}}</ref> |
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Sega attempted to compete with the NES with its own [[Sega Master System|Master System]], released later in 1985 in both the US and Japan, but did not gain traction to compete. Similarly, Atari had been acquired by [[Jack Tramiel]] of [[Commodore International]] following the crash, and he had the company develop the [[Atari 7800]] in 1987 to compete against the NES, but also failed to challenge the NES's dominance.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE3DD143EF935A25756C0A964958260 | work=[[The New York Times]] | title=COMPANY NEWS; Nintendo Suit by Atari Is Dismissed | date=May 16, 1992 | accessdate=April 25, 2010}}</ref> |
|||
{|class="wikitable" style="margin: 1em auto 1em auto;" |
|||
! |
|||
!Japan |
|||
!North America |
|||
!Europe |
|||
!Units sold |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Nintendo Entertainment System|Famicom/NES]] |
|||
|1983 |
|||
|1985 |
|||
|1986 |
|||
|61,910,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Master System|Mark III/Master System]] |
|||
|1985 |
|||
|1986 |
|||
|1987 |
|||
|13,000,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Atari 7800]] |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|1986 |
|||
|1987 |
|||
|3,770,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Atari XEGS]] |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|1987 |
|||
|1987 |
|||
|100,000 |
|||
|} |
|||
=== Fourth generation (1987–2004) === |
|||
[[File:Nintendo-Super-Famicom-Set-FL.jpg|thumb|Nintendo Super Famicom]] |
|||
{{main|Fourth generation of video game consoles}} |
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The fourth generation of consoles, also known as the "16-bit generation", further advanced core console technology with 16-bit processors, improving the available graphics and audio capabilities of games.<ref name="umich cvga 4th">{{cite web | url = https://apps.lib.umich.edu/online-exhibits/exhibits/show/cvga-disassembled/gamegen4 | title = Fourth Generation (1988-1999) | publisher = [[University of Michigan]] | accessdate = July 21, 2020 }}</ref> |
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[[NEC]]'s [[TurboGrafx-16]] (or PC Engine as released in Japan), first released in 1987, is considered the first fourth generation console even though it still had an 8-bit CPU. The console's 16-bit graphics processor gave it capabilities comparable to the other fourth generation systems, and NEC's marketing had pushed the console being an advancement over the NES as a "16-bit" system.<ref name="Therrien"/><ref>{{cite web | url =https://www.theguardian.com/technology/gamesblog/2013/apr/02/turbografx-16-machine-that-time-forgot | title = TurboGrafx-16: the console that time forgot (and why it's worth re-discovering) | first = Paul | last= Sartori | date = April 2, 2013 | accessdate = July 21, 2020 | work = [[The Guardian]] }}</ref> Both Sega and Nintendo entered the fourth generation with true 16-bit systems in the 1988 [[Sega Genesis]] (MegaDrive in Japan) and the 1990 [[Super Nintendo Entertainment System]] (SNES, Super Famicom in Japan). [[SNK]] also entered the competition with a modified version of their [[Neo Geo MVS]] arcade system into the [[Neo Geo (console)|Neo Geo]], released in 1990. |
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During this generation, the technology costs of using [[optical disc]]s in the form of [[CD-ROM]]s has dropped sufficiently to make them desirable to be used for shipping computer software, including for video games for personal computers. CD-ROMs offered more storage space than game cartridges and could allow for [[full-motion video]] and other detailed audio-video works to be used in games.<ref name="ieee history">{{cite journal | title = Innovation and Competition in Standard-Based Industries: A Historical Analysis of the U.S. Home Video Game Market | first1 = Scott | last1= Gallager | first2 = Seung | last2 =Ho Park | date = February 2002 | journal = [[IEEE Transactions On Engineering Management]] | volume = 49 | issue = 1 | pages = 67-82 | doi = 10.1109/17.985749 }}</ref> Console manufacturers adapted by created hardware add-ons to their consoles that could read and play CD-ROMs, including NEC's TurboGrafx-CD add-on (as well as the integrated [[TurboDuo]] system) in 1988, and the [[Sega CD]] add-on for the Genesis in 1991, and the [[Neo Geo CD]] in 1994. Costs of these add-ons were generally high, nearing the same price as the console itself, and with the introduction of disc-based consoles in the fifth generation starting in 1993, these fell by the wayside.<ref name="ieee history"/> Nintendo had initially worked with [[Sony]] to develop a similar add-on for the SNES, the [[Super NES CD-ROM]], but just before its introduction, business relationships between Nintendo and Sony broke down, and Sony would take its idea on to develop the fifth generation [[PlayStation (console)|PlayStation]].<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.videogameschronicle.com/features/psones-betrayal-and-revenge-story/ | title = The Road To PS5: PSOne’s Betrayal And Revenge Story | first = Andy | last = Robinson | date = February 5, 2020 | accessdate = February 6, 2020 |work = [[Video Games Chronicle]] }}</ref> Additionally, [[Phillip]]s attempted to enter the market with a dedicated CD-ROM format, the [[CD-i]], also released in 1990, that included other uses for the CD-ROM media beyond video games but the console never gained traction.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.computinghistory.org.uk/det/54682/Philips-CD-i-210-45/ | title = Philips CD-i 210/45 | accessdate = July 22, 2020 | publisher = [[The Centre for Computing History]] }}</ref> |
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The fourth generation had a long tail that overlapped with the fifth generation. To keep their console competitive with the new fifth generation ones, Nintendo took to the use of [[coprocessor]]s manufactured into the game cartridges to enhance the capabilities of the SNES. This included the [[Super FX]] chip, which was first used in the game ''[[Star Fox (1993 video game)|Star Fox]]'' in 1993, generally considered one of the first games to use real-time polygon-based 3D rendering on consoles.<ref name="umich cvga 4th"/> |
|||
{|class="wikitable" style="margin: 1em auto 1em auto;" |
|||
! |
|||
!Japan |
|||
!North America |
|||
!Europe |
|||
!Units sold |
|||
|- |
|||
![[TurboGrafx-16|PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16]] |
|||
|1987 |
|||
|1989 |
|||
|1989 |
|||
|5,800,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Sega Genesis|Mega Drive/Genesis]] |
|||
|1988 |
|||
|1989 |
|||
|1990 |
|||
|30,750,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Neo Geo (system)|Neo Geo]] |
|||
|1990 |
|||
|1991 |
|||
|1994 |
|||
|980,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Super Nintendo Entertainment System|Super Famicom/Super NES]] |
|||
|1990 |
|||
|1991 |
|||
|1992 |
|||
|49,100,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Sega CD|Sega CD/Mega-CD]] |
|||
|1991 |
|||
|1992 |
|||
|1993 |
|||
|2,240,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Neo Geo CD]] |
|||
|1994 |
|||
|1996 |
|||
|1994 |
|||
|570,000 |
|||
|} |
|||
==== Handhelds of the fourth generation ==== |
|||
[[File:Game-Boy-FL.jpg|thumb|right|upright|The original [[Game Boy]] model]] |
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Nintendo brought its experience from the ''Game & Watch'' series to develop the [[Game Boy]] system in 1989, with subsequent iterations through the years. The unit included a LCD screen that supported a 4-monocolor pixel display, the use of a cartridge-based system, and the means to link up two units to play head-to-head games. One of the early packages included ''[[Tetris (Game Boy)|Tetris]]'' bundled with the unit, which became the Game Boy's [[killer app]] and led the unit to dominate handheld sales at the time.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/thirty-years-ago-game-boy-changed-way-america-played-video-games-180972743/ | title = Thirty Years Ago, Game Boy Changed the Way America Played Video Games | first = David | last = Kindy | date = July 29, 2019 | accessdate = July 22, 2020 | work =[[Smithsonian Magazine]] }}</ref> The Game Boy also introduced the ''[[Pokémon]]'' franchise to the world, which became a staple of Nintendo's handheld consoles. |
|||
The [[Atari Lynx]] was also introduced in 1989 and included a color-LED screen, but its small game library and low battery life failed to make it competitive with the Game Boy.<ref name="The Atari Lynx">{{cite web|url= http://www.ataritimes.com/lynx/index.html|title=The Atari Lynx|accessdate=August 20, 2006|publisher=ataritimes.com|year=2006 |archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20060810182044/http://www.ataritimes.com/lynx/index.html <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archivedate = August 10, 2006}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Beuscher |first=Dave |title=allgame ( Atari Lynx > Overview ) |publisher=[[Allgame]] |accessdate=September 21, 2008 |url=http://www.allgame.com/cg/agg.dll?p=agg&sql=5:13 |quote=One drawback to the Lynx system is its power consumption. It requires 6 AA batteries, which allow four to five hours of game play. The Nintendo Game Boy provides close to 35 hours use before new batteries are necessary.}}</ref><ref name="handheld sales">{{cite web |url=http://www.gamepro.com/gamepro/domestic/games/features/125748.shtml |title=The 10 Worst-Selling Handhelds of All Time |accessdate=January 2, 2010 |author=Blake Snow |publisher=[[GamePro]].com |date=July 30, 2007|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080730005444/http://www.gamepro.com/gamepro/domestic/games/features/125748.shtml|url-status=live |archivedate=July 30, 2008}}</ref> Both Sega and NEC also attempted to compete with the Game Boy with the [[Game Gear]] and the [[TurboExpress]], respectively, both released in 1990. Each were attempts to bring the respective home console games to handheld systems, but struggled against the staying power of the Game Boy.<ref name="handheld sales"/><ref>{{cite web |last=Bauscher |first=Dave |title=allgame ( Sega Game Gear > Overview ) |publisher=[[Allgame]] |accessdate=September 21, 2008 |url=http://www.allgame.com/cg/agg.dll?p=agg&sql=5:25 |quote=While this feature is not included on the Game Boy it does provide a disadvantage -- the Game Gear requires 6 AA batteries that only last up to six hours. The Nintendo Game Boy only requires 4 AA batteries and is capable of providing up to 35 hours of play.}}</ref> |
|||
{|class="wikitable" style="margin: 1em auto 1em auto;" |
|||
! |
|||
!Japan |
|||
!North America |
|||
!Europe |
|||
!Units sold |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Game Boy]] |
|||
|1989 |
|||
|1989 |
|||
|1990 |
|||
|118,690,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Atari Lynx]] |
|||
|1990 |
|||
|1989 |
|||
|1990 |
|||
|3,000,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Game Gear]] |
|||
|1990 |
|||
|1991 |
|||
|1991 |
|||
|10,620,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[TurboExpress]] |
|||
|1990 |
|||
|1991 |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|1,500,000 |
|||
|} |
|||
=== Fifth generation (1993–2006) === |
|||
[[File:PSX-Console-wController.jpg|thumb|The Sony [[PlayStation (console)|PlayStation]] became the most popular system of the fifth generation consoles, eventually selling over 100 million systems]] |
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{{main|Fifth generation of video game consoles}} |
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During this time home computers gained greater prominence as a way of playing video games. The video game console industry nonetheless continued to thrive alongside home computers, due to the advantages of much lower prices, easier portability, circuitry specifically dedicated towards video games, the ability to be played on a television set (which PCs of the time could not do in most cases), and intensive first party software support from manufacturers who were essentially banking their entire future on their consoles.<ref>{{cite magazine|last= |first= |title=PCs Versus Consoles |magazine=[[Next Generation (magazine)|Next Generation]]|issue=18|publisher=[[Imagine Media]]|date=June 1996|page=1}}</ref> |
|||
Besides the shift to 32-bit processors, the fifth generation of consoles also saw most companies excluding Nintendo shift to dedicated optical media formats instead of game cartridges, given their lower cost of production and higher storage capacity.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://apps.lib.umich.edu/online-exhibits/exhibits/show/cvga-disassembled/gamegen5 |title = CVGA Disassembled - Fifth Generation (1993-2001) | publisher = [[University of Michigan]] | accessdate = July 22, 2020 }}</ref> Initial consoles of the fifth generation attempted to capitalize on the potential power of CD-ROMs, which included the [[Amiga CD32]], [[3DO Interactive Multiplayer|3DO]] and the [[Atari Jaguar]]. However, earlier in the cycle, the systems were far more expensive than existing fourth-generation models and has much smaller game libraries.<ref name="ieee history"/> Further, Nintendo's use of co-processors in late SNES games further kept the SNES as one of the best selling systems over new fifth generation ones.<ref name="ieee history"/> |
|||
Two of the key consoles of the fifth generation were introduced in 1995: the [[Sega Saturn]], and the Sony [[PlayStation (console)|PlayStation]], both which challenged the SNES' ongoing dominance. While the Saturn sold well, it did have a number of technical flaws , but established Sega for a number of key game series going forward.<ref name="IGNHistory_pg8">{{cite web|url=https://ign.com/articles/2009/04/21/ign-presents-the-history-of-sega?page=8|author=Fahs, Travis|title=IGN Presents the History of Sega|publisher=[[IGN]]|page=8|accessdate=May 1, 2014|date=April 21, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151106173810/http://www.ign.com/articles/2009/04/21/ign-presents-the-history-of-sega?page=8|archive-date=November 6, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> The PlayStation, in addition to using optical media, also introduced the use of [[memory card]]s as to save the state of a game. Though memories cards had been used by Neo Geo to allow players to transfer game information between home and arcade systems, the PlayStation's approach allowed games to have much longer gameplay and narrative elements, leading to highly-successful [[computer role-playing game|role-playing games]] like ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]''.<ref name="ieee history"/> By 1996, the PlayStation became the best-selling console over the SNES.<ref name="ieee history"/> |
|||
Nintendo released their next console, the [[Nintendo 64]] in late 1996. Unlike other fifth generation units, it still used game cartridges, as Nintendo believed the load-time advantages of cartridges over CD-ROMs was still essential, as well as their ability to continue to use lockout mechanisms to protect copyrights.<ref name="advantages">{{cite book |year=1994 |title=Nintendo Power August, 1994 – Pak Watch |page=108 |publisher=Nintendo}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=Nintendo Ultra 64: The Launch of the Decade?|journal=Maximum: The Video Game Magazine|issue=2 |publisher=[[Emap International Limited]]|date=November 1995|pages=107–8}}</ref> The system also included support for memory cards as well, and Nintendo developed a strong library of first-party titles for the game, including ''[[Super Mario 64]]'' and ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time]]'' that helped to drive its sales. While the Nintendo 64 did not match the PlayStation's sales, it kept Nintendo a key competitor in the home console market alongside Sony and Sega.<ref name="ieee history"/> |
|||
{|class="wikitable" style="margin: 1em auto 1em auto;" |
|||
! |
|||
!Japan |
|||
!North America |
|||
!Europe |
|||
!Units sold |
|||
|- |
|||
![[FM Towns Marty]] |
|||
|1993 |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|45,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Amiga CD32]] |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|1994 |
|||
|1993 |
|||
|100,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Atari Jaguar]] |
|||
|1994 |
|||
|1993 |
|||
|1994 |
|||
|250,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[3DO Interactive Multiplayer|3DO]] |
|||
|1994 |
|||
|1993 |
|||
|1994 |
|||
|2,000,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[PC-FX]] |
|||
|1994 |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|400,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[32X|Sega 32X]] |
|||
|1994 |
|||
|1994 |
|||
|1995 |
|||
|665,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Virtual Boy]] |
|||
|1995 |
|||
|1995 |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|770,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
! [[Sega Saturn]] |
|||
|1994 |
|||
|1995 |
|||
|1995 |
|||
|9,260,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[PlayStation (console)|PlayStation]] |
|||
|1994 |
|||
|1995 |
|||
|1995 |
|||
|102,490,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Nintendo 64]] |
|||
|1996 |
|||
|1996 |
|||
|1997 |
|||
|32,930,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Apple Bandai Pippin|Apple Pippin]] |
|||
|1996 |
|||
|1996 |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|42,000 |
|||
|} |
|||
==== Handhelds of the fifth generation ==== |
|||
[[File:Virtual-Boy-Set.jpg|thumb|right|upright|The [[Virtual Boy]] headset and controller]] |
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<!-- This section is under construction. Please share good information for this section as other sections do. Thank you!! --> |
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Nintendo released the [[Virtual Boy]], an early attempt at [[virtual reality]], in 1995. The unit required the player to play a game through a stereoscopic viewerfinder, which was awkward and difficult, and did not lend well to portable gaming.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1995/08/22/business/introduction-by-nintendo.html|title=Introduction by Nintendo|website=Nytimes.com\accessdate=October 10, 2017}}</ref><ref name="Boyer">Boyer, Steven. "A Virtual Failure: Evaluating the Success of Nintendos Virtual Boy." Velvet Light Trap.64 (2009): 23-33. ProQuest Research Library. Web. May 24, 2012.</ref><ref name="Tomb Space">{{cite book |last1=King |first1=Geoff |last2=Krzywinska |first2=Tanya |year=2006 |title=Tomb Raiders and Space Invaders : Videogame Forms and Contexts}}</ref> Nintendo instead returned to focus on incremental improvements to the Game Boy, including the [[Game Boy Pocket]]<ref>{{cite magazine |last= |first= |title=The Incredible Shrinking Game Boy Pocket |magazine=[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]] |issue=84|publisher=[[Ziff Davis]] |date=July 1996 |page=16}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|title=Pocket Cool |magazine=[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]]|issue=89 |publisher=[[Ziff Davis]]|date=December 1996|page=204}}</ref> and the [[Game Boy Color]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://images.businessweek.com/ss/06/10/game_consoles/source/7.htm |title=A Brief History of Game Console Warfare: Game Boy |accessdate=March 28, 2008 |work=[[BusinessWeek]] |publisher=[[McGraw-Hill]] |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070509094404/http://images.businessweek.com/ss/06/10/game_consoles/source/7.htm |archivedate=May 9, 2007 }}</ref> |
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Sega also released the [[Genesis Nomad]] in 1995 in North America only. a handheld unit that supported the Sega Genesis game library.<ref name="gamepro">{{cite magazine |url=http://www.gamepro.com/gamepro/domestic/games/features/125748.shtml |title=The 10 Worst-Selling Handhelds of All Time |accessdate=January 17, 2008 |author=Snow, Blake |magazine=[[GamePro]] |date=July 30, 2007|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071012194600/http://gamepro.com/gamepro/domestic/games/features/125748.shtml|archivedate=October 12, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|last= |first= |title=Sega's 16-Bit Hand-Held Now Named Nomad|magazine=[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]]|issue=73 |publisher=Sendai Publishing|date=August 1995|page=27}}</ref> The unit had been developed through Sega of America with little oversight from Sega's main headquarters, and as Sega moved forward, the company as a whole decided to put more focus on the Sega Saturn to stay competitive and drop support for all other ongoing systems, including the Nomad.<ref name="interview">{{cite web|author=Horowitz, Ken|title=Interview: Joe Miller|url=http://www.sega-16.com/2013/02/interview-joe-miller/|date=February 7, 2013|accessdate=November 17, 2013|publisher=Sega-16}}</ref><ref name="KSL">{{cite book |last=Kent |first=Steven L. |authorlink=Steven L. Kent |title=The Ultimate History of Video Games: The Story Behind the Craze that Touched our Lives and Changed the World |year=2001 |publisher=Prima Publishing |location=Roseville, California |isbn=978-0-7615-3643-7 |pages=508, 531}}</ref><ref name="RetroNomad">{{cite magazine|author=''[[Retro Gamer]]'' staff|title=Retroinspection: Sega Nomad|magazine=[[Retro Gamer]]|issue=69|pages=46–53}}</ref> |
|||
Despite Nintendo's domination of handheld console market, some competing consoles such as [[Neo Geo Pocket]], [[WonderSwan]], [[Neo Geo Pocket Color]], and [[WonderSwan Color]] appeared in the late 1990s and discontinued several years later after their appearance in handheld console market. |
|||
{|class="wikitable" style="margin: 1em auto 1em auto;" |
|||
! |
|||
!Japan |
|||
!North America |
|||
!Europe |
|||
!Units sold |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Virtual Boy]] |
|||
|1995 |
|||
|1995 |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|770,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Genesis Nomad]] |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|1995 |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|- |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Game Boy Pocket]] |
|||
|1996 |
|||
|1996 |
|||
|1996< |
|||
|- |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Game.com]] |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|1997 |
|||
|1997 |
|||
|>300,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Game Boy Light]] |
|||
|1998 |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|- |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Game Boy Color]] |
|||
|1998 |
|||
|1998 |
|||
|1998 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Neo Geo Pocket]] |
|||
|1998 |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|- |
|||
![[WonderSwan]] |
|||
|1999 |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|1,550,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Neo Geo Pocket Color]] |
|||
|1999 |
|||
|1999 |
|||
|1999 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[WonderSwan Color]] |
|||
|2000 |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|1,100,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
|} |
|||
<!-- <gallery class="center" classes="center"> |
|||
File:Sega-Nomad-Front.jpg|[[Sega Nomad]] <br />Released in 1995<ref name="RetroNomad">{{cite magazine|author=''[[Retro Gamer]]'' staff|title=Retroinspection: Sega Nomad|magazine=[[Retro Gamer]]|publisher=Imagine Publishing|issue=69|pages=46–53}}</ref> |
|||
File:Game-Boy-Pocket-FL.jpg|[[Game Boy#Game Boy Pocket|Game Boy Pocket]]<br />Released in 1996 |
|||
File:Tiger-Game-Com-FL.jpg|[[Game.com]] <br />Released in September 1997<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.giantbomb.com/gamecom/3045-77/|title=Game.Com (Platform) - Giant Bomb|website=www.giantbomb.com|access-date=September 9, 2016}}</ref> |
|||
File:Game-Boy-Light-FL.jpg|[[Game Boy#Game Boy Light|Game Boy Light]]<br />Released in April 1998 |
|||
File:Nintendo-Game-Boy-Color-FL.jpg|[[Game Boy Color]] <br /> Released in November 1998<ref>{{cite web|title=Nintendo Adds Color to Its "Rainbow" of Products With New Game Boy Color Titles |url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_1998_Oct_12/ai_53077910/ |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120714234241/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_1998_Oct_12/ai_53077910/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 14, 2012 |publisher=''[[Business Wire]]'' |date=October 12, 1998 |accessdate=May 7, 2011 }}</ref> |
|||
File:Neo-Geo-Pocket-Anthra-Left.jpg|[[Neo Geo Pocket]]<br /> Released in 1998{{Citation needed|date=March 2011}} |
|||
</gallery> --> |
|||
=== Sixth generation (1998–2013)=== |
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[[File:PS2-Fat-Console-Set.jpg|link=File:PS2-Fat-Console-Set.jpg|thumb|upright|With more than 155 million units sold, the Sony [[PlayStation 2]] is the best selling video game console in history]] |
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[[File:Dreamcast-Console-Set.jpg|link=File:Dreamcast-Console-Set.jpg|thumb|The Dreamcast was the last system released by Sega, who became a third-party software publisher.]] |
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{{main|Sixth generation of video game consoles}} |
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By the sixth generation, console technology began to catch up to performance of personal computers of the time, and the use of bits as their selling point fell by the wayside. The console manufactures focused on the individual strengths of their game libraries as marketing instead. The consoles of the sixth generation saw further adoption of optical media, expanding into the [[DVD]] format for even greater data storage capacity, additional internal storage solutions to function as memory cards, as well as adding support either directly or through add-ons to connect to the [[Internet]] for online gameplay.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://apps.lib.umich.edu/online-exhibits/exhibits/show/cvga-disassembled/gamegen6 | title = CVGA Disassembled - Sixth Generation (1998-2009) | publisher = [[University of Michigan]] | accessdate = July 22, 2020 }}</ref> |
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By this point, there were only three major players in the market: Sega, Sony, and Nintendo. Sega got an early lead with the [[Dreamcast]] first released in Japan in 1998. It was the first home console to include a [[modem]] to allow players to connect to the Sega network and play online games.<ref name="ieee history"/> However, Sega found several technical issues that had to be resolved before its Western launch in 1999.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.howtogeek.com/trivia/what-was-the-first-video-game-console-to-ship-with-a-modem-and-online-gaming-support/|title=What Was The First Video Game Console To Ship With A Modem And Online Gaming Support?|last=Fitzpatrick|first=Jason|website=How-To Geek|language=en-US|access-date=2020-01-05}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2015/04/hardware_classics_sega_dreamcast|title=Hardware Classics: Sega Dreamcast|last=Life|first=Nintendo|date=2015-04-16|website=Nintendo Life|language=en-GB|access-date=2020-01-05}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|title=Dreamcast Launch Plans Unveiled - IGN|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/1999/04/20/dreamcast-launch-plans-unveiled|language=en|access-date=2020-01-05}}</ref> Though its Western release was more successful than in Japan,<ref>{{Citation|title=IGN Presents the History of Dreamcast - IGN|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2010/09/10/ign-presents-the-history-of-dreamcast|language=en|access-date=2020-01-05}}</ref> the console was soon outperformed by Sony's [[PlayStation 2]] released in 2000. The PlayStation 2 was the first console to add support for DVD playback in addition to CD-ROM, as well as maintaining [[backward compatibility]] with games from the [[PlayStation]] library.<ref name="ieee history"/> Along with a strong game library, the PlayStation 2 went on to sell 155 million unit before it was discontinued in 2012, and as of 2020, the best selling home console of all time.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2018/12/top-10-best-selling-videogame-consoles-551938|title=Top 10 best-selling videogame consoles|date=2018-12-21|website=Guinness World Records|language=en-GB|access-date=2020-01-05}}</ref><ref name="SIE Business Development"/> Unable to compete with Sony, Sega discontinued the Dreamcast in 2001 and left the hardware market, instead focusing on its software properties.<ref name="ieee history"/> Nintendo's entry in the sixth generation was the [[GameCube]] in 2001, its first system to use optical discs based on the [[miniDVD]] format. A special [[Game Boy Player]] attachment allowed the GameCube to use any of the GameBoy cartridges as well, and adapters were available to allow the console to connect to the Internet via broadband or modem. |
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At this point [[Microsoft]] also entered the console market with its first [[Xbox (console)|Xbox]] system, released in 2001. Microsoft considered the PlayStation 2's success as a threat to the personal computer in the living room space, and had developed the Xbox to compete. As such, the Xbox was designed based more on Microsoft's experience from personal computers, using an operating system built out from its [[Microsoft Windows]] and [[DirectX]] features, utilizing a hard disk for save game store, built-in Ethernet functionality, and created the first console online service, [[Xbox Live]] to support multiplayer games.<ref name="VentureBeat">{{cite web |url=https://venturebeat.com/2011/11/14/making-of-the-xbox-1/ |title=The making of the Xbox: How Microsoft unleashed a video game revolution (part 1) |date=November 14, 2011 |website=VentureBeat |access-date=June 1, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190601215722/https://venturebeat.com/2011/11/14/making-of-the-xbox-1/ |archive-date=June 1, 2019 |url-status=live }}</ref> |
|||
{|class="wikitable" style="margin: 1em auto 1em auto;" |
|||
! |
|||
!Japan |
|||
!North America |
|||
!Europe |
|||
!Units sold |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Dreamcast]] |
|||
|1998 |
|||
|1999 |
|||
|1999 |
|||
|9,130,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[PlayStation 2]] |
|||
|2000 |
|||
|2000 |
|||
|2000 |
|||
|155,000,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[GameCube]] |
|||
|2001 |
|||
|2001 |
|||
|2002 |
|||
|21,740,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Xbox (console)|Xbox]] |
|||
|2002 |
|||
|2001 |
|||
|2002 |
|||
|24,000,000 |
|||
|} |
|||
==== Handhelds of the sixth generation ==== |
|||
[[File:Nokia-NGage-LL.jpg|thumb|right|The [[N-Gage (device)|N-Gage]] was an early attempt to merge game functionality and cellular phone features.]] |
|||
Nintendo continued to refine its Game Boy design with the [[Game Boy Advance]] in 2001, including its [[Game Boy Advance SP]] in 2003 and [[Game Boy Micro]] in 2005, all with the ability to link to the GameCube to extend the functionality of certain games. Also introduced were the [[Neo Geo Pocket Color]] in 1998 and [[Bandai]]'s [[WonderSwan Color]], launched in Japan in 1999. South Korean company [[Game Park]] introduced its [[GP32]] handheld in 2001, and with it came the dawn of [[Open-source software|open source]] handheld consoles.<ref name=nintendosales>{{cite web|url=https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/library/historical_data/pdf/consolidated_sales_e1409.pdf|title=Consolidated Sales Transition by Region|accessdate=October 29, 2014|date=May 7, 2014|publisher=Nintendo |format=PDF|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20141029173642/http://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/library/historical_data/pdf/consolidated_sales_e1409.pdf|archivedate=October 29, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> |
|||
During the sixth generation, a new type of market for gaming came from the growing [[mobile phone]] arena, where advanced smart phones and other portable devices could be loaded with games. [[Nokia]]'s [[N-Gage (device)|N-Gage]] was one of the first devices marketed as a mobile phone and game system, first released in 2003 and later redesigned at the [[N-Gage QD]]. |
|||
{|class="wikitable" style="margin: 1em auto 1em auto;" |
|||
! |
|||
!Japan |
|||
!North America |
|||
!Europe |
|||
!Units sold |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Game Boy Advance]] |
|||
|2001 |
|||
|2001 |
|||
|2001 |
|||
|81,510,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[N-Gage (device)|N-Gage]] |
|||
|''none'' |
|||
|2003 |
|||
|2003 |
|||
|3,000,000 |
|||
|} |
|||
=== Seventh generation (2005–2017) === |
|||
{{main|Seventh generation of video game consoles}} |
|||
[[File:Wii console.png|thumb|With more than 101 million units sold, the Nintendo [[Wii]] is the best-selling home video game console in the seventh generation.]] |
|||
[[File:Xbox-360-Pro-wController.jpg|thumb|upright|The release of the [[Xbox 360]] began the seventh generation]] |
|||
Video game consoles had become an important part of the global [[IT infrastructure]]. It is estimated that video game consoles represented 25% of the world's general-purpose computational power in the year 2007.<ref name="HilbertLopez2011">{{cite journal |author1=Martin Hilbert |author2=Priscila López |date=April 1, 2011 |title=The World’s Technological Capacity to Store, Communicate, and Compute Information |url=http://www.uvm.edu/~pdodds/files/papers/others/2011/hilbert2011a.pdf |journal=[[Science (journal)|Science]] |volume=332 |issue=6025 |pages=60–65 |doi=10.1126/science.1200970 |via=Peter Sheridan Dodds |pmid=21310967}}</ref> By the seventh generation, Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo had all developed consoles designed to interface with the Internet, adding networking support for either wired and wireless connections, online services to support multiplayer games, digital storefronts for digital purchases of games, and both internal storage and support for external storage on the console for these games. These consoles also added support for digital television resolutions through [[HDMI]] interfaces, but as the generation occurred in the midst of the [[High-definition optical disc format war]] between [[Blu-ray]] and [[HD-DVD]], a standard for high-definition playback was yet to be fixed. A further innovation came by the use of [[motion controller]]s, either built into the console or offered as an add-on afterwards. |
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Microsoft entered the seventh generation first with the [[Xbox 360]] in 2005. The Xbox 360 saw several hardware revisions over its lifetime which became a standard practice for Microsoft going forward; these revisions offered different features such as a larger internal hard drive or a fast processor at a higher price point. As shipped, the Xbox 360 supported DVD discs and Microsoft had opted to support the [[HD-DVD]] format with an add-on for playback of HD-DVD films. However, this format ended up as deprecated compared to Blu-ray. Microsoft later introduced the [[Kinect]] motion controller device for the Xbox 360. The Xbox 360 was [[backward compatible]] with about half of the original Xbox library. Through its lifetime, the Xbox 360 was troubled by a consistent hardware fault known as the "the [[Red Ring of Death]] (RROD)" for the display of a red ring around the console's power button indicating the problem and Microsoft spent over $1 billion correcting the problem.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Yin-Poole |first1=Wesley |url=https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2015-07-02-peter-moore-recounts-xbox-360-red-ring-of-death-saga |title=Peter Moore recounts $1.15bn Xbox 360 Red Ring of Death saga |website=Eurogamer.net |publisher=Eurogamer.net |accessdate=July 2, 2015 |language=English}}</ref> |
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Sony's [[PlayStation 3]] was released in 2006. The PlayStation 3 represented a shift of the internal hardware from Sony's custom chip to a more standard x86-based system. Initial PlayStation 3 shipped with a special [[Emotion Engine]] daughterboard that allowed for backwards compatibility of PlayStation 2 games, but later revisions of the unit removed this, leaving software-based emulation for PlayStation games available. Sony banked on the Blu-ray format, which was included from the start. With the PlayStation 3, Sony introduced the [[PlayStation Network]] for its online services and storefront.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://playstation.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/playstation.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=927&p_created=1199831554&p_sid=RAGiX8yj&p_accessibility=0&p_redirect=&p_lva=&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPTEmcF9zb3J0X2J5PSZwX2dyaWRzb3J0PSZwX3Jvd19jbnQ9NDAsNDAmcF9wcm9kcz00JnBfY2F0cz0mcF9wdj0xLjQmcF9jdj0mcF9zZWFyY2hfdHlwZT1hbnN3ZXJzLnNlYXJjaF9ubCZwX3BhZ2U9MSZwX3NlYXJjaF90ZXh0PW1lZGlhIGNhcmQgc3VwcG9ydA**&p_li=&p_topview=1 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120713163039/http://playstation.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/playstation.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=927&p_created=1199831554&p_sid=RAGiX8yj&p_accessibility=0&p_redirect=&p_lva=&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPTEmcF9zb3J0X2J5PSZwX2dyaWRzb3J0PSZwX3Jvd19jbnQ9NDAsNDAmcF9wcm9kcz00JnBfY2F0cz0mcF9wdj0xLjQmcF9jdj0mcF9zZWFyY2hfdHlwZT1hbnN3ZXJzLnNlYXJjaF9ubCZwX3BhZ2U9MSZwX3NlYXJjaF90ZXh0PW1lZGlhIGNhcmQgc3VwcG9ydA**&p_li=&p_topview=1 |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 13, 2012 |title=What are the types of removable storage media is supported by the PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system? |publisher=Sony |accessdate=July 3, 2009}}</ref> In 2010, Sony released [[PlayStation Move]], allowing for motion-controlled games. |
|||
Nintendo introduced the [[Wii]] in 2006 around the same time as the PlayStation 3, and continued Nintendo's divergence from trying to compete on feature-for-feature from Microsoft and Sony, lacking support for high-definition media or video format. The Wii's primary controller is the [[Wii Remote]], a motion-sensing which was considered part of the unit's success, and which drove Microsoft and Sony to develop their own motion controls to compete. Nintendo provided various online services that the Wii could connect too, including the [[Virtual Console]] where players could purchase emulated games from Nintendo's past consoles as well as games for the Wii. The Wii used regular sized DVDs for its game medium but also directly supported GameCube discs. The Wii was generally considered a surprising success that many developers had initially overlooked.<ref>{{cite web|last=Görig|first=Carsten|newspaper=[[Der Spiegel]]|title=Spieler verzweifelt gesucht|date=May 30, 2007|url= http://www.spiegel.de/netzwelt/spielzeug/0,1518,485385,00.html|language=German|accessdate=June 18, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Seff|first=Micah|website=IGN|title=Take-Two Grows Hungry for Wii|date=April 10, 2007|url=http://wii.ign.com/articles/779/779642p1.html|accessdate=June 18, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070606151413/http://wii.ign.com/articles/779/779642p1.html|archive-date=June 6, 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="wii_next_gen">{{cite web| website=Guardian Unlimited|date=October 26, 2007|title=Q&A: Will Wright, creator of the Sims|author=Johnson, Bobbie|url= https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2007/oct/26/willwright|accessdate=September 25, 2008 | location=London}}</ref> |
|||
{|class="wikitable" style="margin: 1em auto 1em auto;" |
|||
! |
|||
!Japan |
|||
!North America |
|||
!Europe |
|||
!Units sold |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Xbox 360]] |
|||
|2005 |
|||
|2005 |
|||
|2005 |
|||
|84,700,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[PlayStation 3]] |
|||
|2006 |
|||
|2006 |
|||
|2007 |
|||
|87,400,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Wii]] |
|||
|2006 |
|||
|2006 |
|||
|2006 |
|||
|101,630,000 |
|||
|} |
|||
==== Handhelds of the seventh generation ==== |
|||
Nintendo introduced the new [[Nintendo DS]] system in 2004, a game cartridge-based unit that support two screens including one being touch-sensitive. The DS also included built-in wireless connectivity to the Internet to purchase new DS games or Virtual Console titles, as well as the ability to connect to each other or to a Wii system in a ad hoc manner for certain multiplayer titles.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.darkain.com/nintendo_ds/nifi.php | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20050217195147/http://www.darkain.com/nintendo_ds/nifi.php | archivedate=February 17, 2005 | title=Nintendo DS – WI-FI vs NI-FI | author=Darkain |date=January 21, 2005 | accessdate=May 17, 2008}}</ref> Sony entered the handheld market in 2004 with the [[PlayStation Portable]] (PSP), with a reduced design based on the PlayStation 3. Like the DS, the PSP also supported wireless connectivity to the Internet to download new games, and ad hoc connectivity to other PSP or to a PlayStation 3. The PSP used a new format called [[Universal Media Disc]] (UMD) for game and other media.<ref>{{cite web |last=Brightman |first=James |title=SCEA: PSP Will Be Big Revenue Driver |publisher=GameDaily |date=June 26, 2007 |url=http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/features/scea-psp-will-be-big-revenue-driver/70598/ |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080314015725/http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/features/scea-psp-will-be-big-revenue-driver/70598/ |archivedate=March 14, 2008 |accessdate=November 5, 2007 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Sheffield |first=Brandon |title=What's the Dille? Sony's Marketing Head Gets Heated |website=Gamasutra |date=July 24, 2007|url=http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/1534/whats_the_dille_sonys_marketing_.php?page=4 |accessdate=November 5, 2007 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Rojas |first=Peter |title=The Engadget Interview: Reggie Fils-Aime, Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Nintendo |publisher=Engadget |date=February 20, 2006 |url=https://www.engadget.com/2006/02/20/the-engadget-interview-reggie-fils-aime-executive-vice-preside/ |accessdate =November 5, 2007}}</ref> |
|||
[[Nokia]] revived its [[N-Gage (device)|N-Gage]] platform in the form of a service for selected [[S60 (software platform)|S60]] devices. [[N-Gage (service)|This new service]] launched on April 3, 2008.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.n-gage.com/ngi/ngage/web/g0/en/community/articles.Detail.general-anewdayforngage.1.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080611075632/http://www.n-gage.com/ngi/ngage/web/g0/en/community/articles.Detail.general-anewdayforngage.1.html |archivedate=June 11, 2008 |title= A New Day for N-Gage |publisher=Nokia |accessdate=April 3, 2008}}</ref> Other less-popular handheld systems released during this generation include the [[Gizmondo]] (launched on March 19, 2005 and discontinued in February 2006) and the [[GP2X]] (launched on November 10, 2005 and discontinued in August 2008). The [[GP2X Wiz]], [[Pandora (console)|Pandora]], and [[Gizmondo 2]] were scheduled for release in 2009. |
|||
Another aspect of the seventh generation was the beginning of direct competition between dedicated handheld video game devices, and increasingly powerful PDA/cell phone devices such as the [[iPhone]] and [[iPod Touch]], and the latter being aggressively marketed for gaming purposes. Simple games such as ''[[Tetris]]'' and ''[[Solitaire]]'' had existed for PDA devices since their introduction, but by 2009 PDAs and phones had grown sufficiently powerful to where complex graphical games could be implemented, with the advantage of distribution over wireless broadband. Apple had launched its [[App Store (iOS)|App Store]] in 2008 that allowed developers to publish and sell games for iPhones and similar devices, beginning the rise of [[mobile gaming]]. |
|||
{|class="wikitable" style="margin: 1em auto 1em auto;" |
|||
! |
|||
!Japan |
|||
!North America |
|||
!Europe |
|||
!Units sold |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Nintendo DS]] |
|||
|2004 |
|||
|2004 |
|||
|2005 |
|||
|154,020,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[PlayStation Portable]] |
|||
|2004 |
|||
|2005 |
|||
|2005 |
|||
|82,000,000 |
|||
|} |
|||
=== Eighth generation (2012–present) === |
|||
[[File:Wii U Console and Gamepad.png|thumb|The [[Wii U]] was Nintendo's worst selling home console, selling around 13.56 million units before being discontinued, but some of Nintendo's first party games for the system have sold around half the install base of the system, telling that Nintendo has a very dedicated fanbase<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.statista.com/statistics/349078/nintendo-wii-and-wii-u-console-sales/|title=Wii U Sales|last=|first=|date=|website=|publisher=|accessdate=September 9, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.trustedreviews.com/news/nintendo-has-revealed-the-best-selling-games-for-wii-u-and-3ds|title=Nintendo Best Selling First Party Wii U Games|last=|first=|date=|website=|publisher=|accessdate=September 10, 2016}}</ref>]] |
|||
[[File:Microsoft-Xbox-One-Console-Set-wKinect.jpg|thumb| |
|||
The original [[Xbox One]], Microsoft's eighth generation console, which has since been superseded by two upgraded models, the Xbox One S and the Xbox One X. |
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]] |
|||
{{main|Eighth generation of video game consoles}} |
|||
Aside from the usual hardware enhancements, consoles of the eighth generation focus on further integration with other media and increased connectivity.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ign.com/blogs/flavi0/2013/02/24/next-gen-consoles-too-much-connectivity/|title=Next Gen Consoles: Too much connectivity - Blog by flavi0 - IGN|website=IGN}}</ref> Hardware improvements pushed for higher [[frame rate]]s at up to [[4k resolution]]s. |
|||
The [[Wii U]], introduced in 2012, was considered by Nintendo to be a sequel to the Wii but geared to more serious players. The console supported backwards compatibility with the Wii, including its motion controls, and introduced the [[Wii U GamePad]], a tablet/controller hybrid that acted as a second screen. Nintendo further refined its network offerings to develop the [[Nintendo Network]] service to combine storefront and online connectivity services. The Wii U did not sell as well as Nintendo had planned, as they found people mistook the GamePad to be a tablet they could take with them away from the console, and the console struggled to draw the third-party developers as the Wii had.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://venturebeat.com/2012/11/20/why-you-may-want-to-wait-on-a-wii-u/|title=Why you should wait on a Wii U (review) - GamesBeat - Games - by Rus McLaughlin|website=VentureBeat}}</ref> |
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Both the [[PlayStation 4]] and [[Xbox One]] came out in 2013. Both were similar improvements over the previous generation respective consoles', providing more computational power to support up to 60 frames per seconds at 1080p resolutions for some games. Each unit also saw a similar set of revisions and repackaging to develop high- and low-end cost versions. In the case of the Xbox One, the console's initially launch had included the Kinect device but this became highly controversial, and by its mid-generation reference, the Kinect had been dropped and discontinued as a game device.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.denofgeek.us/games/xbox-720/103498/next-gen-xbox-reveal-confirmed-for-may-21 |title=Next Gen Xbox Reveal Confirmed for May 21 |publisher=Den of Geek! |date=April 24, 2013 |accessdate=April 24, 2013}}</ref> |
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Later in the eighth generation, Nintendo released the [[Nintendo Switch]] in 2018. The Switch is considered the first hybrid game console. It can be placed into a special docking unit that is hooked to a television so that it can be played as a home console. Alternatively, it can be removed and used either with the attached [[JoyCon]] controllers as a handheld unit, or can be even played as a tablet-like system via its touchscreen. A larger suite of online services was added through the [[Nintendo Switch Online]] subscription, including several free NES and SNES titles, replacing the past Virtual Console system. The Switch was designed to addressed many of the hardware and marketing faults around the Wii U's launch. |
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Game systems in the eighth generation also faced increasing competition from mobile device platforms such as Apple's [[iOS]] and Google's [[Android (operating system)|Android]] operating systems. Smartphone ownership was estimated to reach roughly a quarter of the world's population by the end of 2014.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.emarketer.com/article/smartphone-users-worldwide-will-total-175-billion-2014/1010536|title=Smartphone Users Worldwide Will Total 1.75 Billion in 2014|website=emarketer.com}}</ref> The proliferation of low-cost games for these devices, such as ''[[Angry Birds (video game)|Angry Birds]]'' with over 2 billion downloads worldwide,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.edge-online.com/features/two-billion-downloads-were-just-getting-started-says-angry-birds-creator-rovio/|title=New Two due|website=GamesRadar+}}</ref> presents a new challenge to classic video game systems. [[Microconsoles]], cheaper stand-alone devices designed to play games from previously established platforms, also increased options for consumers. Many of these projects were spurred on by the use of new [[crowdfunding]] techniques through sites such as [[Kickstarter]]. Notable competitors include the [[GamePop]], [[OUYA]], [[GameStick]] Android-based systems, the [[PlayStation TV]], the [[Shield Android TV|NVIDIA SHIELD]], and [[Steam Machine (hardware platform)|Steam Machines]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/05/29/valve_steam_machines_delayed/|title=Valve says no Steam Machines until 2015, fingers crossed|website=theregister.co.uk}}</ref> |
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{|class="wikitable" style="margin: 1em auto 1em auto;" |
|||
! |
|||
!Japan |
|||
!North America |
|||
!Europe |
|||
!Units sold |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Wii U]] |
|||
|2012 |
|||
|2012 |
|||
|2012 |
|||
|13,560,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Nintendo Switch]] |
|||
|2017 |
|||
|2017 |
|||
|2017 |
|||
|52,480,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[PlayStation 4]] |
|||
|2014 |
|||
|2013 |
|||
|2013 |
|||
|110,400,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Xbox One]] |
|||
|2014 |
|||
|2013 |
|||
|2013 |
|||
|46,900,000 |
|||
|} |
|||
==== Handhelds of the eighth generation ==== |
|||
The [[Nintendo 3DS]] released in 2011 expanded on the Nintendo DS design and added support for an [[autostereoscopy|autostereoscopic]] screen to project [[stereoscopy|stereoscopic 3D]] effects without the use of [[3D glasses]]. The console was otherwise remained backward compatible with all of the DS titles.<ref name="announcement">{{cite press release |url=https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2010/100323e.pdf |format=PDF |title=Launch of New Portable Game Machine |date= March 23, 2010 |publisher=Nintendo |accessdate=March 23, 2010 |location=[[Minami-ku, Kyoto]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.e3expo.com/media/86/e3-expo-fact-sheet/ |title=Nintendo to Make 3-D Version of Its DSi Handheld Game |first=Hiroko |last=Tabuchi |date=March 23, 2010 |accessdate=April 24, 2010 |quote=It takes place June 15~17, 2010, at the Los Angeles Convention Center. |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100327223306/http://www.e3expo.com/media/86/e3-expo-fact-sheet |archivedate=March 27, 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/24/technology/24nintendo.html |title=Nintendo to Make 3-D Version of Its DS Handheld Game |first=Hiroko |last=Tabuchi |date=March 23, 2010 |work=The New York Times |publisher=The New York Times Company |accessdate=April 4, 2010 |quote='We wanted to give the gaming industry a head’s up about what to expect from Nintendo at E3,' said Ken Toyoda, chief spokesman at Nintendo. 'We'll invite people to play with the new device then.'}}</ref><ref name="Gamasutra">{{cite web |url=http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/26829/Analyst_DS_Successor_To_Hit_In_Next_15_Months.php |title=Analyst: DS Successor To Hit In Next 15 Months? |first=Leigh |last=Alexander |date=January 15, 2010 |website=Gamasutra |publisher=Think Services |accessdate=April 4, 2010 |quote=In the year 2010, Nintendo's continuing face-off against the PSP seems less relevant than the overall sea change in the portable market brought about by the explosive [[iPhone]].}}</ref> Sony introduced its [[PlayStation Vita]] in 2011, a revised version of the PSP but eliminating the use of external media and focusing on digital acquisition of games, as well as incorporating a touchscreen.<ref name="TechSpecs">{{cite web |url=http://www.vg247.com/2011/01/27/sony-outs-tech-specs-for-ngp/ |title=Sony outs tech specs for NGP |last=Cullen |first=Johnny |date=January 24, 2011 |website=[[VG247]] |accessdate=January 25, 2011}}</ref><ref name="EngadgetJan27">{{cite web |url=https://www.engadget.com/2011/01/27/the-sony-psp2/ |title=Sony's next PSP, codenamed NGP |author=Vlad Savov |date=January 27, 2011 |website=[[Engadget]] |publisher=[[AOL]] |accessdate=January 29, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.industrygamers.com/news/3ds-vs-ps-vita-handheld-wars-the-next-generation/ |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120401151951/http://www.industrygamers.com/news/3ds-vs-ps-vita-handheld-wars-the-next-generation/ |archivedate=April 1, 2012 |url-status=dead |title=Nintendo 3DS vs. PS Vita: Handheld Wars, The Next Generation |website=IndustryGamers Inc |publisher=Eurogamer Network Ltd. |date=September 16, 2011 |accessdate=November 1, 2011}}</ref><ref name="Vita Reveal">{{cite web |url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-06-07-ngp-playstation-vita-european-price|title=NGP becomes PlayStation Vita|website=[[Eurogamer]]|date=June 7, 2011|accessdate=June 7, 2011}}</ref><ref name="JPRelease">{{cite web |url=http://psp.ign.com/articles/119/1194248p1.html |title=TGS: Sony Reveals Vita's Release Date – PSP News at IGN |publisher=Psp.ign.com |date=September 14, 2011 |accessdate=September 14, 2011}}</ref> and was released in Europe and North America on February 22, 2012.<ref name="EURelease">{{cite web |url=http://blog.eu.playstation.com/2011/10/19/playstation-vita-launches-from-22-february-2012/ |title=PlayStation Vita Launches From 22 February 2012 – PlayStation.Blog.Europe|date=October 19, 2011|accessdate=October 19, 2011|publisher=Sony|website=PlayStation Blog}}</ref><ref name="NARelease">{{cite web |url=http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/10/18/get-ready-ps-vita-is-coming-february-22nd|title=Get Ready: PS Vita is Coming February 22nd – PlayStation Blog|date=October 18, 2011|accessdate=October 19, 2011|publisher=Sony|website=PlayStation Blog}}</ref> |
|||
As noted above, the Nintendo Switch is a hybrid console, capable of both being used as a home console in its docked mode and as a handheld. The [[Nintendo Switch Lite]] revision was released in 2019, which reduced some of the features of the system and its size, including eliminating the ability to dock the unit, making the Switch Lite primarily a handheld system, but otherwise compatible with most of the Switch's library of games.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.gamespot.com/articles/nintendo-switch-lite-launch-faq-price-release-date/1100-6468339/|title=Nintendo Switch Lite Launch FAQ: Price, Release Date, Hardware Differences, Battery Life, Specs, And Colors|website=GameSpot|language=en-US|access-date=November 4, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nintendo.com/switch/tech-specs/|title=Technical Specs - Nintendo Switch™ Official Site - System hardware, console specs|website=www.nintendo.com|language=en-US|access-date=November 4, 2019}}</ref> |
|||
{|class="wikitable" style="margin: 1em auto 1em auto;" |
|||
! |
|||
!Japan |
|||
!North America |
|||
!Europe |
|||
!Units sold |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Nintendo 3DS]] |
|||
|2011 |
|||
|2011 |
|||
|2011 |
|||
|75,280,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Nintendo Switch Lite]] |
|||
|2019 |
|||
|2019 |
|||
|2019 |
|||
|6,190,000 |
|||
|- |
|||
![[PlayStation Vita]] |
|||
|2011 |
|||
|2012 |
|||
|2012 |
|||
|15,900,000 |
|||
|} |
|||
=== Future === |
|||
Both Microsoft and Sony have announced successors to their home consoles for release in late 2020. Both are driving towards supporting [[4k resolution|4k]] and [[8k resolution]] televisions at high frame rates, support for real-time [[Ray tracing (graphics)|ray tracing]] rendering, and the use of high-performance [[solid-state drive]]s (SSD) as internal high-speed memory to make delivering game content much faster than from reading from optical disc or standard hard drives, which can eliminate loading times and make [[open world]] games appear seamless. |
|||
The [[Xbox Series X]] is the first console of the 4th generation in Microsoft's Xbox hardware line, with a base performance target of 60 frames per second at [[4k resolution]] to be four times as powerful as the Xbox One X. One of Microsoft's goals with the unit was to assure backward compatibility with all games supported by the Xbox One - including those original Xbox and Xbox 360 titles that are backward compatible with the Xbox One, allowing the Xbox Series X to support four generations of games.<ref name="df fullspecs">{{cite web | url = https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2020-inside-xbox-series-x-full-specs | title= Inside Xbox Series X: the full specs | first = Richard | last= Leadbetter | date = March 16, 2020 | accessdate = March 16, 2020 | work = [[Eurogamer]] }}</ref><ref name="df fullspecs2">{{cite web | url = https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2020-just-how-big-is-xbox-series-x-really | title = Xbox Series X: just how big is it - and how does it compare to Xbox One X? | first = Richard | last= Leadbetter | date = March 16, 2020 | accessdate = March 16, 2020 | work = [[Eurogamer]] }}</ref> |
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Sony's [[PlayStation 5]] also is a similar performance boost over the PlayStation 4, and uses a custom SSD solution with much higher input/output rates comparable to RAM chip speeds, significantly improving rendering and data streaming speeds. The chip architecture is comparable to the PlayStation 4, allowing backwards compatible with most of the PlayStation 4 library while select games will need chip timing tweaking to make them compatible.<ref name="df_march2020">{{cite web | url = https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2020-playstation-5-specs-and-tech-that-deliver-sonys-next-gen-vision | title = Inside PlayStation 5: the specs and the tech that deliver Sony's next-gen vision | first = Richard | last = Leadbetter | date = March 18, 2020 | accessdate = March 18, 2020 | work = [[Eurogamer]] }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2020-03-20-sony-clarifies-overwhelming-majority-of-ps4-games-will-be-backward-compatible-on-ps5 | title = Sony clarifies "overwhelming majority" of PS4 games will be backward compatible on PS5 | first =Matt | last = Wales | date = March 20, 2020 | accessdate = April 8, 2020 | work = [[Eurogamer]] }}</ref> |
|||
In terms of handhelds, Sony has announced no further plans for handhelds after discontinuing the Vita, while Nintendo continues to offer the Nintendo 3DS and the Nintendo Switch and Switch Lite. The market here still continues to compete with the growing mobile gaming market, but developers have taken advantage of new opportunities in [[cross-platform play]] support, in part due to the popularity of ''[[Fortnite]]'' in 2018, to make games that are compatible on consoles, computers, and mobile devices.<ref name="sony_cp_fbr">{{cite web | url = https://kotaku.com/sony-is-finally-allowing-cross-play-on-the-ps4-1829326043 | title = Sony Is Finally Allowing Cross-Play On The PS4 | first = Luke | last= Plunkett | date = September 26, 2018 | accessdate = September 26, 2018 | work = [[Kotaku]] }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.destructoid.com/sony-explains-why-ps4-cross-play-took-this-long-524892.phtml | title = Sony explains why PS4 cross-play took this long | first = Jordan | last= Devore | date = September 28, 2018 | accessdate = September 28, 2018 | work = [[Destructoid]] }}</ref> [[Cloud gaming]] also is seen as a potential replacement of handheld gaming. While earlier cloud gaming platforms have gone by the wayside, newer approaches including [[PlayStation Now]], Microsoft's [[xCloud]] and Google's [[Google Stadia|Stadia]] can deliver computer and console-quality gameplay to nearly any platform including mobile devices, limited by bandwidth quality.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.theverge.com/2019/6/19/18683382/what-is-cloud-gaming-google-stadia-microsoft-xcloud-faq-explainer | title = Cloud Gaming: Google Stadia And Microsoft Xcloud Explained | first1 = Tom | last1 = Warren | first2=Sean | last2 = Hollister | date = June 19, 2019 | accessdate = July 24, 2020 | work = [[The Verge]] }}</ref> |
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===Console sales=== |
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<!--======================== Please Read ============================ |
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| This timeline is meant to be a general overview of each period | |
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| it is not meant to be a complete table of every console released | |
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| during a single generation. | |
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| | |
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| Adding manufactures and consoles who never placed | |
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| within the top three best selling home consoles of a generation | |
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| will be removed as per WP:MISC | |
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| | |
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| Manufactures with multiple consoles released in a single | |
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| generation should have the unit with the most sales in the table | |
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| with the other consoles listed as part of a note. | |
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| | |
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| When updating sales figures for current consoles please ensure the | |
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| sources, shading and icon are also updated to reflect any changes | |
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| in position when it comes to sales. | |
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======================= Please Read =============================--> |
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{{Further|List of best-selling game consoles}} |
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Below is a timeline of each generation with the top three home video consoles of each generation based on worldwide sales. |
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{|class="wikitable" style="font-size:100%;" |
|||
|+Table key |
|||
|- |
|||
|{{center|{{Hash-tag|alt=current generation consoles}}}} ||Current ||A current generation console being manufactured and sold on the market. |
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|- |
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|style="width:15px;background:#FC3;"|{{center|†}} ||First place ||Home console with the highest sales of its generation. |
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|- |
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|style="background:silver;"|{{center|‡}} ||Second place ||Home console with the second highest sales of its generation. |
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|- |
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|style="background:#C96;"|{{center|◁}} ||Third place ||Home console with the third highest sales of its generation. |
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|- |
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| ||Remaining places ||Manufacture released a home console but it was not one of the top three best selling home consoles of its generation. |
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|- |
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|style="background:#AAA;"|{{center|}} ||No entry ||Manufacturer did not release a home console. |
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|} |
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{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; width:auto; line-height:13px;" |
|||
|+ |
|||
|- |
|||
! rowspan="2" scope="col" | Manufacturer |
|||
! colspan="8" scope="col" | Generation |
|||
! rowspan="2" scope="col" |{{abbr|Ref(s)|References}} |
|||
|- |
|||
! scope="col" |[[First generation of video game consoles|First]]<br /><span style="font-size:70%;">(1972–1980)</span> |
|||
! scope="col" |[[Second generation of video game consoles|Second]]<br /><span style="font-size:70%;">(1976–1992)</span> |
|||
! scope="col" |[[Third generation of video game consoles|Third]]<br /><span style="font-size:70%;">(1983–2003)</span> |
|||
! scope="col" |[[Fourth generation of video game consoles|Fourth]]<br /><span style="font-size:70%;">(1987–2004)</span> |
|||
! scope="col" |[[Fifth generation of video game consoles|Fifth]]<br /><span style="font-size:70%;">(1993–2006)</span> |
|||
! scope="col" |[[Sixth generation of video game consoles|Sixth]]<br /><span style="font-size:70%;">(1998–2013)</span> |
|||
! scope="col" |[[Seventh generation of video game consoles|Seventh]]<br /><span style="font-size:70%;">(2005–2017)</span> |
|||
! scope="col" |[[Eighth generation of video game consoles|Eighth]]<br /><span style="font-size:70%;">(2012–present)</span> |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Atari]] |
|||
|Home Pong<br /><small>(150,000)</small> |
|||
| style="background:#FC3;" |Atari 2600 †<br /><small>(30 million){{efn|group=note|name=Atari2|The Atari 2600 sold 30 million units during its life-cycle. Atari also released a second home console during the second generation known as the [[Atari 5200]] which sold 1 million units.}}</small> |
|||
| style="background:#C96" |Atari 7800 ◁<br /><small>(1 million){{efn|group=note|name=Atari3|The Atari 7800 sold 1 million units. Atari also released the [[Atari XEGS]] during the third generation which sold 100,000 units.}}</small> |
|||
| bgcolor="#AAA"| |
|||
| Atari Jaguar<br /><small>(250,000)</small> |
|||
| bgcolor="#AAA" colspan=3| |
|||
|{{efn|group=note|name=Atari|'''Home Pong''' sold 150,000 units.<ref name="PriceGuide-2">{{cite book| title = Official Price Guide to Classic Video Games| first = David| last = Ellis| pages = [https://archive.org/details/officialpricegui00davi/page/33 33–36]| chapter = Dedicated Consoles| publisher = Random House| isbn = 0-375-72038-3| year = 2004| url-access = registration| url = https://archive.org/details/officialpricegui00davi/page/33}}</ref><ref name="Ultimate-Home3">{{cite book| title = Ultimate History of Video Games| first = Steven| last = Kent| pages = 94–95| chapter = Strange Bedfellows| publisher = Three Rivers Press| isbn = 0-7615-3643-4| year = 2001}}</ref> Atari 2600 sold 30 million,<ref name="atari2600 PR">{{cite press release | publisher=[[PR Newswire]] | title= AtGames to Launch Atari Flashback 4 to Celebrate Atari's 40th Anniversary! | date=November 12, 2012|url=http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/atgames-to-launch-atari-flashback-4-to-celebrate-ataris-40th-anniversary-178903531.html|accessdate=April 11, 2014|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121127175838/http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/atgames-to-launch-atari-flashback-4-to-celebrate-ataris-40th-anniversary-178903531.html| archivedate=November 27, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> Atari 5200 and Atari 7800 sold 1 million units each<ref name="a5200">{{cite journal | last=Schrage | first=Michael | journal=[[The Washington Post]]| title=Atari Introduces Game In Attempt for Survival |url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost_historical/doc/138312072.html|accessdate=July 29, 2009| page=C3 | date=May 22, 1984 |issn=0190-8286| quote=The company has stopped producing its 5200 SuperSystem games player, more than 1 million of which were sold.|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>[http://atariage.com/forums/uploads/monthly_01_2008/post-9346-1201143700.jpg Axlon To Develop New Video Games For Atari] (Press Release), [[Atari]] (June 1, 1988)</ref> Atari XEGS sold 100,000 units,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.atarimagazines.com/v7n1/marketplace.html |title=Editorial: Ever-Changing Atari Marketplace |publisher=Atarimagazines.com |date= |accessdate=January 10, 2018}}</ref> and the Atari Jaguar sold 250,000 units.<ref>{{cite web |
|||
|url=https://www.wired.com/gaming/gamingreviews/multimedia/2007/05/gallery_game_history?slide=28&slideView=7 |
|||
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081223161345/http://www.wired.com/gaming/gamingreviews/multimedia/2007/05/gallery_game_history?slide=28&slideView=7 |
|||
|url-status=dead |
|||
|archive-date=December 23, 2008 |
|||
|title=Console Portraits: A 40-Year Pictorial History of Gaming |
|||
|accessdate=March 23, 2008 |
|||
|first=Greg |
|||
|last=Orlando |
|||
|date=May 15, 2007 |
|||
|work=[[Wired (website)|Wired News]] |
|||
|publisher=[[Condé Nast Publications]] |
|||
}}</ref> |
|||
}} |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Coleco]] |
|||
| style="background:silver;" |Telstar ‡<br /><small>(1 million)</small> |
|||
| style="background:#C96" |ColecoVision ◁<br /><small>(2+ million)</small> |
|||
| bgcolor="#AAA" colspan=6| |
|||
|{{efn|group=note|name=Coleco| |
|||
*'''Telestar''': Coleco launched Telstar in 1976 and sold a million. Production and delivery issues, and dedicated consoles being replaced by electronic handheld games dramatically reduced sales in 1977. Over a million Telstars were scrapped in 1978, and it cost Coleco $22.3 million that year<ref name="former self">{{cite news|last =Kleinfield|first = N. R.|title =Coleco Moves Out Of The Cabbage Patch|work = [[The New York Times]]|date =July 21, 1985 |page=F4 |url =https://www.nytimes.com/1985/07/21/business/coleco-moves-out-of-the-cabbage-patch.html?pagewanted=2|accessdate =January 13, 2014|quote=Coleco is now debating whether to withdraw from electronics altogether. Colecovision still sells, but it is a shadow of its former self.}}</ref>—almost bankrupting the company.<ref name="near bankrupt">{{cite news|last =Mehegan|first =David|title =Putting Coleco Industries Back Together|work = [[The Boston Globe]]|date =May 8, 1988 |page=A1|url =http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-8061028.html|archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20150924200716/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-8061028.html|url-status =dead|archive-date =September 24, 2015|accessdate =April 23, 2014|ISSN=0743-1791|quote=When the game [Telstar] crashed hard, earnings fell 50 percent in 1977 and the company lost $22 million in 1978, barely skirting bankruptcy after Handel -- then chief financial officer -- found new credit and mollified angry creditors after months of tough negotiation.|url-access=subscription }}</ref> |
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*'''ColecoVision''':The ColecoVision reached 2 million units sold by the spring of 1984. Console quarterly sales dramatically decreased at this time, but it continued to sell modestly<ref name="coleco report">{{cite press release | publisher=[[PR Newswire]] | title=Coleco Industries sales report | date=April 17, 1984|url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/boston/doc/294244496.html|accessdate=November 3, 2013|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131104144354/https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/boston/doc/294244496.html| archivedate=November 4, 2013|url-status=live| quote='First quarter sales of ColecoVision were substantial, although much less {{sic|that}} those for the year ago quarter,' Greenberg said in a prepared statement. He said the company has sold 2 million ColecoVision games since its introduction in 1982.}}</ref><ref name="former self" /> with most inventory gone by October 1985.<ref name="Colecovision inventory">{{cite news|agency=Associated Press|title =Coleco's Net In Sharp Rise|work = [[The New York Times]]|date =October 19, 1985|page=45|url =https://www.nytimes.com/1985/10/19/business/coleco-s-net-in-sharp-rise.html|accessdate =January 13, 2014|issn=0362-4331|quote=Thursday, Coleco said the entire inventory of its troubled Adam personal computer has been sold, along with much of its Colecovision inventory. The company's chairman, Arnold Greenberg, said Coleco expects no more charges against earnings from the two discontinued products.}}</ref> |
|||
}} |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Nintendo]] |
|||
| style="background:gold;" |{{nowrap|Color TV-Game series †}}<br /><small>(3 million)</small> |
|||
| bgcolor="#AAA"| |
|||
| style="background:#FC3;" |NES †<br /><small>(61.91 million)</small> |
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| style="background:#FC3;" |Super NES †<br /><small>(49.1 million)</small> |
|||
| style="background:silver;" |Nintendo 64 ‡<br /><small>(32.93 million)</small> |
|||
| style="background:#C96" |GameCube ◁<br /><small>(21.74 million)</small> |
|||
| style="background:#FC3;" |Wii †<br /><small>(101.63 million)</small> |
|||
| style="background:silver" |Nintendo Switch ‡{{Hash-tag|alt=current generation consoles}}<br /><small>(52.48 million){{efn|group=note|name=Switch_Wii_U|As of December 31, 2019 the Nintendo Switch has sold 52.48 million units.<ref name="Recent Nintendo sales" /> Nintendo also released the [[Wii U]] during the eighth generation which sold 13.56 million units during its lifecycle.<ref name="Recent Nintendo sales" /></small>}} |
|||
|{{efn|group=note|name=Nintendo family|'''Color TV-Game series''' sold 3 million units.<ref name=sheff>{{Citation |title=[[Game Over: How Nintendo Zapped an American Industry, Captured Your Dollars, and Enslaved Your Children|Game Over: How Nintendo Conquered the World]] |last=Sheff |first=David |last2=Eddy |first2=Andy |author-link=David Sheff |publisher=GamePress |year=1999 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=0dK2AAAAIAAJ&q=%22Color+TV+Game%22 27] |isbn=978-0-9669617-0-6|quote=Nintendo entered the home market in Japan with the dramatic unveiling of Color TV Game 6, which played six versions of light tennis. It was followed by a more powerful sequel, Color TV Game 15. A million units of each were sold. The engineering team also came up with systems that played a more complex game, called "Blockbuster," as well as a racing game. Half a million units of these were sold.}}</ref> NES, Super NES, Nintendo 64, GameCube and Wii sales figures.<ref name=nintendosales2>{{cite web |url=https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/finance/historical_data/xls/consolidated_sales_e1703.xlsx|title=Historical Data: Consolidated Sales Transition by Region |accessdate=April 27, 2017|date=April 27, 2017|publisher=[[Nintendo]] |format=xlsx}}</ref> Wii U and Switch sales figures.<ref name="Recent Nintendo sales">{{cite web|url=https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/finance/hard_soft/index.html|title=Dedicated Video Game Sales Units|publisher=Nintendo|date=December 31, 2019|accessdate=February 19, 2020}}</ref> |
|||
}} |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Magnavox]]/<br />[[Philips]] |
|||
| style="background:#C96" |Odyssey ◁<br /><small>(330,000)</small> |
|||
| Odyssey²<br /><small>(2 million)</small> |
|||
| {{nowrap|Videopac + G7400}}<br /><small>(N/A)</small> |
|||
| [[Philips CD-i|CD-i]]<br /><small>(570,000)</small> |
|||
| bgcolor="#AAA" colspan=4| |
|||
|{{efn|group=note|name=Magnavox| Magnavox Odyssey,<ref name="baerwinter">{{cite web|url=http://www.pong-story.com/odyssey.htm |title=Magnavox Odyssey, the first video game system |publisher=Pong-Story |date=June 27, 1972 |accessdate=November 17, 2012}}</ref> Magnavox Odyssey²<ref name="Magnavox Odyssey2">{{cite web|url=http://www.ign.com/top-25-consoles/21.html |title=Top 25 Video Game Consoles of All Time (Magnavox Odyssey 2) |accessdate=October 31, 2013 |website=IGN|archiveurl =https://web.archive.org/web/20090908020557/http://www.ign.com/top-25-consoles/21.html|archivedate =September 8, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> Philips CD-i<ref name="gamepro"/> |
|||
}} |
|||
|- |
|||
![[Mattel]] |
|||
| bgcolor="#AAA"| |
|||
| style="background:silver;" |Intellivision ‡<br /><small>(3 million)</small> |
|||
| bgcolor="#AAA" colspan=4| |
|||
| HyperScan<br /><small>(N/A)</small> |
|||
| bgcolor="#AAA"| |
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|{{efn|group=note|name=Mattel|Intellivision sold 3 million units.<ref name=intellivision2>{{cite web|url=http://classicgaming.gamespy.com/View.php?view=ConsoleMuseum.Detail&id=17&game=9 |title=Intellivision: Intelligent Television |publisher=[[GameSpy]] |accessdate=October 31, 2013 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131023194011/http://classicgaming.gamespy.com/View.php?view=ConsoleMuseum.Detail&id=17&game=9 |archivedate=October 23, 2013 |url-status=dead |df= }}</ref>}} |
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|- |
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![[Sega]] |
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| bgcolor="#AAA" colspan=2| |
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| style="background:silver;" |Master System ‡<br /><small>(10–13 million){{efn|group=note|name=SegaGen3|The Sega Master System sold 10–13 million units. Sega also released the [[SG-1000]] during the third generation which sold 160,000 units.}}</small> |
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| style="background:silver;" |Sega Genesis ‡<br /><small>(33.75 million)</small> |
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| style="background:#C96" |Sega Saturn ◁<br /><small>(9.26 million)</small> |
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| Dreamcast<br /><small>(9.13 million)</small> |
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| bgcolor="#AAA" colspan=2| |
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|{{efn|group=note|name=Sega family| |
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*'''Master System''': 10–13 million, not including recent Brazil sales figures.<ref name="sms and gen ign">{{cite web | last = Buchanan | first = Levi | url = http://www.ign.com/articles/2009/03/20/genesis-vs-snes-by-the-numbers | title = Genesis vs. SNES: By the Numbers | website = IGN | date = March 20, 2009 | accessdate = October 31, 2013| quote=Nintendo moved 49.1 million Super NES consoles over the course of the generation and beyond, far surpassing the Genesis, which sold a still impressive 29 million units. [...] The Master System sold an anemic 13 million to the NES count of 62 million.}}</ref><ref name="encyclopedia">{{cite book|author=Forster, Winnie|title=The Encyclopedia of Game.Machines: Consoles, Handhelds, and Home Computers 1972–2005|publisher=Magdalena Gniatczynska|isbn=3-00-015359-4|year=2005|page=139}}</ref> [[Screen Digest]] wrote in a 1995 publication that the Master System's active [[Installed base|installed user base]] in Western Europe peaked at 6.25 million in 1993. Those countries that peaked are France at 1.6 million, Germany at 700 thousand, the Netherlands at 200 thousand, Spain at 550 thousand, the United Kingdom at 1.35 million, and other Western European countries at 1.4 million. However, Belgium peaked in 1991 with 600 thousand, and Italy in 1992 with 400 thousand. Thus it is estimated approximately 6.8 million units were purchased in this part of Europe.<ref name="digest 60">{{cite journal|title=Sega Consoles: Active installed base estimates|date=March 1995|publisher=[[Screen Digest]]|page=60}} ([[cf.]] here [https://books.google.com/books?ei=L0UeT47oMouEhQeoldjNDQ&id=jFnvAAAAMAAJ&dq=sega+active+installed], here [https://books.google.com/books?ei=XjkeT5KCHImJhQe45eiBDg&id=jFnvAAAAMAAJ&dq=8-bit+16-bit+32-bit], and here [https://books.google.com/books?ei=L0UeT47oMouEhQeoldjNDQ&id=jFnvAAAAMAAJ&dq=%22UK+600+1.100%22&q=%22UK+600%22])</ref> 1 million were sold in Japan as of 1986.<ref name="business japan">{{cite journal|title=Amusement|journal=Business Japan|year=1986|volume=31|issue=7-12|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tJcSAQAAMAAJ&q=%22Sega+is+estimated+to+have+sold%22&dq=%22Sega+is+estimated+to+have+sold%22&hl=en&sa=X&ei=CM8eT7m8JonLsgbPpdnHDA&ved=0CDYQ6AEwAA|accessdate=January 24, 2012|author=Nihon Kōgyō Shinbunsha|page=89|publisher=Nihon Kogyo Shimbun}}</ref> 2 million were sold in the United States.<ref name="sheff 349">{{harvnb|Sheff|Eddy|1999|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=0dK2AAAAIAAJ&q=%22+million+Master+Systems%22 349]}}: "Atari sold a handful of its 5200s and 7800s, and Sega sold a total of 2 million Master Systems."</ref> 8 million were sold by [[Tectoy]] in Brazil as of 2016.<ref name="MDB">{{cite web | url=http://jogos.uol.com.br/ultimas-noticias/2016/05/12/console-em-producao-ha-mais-tempo-master-system-ja-vendeu-8-mi-no-brasil.htm | title=Console em produção há mais tempo, Master System já vendeu 8 mi no Brasil|language=Portuguese|accessdate=May 13, 2016|publisher=[[Universo Online]]|first=Théo|last=Azevedo |quote=Comercializado no Brasil desde setembro de 1989, o saudoso Master System já vendeu mais de 8 milhões de unidades no país, segundo a Tectoy. |date=May 12, 2016}}</ref> |
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*'''Sega Genesis''': 30.75 million sold by Sega worldwide as of March 1996,<ref name="famitsu 306">{{cite journal| date= June 21, 1996| title= Yearly market report| journal= [[Famitsu Weekly]]| issue= 392|page=8|language=Japanese}}</ref><ref name="Sega Stats">{{cite book|last=Ernkvist|first=Mirko|editor1-last=Zackariasson|editor1-first=Peter|editor2-last=Wilson|editor2-first=Timothy|title=The Video Game Industry: Formation, Present State, and Future|publisher=[[Routledge]]|date=August 21, 2012|isbn=978-1-136-25824-4|page=158|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oQKFmX9m25sC&q=158#v=snippet&q=158&f=false|accessdate=December 5, 2015}}</ref> not including third-party sales. In addition, [[Tec Toy]] sold 3 million in Brazil,<ref>{{cite web | url=http://jogos.uol.com.br/ultimas-noticias/2012/07/30/vinte-anos-depois-master-system-e-mega-drive-vendem-150-mil-unidades-por-ano-no-brasil.htm | title=Vinte anos depois, Master System e Mega Drive vendem 150 mil unidades por ano no Brasil|language=Portuguese|accessdate=October 18, 2012|publisher=[[Universo Online|UOL]]|first=Théo|last=Azevedo |quote=Base instalada: 5 milhões de Master System; 3 milhões de Mega Drive |date=July 30, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Sponsel|first=Sebastian|url=http://www.sega-16.com/2015/11/interview-stefano-arnhold-tectoy/|title=Interview: Stefano Arnhold (Tectoy)|work=Sega-16|date=November 16, 2015|accessdate=November 21, 2015}}</ref> and [[Majesco Entertainment]] projected it would sell 1.5 million in the United States.<ref name="Farm">{{cite web|url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3169/is_n9_v38/ai_20456851/?tag=content;col1 |title=Sega farms out Genesis |date=March 2, 1998 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20120709034422/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3169/is_n9_v38/ai_20456851/?tag=content;col1 |archivedate=July 9, 2012 |publisher=Consumer Electronics |url-status=dead |df= }}</ref> |
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*'''Sega Saturn''': 9.26 million units sold.<ref name="Sega Stats" /> |
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*'''Dreamcast''': 9.13 million units sold.<ref name="Sega Stats" /><ref name="sega Q4 FY2001">{{cite web|url=http://www.segasammy.co.jp/english/ir/library/pdf/printing_archive/2001/e_sega_annual_tuuki_2001.pdf|title=Sega Corporation Annual Report 2001|accessdate=November 2, 2015|date=August 1, 2001|publisher=[[Sega Corporation]]|page=14|quote=A total of 3.39 million hardware units and 23.87 million software units were sold worldwide during fiscal 2001, for respective totals of 8.20 million units and 51.63 million units since Dreamcast was first brought to market.}}</ref><ref name="sega Q4 FY2001 rev">{{cite web|url=https://www.segasammy.co.jp/english/ir/release/pdf/past/sega/2002/20011030.pdf|title=Revisions to Annual Results Forecasts|accessdate=November 2, 2015|date=October 23, 2001|publisher=[[Sega Corporation]]|page=4|quote=Regarding sales of Dreamcast hardware from inventory resulting from the withdrawal from Dreamcast production [...] the Company exceeded initial targets with domestic sales of 130,000 units and U.S. sales of 530,000 units for the first half. Consequently, at the end of the half, Dreamcast inventories totaled 40,000 units domestically and 230,000 units for the United States, and we anticipate being able to sell all remaining units by the holiday season as initially planned.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150726015556/https://www.segasammy.co.jp/english/ir/release/pdf/past/sega/2002/20011030.pdf|archive-date=July 26, 2015|url-status=dead|df=}}</ref><ref name="sega Q4 FY2002">{{cite web|url=https://www.segasammy.co.jp/japanese/ir/library/pdf/printing_archive/2002/sega/sega_annual_tuuki_2002.pdf|title=Sega Corporation Annual Report 2002|accessdate=November 2, 2015|date=July 1, 2002|publisher=[[Sega Corporation]]|page=6|quote=The year ended March 31, 2002 was a turning point for Sega. We exited the hardware business, ceasing production of Dreamcast and selling through the remaining inventory.}}</ref> |
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}} |
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|- |
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![[NEC]] |
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| bgcolor="#AAA" colspan=3| |
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| style="background:#C96" |TurboGrafx-16 ◁<br /><small>(10 million)</small> |
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| PC-FX<br /><small>(100,000)</small> |
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| bgcolor="#AAA" colspan=3| |
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|{{efn|group=note|name=NEC family|The '''TurboGrafx-16''' was designed by Hudson and manufactured and marketed by NEC.<ref name="NEC and HS">{{cite web|url=http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/225466/stalled_engine_the_turbografx16_.php?print=1|title=Stalled engine: The TurboGrafx-16 turns 25|accessdate=August 13, 2016|first= Christian|last=Nutt |website=[[Gamasutra]]|archiveurl =https://web.archive.org/web/20160101061244/http://gamasutra.com/view/feature/225466/stalled_engine_the_turbografx16_.php|archivedate =January 1, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> The TurboGrafx-16 managed to sell 10 million units.<ref name="turbo eurogamer">{{cite web|url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-04-11-snes-celebrates-20th-birthday-in-uk|title= SNES celebrates 20th birthday in UK|accessdate=April 2, 2014|first=Tom|last=Phillips|website=[[Eurogamer]]|date=April 11, 2012|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120413151550/http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-04-11-snes-celebrates-20th-birthday-in-uk|archivedate=April 13, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> The '''PC-FX''' sold less than 100,000 after a year on sale.<ref name="PC-FX">{{Cite web |url=http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2015/05/feature_what_nec_and_hudson_did_next_the_disasterous_story_of_the_pc-fx |title=Feature: What NEC And Hudson Did Next: The {{sic|Disast|erous|nolink=y}} Story Of The PC-FX |last=Life |first=Nintendo |date=May 9, 2015 |website=Nintendo Life |language=en-GB |access-date=May 14, 2019}}</ref> |
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}} |
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|- |
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![[Sony Interactive Entertainment|Sony]] |
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| bgcolor="#AAA" colspan=4| |
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| style="background:#FC3;" |PlayStation †<br /><small>(102.49 million)</small> |
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| style="background:#FC3;" |PlayStation 2 †<br /><small>({{ref |Greater|>}}155 million)</small> |
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| style="background:silver" |PlayStation 3 ‡<br /><small>({{ref |Greater|>}}87.4 million)</small> |
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| style="background:#FC3;" |PlayStation 4 †{{Hash-tag|alt=current generation consoles}}<br /><small>(108.9 million) |
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|{{efn|group=note|name=PlayStation family|'''PlayStation''': Sony corporate data reports 102.49 million units sold as of March 31, 2007.<ref name="ps1">{{cite web|url=http://www.scei.co.jp/corporate/data/bizdataps_e.html|title=PlayStation Cumulative Production Shipments of Hardware|accessdate=October 31, 2013|publisher=[[Sony Computer Entertainment]]|url-status=dead|archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20110524023857/http://www.scei.co.jp/corporate/data/bizdataps_e.html|archivedate = May 24, 2011}}</ref> Sony stopped divulging individual platform sales starting with 2012 fiscal reports,<ref name="sony combined">{{cite web|url=http://www.scei.co.jp/corporate/data/bizdata_hardware_e.html |title=Business Development: Hardware |accessdate=October 28, 2013|publisher=[[Sony Computer Entertainment]]|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130630080935/http://www.scei.co.jp/corporate/data/bizdata_hardware_e.html |archivedate=June 30, 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="sony stop combined">{{cite web |url=http://www.scei.co.jp/corporate/data/hardware_sale_e.html |title=Business Development: Unit Sales of Hardware(FY2013-) |accessdate=April 30, 2015 |publisher=[[Sony Computer Entertainment]] |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150424092348/http://scei.co.jp/corporate/data/hardware_sale_e.html |archivedate=April 24, 2015 }}</ref> and continues to sporadically.<ref name="reporting style">{{cite web|url=http://www.gamespot.com/articles/ps4-helps-sony-s-game-division-rise-but-ps3-sales-see-significant-decrease/1100-6417559/|title=PS4 helps Sony's game division rise, but PS3 sales see "significant decrease" |accessdate=December 13, 2015|first=Eddie|last=Makuch|website=[[GameSpot]]|date=February 6, 2014}}</ref> '''PlayStation 2''': 155 million units sold as of March 31, 2012.<ref name="SIE Business Development">{{cite web|url=https://www.sie.com/en/corporate/data.html |title=SIE Business Development |accessdate=February 19, 2020 |publisher=[[Sony Computer Entertainment]]| date =December 31, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190427203732/https://www.sie.com/en/corporate/data.html|archive-date=April 27, 2019|url-status=live }}</ref> It was discontinued worldwide on January 4, 2013.<ref name=PSVita>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/jan/04/playstation-2-manufacture-ends-years|title=PlayStation 2 manufacture ends after 12 years|date=January 4, 2013|first= Keith|last=Stuart|work=[[The Guardian]]|accessdate=November 22, 2013}}</ref> '''PlayStation 3''': Sony corporate data reports 87.4 million sold as of March 31, 2017.<ref name="SIE Business Development"/> PS3 shipments to Japanese retailers, the last country Sony was selling units to, ceased by May.<ref name="PS3 last shipments">{{cite web|first=Dan|last=Ackerman|title=At long last, end of the line for the Sony PlayStation 3|url=https://www.cnet.com/news/at-long-last-end-of-the-line-for-the-sony-playstation-3/|date=May 30, 2017|accessdate=April 26, 2019|website=[[CNET]]|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20190312115023/https://www.cnet.com/news/at-long-last-end-of-the-line-for-the-sony-playstation-3/|archivedate=March 12, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> '''PlayStation 4''': Sony corporate data reports 108.9 million units sold as of December 31, 2019.<ref name="SIE Business Development"/> |
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}} |
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|- |
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![[Microsoft]] |
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| bgcolor="#AAA" colspan=5| |
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| style="background:silver;" |Xbox ‡<br />({{ref |Greater|>}}24 million) |
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| style="background:#C96;" |Xbox 360 ◁<br />({{ref |Greater|>}}84 million) |
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| style="background:#C96;" |Xbox One ◁{{Hash-tag|alt=current generation consoles}}<br />({{nowrap|est. 46.9 million}}) |
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|{{efn|group=note|name=Xbox family|'''Xbox''': More than 24 million units sold as of May 10, 2006.<ref name="xbox">{{cite web|url= http://www.xbox.com/zh-SG/community/news/2006/20060510.htm|title=Gamers Catch Their Breath as Xbox 360 and Xbox Live Reinvent Next-Generation Gaming|accessdate=September 5, 2007|publisher=Xbox.com|date=May 10, 2006|archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20070709062832/http://www.xbox.com/zh-SG/community/news/2006/20060510.htm |archivedate = July 9, 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref></small> |
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'''Xbox 360''': Sold 84 million as of June 2014.<ref name="xbox e3">{{cite web|url=http://www.gamespot.com/articles/e3-2014-399-xbox-one-out-now-xbox-360-sales-rise-to-84-million/1100-6420231/ |title=E3 2014: $399 Xbox One Out Now, Xbox 360 Sales Rise to 84 million |accessdate=August 12, 2014 |first=Eddie |last=Makuch |website=[[GameSpot]] |date=June 9, 2014 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20141013194652/http://www.gamespot.com/articles/e3-2014-399-xbox-one-out-now-xbox-360-sales-rise-to-84-million/1100-6420231/ |archivedate=October 13, 2014}}</ref> Production ended in 2016.<ref name="360 EoL">{{cite web|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2016/04/20/xbox-360-production-has-ended |title=Xbox 360 Production Has Ended |accessdate=August 12, 2014 |first= Matt |last=Porter |website=[[IGN]] |date=April 20, 2016 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180322210434/https://www.ign.com/articles/2016/04/20/xbox-360-production-has-ended |archivedate=March 22, 2018}}</ref> |
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'''Xbox One''': Microsoft CEO [[Satya Nadella]] unveiled at a December 3, 2014 shareholder presentation that 10 million units were sold.<ref name="Xbone 10">{{cite web |url=http://www.microsoft.com/investor/Events/Presentations/2014/ShareholderMeeting2014.aspx?eventid=151407&Search=true&SearchType=0 |title=Microsoft Annual Meeting of Shareholders |accessdate=January 31, 2015 |date=December 3, 2014 |publisher=[[Microsoft]] |quote=Finally, our gaming business is thriving with the Xbox One hitting 10 million units sold. I am thrilled to welcome Mojang and Minecraft community to Microsoft. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161130042326/http://www.microsoft.com/investor/Events/Presentations/2014/ShareholderMeeting2014.aspx?eventid=151407&Search=true&SearchType=0 |archive-date=November 30, 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Microsoft announced in October 2015 that individual platform sales in their fiscal reports will no longer be disclosed. |
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The company shifted focus to the amount of active users on [[Xbox Live]] as its "primary metric of success".<ref name="Shipments and Live">{{Cite web|url=http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2015/10/22/xbox-hardware-sales-down-xbox-live-user-up-to-39-million.aspx|title=[Update] Microsoft Will Focus Primarily On Xbox Live Usership, Not Console Shipments| date =October 22, 2015|last=Futter|first=Mike |website=[[Game Informer]]|access-date=October 22, 2015}}</ref> International Data Corporation estimated 46.9 million sold worldwide through the second quarter of 2019.<ref name="xbox1 Q2 estimate">{{cite web |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/08/why-microsoft-xbox-isnt-as-popular-in-japan-as-sonys-playstation.html |title=Why Japanese gamers don’t buy Xbox |accessdate=November 1, 2019 |first=Marilyn |last=Haigh |publisher=[[CNBC]] |date=October 8, 2019 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20191031143327/https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/08/why-microsoft-xbox-isnt-as-popular-in-japan-as-sonys-playstation.html |archivedate=October 31, 2019 }}</ref> |
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}} |
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|} |
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{{Refbegin}} |
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{{note label|Greater|>||Final sales are greater than the reported figure. [[#Notes|See notes.]]}} |
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{{Refend}} |
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==Notes== |
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{{notelist}} |
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==References== |
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{{reflist}} |
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{{Video game consoles|Generation=All}} |
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[[Category:Video game consoles]] |
Revision as of 15:35, 29 July 2020
The history of video game consoles, both home and handheld consoles, had their origins in the 1970s.
Origins
While both home and handheld game consoles strive to allow consumers to play video games on personal devices, their point of origins game from different fields, and only more recently can be seen as deriving from common principles.
Home consoles
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1c/BrownBox.jpg/220px-BrownBox.jpg)
The first video games were created on supercomputers in the 1960s, typically with text-only displays or computer printouts, and limited to simple games like Tic Tac Toe or Nim.[1] Eventually displays with rudimentary vector displays for graphics were available, leading to titles like Spacewar! in 1962.[2] Spacewar! directly influenced Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney to create Computer Space in 1971, the first recognized arcade game.[3] While Computer Space had only a limited number of machines made, Bushnell and Dabney took the success of Computer Space to establish Atari, Inc. and subsequently created the first commercially successful arcade game, Pong.[4]
At the same time that arcade games were being developed, Ralph H. Baer had devised of the idea of a home console and created a prototype "Brown Box" in 1966 that could be connected to a standard television to play a game based on table tennis. This design led to the first home video game console, the Magnavox Odyssey, released in 1972, and further refinements in the years that followed.[5] Coincidentally, Atari saw the potential to take Pong into the home market by developing its own Pong console, which was first released in 1974. Baer and Bushnell had conflicted over the origins of the idea of a home console for a table tennis-like game, but ultimately Magnavox and Atari settled out of court on the matter.[6] This did not stop numerous other manufacturers from developing and releasing their own table tennis home video game consoles, aided by the lower cost of microprocessors in the following years. This led to a large number of clones of the Odyssey and Pong home consoles, and creating the market for home video game consoles.[7]
Handheld consoles
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Milton-Bradley-Microvision-Handheld-FL.jpg/170px-Milton-Bradley-Microvision-Handheld-FL.jpg)
The origins of handheld game consoles are found in handheld and tabletop electronic game devices of the 1970s and early 1980s. These electronic devices are capable of playing only a single game,[8] they fit in the palm of the hand or on a tabletop, and they may make use of a variety of video displays such as LED, VFD, or LCD.[9] Handheld electronic games, in turn, were derived from previous handheld and tabletop electro-mechanical devices such as Waco's Electronic Tic-Tac-Toe (1972)[9] Cragstan's Periscope-Firing Range (1951),[10] and the emerging optoelectronic-display-driven calculator market of the early 1970s.[11][12] The first such handheld electronic game came out of Mattel in 1976, where Michael Katz, Mattel's new product category marketing director, told the engineers in the electronics group to design a game the size of a calculator, using LED technology."[13] This effort lead to the 1976 game Auto Race,[14] by Football in 1977.[15][16] The two games were so successful that according to Katz, "these simple electronic handheld games turned into a '$400 million category.'"[9] Another Ralph Baer invention, Simon, published by Milton Bradley in 1978, followed, which further popularized such electronic games and remained an enduring property by Milton Bradley (later Hasbro) that brought a number of copycats to the market.[17][18] Soon, other manufacturers including Coleco, Parker Brothers, Entex, and Bandai began following up with their own tabletop and handheld electronic games.[19]
The transition from handheld electronic games to handheld video game control game with the introduction of LCD screens which today have the capability to present a large number of pixels across a display, approaching the video format used by home consoles, and giving the unit more flexibility in playing a range of games. Milton Bradley's Microvision, released in 1979, is often considered the first such handheld video game console, as well as the first handheld to use interchangeable consoles, though the unit never caught on due to short-term technical struggles. Revolutionary at the time, the Microvision featured a 16x16 pixel LCD that a variety of games could be played by swapping out its faceplate, which contained the game's ROM data and controls.[20][21] The Microvision game Cosmic Hunter (1981) also introduced the concept of a directional pad on handheld gaming devices.[22][23]
Nintendo's line of Game & Watch titles, first introduced in 1980, was based on inspiration from Gunpei Yokoi after seeing a man playing on an LCD calculation while passing time on a bullet train, and had devised the idea of an electronic game that doubled as a watch.[24][25] Taking advantage of the technology used in the credit-card-sized calculators that had appeared on the market, Yokoi designed the series of LCD-based games to include a digital time display in the corner of the screen.[26] While the Game & Watch series were considered handheld electronic games rather than handheld video game consoles, their success led Nintendo, through Yokoi's design lead, to produce the Game Boy in 1989, considered to be the defining basis of the current handheld game console.[27]
Console generations
The history of video game consoles are typically segmented into "generations" which are used to group consoles that have shared a competitive market.[28][29] These console generations typically last about five years, following a Moore's law progression where processing power doubles every 18 months or increases ten-fold after five years.[30][31] This has resulted in an industry-wide adoption of the razorblade model in selling consoles at minimal profit margin while making revenue from the sale of games produced for that console, and then transitioning users to the next console model at the fifth year of the generation as the new generation comes on line, and thus incorporate planned obsolescence into the products to continue to bring consumes into the newer generations.[32]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/timeline/77a2i7e6591mon70a9p4w6hwjde10ak.png)
However, the exact definition and delineation of console generations has not been consistently defined in the literature. Some schemes have been based on direct market data (including a seminal work published in an IEEE journal in 2002),[33] while others are based on technology shifts. Wikipedia itself has been noted for creating its own version of console generation definitions that differ from other academic sources, which has been adopted by other sources but without having any true rational behind it.[28] The discrepancies between how consoles are grouped into generations and how these generations are named have caused confusion when trying to compare shifts in the video game marketplace compared to other consumer markets.[28] Kemerer et al. (2017)[28] provide a comparative analysis of these different generations as shown.
For purposes of organization, the generations described here and subsequent pages maintain the Wikipedia breakdown of generation, generally breaking consoles apart by technology features whenever possible and with other consoles released in that same period incorporated within that same generation.
This approach uses the concepts of "bits", or the size of individual word length handled by the processors on the console, for the earlier console generations. Longer word lengths generally led to improved gameplay concepts, graphics, and audio capabilities than shorter ones.[41] The use of bits to market consoles to consumers started with the TurboGrafx 16, a console that used an 8-bit central processing unit similar to the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), but included a 16-bit graphical processing unit. NEC, the console's manufacturer, took to market the console as a "16-bit" system over the NES' "8-bit" to establish it as a superior system. Other advertisers followed suit, creating a period known as the "bit wars" that lasted through the fifth generation, where console manufactures tried to outsell each other simply on the bit-count of their system.[42] Aside from some "128 Bit" advertising slogans at the beginning of the sixth generation, marketing with bits largely stopped after the fifth generation. Though the bit terminology was no longer used in newer generations, the use of bit-count helped to establish the idea of console generations, and the earlier generations gained alternate names based on the dominant bit-count of the major systems of that era, such as the third generation being the 8-bit era or generation.[42]
Later console generations are based on groupings of release dates rather than common hardware as base hardware configurations between consoles have greatly diverged, generally following trends in generation definition given by video game and mainstream journalism. Handheld consoles and other gaming systems and innovations are frequently grouped within the release years associated with the home console generations; for example the growth of digital distribution is associated with the seventh generation.[29][43]
Console generation timeline
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Source | [note 1][note 2][note 3][note 4][note 5][note 6][note 7][note 8] |
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Console history timeline by generation
First generation (1972–1983)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/99/Magnavox-Odyssey-Console-Set.jpg/220px-Magnavox-Odyssey-Console-Set.jpg)
The first generation of home consoles were generally limited to dedicated consoles with just one or two games pre-built into the console hardware, with a limited means to alter gameplay factors.
As described above, this generation was led by the introduction of the Magnavox Odyssey and the home version of Pong, both which spurred a number of other manufacturers to make their own dedicate home video game consoles.[7]
Second generation (1976–1992)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b9/Atari-2600-Wood-4Sw-Set.jpg/220px-Atari-2600-Wood-4Sw-Set.jpg)
The second generation of home consoles was distinguished by the introduction of the game cartridge, where the game's code is stored in read-only memory (ROM) within the cartridge. When the cartridge is slotted into the console, the electrical connections allow the main console's processors to read the game's code from the ROM. While ROM cartridges had been used in other computer applications prior, the invention of the ROM game cartridge is credited to Jerry Lawson, an engineer at Fairchild Semiconductor and which was first implemented in the Fairchild Video Entertainment System (VES) in 1976.[62] Additional consoles during this generation, all which used cartridge-based systems, included the Atari 2600 (know as the Atari Video Console System or VCS at launch), the Magnavox Odyssey², Mattel Electronics' Intellivision, and the ColecoVision. In addition to consoles, newer processor technology allowed games to support up to 8 colors and up to 3-channel audio effects.[63]
With the introduction of cartridge-based consoles came the need to develop a wide array of games for them. Atari was one of the forefronts in development for its Atari 2600, retaining control of all development aspects of the games. Game developments coincided with the Golden age of arcade video games that started in 1978–1979 with the releases of Space Invaders and Asteroids, and home versions of these arcade games were ideal targets. The Atari 2600 version of Space Invaders, released in 1980, was considered the killer app for home video game consoles, helping to quadruple the console's sales that year.[64] At the same time, Atari has been acquired by Warner Communications from Bushnell, and internal policies led to the departure of four key programmers David Crane, Larry Kaplan, Alan Miller, and Bob Whitehead, who went and formed Activision. Activision proceeded to develop their own Atari 2600 games as well as games for other systems. Atari attempted legal action to stop this practice but ended up settling out of court, with Activision agreeing to pay royalties but otherwise able to continue game development, making Activision the first third-party game developer.[65]
Numerous other companies saw Activision's success and jumped into game development to try to make fast money on the rapidly expanding North America video game market. This led to a loss of publishing control and dilution of the game market by the early 1980s.[66] Additionally, in following on the success of Space Invaders, Atari and other companies had remained eager for licensed video game possibilities. Atari had banked heavily on commercial sales of Pac-Man and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial in 1982, but both were rushed to market and were poorly-received, and failed to make Atari's sales estimates. Along with competition from inexpensive home computers, the North American home console market crashed in 1983.[67]
Japan | North America | Europe | Units sold | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Fairchild Channel F | 1977 | 1976 | none | 250,000 |
Atari 2600 | 1983 | 1977 | 1978 | 30,000,000 |
Magnavox Odyssey² | 1982 | 1979 | 1978 | 2,000,000 |
Intellivision | 1982 | 1980 | 1982 | 3,000,000 |
ColecoVision | none | 1982 | 1983 | 2,000,000 |
Atari 5200 | none | 1982 | none | 1,400,000 |
Handhelds of the second generation
Handheld electronic games had already been introduced on the market, such as Mattel Auto Race in 1976 and Simon in 1978. While not considered video games as lacking the typical video screen element, instead using LED lights as game indicators, they still established a market for portable video games.
The first handheld game console emerged during the second home console generation, using simple LCD displays. Early attempts at cartridge-based handheld systems included the Microvision by Milton-Bradley and the Epoch Game Pocket Computer, but neither gained significant traction. Nintendo, on the other hand, introduced its line of Game & Watch portable games, each with a single dedicated game, as its first venture into the video game market. First introduced in 1980, the Game & Watch series ran for over a decade and sold more than 40 million units.[68]
Third generation (1983–2003)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/82/NES-Console-Set.jpg/220px-NES-Console-Set.jpg)
Frequently called the "8-bit generation", the third generation's consoles used 8-bit processors, which allowed up to five bits of color (32 colors), five audio channels, and more advanced graphics capability including sprites and tiles rather than block-based graphics of the second generation. Further, the third console saw the market dominance shift from the Unites State to Japan as a result of the 1983 crash.[69]
Both the Sega SG-1000 and the Nintendo Famicom launched near simultaneously in Japan in 1983. The Famicom, after some initial technical recalls, soon gained traction and became the best selling console in Japan by the end of 1984.[70] By that point Nintendo wanted to bring the console to North America but recognized the faults that the video game crash had caused. It took several steps to redesign the console to make it look less like a game console and rebranded it as the "Nintendo Entertainment System" (NES) for North America to avoid the "video game" label stigma.[71][72] The company also wanted to avoid the loss of publishing control that had occurred both in North America as well as in Asia after the Famicom's release, and created a lockout system that required all game cartridges to be manufactured by Nintendo to include a special chip. If this chip was not present, the console would fail to play the game. This further gave Nintendo direct control on the titles published for the system, rejecting those it felt were too mature.[73][74] The NES launched in North America in 1985, and helped to revitalize the vidoe game market there.[75]
Sega attempted to compete with the NES with its own Master System, released later in 1985 in both the US and Japan, but did not gain traction to compete. Similarly, Atari had been acquired by Jack Tramiel of Commodore International following the crash, and he had the company develop the Atari 7800 in 1987 to compete against the NES, but also failed to challenge the NES's dominance.[76]
Japan | North America | Europe | Units sold | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Famicom/NES | 1983 | 1985 | 1986 | 61,910,000 |
Mark III/Master System | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 13,000,000 |
Atari 7800 | none | 1986 | 1987 | 3,770,000 |
Atari XEGS | none | 1987 | 1987 | 100,000 |
Fourth generation (1987–2004)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Nintendo-Super-Famicom-Set-FL.jpg/220px-Nintendo-Super-Famicom-Set-FL.jpg)
The fourth generation of consoles, also known as the "16-bit generation", further advanced core console technology with 16-bit processors, improving the available graphics and audio capabilities of games.[77]
NEC's TurboGrafx-16 (or PC Engine as released in Japan), first released in 1987, is considered the first fourth generation console even though it still had an 8-bit CPU. The console's 16-bit graphics processor gave it capabilities comparable to the other fourth generation systems, and NEC's marketing had pushed the console being an advancement over the NES as a "16-bit" system.[42][78] Both Sega and Nintendo entered the fourth generation with true 16-bit systems in the 1988 Sega Genesis (MegaDrive in Japan) and the 1990 Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES, Super Famicom in Japan). SNK also entered the competition with a modified version of their Neo Geo MVS arcade system into the Neo Geo, released in 1990.
During this generation, the technology costs of using optical discs in the form of CD-ROMs has dropped sufficiently to make them desirable to be used for shipping computer software, including for video games for personal computers. CD-ROMs offered more storage space than game cartridges and could allow for full-motion video and other detailed audio-video works to be used in games.[33] Console manufacturers adapted by created hardware add-ons to their consoles that could read and play CD-ROMs, including NEC's TurboGrafx-CD add-on (as well as the integrated TurboDuo system) in 1988, and the Sega CD add-on for the Genesis in 1991, and the Neo Geo CD in 1994. Costs of these add-ons were generally high, nearing the same price as the console itself, and with the introduction of disc-based consoles in the fifth generation starting in 1993, these fell by the wayside.[33] Nintendo had initially worked with Sony to develop a similar add-on for the SNES, the Super NES CD-ROM, but just before its introduction, business relationships between Nintendo and Sony broke down, and Sony would take its idea on to develop the fifth generation PlayStation.[79] Additionally, Phillips attempted to enter the market with a dedicated CD-ROM format, the CD-i, also released in 1990, that included other uses for the CD-ROM media beyond video games but the console never gained traction.[80]
The fourth generation had a long tail that overlapped with the fifth generation. To keep their console competitive with the new fifth generation ones, Nintendo took to the use of coprocessors manufactured into the game cartridges to enhance the capabilities of the SNES. This included the Super FX chip, which was first used in the game Star Fox in 1993, generally considered one of the first games to use real-time polygon-based 3D rendering on consoles.[77]
Japan | North America | Europe | Units sold | |
---|---|---|---|---|
PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16 | 1987 | 1989 | 1989 | 5,800,000 |
Mega Drive/Genesis | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 30,750,000 |
Neo Geo | 1990 | 1991 | 1994 | 980,000 |
Super Famicom/Super NES | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 49,100,000 |
Sega CD/Mega-CD | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 2,240,000 |
Neo Geo CD | 1994 | 1996 | 1994 | 570,000 |
Handhelds of the fourth generation
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/Game-Boy-FL.jpg/170px-Game-Boy-FL.jpg)
Nintendo brought its experience from the Game & Watch series to develop the Game Boy system in 1989, with subsequent iterations through the years. The unit included a LCD screen that supported a 4-monocolor pixel display, the use of a cartridge-based system, and the means to link up two units to play head-to-head games. One of the early packages included Tetris bundled with the unit, which became the Game Boy's killer app and led the unit to dominate handheld sales at the time.[81] The Game Boy also introduced the Pokémon franchise to the world, which became a staple of Nintendo's handheld consoles.
The Atari Lynx was also introduced in 1989 and included a color-LED screen, but its small game library and low battery life failed to make it competitive with the Game Boy.[82][83][84] Both Sega and NEC also attempted to compete with the Game Boy with the Game Gear and the TurboExpress, respectively, both released in 1990. Each were attempts to bring the respective home console games to handheld systems, but struggled against the staying power of the Game Boy.[84][85]
Japan | North America | Europe | Units sold | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Game Boy | 1989 | 1989 | 1990 | 118,690,000 |
Atari Lynx | 1990 | 1989 | 1990 | 3,000,000 |
Game Gear | 1990 | 1991 | 1991 | 10,620,000 |
TurboExpress | 1990 | 1991 | none | 1,500,000 |
Fifth generation (1993–2006)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/39/PSX-Console-wController.jpg/220px-PSX-Console-wController.jpg)
During this time home computers gained greater prominence as a way of playing video games. The video game console industry nonetheless continued to thrive alongside home computers, due to the advantages of much lower prices, easier portability, circuitry specifically dedicated towards video games, the ability to be played on a television set (which PCs of the time could not do in most cases), and intensive first party software support from manufacturers who were essentially banking their entire future on their consoles.[86]
Besides the shift to 32-bit processors, the fifth generation of consoles also saw most companies excluding Nintendo shift to dedicated optical media formats instead of game cartridges, given their lower cost of production and higher storage capacity.[87] Initial consoles of the fifth generation attempted to capitalize on the potential power of CD-ROMs, which included the Amiga CD32, 3DO and the Atari Jaguar. However, earlier in the cycle, the systems were far more expensive than existing fourth-generation models and has much smaller game libraries.[33] Further, Nintendo's use of co-processors in late SNES games further kept the SNES as one of the best selling systems over new fifth generation ones.[33]
Two of the key consoles of the fifth generation were introduced in 1995: the Sega Saturn, and the Sony PlayStation, both which challenged the SNES' ongoing dominance. While the Saturn sold well, it did have a number of technical flaws , but established Sega for a number of key game series going forward.[88] The PlayStation, in addition to using optical media, also introduced the use of memory cards as to save the state of a game. Though memories cards had been used by Neo Geo to allow players to transfer game information between home and arcade systems, the PlayStation's approach allowed games to have much longer gameplay and narrative elements, leading to highly-successful role-playing games like Final Fantasy VII.[33] By 1996, the PlayStation became the best-selling console over the SNES.[33]
Nintendo released their next console, the Nintendo 64 in late 1996. Unlike other fifth generation units, it still used game cartridges, as Nintendo believed the load-time advantages of cartridges over CD-ROMs was still essential, as well as their ability to continue to use lockout mechanisms to protect copyrights.[89][90] The system also included support for memory cards as well, and Nintendo developed a strong library of first-party titles for the game, including Super Mario 64 and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time that helped to drive its sales. While the Nintendo 64 did not match the PlayStation's sales, it kept Nintendo a key competitor in the home console market alongside Sony and Sega.[33]
Japan | North America | Europe | Units sold | |
---|---|---|---|---|
FM Towns Marty | 1993 | none | none | 45,000 |
Amiga CD32 | none | 1994 | 1993 | 100,000 |
Atari Jaguar | 1994 | 1993 | 1994 | 250,000 |
3DO | 1994 | 1993 | 1994 | 2,000,000 |
PC-FX | 1994 | none | none | 400,000 |
Sega 32X | 1994 | 1994 | 1995 | 665,000 |
Virtual Boy | 1995 | 1995 | none | 770,000 |
Sega Saturn | 1994 | 1995 | 1995 | 9,260,000 |
PlayStation | 1994 | 1995 | 1995 | 102,490,000 |
Nintendo 64 | 1996 | 1996 | 1997 | 32,930,000 |
Apple Pippin | 1996 | 1996 | none | 42,000 |
Handhelds of the fifth generation
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/44/Virtual-Boy-Set.jpg/170px-Virtual-Boy-Set.jpg)
Nintendo released the Virtual Boy, an early attempt at virtual reality, in 1995. The unit required the player to play a game through a stereoscopic viewerfinder, which was awkward and difficult, and did not lend well to portable gaming.[91][92][93] Nintendo instead returned to focus on incremental improvements to the Game Boy, including the Game Boy Pocket[94][95] and the Game Boy Color.[96]
Sega also released the Genesis Nomad in 1995 in North America only. a handheld unit that supported the Sega Genesis game library.[97][98] The unit had been developed through Sega of America with little oversight from Sega's main headquarters, and as Sega moved forward, the company as a whole decided to put more focus on the Sega Saturn to stay competitive and drop support for all other ongoing systems, including the Nomad.[99][100][101]
Despite Nintendo's domination of handheld console market, some competing consoles such as Neo Geo Pocket, WonderSwan, Neo Geo Pocket Color, and WonderSwan Color appeared in the late 1990s and discontinued several years later after their appearance in handheld console market.
Japan | North America | Europe | Units sold | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Virtual Boy | 1995 | 1995 | none | 770,000 |
Genesis Nomad | none | 1995 | none | |
Game Boy Pocket | 1996 | 1996 | 1996< | |
Game.com | none | 1997 | 1997 | >300,000 |
Game Boy Light | 1998 | none | none | |
Game Boy Color | 1998 | 1998 | 1998 | |
Neo Geo Pocket | 1998 | none | none | |
WonderSwan | 1999 | none | none | 1,550,000 |
Neo Geo Pocket Color | 1999 | 1999 | 1999 | |
WonderSwan Color | 2000 | none | none | 1,100,000 |
Sixth generation (1998–2013)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/02/PS2-Fat-Console-Set.jpg/170px-PS2-Fat-Console-Set.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/81/Dreamcast-Console-Set.jpg/220px-Dreamcast-Console-Set.jpg)
By the sixth generation, console technology began to catch up to performance of personal computers of the time, and the use of bits as their selling point fell by the wayside. The console manufactures focused on the individual strengths of their game libraries as marketing instead. The consoles of the sixth generation saw further adoption of optical media, expanding into the DVD format for even greater data storage capacity, additional internal storage solutions to function as memory cards, as well as adding support either directly or through add-ons to connect to the Internet for online gameplay.[102]
By this point, there were only three major players in the market: Sega, Sony, and Nintendo. Sega got an early lead with the Dreamcast first released in Japan in 1998. It was the first home console to include a modem to allow players to connect to the Sega network and play online games.[33] However, Sega found several technical issues that had to be resolved before its Western launch in 1999.[103][104][105] Though its Western release was more successful than in Japan,[106] the console was soon outperformed by Sony's PlayStation 2 released in 2000. The PlayStation 2 was the first console to add support for DVD playback in addition to CD-ROM, as well as maintaining backward compatibility with games from the PlayStation library.[33] Along with a strong game library, the PlayStation 2 went on to sell 155 million unit before it was discontinued in 2012, and as of 2020, the best selling home console of all time.[107][108] Unable to compete with Sony, Sega discontinued the Dreamcast in 2001 and left the hardware market, instead focusing on its software properties.[33] Nintendo's entry in the sixth generation was the GameCube in 2001, its first system to use optical discs based on the miniDVD format. A special Game Boy Player attachment allowed the GameCube to use any of the GameBoy cartridges as well, and adapters were available to allow the console to connect to the Internet via broadband or modem.
At this point Microsoft also entered the console market with its first Xbox system, released in 2001. Microsoft considered the PlayStation 2's success as a threat to the personal computer in the living room space, and had developed the Xbox to compete. As such, the Xbox was designed based more on Microsoft's experience from personal computers, using an operating system built out from its Microsoft Windows and DirectX features, utilizing a hard disk for save game store, built-in Ethernet functionality, and created the first console online service, Xbox Live to support multiplayer games.[109]
Japan | North America | Europe | Units sold | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Dreamcast | 1998 | 1999 | 1999 | 9,130,000 |
PlayStation 2 | 2000 | 2000 | 2000 | 155,000,000 |
GameCube | 2001 | 2001 | 2002 | 21,740,000 |
Xbox | 2002 | 2001 | 2002 | 24,000,000 |
Handhelds of the sixth generation
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/11/Nokia-NGage-LL.jpg/220px-Nokia-NGage-LL.jpg)
Nintendo continued to refine its Game Boy design with the Game Boy Advance in 2001, including its Game Boy Advance SP in 2003 and Game Boy Micro in 2005, all with the ability to link to the GameCube to extend the functionality of certain games. Also introduced were the Neo Geo Pocket Color in 1998 and Bandai's WonderSwan Color, launched in Japan in 1999. South Korean company Game Park introduced its GP32 handheld in 2001, and with it came the dawn of open source handheld consoles.[110]
During the sixth generation, a new type of market for gaming came from the growing mobile phone arena, where advanced smart phones and other portable devices could be loaded with games. Nokia's N-Gage was one of the first devices marketed as a mobile phone and game system, first released in 2003 and later redesigned at the N-Gage QD.
Japan | North America | Europe | Units sold | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Game Boy Advance | 2001 | 2001 | 2001 | 81,510,000 |
N-Gage | none | 2003 | 2003 | 3,000,000 |
Seventh generation (2005–2017)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/83/Wii_console.png/220px-Wii_console.png)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/40/Xbox-360-Pro-wController.jpg/170px-Xbox-360-Pro-wController.jpg)
Video game consoles had become an important part of the global IT infrastructure. It is estimated that video game consoles represented 25% of the world's general-purpose computational power in the year 2007.[111] By the seventh generation, Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo had all developed consoles designed to interface with the Internet, adding networking support for either wired and wireless connections, online services to support multiplayer games, digital storefronts for digital purchases of games, and both internal storage and support for external storage on the console for these games. These consoles also added support for digital television resolutions through HDMI interfaces, but as the generation occurred in the midst of the High-definition optical disc format war between Blu-ray and HD-DVD, a standard for high-definition playback was yet to be fixed. A further innovation came by the use of motion controllers, either built into the console or offered as an add-on afterwards.
Microsoft entered the seventh generation first with the Xbox 360 in 2005. The Xbox 360 saw several hardware revisions over its lifetime which became a standard practice for Microsoft going forward; these revisions offered different features such as a larger internal hard drive or a fast processor at a higher price point. As shipped, the Xbox 360 supported DVD discs and Microsoft had opted to support the HD-DVD format with an add-on for playback of HD-DVD films. However, this format ended up as deprecated compared to Blu-ray. Microsoft later introduced the Kinect motion controller device for the Xbox 360. The Xbox 360 was backward compatible with about half of the original Xbox library. Through its lifetime, the Xbox 360 was troubled by a consistent hardware fault known as the "the Red Ring of Death (RROD)" for the display of a red ring around the console's power button indicating the problem and Microsoft spent over $1 billion correcting the problem.[112]
Sony's PlayStation 3 was released in 2006. The PlayStation 3 represented a shift of the internal hardware from Sony's custom chip to a more standard x86-based system. Initial PlayStation 3 shipped with a special Emotion Engine daughterboard that allowed for backwards compatibility of PlayStation 2 games, but later revisions of the unit removed this, leaving software-based emulation for PlayStation games available. Sony banked on the Blu-ray format, which was included from the start. With the PlayStation 3, Sony introduced the PlayStation Network for its online services and storefront.[113] In 2010, Sony released PlayStation Move, allowing for motion-controlled games.
Nintendo introduced the Wii in 2006 around the same time as the PlayStation 3, and continued Nintendo's divergence from trying to compete on feature-for-feature from Microsoft and Sony, lacking support for high-definition media or video format. The Wii's primary controller is the Wii Remote, a motion-sensing which was considered part of the unit's success, and which drove Microsoft and Sony to develop their own motion controls to compete. Nintendo provided various online services that the Wii could connect too, including the Virtual Console where players could purchase emulated games from Nintendo's past consoles as well as games for the Wii. The Wii used regular sized DVDs for its game medium but also directly supported GameCube discs. The Wii was generally considered a surprising success that many developers had initially overlooked.[114][115][116]
Japan | North America | Europe | Units sold | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Xbox 360 | 2005 | 2005 | 2005 | 84,700,000 |
PlayStation 3 | 2006 | 2006 | 2007 | 87,400,000 |
Wii | 2006 | 2006 | 2006 | 101,630,000 |
Handhelds of the seventh generation
Nintendo introduced the new Nintendo DS system in 2004, a game cartridge-based unit that support two screens including one being touch-sensitive. The DS also included built-in wireless connectivity to the Internet to purchase new DS games or Virtual Console titles, as well as the ability to connect to each other or to a Wii system in a ad hoc manner for certain multiplayer titles.[117] Sony entered the handheld market in 2004 with the PlayStation Portable (PSP), with a reduced design based on the PlayStation 3. Like the DS, the PSP also supported wireless connectivity to the Internet to download new games, and ad hoc connectivity to other PSP or to a PlayStation 3. The PSP used a new format called Universal Media Disc (UMD) for game and other media.[118][119][120]
Nokia revived its N-Gage platform in the form of a service for selected S60 devices. This new service launched on April 3, 2008.[121] Other less-popular handheld systems released during this generation include the Gizmondo (launched on March 19, 2005 and discontinued in February 2006) and the GP2X (launched on November 10, 2005 and discontinued in August 2008). The GP2X Wiz, Pandora, and Gizmondo 2 were scheduled for release in 2009.
Another aspect of the seventh generation was the beginning of direct competition between dedicated handheld video game devices, and increasingly powerful PDA/cell phone devices such as the iPhone and iPod Touch, and the latter being aggressively marketed for gaming purposes. Simple games such as Tetris and Solitaire had existed for PDA devices since their introduction, but by 2009 PDAs and phones had grown sufficiently powerful to where complex graphical games could be implemented, with the advantage of distribution over wireless broadband. Apple had launched its App Store in 2008 that allowed developers to publish and sell games for iPhones and similar devices, beginning the rise of mobile gaming.
Japan | North America | Europe | Units sold | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Nintendo DS | 2004 | 2004 | 2005 | 154,020,000 |
PlayStation Portable | 2004 | 2005 | 2005 | 82,000,000 |
Eighth generation (2012–present)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/Wii_U_Console_and_Gamepad.png/220px-Wii_U_Console_and_Gamepad.png)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/05/Microsoft-Xbox-One-Console-Set-wKinect.jpg/220px-Microsoft-Xbox-One-Console-Set-wKinect.jpg)
Aside from the usual hardware enhancements, consoles of the eighth generation focus on further integration with other media and increased connectivity.[124] Hardware improvements pushed for higher frame rates at up to 4k resolutions.
The Wii U, introduced in 2012, was considered by Nintendo to be a sequel to the Wii but geared to more serious players. The console supported backwards compatibility with the Wii, including its motion controls, and introduced the Wii U GamePad, a tablet/controller hybrid that acted as a second screen. Nintendo further refined its network offerings to develop the Nintendo Network service to combine storefront and online connectivity services. The Wii U did not sell as well as Nintendo had planned, as they found people mistook the GamePad to be a tablet they could take with them away from the console, and the console struggled to draw the third-party developers as the Wii had.[125]
Both the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One came out in 2013. Both were similar improvements over the previous generation respective consoles', providing more computational power to support up to 60 frames per seconds at 1080p resolutions for some games. Each unit also saw a similar set of revisions and repackaging to develop high- and low-end cost versions. In the case of the Xbox One, the console's initially launch had included the Kinect device but this became highly controversial, and by its mid-generation reference, the Kinect had been dropped and discontinued as a game device.[126]
Later in the eighth generation, Nintendo released the Nintendo Switch in 2018. The Switch is considered the first hybrid game console. It can be placed into a special docking unit that is hooked to a television so that it can be played as a home console. Alternatively, it can be removed and used either with the attached JoyCon controllers as a handheld unit, or can be even played as a tablet-like system via its touchscreen. A larger suite of online services was added through the Nintendo Switch Online subscription, including several free NES and SNES titles, replacing the past Virtual Console system. The Switch was designed to addressed many of the hardware and marketing faults around the Wii U's launch.
Game systems in the eighth generation also faced increasing competition from mobile device platforms such as Apple's iOS and Google's Android operating systems. Smartphone ownership was estimated to reach roughly a quarter of the world's population by the end of 2014.[127] The proliferation of low-cost games for these devices, such as Angry Birds with over 2 billion downloads worldwide,[128] presents a new challenge to classic video game systems. Microconsoles, cheaper stand-alone devices designed to play games from previously established platforms, also increased options for consumers. Many of these projects were spurred on by the use of new crowdfunding techniques through sites such as Kickstarter. Notable competitors include the GamePop, OUYA, GameStick Android-based systems, the PlayStation TV, the NVIDIA SHIELD, and Steam Machines.[129]
Japan | North America | Europe | Units sold | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Wii U | 2012 | 2012 | 2012 | 13,560,000 |
Nintendo Switch | 2017 | 2017 | 2017 | 52,480,000 |
PlayStation 4 | 2014 | 2013 | 2013 | 110,400,000 |
Xbox One | 2014 | 2013 | 2013 | 46,900,000 |
Handhelds of the eighth generation
The Nintendo 3DS released in 2011 expanded on the Nintendo DS design and added support for an autostereoscopic screen to project stereoscopic 3D effects without the use of 3D glasses. The console was otherwise remained backward compatible with all of the DS titles.[130][131][132][133] Sony introduced its PlayStation Vita in 2011, a revised version of the PSP but eliminating the use of external media and focusing on digital acquisition of games, as well as incorporating a touchscreen.[134][135][136][137][138] and was released in Europe and North America on February 22, 2012.[139][140]
As noted above, the Nintendo Switch is a hybrid console, capable of both being used as a home console in its docked mode and as a handheld. The Nintendo Switch Lite revision was released in 2019, which reduced some of the features of the system and its size, including eliminating the ability to dock the unit, making the Switch Lite primarily a handheld system, but otherwise compatible with most of the Switch's library of games.[141][142]
Japan | North America | Europe | Units sold | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Nintendo 3DS | 2011 | 2011 | 2011 | 75,280,000 |
Nintendo Switch Lite | 2019 | 2019 | 2019 | 6,190,000 |
PlayStation Vita | 2011 | 2012 | 2012 | 15,900,000 |
Future
Both Microsoft and Sony have announced successors to their home consoles for release in late 2020. Both are driving towards supporting 4k and 8k resolution televisions at high frame rates, support for real-time ray tracing rendering, and the use of high-performance solid-state drives (SSD) as internal high-speed memory to make delivering game content much faster than from reading from optical disc or standard hard drives, which can eliminate loading times and make open world games appear seamless.
The Xbox Series X is the first console of the 4th generation in Microsoft's Xbox hardware line, with a base performance target of 60 frames per second at 4k resolution to be four times as powerful as the Xbox One X. One of Microsoft's goals with the unit was to assure backward compatibility with all games supported by the Xbox One - including those original Xbox and Xbox 360 titles that are backward compatible with the Xbox One, allowing the Xbox Series X to support four generations of games.[143][144]
Sony's PlayStation 5 also is a similar performance boost over the PlayStation 4, and uses a custom SSD solution with much higher input/output rates comparable to RAM chip speeds, significantly improving rendering and data streaming speeds. The chip architecture is comparable to the PlayStation 4, allowing backwards compatible with most of the PlayStation 4 library while select games will need chip timing tweaking to make them compatible.[145][146]
In terms of handhelds, Sony has announced no further plans for handhelds after discontinuing the Vita, while Nintendo continues to offer the Nintendo 3DS and the Nintendo Switch and Switch Lite. The market here still continues to compete with the growing mobile gaming market, but developers have taken advantage of new opportunities in cross-platform play support, in part due to the popularity of Fortnite in 2018, to make games that are compatible on consoles, computers, and mobile devices.[147][148] Cloud gaming also is seen as a potential replacement of handheld gaming. While earlier cloud gaming platforms have gone by the wayside, newer approaches including PlayStation Now, Microsoft's xCloud and Google's Stadia can deliver computer and console-quality gameplay to nearly any platform including mobile devices, limited by bandwidth quality.[149]
Console sales
Below is a timeline of each generation with the top three home video consoles of each generation based on worldwide sales.
# |
Current | A current generation console being manufactured and sold on the market. |
† |
First place | Home console with the highest sales of its generation. |
‡ |
Second place | Home console with the second highest sales of its generation. |
◁ |
Third place | Home console with the third highest sales of its generation. |
Remaining places | Manufacture released a home console but it was not one of the top three best selling home consoles of its generation. | |
No entry | Manufacturer did not release a home console. |
Manufacturer | Generation | Ref(s) | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
First (1972–1980) |
Second (1976–1992) |
Third (1983–2003) |
Fourth (1987–2004) |
Fifth (1993–2006) |
Sixth (1998–2013) |
Seventh (2005–2017) |
Eighth (2012–present) | ||
Atari | Home Pong (150,000) |
Atari 2600 † (30 million)[note 9] |
Atari 7800 ◁ (1 million)[note 10] |
Atari Jaguar (250,000) |
[note 11] | ||||
Coleco | Telstar ‡ (1 million) |
ColecoVision ◁ (2+ million) |
[note 12] | ||||||
Nintendo | Color TV-Game series † (3 million) |
NES † (61.91 million) |
Super NES † (49.1 million) |
Nintendo 64 ‡ (32.93 million) |
GameCube ◁ (21.74 million) |
Wii † (101.63 million) |
Nintendo Switch ‡# (52.48 million)[note 13] |
[note 14] | |
Magnavox/ Philips |
Odyssey ◁ (330,000) |
Odyssey² (2 million) |
Videopac + G7400 (N/A) |
CD-i (570,000) |
[note 15] | ||||
Mattel | Intellivision ‡ (3 million) |
HyperScan (N/A) |
[note 16] | ||||||
Sega | Master System ‡ (10–13 million)[note 17] |
Sega Genesis ‡ (33.75 million) |
Sega Saturn ◁ (9.26 million) |
Dreamcast (9.13 million) |
[note 18] | ||||
NEC | TurboGrafx-16 ◁ (10 million) |
PC-FX (100,000) |
[note 19] | ||||||
Sony | PlayStation † (102.49 million) |
PlayStation 2 † (>155 million) |
PlayStation 3 ‡ (>87.4 million) |
PlayStation 4 †# (108.9 million) |
[note 20] | ||||
Microsoft | Xbox ‡ (>24 million) |
Xbox 360 ◁ (>84 million) |
Xbox One ◁# (est. 46.9 million) |
[note 21] |
>Final sales are greater than the reported figure. See notes.
Notes
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Thursday, Coleco said the entire inventory of its troubled Adam personal computer has been sold, along with much of its Colecovision inventory. The company's chairman, Arnold Greenberg, said Coleco expects no more charges against earnings from the two discontinued products.
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Nintendo entered the home market in Japan with the dramatic unveiling of Color TV Game 6, which played six versions of light tennis. It was followed by a more powerful sequel, Color TV Game 15. A million units of each were sold. The engineering team also came up with systems that played a more complex game, called "Blockbuster," as well as a racing game. Half a million units of these were sold.
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Nintendo moved 49.1 million Super NES consoles over the course of the generation and beyond, far surpassing the Genesis, which sold a still impressive 29 million units. [...] The Master System sold an anemic 13 million to the NES count of 62 million.
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Comercializado no Brasil desde setembro de 1989, o saudoso Master System já vendeu mais de 8 milhões de unidades no país, segundo a Tectoy.
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Base instalada: 5 milhões de Master System; 3 milhões de Mega Drive
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A total of 3.39 million hardware units and 23.87 million software units were sold worldwide during fiscal 2001, for respective totals of 8.20 million units and 51.63 million units since Dreamcast was first brought to market.
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Regarding sales of Dreamcast hardware from inventory resulting from the withdrawal from Dreamcast production [...] the Company exceeded initial targets with domestic sales of 130,000 units and U.S. sales of 530,000 units for the first half. Consequently, at the end of the half, Dreamcast inventories totaled 40,000 units domestically and 230,000 units for the United States, and we anticipate being able to sell all remaining units by the holiday season as initially planned.
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The year ended March 31, 2002 was a turning point for Sega. We exited the hardware business, ceasing production of Dreamcast and selling through the remaining inventory.
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Finally, our gaming business is thriving with the Xbox One hitting 10 million units sold. I am thrilled to welcome Mojang and Minecraft community to Microsoft.
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