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:1982 in video games

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{{Year nav topic5|1982|video games}}

1982 was the peak year for the golden age of arcade video games as well as the second generation of video game consoles. Many games were released that would spawn franchises, or at least sequels, including Dig Dug, Pole Position, Mr. Do!, Zaxxon, Q*bert, Time Pilot and Pitfall! The year's highest-grossing video game was Namco's arcade game Pac-Man, for the third year in a row, while the year's best-selling home system was the Atari 2600 (Atari VCS). Additional video game consoles added to a crowded market, notably the ColecoVision and Atari 5200. Troubles at Atari late in the year triggered the video game crash of 1983.

Financial performance

  • The US arcade video game market is worth $4.3 billion,[http://allincolorforaquarter.blogspot.co.uk/2013/12/video-game-myth-buster-did-crash-of.html Video Game Myth Busters - Did the "Crash" of 1983/84 Affect Arcades?], The Golden Age Arcade Historian (December 27, 2013) equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US|4300000000|1982|r=0}}}} adjusted for inflation.
  • The US home video game market is worth $3.8 billion,{{citation|title=Silicon Valley fever: growth of high-technology culture|author=Everett M. Rogers & Judith K. Larsen|publisher=Basic Books|year=1984|isbn=0-465-07821-4|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=frYrAAAAYAAJ|page=263|quote=Video game machines have an average weekly take of $109 per machine. The video arcade industry took in $8 billion in quarters in 1982, surpassing pop music (at $4 billion in sales per year) and Hollywood films ($3 billion). Those 32 billion arcade games played translate to 143 games for every man, woman, and child in America. A recent Atari survey showed that 86 percent of the US population from 13 to 20 has played some kind of video game and an estimated 8 million US homes have video games hooked up to the television set. Sales of home video games were $3.8 billion in 1982, approximately half that of video game arcades.}} equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US|3800000000|1982|r=0}}}} adjusted for inflation.
  • The Japanese home video game market is approaching ¥300 billion,{{cite web |title=The Home Video-Game Industry (1983-1996) - Competitive Strategy Revolving around Industry Standards |url=http://www.gbrc.jp/content/old/PDF/GameCase.PDF#page=43 |website=gbrc.jp |page=43}} equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US|{{To USD|{{inflation|JP|300000000000|1982|2012|r=0}}|JPN}}|2012}}}} adjusted for inflation.

=Highest-grossing arcade games=

The highest-grossing arcade game of 1982 was Pac-Man, which had accumulated a total revenue of {{US$|6 billion|long=no}} worldwide ({{US$|{{Inflation|US|6|1982|r=1}} billion|long=no}} adjusted for inflation) by 1982.{{cite book |title=Uncle John's Legendary Lost Bathroom Reader |date=September 1999 |publisher=Portable Press |isbn=978-1-879682-74-0 |page=373 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OdxLduEdxmcC |quote=In 1982 alone, Americans pumped $6 billion in quarters into Pac-Man's mouth—more than they spent in Las Vegas casinos and movie theatres combined.}}{{cite book |title=Uncle John's Legendary Lost Bathroom Reader |date=November 2012 |publisher=Simon and Schuster |isbn=978-1-60710-670-8 |page=348 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QClZDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT348 |quote=In 1982 alone, Americans pumped $6 billion in quarters into Pac-Man's mouth—more than they spent in Las Vegas casinos and movie theatres combined.}}

==Japan==

In Japan, the following titles were the highest-grossing arcade video games of 1982, according to the annual Game Machine chart.{{cite magazine|title="Pole Position" No. 1 Video Game: Game Machine{{'}}s "The Year's Best Three AM Machines" Survey Results|magazine=Game Machine|issue=207|publisher=Amusement Press, Inc.|date=1 March 1983|page=30|url=https://onitama.tv/gamemachine/pdf/19830301p.pdf#page=16}}

class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"

! Rank

! Title

! Genre

! Manufacturer

1

| Pole Position

| Racing

| rowspan="3" | Namco

2

| Dig Dug

| Maze

3

| Galaga

| Fixed shooter

4

| Pengo

| Maze

| Sega

5

| Time Pilot

| Shoot 'em up

| Konami

6

| Donkey Kong

| Platform

| Nintendo

7

| Front Line

| Shoot 'em up

| Taito

8

| Donkey Kong Jr.

| Platform

| Nintendo

9

| Burnin' Rubber (Bump 'n' Jump)

| Vehicular combat

| Data East

10

| Mr. Do!

| Maze

| Universal

==United States==

In the United States, the following titles were the highest-grossing arcade games of 1982, according to RePlay and Cash Box magazines and the Amusement & Music Operators Association (AMOA).

class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"

! Rank

! RePlay

! Cash Box{{cite magazine |title=1982 Jukebox / Games Route Survey |magazine=Cash Box |date=20 November 1982 |page=53 |url=https://archive.org/details/cashbox44unse_23/page/53 |publisher=Cash Box Pub. Co.}}

! AMOA{{cite journal |title=AMOA Announces Jukebox and Games Awards Winners |journal=Cash Box |date=30 October 1982 |page=37 |url=https://archive.org/details/cashbox44unse_20/page/36/mode/2up |publisher=Cash Box Pub. Co.}}

! Play Meter{{cite magazine |title=1982 |magazine=Play Meter |date=December 1994 |volume=20 |issue=13 |page=68 |url=https://archive.org/details/play-meter-volume-20-number-13-december-1994/Play%20Meter%20-%20Volume%2020%2C%20Number%2013%20-%20December%201994/page/68}}

1

| Donkey Kong{{cite magazine |title=Top Hits of Last 5 Years |magazine=RePlay |date=March 1987}}

| colspan="3" | Ms. Pac-Man

2

| rowspan="5" {{Unknown}}

| Pac-Man

| rowspan="5" | Pac-Man,
Centipede,
Donkey Kong,
Defender,
Zaxxon

| rowspan="5" {{Unknown}}

3

| rowspan="2" | Donkey Kong,
Centipede

4
5

| rowspan="2" {{N/A}}

6

The following table lists the top-grossing titles of each month in 1982, according to the RePlay and Play Meter charts.

class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"

! rowspan="2" | Month

! colspan="2" |RePlay

! rowspan="2" | Play Meter

! rowspan="2" class="unsortable" |{{Abbr|Ref|Reference(s)}}

Upright cabinet

! Cocktail cabinet

{{dts|January}}

| rowspan="3" | Pac-Man

| {{N/A}}

| rowspan="3" {{Unknown}}

| {{cite magazine |title=RePlay: The Players' Choice |magazine=RePlay |date=January 1982}}

{{dts|February}}

| Pac-Man

| {{cite magazine |title=RePlay: The Players' Choice |magazine=RePlay |date=February 1982}}

{{dts|March}}

| rowspan="3" | Pac-Man / Ms. Pac-Man

| {{cite magazine |title=RePlay: The Players' Choice |magazine=RePlay |date=March 1982}}

{{dts|April}}

| rowspan="2" | Ms. Pac-Man

| Donkey Kong{{cite magazine |title=Top Videos |magazine=Play Meter |date=May 1, 1982}}{{cite magazine |title=Ten Years Ago |magazine=Play Meter |date=April 1992 |volume=18 |issue=5 |page=52 |url=https://archive.org/details/play-meter-volume-18-number-5-april-1992-600DPI/Play%20Meter%20-%20Volume%2018%2C%20Number%205%20-%20April%201992/page/n57}}

| {{cite magazine |title=RePlay: The Players' Choice |magazine=RePlay |date=April 1982}}

{{dts|May}}

| Turbo

| {{cite magazine |title=RePlay: The Players' Choice |magazine=RePlay |date=May 1982}}

{{dts|June}}

| Zaxxon

| {{Unknown}}

| rowspan="6" {{Unknown}}

| {{cite magazine |title=RePlay: The Players' Choice |magazine=RePlay |date=June 1982}}

{{dts|July}}

| rowspan="3" | Ms. Pac-Man

| Ms. Pac-Man

| {{cite magazine |title=RePlay: The Players' Choice |magazine=RePlay |date=July 1982}}

{{dts|August}}

| rowspan="5" | Pac-Man / Ms. Pac-Man

| {{cite magazine |title=RePlay: The Players' Choice |magazine=RePlay |date=August 1982}}

{{dts|September}}

| {{cite magazine |title=RePlay: The Players' Choice |magazine=RePlay |date=September 1982}}

{{dts|October}}

| Jungle King

| {{cite magazine |title=RePlay: The Players' Choice |magazine=RePlay |date=October 1982}}

{{dts|November}}

| rowspan="2" | Ms. Pac-Man

| {{cite magazine |title=RePlay: The Players' Choice |magazine=RePlay |date=November 1982}}

{{dts|December}}

| rowspan="2" | Ms. Pac-Man

| {{cite magazine |title=RePlay: The Players' Choice |magazine=RePlay |date=December 1982}}{{cite book |last1=Sullivan |first1=George |title=Screen Play: The Story of Video Games |date=1983 |publisher=F. Warne |isbn=978-0-7232-6251-0 |page=46 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kqb7C9YJVw8C |quote=Before the end of the year Ms. Pac-Man had climbed to the top of the Play Meter chart.}}

1982

| colspan="2" | Donkey Kong

|

=Best-selling home video games=

The following titles were 1982's best-selling home video games.

class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"

! Rank

! Title

! Platform(s)

! Developer

! Publisher(s)

! Release Year

! Sales

! Revenue

! Inflation

! class="unsortable" | {{Abbr|Ref|Reference(s)}}

1

| Pac-Man

| VCS, Coleco, Nelsonic

| Namco

| Atari, Coleco, Nelsonic

| 1982

| 9,271,844

| $200,000,000+

| ${{Inflation|index=US|value=200,000,000|start_year=1982|r=-7|fmt=c}}+

| {{efn|Atari VCS version sold 7,271,844 cartridges ({{US$|200 million|long=no}}).{{cite book |last1=Green |first1=Mark J. |last2=Berry |first2=John Francis |title=The Challenge of Hidden Profits: Reducing Corporate Bureaucracy and Waste |date=1985 |publisher=W. Morrow |isbn=978-0-688-03986-8 |page=35 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iYa3AAAAIAAJ |quote=By 1981, Atari's sales grew to {{US$|1 billion|long=no}} as it controlled about 75 percent of the fast-growing video game market. The dizzying climb continued into 1982, with Pac-Man alone bringing in over {{US$|200 million|long=no}}.}} Coleco's Mini-Arcade version sold {{nowrap|1.5 million}} units.{{cite news|title=Coleco Mini-Arcades Go Gold|work=Arcade Express|date=August 15, 1982|volume=1|issue=1|page=4|url=http://www.digitpress.com/library/newsletters/arcadeexpress/arcade_express_v1n1.pdf#page=4}} Nelsonic Game Watch version sold more than 500,000 units.{{cite magazine |last1=Shea |first1=Tom |title=Shrinking Pac-Man leads game-wristwatch market |magazine=InfoWorld |date=20 December 1982 |volume=4 |issue=50 |pages=44–5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FTAEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA44 |publisher=InfoWorld Media Group, Inc. |issn=0199-6649}}}}

2

| Donkey Kong

| ColecoVision, VCS

| Nintendo

| Coleco

| 1982

| 4,550,000

| $100,000,000+

| ${{Inflation|index=US|value=100,000,000|start_year=1982|r=-7|fmt=c}}+

| {{efn|ColecoVision version sold 550,000 cartridges. Atari VCS version sold {{nowrap|4 million}} cartridges ({{US$|100 million|long=no}}).{{cite book |last1=Kitchen |first1=Garry E. |author1-link=Garry Kitchen |chapter=Garry E. Kitchen |title=Expert Report of Garry E. Kitchen |date=March 5, 2010 |publisher=United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio |page=2 |url=https://www.muddlawoffices.com/cases/allisonvwise/ohio/msj/064-12%20Exhibit%20M.pdf#page=27 |quote=Designed & programmed Atari 2600 adaptation of hit arcade game Donkey Kong, 1982 wholesale revenues in excess of $100 million on 4 million units.}}}}

3

| Frogger

| Atari VCS

| Konami

| Parker Brothers

| 1982

| 4,000,000

| $80,000,000

| ${{Inflation|index=US|value=80,000,000|start_year=1982|r=-7|fmt=c}}

| {{cite news |title=Ed English: 2600 (Frogger, Mr. Do!, Roc 'n Rope) |url=https://www.digitpress.com/library/newsletters/digitalpress/dp52.pdf#page=7 |access-date=19 April 2021 |work=Digital Press |issue=52 |date=May–June 2003 |page=7}}

4

| Defender

| Atari VCS

| Williams

| Atari, Inc.

| 1982

| 3,006,790

| colspan="2" {{Unknown}}

| {{cite book |title=Cartridge Sales Since 1980 |publisher=Atari Corp.}} Via {{cite episode |title=The Agony & The Ecstasy |series=Once Upon Atari |date=August 10, 2003 |number=4 |minutes=23 |publisher=Scott West Productions}}

5

| E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

| Atari VCS

| Universal

| Atari, Inc.

| 1982

| 2,637,985

| colspan="2" {{Unknown}}

|

6

| Berzerk

| Atari VCS

| Atari, Inc.

| Atari, Inc.

| 1982

| 1,798,773

| colspan="2" {{Unknown}}

|

7

| Space Invaders

| Atari VCS

| Taito

| Atari, Inc.

| 1980

| 1,373,033

| colspan="2" {{Unknown}}

|

8

| Asteroids

| Atari VCS

| Atari, Inc.

| Atari, Inc.

| 1981

| 1,331,956

| colspan="2" {{Unknown}}

|

9

| Pitfall!

| Atari VCS

| Activision

| Activision

| 1982

| 1,000,000+

| colspan="2" {{Unknown}}

| {{cite book |last1=Sigel |first1=Efrem |last2=Giglio |first2=Louis |title=Guide to Software Publishing: An Industry Emerges |date=1984 |publisher=Knowledge Industry Publications |isbn=978-0-86729-108-7 |page=22 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OnDgAAAAMAAJ |quote=Pitfall won the award from Electronic Games magazine as the best video game adventure of 1983, and in 1982 sold more than {{nowrap|1 million}} copies.}}{{cite journal |title=Our games have birthdays, but they don't get old. |journal=Cash Box |date=8 October 1983 |page=FS-5 |url=https://archive.org/details/cashbox45unse_17/page/5 |publisher=Cash Box Pub. Co.}}

10

| Night Driver

| Atari VCS

| Atari, Inc.

| Atari, Inc.

| 1980

| 457,058

| colspan="2" {{Unknown}}

|

= Best-selling home systems =

class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"

! Rank

!System(s)

! Manufacturer

! Type

! Generation

! Sales

! class="unsortable" | {{Abbr|Ref|Reference(s)}}

1

|Atari 2600 (Atari VCS)

|Atari, Inc.

|Console

|Second

|5,100,000

|{{Cite book|last=Guins|first=Raiford|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ijOkAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA324|title=Game After: A Cultural Study of Video Game Afterlife|date=2014-01-24|publisher=MIT Press|isbn=978-0-262-32018-4|pages=324}}

2

|Game & Watch

|Nintendo

|Handheld

|{{N/A}}

|4,600,000+

|{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PmyxAAAAIAAJ|title=Japan Company Handbook|date=1982|publisher=Toyo Keizai|pages=729|quote=In Aug. '82 term, sales of "Game & Watch" will increase from {{nowrap|4.6 million}} to {{nowrap|7 million}} units}}

3

|Coleco Mini-Arcade

|Coleco

|Dedicated

|{{N/A}}

|3,000,000

|{{cite news|title=More Mini-Arcades Coming From Coleco|work=Arcade Express|date=January 30, 1983|volume=1|issue=13|page=2|url=http://www.digitpress.com/library/newsletters/arcadeexpress/arcade_express_v1n13.pdf#page=2}}

4

|Intellivision

|Mattel

|Console

|Second

|1,100,000

|{{Cite book|last=Secretan|first=Lance H. K.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PVUOgovXuZAC|title=Managerial Moxie: A Basic Strategy for the Corporate Trenches|date=1986|publisher=Holt, Rinehart and Winston|isbn=978-0-03-928852-5|pages=49|quote=Industry observers estimate that while Intellivision unit sales sank from 1.1 million units in 1982 to 550,000 in 1983, Coleco Vision unit sales rocketed from 550,000 to 1.2 million}}

5

|Timex Sinclair 1000

|Timex Sinclair

|Computer

|8-bit

|750,000

|{{Cite magazine|last=Libes|first=Sol|date=April 1983|title=Bytelines: Market Share for the PC|url=https://archive.org/details/byte-magazine-1983-04-rescan/page/n467/mode/2up|magazine=BYTE|volume=8|issue=4|pages=457–460 (458)|access-date=6 December 2021|via=Internet Archive}}

rowspan="3" |6

|Atari 400 / Atari 800

|Atari, Inc.

|Computer

|8-bit

|600,000

|{{Cite web|last=Reimer|first=Jeremy|date=2005-12-15|title=Total share: 30 years of personal computer market share figures|url=https://arstechnica.com/features/2005/12/total-share/|url-status=live|access-date=2021-11-27|website=Ars Technica|language=en-us |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120607023023/http://arstechnica.com:80/features/2005/12/total-share/ |archive-date=June 7, 2012}}

  • {{cite web |author=Jeremy Reimer |date=2012-12-07 |title=Total Share: Personal Computer Market Share 1975-2010 |url=https://jeremyreimer.com/rockets-item.lsp?p=137 |website=Jeremy Reimer}}
Commodore 64 / VIC-20

|Commodore International

|Computer

|8-bit

|600,000

|

TI-99/4 / TI-99/4A

|Texas Instruments

|Computer

|16-bit

|600,000

|

9

|ColecoVision

|Coleco

|Console

|Second

|550,000

|{{cite book |last1=Carlisle |first1=Rodney P. |title=Encyclopedia of Play in Today's Society |date=2 April 2009 |publisher=SAGE Publishing |isbn=978-1-4129-6670-2 |page=143 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jLqXM3U_pzEC&pg=PA143}}

10

|Nelsonic Game Watch

|Nelsonic Industries

|Handheld

| {{N/A}}

|500,000+

|{{cite magazine|last1=Shea|first1=Tom|date=20 December 1982|title=Shrinking Pac-Man leads game-wristwatch market|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FTAEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA44|magazine=InfoWorld|publisher=InfoWorld Media Group, Inc.|volume=4|issue=50|pages=44–5|issn=0199-6649}}

Events

=Major awards=

Business

Notable releases

= Games =

==Arcade==

==Console==

==Computer==

  • March 11 – Infocom releases their first non-Zork title, Deadline.
  • August 24 – Ultima II: The Revenge of the Enchantress is released.
  • November – Microsoft Flight Simulator 1.0 is released for MS-DOS. It becomes a standard compatibility test for early PC clones.
  • Big Five Software releases the widely ported Miner 2049er, a platform game with ten screens compared to the four of Donkey Kong.
  • Broderbund releases Choplifter for the Apple II.
  • Edu-Ware releases Prisoner 2 for the Apple II, Atari 8-bit computers, and IBM PC compatibles.
  • Koei releases The Dragon and Princess, the earliest known Japanese RPG, for NEC's PC-8001 home computer platform.{{cite web|title=ランダム・アクセス・メモ|url=http://www.retropc.net/fm-7/random_access_memo/04.html|work=Oh! FM-7|access-date=September 19, 2011|page=4|date=August 4, 2001|archive-date=March 22, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120322151107/http://www.retropc.net/fm-7/random_access_memo/04.html|url-status=dead}} ([https://translate.google.com/translate?sl=ja&tl=en&js=n&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.retropc.net%2Ffm-7%2Frandom_access_memo%2F04.html&act=url Translation]) It is an early example of tactical turn-based combat in the RPG genre.{{Cite web|url=http://blog.hardcoregaming101.net/2013/04/dark-age-of-jrpgs-dragon-princess-1982.html|title = Dark Age of JRPGS (1): The Dragon & Princess (1982)}}
  • Koei releases Night Life, the first erotic computer game (Eroge).[http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/JPNcomputers/Japanesecomputers3.htm Retro Japanese Computers: Gaming's Final Frontier], Hardcore Gaming 101, reprinted from Retro Gamer, Issue 67, 2009 The company also released the erotic title, {{nihongo|Seduction of the Condominium Wife|団地妻の誘惑|Danchi Tsuma no Yūwaku}}, which was an early role-playing adventure game with color graphics,{{cite web|title=Danchizuma no Yuuwaku|publisher=Legendra|url=http://www.legendra.com/rpg/fiche-rpg_id-3276-rpg-danchizuma_no_yuuwaku.html#fichesr_33_3276|access-date=2011-03-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110713195411/http://www.legendra.com/rpg/fiche-rpg_id-3276-rpg-danchizuma_no_yuuwaku.html#fichesr_33_3276|archive-date=2011-07-13|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|title=Danchi-zuma no Yuuwaku|publisher=GameSpot |url=http://www.gamespot.com/fm7/rpg/danchizumanoyuuwaku/index.html|access-date=2011-03-16}} owing to the eight-color palette of the PC-8001 computer. It became a hit, helping Koei become a major software company.{{cite book |author=Pesimo, Rudyard Contretas |chapter='Asianizing' Animation in Asia: Digital Content Identity Construction Within the Animation Landscapes of Japan and Thailand |title=Reflections on the Human Condition: Change, Conflict and Modernity—The Work of the 2004/2005 API Fellows |year=2007 |publisher=The Nippon Foundation |pages=124–160 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110904050744/http://www.apimal.org/blogcms/media/13/File/Pesimo.pdf |archive-date=September 4, 2011 |chapter-url=http://www.apimal.org/blogcms/media/13/File/Pesimo.pdf}}
  • Pony Canyon releases Spy Daisakusen, another early Japanese RPG. Based on the Mission: Impossible franchise, it replaces the traditional fantasy setting with a modern espionage setting.{{Cite web|url=http://blog.hardcoregaming101.net/2013/04/dark-age-of-jrpgs-2-some-games-we.html|title = Dark Age of JRPGS (2): Some games we cannot play}}{{Cite web|url=http://fm-7.com/museum/softhouse/ponyca/540200300.html|title=Oh!FM-7：スパイ大作戦（ポニカ）|access-date=November 6, 2014|archive-date=November 16, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201116033132/http://fm-7.com/museum/softhouse/ponyca/540200300.html|url-status=dead}}
  • Sir-Tech releases Wizardry II: The Knight of Diamonds, the second scenario in the Wizardry series.
  • Sierra On-Line releases Time Zone for the Apple II.{{Cite news| date = May–June 1982

| title= Time Zone: An interview with Roberta Williams| magazine= Computer Gaming World | pages= 14–15

}} Written and directed by Roberta Williams, the graphical adventure game shipped with 6 double-sided floppy disks and cost US$99.

=Hardware=

==Arcade==

  • January – Sega releases the Sega Zaxxon, an arcade system board that introduces isometric graphics.
  • September – Namco releases the Namco Pole Position, the first arcade system board to use 16-bit microprocessors, with two Zilog Z8002 processors.{{cite journal |last1=Defanti |first1=Thomas A. |title=The Mass Impact of Videogame Technology |journal=Advances in Computers |date=1984 |volume=23 |page=115 |url=http://www.vasulka.org/archive/Writings/VideogameImpact.pdf#page=23}} It is capable of pseudo-3D, sprite-scaling, and displays up to 3840 colors.{{cite web|url=http://mamedev.org/source/src/mame/drivers/polepos.c.html |title=MAME | SRC/Mame/Drivers/Polepos.c |access-date=2014-11-06 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006074324/http://mamedev.org/source/src/mame/drivers/polepos.c.html |archive-date=October 6, 2014 |df=mdy }}

==Console==

File:ColecoVision-wController-L.jpg]]

==Computer==

  • July – Timex Sinclair releases a modified ZX81 in the US as the TS1000. It's the first sub-$100 home computer.
  • Commodore Business Machines releases the Commodore 64 home computer, which would become one of the best-selling computers of all time.
  • NEC releases the NEC PC-98, which would become the Japanese market leader and one of the best-selling computers of all time. It is released as the APC overseas.
  • Sharp releases the X1.
  • Sinclair Research releases the ZX Spectrum home computer, which would become Britain's best-selling computer.{{cite web |last1=Cellan-Jones |first1=Rory |title=The Spectrum, the Pi - and the coding backlash |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-17811925 |website=BBC News |access-date=30 June 2021 |date=23 April 2012}}
  • Dragon Data, initially a subsidiary of Mettoy, releases the Dragon 32 home microcomputer.

See also

Notes

{{Notelist}}

References

{{Reflist}}

{{History of video games}}

Category:Video games by year