Gaming nowadays is a widely recognized part of our cultural landscape. But those of us over thirty are just old enough to remember a time before gaming, before digital entertainment invaded the arcades, our computers and our homes.

The concept of hooking up an electronic game system to a television set was invented by Ralph Bauer in the early 1950s. Later he took his ideas to the TV company Magnavox, which released a refined version of his “Brown Box” prototype as the Magnavox Odyssey in 1972. The Odyssey was primitive, displaying only spots of light on the TV screen, and it required translucent plastic overlays to simulate the appearance of a game. Still, the revolution was underway, and there was no way stopping it.

The video game console is nearly 50 years old and to think that if it weren’t for William Higinbotham and his oscilloscope, gamers around the world would still be playing board games. Below is a time line of the previous gaming systems and their evolution to the modern system.

The console’s development continues even today. The great thing about this is that the gaming space has grown in leaps and bounds. Soon the next generation of consoles will be released, as these gaming wars rage on. The delightful result for gamers is that we cannot lose. With these Big Three and PC game developers constantly at it, we can look forward to a great game in the works on any given day. Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo will soon be releasing their new consoles, and PC developers will soon be releasing many great new titles. With Sony’s Playstation 3, Microsoft’s XBOX 360, and Nintendo’s Revolution on the horizon the console wars will continue to provide us with much in the way of gaming entertainment.

The gaming has changed greatly and for the better. How do you think will it look to you 20 years from now? With the huge strides that the industry keeps making, we could indeed see some exciting and revolutionary things. And they won’t be all that long in coming.

Tags: Computer gaming consoles, home entertainment