One of the demonstrations that I participated in at the Museum of the Moving Image
was with the first video game. The demonstration showed how simple and flawed the first video
games were.
One of the most interesting things I discovered was the amount of flaws in the game.
The first producers of this game didn’t have anything to base the design off of so it had many
problems. Obviously, gaming and controls would be expected to evolve significantly, but some
of the most obvious things, that people take for granted, hadn’t even been thought of. For
example, the game which was basically ping pong, didn’t have boundaries around the screen.
The “paddle” like squares could be controlled off the screen, and even to the opposing side of
the screen. Also, the ball, which was served from one side to the other, could go off of the
screen. This problem was soon solved in games like pong, in which the ball bounces of the side
of the screen and has other constraints that add to the gaming experience.
Another issue that seems obvious is the simplicity in the controls. The old game had
many controls that made it overly complicated. It had two knobs that controlled the x and y axis,
and another knob to turn the ball’s direction as it floated. It was a little too complicated and non-
intuitive for a game that seems so simple now.
Also, was the issue with scoring. There was no obvious winner or loser or way of
keeping score. I guess one could have come up with their own method but it was not built into
the game which would have been more convenient.
This game was flawed and simple but it is amazing considering it was the first. This
prototype was developed in 1968 and eventually it was made into Magnovox Odyssey in 1972,
which was the first home video console. Some of these flaws that I discussed before were fixed
and transformed into the 1972 consumer model.
This gaming console eventually evolved into devices such as Atari and Nintendo and
later Playstations and x-boxes. It is amazing how much has changed in a relatively short time
period. The thing that still is the most profound thing that I discovered from the demonstration is
how much I have taken for granted in modern gaming devices. Although I don’t use them very
much, they are very easy to use and relatively flawless as far as I am concerned. I am sure they
will continue to evolve but probably at a slower pace.