Game Console Generations

For the past 40-ish years, video game consoles have evolved over several generations, and each iteration has introduced a more engaging experience for players. To better understand the consoles of today, we'll start exploring the consoles and the beginning of the early 70s, up through the first six of the (so far) eight console generations.

GEN I (1972-1976): Though we technically had a working version of a home console by 1966, it wasn't until 1972, when Magnavox released the Odyssey, that we begin our timeline of widely available game consoles for the public. Simple, single-game consoles began appearing through 1975, and quickly gained popularity (thanks, Pong), though it wasn't until…

GEN II (1976-1983): … 1976 that we began to see successful multi-game console that cold comet with the Odyssey, the clear winner of the bunch being the Atari 2600. The success of home consoles boomed, bubbled, and eventually became too much of a good thing, when in 1977 the console market crash for a time. It was briefly resuscitated in 1980, when Atari released a port of their arcade hit Space Invaders. This surge lasted until 1983, when home computers began to dominate the people's choice for gaming machines, and consoles crashed again. Like, hard.

GEN III (1983-1987): Had it not been for Nintendo's wildly popular 8-bit NES console in the middle of 1983, the success of home consoles may have had to hibernate much longer. The rebirth of consumer faith initiated multiple 8-bit consoles from Atari and Sega, and standardized the use of proprietary cartridges.

GEN IV (1987-1993): Often categorized as the 16-bit generation, we had gained the Turbo Grafx-16, Neo Geo, a console from newcomer Pioneer, and witnessed the death of the Atari consoles (for now). We also began to see consoles like Sega and Neo Geo offering CD-ROM accessories. nintendo still dominated the market.

GEN V (1993-1998): The Fifth Gen consoles were released by 3DO, and a hopeful Atari with the first 64-bit console (which ultimately didn't find success). Nintendo and Sega still held strong, but it was the introduction of Sony's cartridgeless, CD-only Playstation that began picking up the most momentum.

GEN VI (1998-2005): With the final death of the Atari, Neo Geo, 3DO, and PC-FX consoles, the long term winners began to emerge; Sega (not for much longer, however), Sony, Nintendo, and the new XBox from Microsoft. Sony's Playstation 2 became the best selling console in history. Nintendo's Gamecube found very limited success.

As we find ourselves now in the Eighth Generation of consoles, we can learn from it's young history to divine the future of game consoles for the home. Each generation has brought us improved sound and visuals, which many players assert has provides a more immersive and enjoyable experience. We can also likely expect the King of the Consoles title to continue to exchange between companies. As technologies develop and improves, markets shift, and gamers' tastes evolve, I'm sure we'll continue to see signifiant changes as we go forward.