MAKING GAMES

1 The story of video games started in 1974, when an American called Nolan Bushnell invented a game called Pong. Pong was only a simple, black-and-white version of ping-pong, but it became very popular. Bushnell started a company called Atari and became a multimillionaire. In 1977 Atari produced the first multi-game machine.

2 Other companies started to develop game machines or ‘consoles’ when they saw the success of Atari. In 1985 the Nintendo Entertainment System became popular because its games included the idea of different levels. One game also introduced a character called Jumpman. His name was later changed to Mario, and he became the first video game ‘hero’.

3 Nintendo continued to improve its system and was number one in the world of games in the eighties. In addition, the company launched its famous Gameboy in 1989. However, there were other companies with new and exciting products. Sega invented a machine with better graphics and a popular character called Sonic.

4 In the nineties, people used CD-ROMs for the first time, and Sony, Nintendo and Sega all produced excellent consoles. During that period, Sony’s PlayStation became the most popular machine, but each console had its fans.

5 Most people say that games are now faster and better than before. On the other hand, some psychologists say that they make people more aggressive. For this reason, in many countries experts now evaluate games and give them certificates, like the ratings for films and videos. In Britain, for example, a game with an 18 certificate is probably violent, and only adults can buy it.

6 In the future, however, it won’t be easy to control the content of games. The latest consoles connect to the Internet and allow players to meet in cyberspace. And what will happen there?