 Oh, hello OH NOOOO! Otter. I've missed you so much. Has your need gone away, or have I been lazy? You decide. I'll report.
You know, GTA is a series that tends to be heavy on the mature themes, and in addition to cold blooded murder and sex, there's also the drugs. Generally, all those things exist in the virtual world only, and you get your virtual kicks. But, wouldn't it be interesting if Rockstar gave you a trinket for buying the game? Nah, it wouldn't be good, sex, murder, and drugs are bad, and best should be virtual. Here's for keeping those things virtual.
Well, turns out that when you buy used copies of GTA you increase your chances of having GTA become slightly more real for you. See, if you live in Britain, you have a chance apparently of buying a used pair of GTA games with Ecstasy tables stuffed in one of the game's manual. I bet that could be lucrative on the market, but, drugs are bad, and you should definitely turn them into the authorities.
So, the better question is will some evil British Politician use this story to tie games and drugs? Do playing games like GTA make you do drugs? Well, if you find the right politician, I bet you'll find out adept enough to contort the facts to reflect that. Will it happen with this case? Who knows, but we'll keep tracking this story for developments, because, you never know if games might make you do drugs. Just remember, drugs are bad, even if you do find Ecstasy in your case.
Report: Dad Finds Ecstasy Tablets in Used Copy of Grand Theft Auto [Game Politics]
*NOTE: Drugs really are bad. Don't do them.
You know what? We have a chat. It's absurd, and it's fun. Want to see a sample of our absurdity? Sure you do:
[23:32] *** TraderFake is now known as Alfaxxor. [23:33] Alfabor: doesn't rhyme. [23:33] Alfacor: ONLY ONE LETTER CHANGE [23:33] Alfabor: nice try. [23:33] Alfaxxor: I DO NOT CARE [23:33] Alfabor: better luck next time. [23:33] Alfaxxor:  [23:33] Alfacor: You don`t add more, you`re messing it up! [23:33] Alfacor: Now he`s not gonna give you +o [23:33] Alfaxxor: YES! [23:33] Alfacor: YOU`RE MISSING OUT [23:33] *** Alfaxxor has been kicked from #rfgeneration by Alfabor: you damn well better make your name right [23:33] Alfabor: oops. [23:33] Alfabor: he doesn't know how we roll, does he. [23:34] Alfacor: Nope. [23:34] Alfabor: whoops. [23:34] Alfabor: oh well. [23:34] Alfabor: well, he was a nice guy. [23:34] Alfabor: way to lose that member. [23:34] Alfabor: he apparently does not have autorejoin [23:34] Alfacor: Yep, he`s gotta do it right. [23:34] Alfabor: so... will he ever come back.
And that is the $64,000 question. Did Lios come back? The only way you will know is if you join #rfgeneration. So yeah, won't you join us? JOIN US, WON'T YOU?
Click Here for our Chat Page
Good news everyone! The weather has broken (for a while at least) and it was reasonably comfortable shopping around the flea market for the first time this year. The place was far from packed, but if its any indication of what is to come, this will be another spectacular year. The flea market has been consistently good so far this year, but garage sales are still very slow. Hopefully, April will bring more stuff (actually since this is so late, I KNOW April will be good  )
And I apologize with the tardiness of this post, it should have been up earlier, but with the server move and a really hectic schedule, I didn't have a chance to get it up until now.
And to try and maintain consistency, I'll be posting these on Mondays from now on.
Continue reading Treasure Hunt Chronicles '09 - March
I hope you've heard of Mega64. If not, they're a comedy group that does live action re-enactments of games in public. Go look them up on YouTube.
So, their new skit is Metal Gear Solid 4, and they manage to squeeze in a few fantastic special guests. I won't ruin who it is, so hit the jump if you want to find out who. This video really needs no more introduction, so here you are:
Continue reading RFG Aside: Mega64 Tops Themselves...YET AGAIN
March. It's the month after February, and see, it's another one of these months of the year. And with each passing year comes new submissions for the site. Last month saw 2894 new submissions for the site, of which the games database saw 2818 new submissions. You know, I think you can hear the hardware database crying in the distance because it's being neglected. Won't you do something about that? Ah, I kid, I kid. Sure, submit more stuff for the hardware database, but over 2800 submissions is no small feat, and I am ever appreciative for that. Also, we added 466 new images to our databases last month. That's nice, isn't it?
So, who kicked ass, took names, and reigned as the top submitter last month? Why, it was our prodigal son, Izret101! I guess being away from staff duties for a long time made him really want to make 836 submissions last month. Although, he could just be driven. Who knows. Of course, ApolloBoy, Madir and Pop Culture Portal weren't really slacking either. They were the next highest submitters, and kudos goes to them. Of course, we want to recognize everyone who made submissions last month, and give kudos to those of you that made more than 50 submissions last month:
Izret101, ApolloBoy, Madir, Pop Culture Portal, ga5ket, Tan, audioman83, Funk_Buddy, Zenki.
Thanks goes to them and everyone else who made submissions last month!
In addition, many of these submissions need to be approved by staff members. Last month, NES_Rules was our top approver, with a whopping 390 approvals. Of course, many other staff members approved your submissions, and thanks goes to all of them, especially those who made more than 50 submissions:
NES_Rules, ga5ket, ApolloBoy, Tan
I really appreciate all of you who have reviewed the submissions and made the submissions. It is YOU guys that make our site grow. I just provide the scripts that allow you to do it. From all of us at RF Generation, Thanks!
You know, the Church of RF Generation was fantastic. It might have been a little late, but late to the party is better than no party at all. I'd like to give Den props for the idea, images, and color palette. It truly was fun.
As many of you know, we started our server move Sunday Night. It didn't exactly go to plan. Something bad happened which kept us from coming back in time. In that emptiness, I hope you found something to keep yourself occupied. If you didn't, rest assured that we are back and on a new, faster, better server. It's nice. Also, we have a better control panel and we we're saving six dollars a month. Hooray to that.
I hope you enjoyed our April Fools joke. It was fun. If you're new here, April Fools is a High Holy Day for RF Generation, and we go all out. Additionally, we do not take suggestions for April Fools, so don't even try. I'll ignore any message regarding it. Might even block you. We take pleasure in knowing that only a certain few people know the gag, and it's generally a surprise. From Composite Generation, to Pretty Generation to Toddler Generation to Geriatric Generation to the most recent Church of RF Generation... we love April Fools. Until next year!
My children rejoice, the time of ascension is at hand. 2008 was a horrible year for us, and we were penalized badly with massive downtime in the months of April and May. This downtime lead us to search for the reason why we were down for almost two months. We searched far and wide through our logs and files, but we simply couldn't find any reason as to why we were down. It was frustrating, until we decided to reflect on our own actions. It was there, that we saw the error of our ways.
We thought long and hard about this change, and we thought hard for a reason. See, we people at RF Generation were heavens, our lax nature and our lackadaisical manner had struck the ire of the Gods. We had initially decided against doing something drastic, but this decision struck the ire of the Gods, as just noticed. It was so obvious, looking back, that we were horrible, horrible people. We were so busy trying to please our members that we simply forgot about the Gods, and they simply didn't appreciate that. In their vengeful wrath, they sent our site into limbo for two painful months. The wrath was swift, it was painful, and looking back, we understand their ire. In that respect, we repent.
Today is the culmination of ten months of reflection and identity seeking. We all truly were sinners to our Gods, and we are truly sorry to have displeased them. We wish, and will make amends to our deities. The RF Generation you know has been cleansed. Today, we begin the process of rolling out the product of our cleansing. Today, we launch our Church. We have for far too long ignored our deities. Today is the day we make things right.
The Church of RF Generation has been founded on the principles that our deities never be ignored. Who are our deities? They are the pillars that allow and foster our being as gamers and collectors. Our pantheon consists of many deities, but no deity reigns supreme. They are all equal, although everyone of us might hold one closer to our hearts. I know I personally pay special homage to Yevon. Perhaps you worship one of the holy grails of game collecting, Nintendo World Championships. Some our members find this deity to be most benevolent and at the same time most elusive.
The truth is that we all pay special homage to our deities that make video games what it is for all of us. We will never forget these deities. Our church will be a constant reminder and source of piety for our gaming deities. We love them, and always will follow them.
Join us in the Church of RF Generation. Find the deity that best suits you. Enjoy your games and collecting, but never forget of those deities that afforded you the amazing hobbies you have today.
-David Murnan
Supreme Chancellor, The Church of RF Generation
This is just a notice to let you know that we begin the process of moving to a new server tonight at 10PM Eastern. I haven't disabled anything yet, but chances are somethings might get disabled during the move. Things might be pushed into read only mode, I am not sure yet, but I just want to give you kids the heads up before some kids start freaking out.
Every year, much like E3, there is a convention titled the Game Developers Conference. This year, it ran from March 23rd to the 27th. In that time, many new, innovative games (software) as well as hardware were announced. Two of which being new consoles, or perhaps better dubbed as pseudo-consoles, titled the 'Zeebo' and 'OnLive'. Now we shall look over these two "consoles" and examine what may or may not make them come out ahead of the competition, which is their (eventual) goal.
 First, we are greeted by the OnLive service console thingy. I am hesitant to call it an actual console, because it completely does NOT meet the normal requirements for a 'console' designation, in any respect.
Slated for release sometime in the Winter of 2009, this console/system/thingy uses a unique method of playing games; it streams them, taking DLC to a whole new level. What do I mean by stream? Well, there will be 3 ways to play games: 1) On your PC, 2) On your Mac, or 3) On your TV. To play games via PC or Mac, you download a small plug-in for your browser, which you then access an "OnLive Server", which streams your games directly to your computer, never saving them directly to your hard disk. Supposedly, this method of streaming should work flawlessly, as long as your internet connection and computer meet the minimum requirements. To play on your television, you purchase what has been dubbed a 'Mini-Console', which acts like the small plug-in for your browser. According to the developers, the mini-Console will work with all Bluetooth accessories, so you will be able to use your 360 and PS3 controllers to play their competitor's 'console'.
My own impression? Well, to put it rather bluntly, crash 'n burn, unless the streaming works as well as they advertise it. If it does do what it is supposed to, and be able to play in HD (if you have a high enough bandwith), then it might have some potential. I guess all we can do is wait and see what the base price for the mini-console and the service will be. Only time will tell...
And up next, we have *drumroll*
 The Zeebo! Now, what kind of name is that? Almost sounds suspicious... Like Swoopo... Alas! I am off topic!
The Zeebo was developed by more than 12 companies, and is released under the company TecToy, a distributor in Brazil. The console, dubbed as the "First Brazilian Developed Console", is designed to meet the needs of the ever growing middle class in the 'BRIC', or Brazil, Russia, India, and China. In the next decade, it is projected that over 800 Million will join these ranks, having more money to spend on entertainment. At a base price of only 199.99USD, the console is on par with the Wii in terms of price.
One must remember though, that a Wii in these nations costs a fortune. In fact, the Wii, or PS3, or 360 aren't even officially SOLD there! One must import one from Japan, etc. For example, a Wii costs a Chinese citizen about 1000HKD plus Customs. That's about 450USD! The basic reason for the high cost is because of rampant piracy in these countries. It isn't profitable to market in these countries.
However, the Zeebo is changing this. It will be marketed in these countries, and games will be exclusively DLC only, via a Zeebo specific 3G wireless network, like those used in Smart Phones. The perk is that you do NOT pay for this service. You get the 3G connectivity right out of the box. What you pay for is the games themselves.
While the Zeebo looks a lot more 'childish' than the OnLive, its technical specifications aren't that bad, with a 500+ Mhz Processor, 3D Graphics core, and so on. The console has had interest by many major developers seeking to place their games on the system's line up. To me, the Zeebo looks like a good deal for these people in the BRIC, and can introduce a new generation to gaming.
The verdict is... Well, I'd say the Zeebo swoops OnLive off the board. The OnLive has too much that can go wrong, with its streaming technology. The Zeebo has games that you actually download, and get to keep, even if they are digital. If the Zeebo is ever marketed outside of the BRIC, then I would probably purchase it before the OnLive service.
[IMAGE]
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So now we meet Den! I'm not going to give a huge preface on him just because the interview is so long compared to my previous two entries.
But something we did not get into in the interview was that Den has done many of the animations/gifs/banners/other artwork you see around RFGen. In fact i believe he has done nearly all of it! I could be wrong about him doing all of it(if i am wrong someone please feel free to let me know  ) but i know he has done quite a bit for the site over the years.
And now onto number 3.
GENERAL
How did you find RFGeneration?
I knew Mike Collins (Lord Nepenthean) when we were both members at a site called Video Game Bible. When he started RFG I was right on board. I've been an RFG member since the site launched. That was June 8th, 2004.
What made you join?
Mike was a dedicated guy so I knew RFG was going to be a top notch outfit. I wanted to be there from the start and see where it went. I was honored when Mike asked me to be a part of the staff.
What made you stay?
I like the ideals that the site was founded on, no one is ever forgotten. It's great that every person who contributes anything is credited. It truly makes RFG a community effort. The members of the site are awesome, our board is a great place to hang out. It's very informative and rarely bitchy. And that Collection Tool we have here is a Marvelous BEAST!!!
Have you met or personally know any of the other members of the website?
Many! Phoenix1967 is great friend of mine. We met in High School so we've been friends nearly 30 years. Cawsccs is a friend of mine from work, he doesn't post but does have his collection logged here. I've met Tynstar, he's originally from Michigan and we did a trade in person when he was home visiting family. I know Sauza12. We did a trade and decided to meet at a bar for the swap. We've hung out and been to each others places a few times. A few years ago Sauza and I drove to Cincinnatti for the Cinci Classic. There I met TraderJake, St0rmTK421 and The Evil Leon. I think that's everybody.
Are you an active game collector? If so anything specific?
Yes, though I'd say obsessed game collector rather than active. I don't collect anything specific. If it's a video game or video game related I collect it.
Whats your favorite game or series? Why?
I guess Guitar Hero/Rock Band. Why? Because I'm 40 and I get to act out my adolescent Rock Star fantasies.
What are your passions?
My passions are my family and friends. Trying to be a good husband and dad. Helping my daughter grow up to be a good person. Music, Video Games, Books, Cartoon, Movies... all sorts of stuff.
What do you do outside of RFG?
I am the Creative Services Manager for a marketing company in Taylor, Michigan. I do a lot of graphic design, digital photography, web development and whatever else customers throw my way.
SPECIFICS
Right now your collection stands at just under 5k entries(only 3 of them being hardware). How much of your collection would you say is actually on the site right now?
With the exception of my hardware most of my collection has been uploaded. I still have a bunch of PC games and Plug N Plays that I haven't entered. I have a few hundred handhelds that I need to enter. I've been putting that off. I know a bunch of them need to have game entries created.
How have you managed to amass such a fantastically large collection?
I still have every game and console that I've gotten through the years. So when I started seriously collecting 7 or 8 years ago I already had an Atari 2600, Vic-20, C64, NES, Genesis, PS1, Gameboy Color and about 300 games between them. I've acquired the rest mostly from thrift shops, garage sales, flea markets and used game shops.
I'm very persistent with hunting. I'm fortunate to have several thrift shops near me and I hit them as often as I can. I'm also not shy about talking about my collection. I've had many people give me games or sell them to me cheaply. I also check the clearance aisle at Target often and make good use of those coupons Gamestop e-mails on Fridays.
How often do you pick up games/gaming related items?
I stop somewhere looking for games pretty much every day. It's getting hard to find stuff I don't already have but I still manage a few finds every week.
When did you make the change from just being a gamer to also being a collector? What was it that made you make the change, if anything, or did it just kind of metamorph into a dual hobby?
I was surfing one day and stumbled onto Digital Press. I was reading some stuff about the Atari 2600 and got nostalgic. I had my dad dig it out of the attic. I played it again after many years and had a blast. I picked up a few more games for it. Then did the same for my NES and Genesis. One day my wife says "Why don't you just try and find every there is." She was of course being sarcastic but several thousand games later I'm still taking that advice.
How long have you been collecting vinyl?
Much like my game stuff I still have all the vinyl from my youth. It was tucked away in a cabinet out of sight out of mind. One morning I was riding my bike. It was garbage day and I passed a house with a HUGE box of records on the curb. It was 6:00 and the morning and still dark so I took a peek. Black Sabbath, Hendrix, Zeppelin, The Doors, The Who, Pink Floyd... yeah, that box went home with me. I nabbed close to 100 records all in immaculate condition. Thus began another collection. That was about 3 years ago.
Do you go for all formats or try to stick more towards 33s or 45s or 78s?
My turntable doesn't have 78 speed so I only collect 33's and 45's.
GAMING FIRSTS
What was the first game you played and on what system and how old were you?
The first video game I ever played was Coleco's Electronic Quarterback. I got that in 1978 or 79 so I was 10 or 11. The first console I played was the Atari 2600. The game was maybe Combat or Asteroids, I was probably 13.
First console owned?
The Atari 2600. It was a gift from my parents when I made my Confirmation in 8th grade.
First game you bought yourself?
I think it was Starmaster for the 2600. I remember going to Service Merchandise to buy it.
What made you decide to buy that particular game?
That was 27 years ago. I have no idea.
First game you beat?
Strider for the NES. It was my first or second year of college and a joint effort between phoenix1967 and I. I remember we almost finished it in one night. We got stuck on a boss near the end. It took a few weeks to figure out the trick to take him out. We finished the rest of the game in short order after that.
First time you wanted to destroy something because of a game?
Well I've come close to smashing my Guitar Hero controller a few times but that's about it.
I am very behind in the times but i am sure there are still others out there who have not made the jump to either purchase a 360 or if you already own one to go wireless. This my friends is for you - I am stealing this from the review i did on the actual game page found here. More info at the bottom of the review.
Not much need for an overview on this bad boy.
Simple to hook up: clips on the back of the system then plugs into the USB port beneath it.
Just make sure if you have an ethernet cable plugged in your 360 remove it before plugging this in.
It has gotten pretty good reviews all over the web. Well this is not a good one this is a scathing one! And to be honest i don't see why ANYONE has had anything good to say about it!.
Congratulations MS you made a wireless adapter that works with your console! When 360 could have easily been wireless out of the box the Wii, PS3, DS, and PSP all were!
The hefty 100$ MSRP should have you thinking twice about picking this up when there are cheaper wireless alternatives on the market. Apparently MS originally had stated that only their Wireless adapter would work with the 360 but after i did some research on the web for 360 wireless alternatives I found there are many wireless options available for a much more affordable price.
Unless your an accessory collector and NEED to have something official this is not worth the price given there are so many worthwhile alternatives on the market.
RF Generation Review Score
FAIL*
*sorry for not putting a real score here I just felt that it didn't really deserve one. Outside of the fact that it does what it is supposed to do there are few to no redeeming factors of this piece of hardware.
Also i know this isn't really a review field. Get over it. I just enlightened you.
Ok so here is the more info part.
I have been unsuccessful thus far in getting my recently acquired Xbox360 connected to the internet.
Mostly due to the lack of access to a massive cat5 cable.
Which i thought would be solved by the even more recently picked up official wireless adapter.
Which refuses to find my network. Which is very frustrating(to say the least) since i had decided not to play anything on it till i could get it online first.
I will continue to try and figure out why i cannot pull in a wireless signal.
After a jabbering in the chat for a bit i figured why the hell not ask everyone?
Who knows maybe RFG Around the World will turn into another periodic segment whenever i want to do something you know... world wide.
I've only lived in 3 cities (technically) but all of them were relatively significant or in the case of "The Island" at least interesting. I'm just going to rip info from Wiki (and add a few little notes of my own) that i find most interesting about each place. I'll also be including a link to the main page if people are more interested in any of them
They are in order of when i first lived there.
Feel free to follow suit and/or leave some thoughts/comments
Springfield, Ma USA - http://en.wikipedia.org/w...pringfield,_Massachusetts
The first Springfield in the USA.
Has 2 nicknames The City of Homes and the City of Firsts
Birthplace of Basketball and home of the Basketball hall of fame.
Birth place of Dr. Suess aka Theodor Geisel
4th largest city in New England
Lost part of its land to Conn due to land disputes
Birth place of Smith&Wesson. Headquarters still located here.
Springfield Armory was the first National Armory. Produced then developer weapons up to Vietnam War. Now is a museum and shares its grounds with Springfield Community College
Shays' Rebellion
Springfield Airport was home to Granville Brothers Aircraft best known for the trophy and speed record holding Senior Sportster series of racing aircraft during the "Golden Age of Airracing"(The air port went bankrupt in 1934 a strip mall movies theater and various other shops and buildings are where it once stood. One of these buildins was a gamecrazy i worked at.)
Duryea Motor Wagon Company built and sold the first gasoline powered automobile. The brothers where born and lived in Springfield.
Indian Motorcycles had a factory here 1901-1953 (one of my great grandfathers worked there when he came over from sweden) the building is now low income/HUD housing.
Home to Forest Park (and the Bright Nights Festival) one of the largest municipal parks in the USA.
Port Aransas, Texas USA http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_Aransas
At the 2000 census the population was 3,370 the land area is 8.8 sq mi (22.8 km2). The census is actually relatively flawed since many of those "residents" are just part timers who owned condos or second houses. The actual number of full time residents was probably under 1,000.
Elevation 7 ft
Discovered in 1519 by a Spaniard on commission by the governor of Jamaica.
First recorded permanent settler in Port Aransas was Capt. Robert Ainsworth Mercer of Lancaster, England. Established a sheep and cattle ranch known as El Mar Rancho in 1853 or 55.
Port Aransas claims to be one of the most popular vacation spots in Texas. (I lived there it was. Especially since Galveston and Padre Island are still recovering from Hurricane Ike)
While i lived there the only high school on the island had a 100% graduation rate. The senior class had 60-70 students.(Possibly less.)
Corpus Christi, Texas USA - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corpus_Christi,_Texas
18th Largest city in Texas
The latin translation means Body of Christ.
Selena was murdered here by the president of her fan club, Yolanda Saldivar.
Corpus Christi actually owns part of the aforementioned island. It was owned by the state and went up for auction the city of Port Aransas was unable to come close to winning the bid.
NYC attempted a law suit against Corpus because of T-shirts being sold saying "I
Tracking my collection used to be something that I enjoyed doing. When I began tracking, I only had the GameCube due to my young self trading in games for newer ones. IGN was the place to be for collection tracking. I began viewing the GameFAQs forums in the NES section and it revitalized my love for the classic games played on their original system.
IGN worked well until they began running short on classic information. I began with Digital Press until they finally shut down their collection service. I tried Collectorz.com and it was fine until the trial finally ran out. I also tried out Cart Commander. I enjoyed it, but the manual process for all of my games got to be too much for so many games and a lack of hardware tracking. I had tried out RFGeneration before, but I didn't have much time with it and not even close to the personal organization to get it tracking the way I wanted it.
With more time with it, RFGeneration is just the place for me. I enjoy the forums, the small community, the vast amount of information, and the just plain odd things (I'm looking your way IRC Chat.) RFGeneration has rejuvenated my collection tracking enjoyment again. You don't have to note what is missing because there are already fields for game copies, manuals, and boxes. Plus with the option for our own blog or using the forums, we can post pictures of our stuff to share with those around us here.
My trouble now stems from reentering my stuff. Because I have stopped and started so many times, I just start over every time because I don't end up very far. I have things stored in 2 locations, so it is difficult to get everything together due to a simple lack of space in the house.
Most people have an inbox for their bills, I'm considering it for new games before they are shelved/boxed. I also have games in many various locations around the house that I don't find until later. Recently, I have discovered the hardware tracking at RFGeneration. I have not seen that anywhere and with the boxes of stuff everywhere, it just adds more to my list. Eventually, I'll get it all in if for nothing else but for insurance reasons.
While I would probably have been better off keeping to it from the beginning, the number of duplicates and shifting around my storage always made me lose track. I'll be able to take the initiative and enter everything soon enough, but with over 1000 games and a ton of consoles and accessories, it'll be a long trek to get there.
Our host has offered to upgrade our server for free. Better yet, the new server will be 10 dollars cheaper a month. Needless to say, we're moving servers. Image Submissions are disabled until we finish the move, which hopefully will be wrapped up by the end of Tuesday. Other things should remain online since the mySQL tables are pretty portable. We'll keep you posted to the changes, and if anything should go awry, our emergency blog will have the information you're probably going to be looking for. We don't anticipate any significant downtime, but it's always good to be prepared.
Thanks for supporting us, and we hope to see you on the flip side of the server move.
|  History of the Video Game Console
-- The 1970s -- |
The 1970s marked the beginning of home video gaming as we know it today. Ralph Baer, uniformly known as the father of the video game console, created and developed the infamous Brown Box, which would later become the revolutionary Magnavox Odyssey. Few could honestly admit that this humble beginning would result in the multi-billion dollar market of today. The advent of the microprocessor proved to be the key.
While some focused on mastering their dance moves to impress at the local Disco, others devoted their time in developing the first microprocessor and the C programming language. Their efforts resulted in the birth of modern computing. For once, the electronic components that once occupied more than 15,000 square feet of warehouse space was made available to the general public at a reasonably affordable rate in the form of the home computer. This technological jump enabled the creation of the home video game console. Many companies entered into this fledging market hoping to capitalize on this newly developed technology - some with greater success than others. The decade spawned myriads of PONG systems and also introduced us to a new world - programmable cartridge based systems (which this article focusing upon). Gone were the days of the dedicated console and ushered in were the true parents of today's hardware. Fairchild Semiconductors was the first to introduce us to this advancement in the form of their Video Entertainment Center (Channel F), but Atari ended up being the king of this era with the release of the Video Computer System (2600). The decade marked another significant feat - the beginnings of globalization within the gaming community. Not only were systems released in various countries, but the first BBS (bulletin board system) enabled gamers from around the world to share their video game experiences via text forums. The following takes a quick snapshot of each main console (or technology) that was released during this decade.
| | 1972 - Magnavox Odyssey |      | 
| The granddaddy of the home video game console. There were no processors in this system - just a series of transistors, resistors and capacitors. Pin-outs were contained on the individual game cards and graphical output was produced with white blocks against a black background. Plastic colored overlays were provided to put over your television screen to enhance the graphics a bit. |  | Fun Fact: Consumers were told that this system would only work with Magnavox brand televisions, which was completely inaccurate. | | | 1975 - PC-50X Family |    | 
| Improvements to the initial General Instruments AY-3-8500 (PONG) chip resulted in more game variations on this classic format. Manufacturers wised up made a breakthrough - include the new chip(s) on cartridges. This eliminated the need to develop a new system for every chip and significantly drove down cost. There were a total of eight chip variations that were produced and the pin-out cartridges contained up to 10 games. |  | Fun Fact: The initial models still only output the games in black and white. Later technological enhancements added color (4 colors) and sound. | | | 1976 - Fairchild Video Entertainment System (Channel F) |   | 
| The Fairchild Video Entertainment System (later changed to Channel F) was the first console to feature programmable cartridges. Featuring built-in games, 8' controller cords and being the first to utilize microprocessor technology, the Channel F was quite innovative at the time of its release. The following year the Atari Video Computer System (specifically named this way to directly compete against Fairchild's similarly entitled system) put the stake through this fledgling console's heart. |  | Fun Fact: Andrew Grove and Robert Noyce, two employees of Fairchild Semiconductors, would eventually start a new company that some of you may have heard of: Intel. | | | 1976 - RCA Studio II | | 
| RCA lost the race to Fairchild Semiconductors to produce the first programmable console available to the public. The Studio II lacked controllers and relied upon the built-in numeric keypad to control the action. Another glaring fault of this system is the black and white video output. Though it has been proven that a few games were designed for color, RCA's rush to get this product to market resulted in the absence of this basic feature. |  | Fun Fact: Ralph Baer, the designer of the Odyssey, originally approached RCA to be the initial manufacturer of his new system. RCA declined and the rest is a bad RCA memory. | | | 1976 - 1292 APVS Family | | 
| The 1292 Advanced Programmable Video System (APVS) family of consoles was basically Europe's answer to the Fairchild Channel F. The initial developer, a German company called Radofin, was one of the first companies to license programmable hardware technology to many other companies (much like The 3DO Company did with Panasonic and Goldstar). This strategy produces extremely positive results as nearly 25 different models were produced by various manufacturers. |  | Fun Fact: The Emerson Arcadia, released in 1982, was first believed to be a 1292 clone since it uses the same Signetics CPU. In fact, the Arcadia's coprocessor was an upgrade. | | | 1977 - Atari Video Computer System (2600) |  | 
| Atari's mother ship set the standard for programmable based video game systems in the 1970s. Code named 'Stella' (after one of the designer's bicycle), the 2600 was the first system to come close to delivering an arcade experience in the comforts of one's living room. This would not have been possible if it wasn't for Warner Communication. Atari Inc., experiencing significant cash flow problems, approached the media giant who eventually purchased the company and completed development of this classic system. |  | Fun Fact: In 1982, Atari changed the name of this console in Atari 2600 due to the fact that their newly released system as dubbed the Atari 5200. | | | 1977 - Bally Home Library Computer (Professional Arcade Astrocade) | | 
| The Home Library Computer was designed by Bally's video game division Midway (creators of the infamous Mortal Kombat series). The technology was quite impressive for the time and rivaled the popular Atari 2600 in terms of graphical output. The most innovative facet of this system is its multi-functional 'pistol' controller, featuring a trigger action button and a multi-directional joystick know that could also serve as a paddle controller. Bally suffered from lack of arcade license support (Atari ate these up) and eventually could not compete. |  | Fun Fact: Though the cartridges resemble audio cassettes, they are in fact just regular carts. They were designed this way to prevent cart damage (they do not protrude at all). | | | 1978 - Magnavox Odyssey 2 Philips VideoPac | | 
| The Odyssey 2 was the first console to incorporate a full alpha-numeric keyboard along with its initial hardwired joystick controllers. Though technically inferior to the rival Atari 2600, the Odyssey 2 did feature flicker-free graphics, a point its competitor could not make. This console was very successful and was manufactured throughout the world by notable companies including Philips, Radiola and Schneider. This was also the first console to actively market itself as an educational toll in addition to its programming ability. |  | Fun Fact: Almost all of the games for were written by one person - Ed Averett, a former Intel employee who worked closely in the development of the O2's Intel 4040 processor. | | | 1978 - Interton VC-4000 |   | 
| It is undetermined if the German based company Interton developed this system on its own, or if they licensed the 1292 APVS technology from Radofin. There are minor differences in the cart size and programming, but few would argue that it is anything but a sibling of the 1292 APVS. The VC-4000 was mildly successful, with models released in Europe, Australia and Argentina among others. |  | Fun Fact: The Interton VC-4000 is considered to be in the 1292 APVS Family of consoles though there are some minor compatibility differences in cart size and game releases. | | | 1978 - APF Imagination Machine | |  | APF Electronics jumped into the video game craze with their release of the APF-M1000 console in 1978. This 8-bit system was designed to compete against the heavyweight Atari 2600. It did not even come close. But what makes this system unique is the addition of the APF MP-10 computer add-on that was released in 1979. The base console could be docked into this module to create a hybrid computer, one of the first of its kind. |  | Fun Fact: Although the APF IM game library only contains 15 official releases, many more applications were available made available by its extremely active home-brew community. | | 1979 - Bandai Super Vision 8000 |  |  | The Bandai Super Vision 8000 debuted in 1979 and was the very first programmable game cartridge system released in Japan. This timeline (1979) and notoriety (initial entry and the developer, Bandai) may be a surprise to some simply due to the fact that Japan has been a leader in video game technology for some time, with big hitters Nintendo and Sega in the fold. Though technically superior to the competition, the high price tag ($1.3K in USD comparable in 1979) quickly doomed this console after just one year of production. |  | Fun Fact: Due to its controller design, some feel that this is a clone of the Intellivision, when in fact the Super Vision 8000 was released prior to Mattel's system. | | | 1979 - Mattel Intellivision | |  | The chief challenger to the Atari 2600, the Intellivision sported new disc controllers (either loved or hated by gamers) and superior graphical and auditorial capabilities. With few attractive arcade or movie licenses available to them due to Atari's aggressive nature in this field, Mattel had to rely upon lesser known titles but did produce an innovative add-on - the Atari 2600 Adaptor. The library of compatible games now more tripled for this system and the Intellivision would continue to sell into the 1990s. |  | Fun Fact: After possibly copying their controller design of the Super Vision 8000, Mattel approached Bandai to be the exclusive distributor of the Intellivision in Japan. | | |
The 1970s ended up being one of the most influential decades in the history of video gaming hardware. Technological breakthroughs abounded and successes (and at times failures) of companies that participated during this time helped inspire behemoths like Nintendo and Sega to develop into the gaming force they would become in the following decade. Dancing was definitely a driving force during this time period - thank goodness the programmers fingers and not the John Travolta wannabes ended up standing the test of time.
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