History of video game consoles (third generation)
Encyclopedia
In the history of computer and video games
, the third generation began on July 15, 1983, with the Japan
ese release of both the Nintendo Family Computer
(later known as the Nintendo Entertainment System
in the rest of the world) and Sega SG-1000
. This generation marked the end of the North American video game crash of 1983, a shift in the dominance of home video games from the United States
to Japan, and the transition from single-screen or flip-screen
graphics to scrolling
graphics, which would prove to be a pivotal leap in game design.
Although the previous generation of consoles had also used 8-bit
processors, it was at the end of this generation that home consoles were first labeled by their "bits". This also came into fashion as 16-bit systems like the Mega Drive/Genesis
were marketed to differentiate between the generations of consoles. In the United States, this generation in gaming was primarily dominated by the NES/Famicom. The end of the 3rd generation of video games comes as 8-bit consoles become obsolete in graphics and processing power compared to 16-bit consoles.
(commonly abbreviated the Famicom) became very popular in Japan during this era, crowding out the other consoles in this generation. The Famicom's Western counterpart, the Nintendo Entertainment System
, dominated the gaming market in Japan and North America, thanks in part to its restrictive licensing agreements with developers. This marked a shift in the dominance of home video games from the United States to Japan, to the point that Computer Gaming World
described the "Nintendo craze" as a "non-event" for American video game designers as "virtually all the work to date has been done in Japan." Although the NES dominated the market in Japan and North America, Sega
's Master System made large inroads in Europe, Oceania and Brazil, where the NES was never able to break its grip. The Atari 7800
also had a fairly successful life in the United States, and the Sharp X68000
began its niche run in Japan in 1987.
The third generation would mark the move from single-screen or flip-screen
graphics to scrolling
graphics, which would prove to be nearly as pivotal as the leap to 3D graphics
during the fifth generation
. While hardware scrolling had been present in various arcade game
s in the early 1980s, during the golden age of video arcade games, it was not introduced to consoles until the third generation, with the 1983 release of the NES, the first console to feature hardware scrolling. The emergence of scrolling games opened up the possibility of vast worlds that made earlier single-screen games seem quaint. This gave Nintendo
's NES a major advantage over its competitor, the Sega SG-1000
, which was released on the same day but lacked hardware scrolling. Unlike the NES, the SG-1000 initially had very little to differentiate itself from earlier consoles such as the ColecoVision
and contemporary computers such as the MSX
. Despite the lack of hardware scrolling, Sega's SG-1000 Mark II was able to pull off some scrolling effects in 1984, including parallax scrolling
in Orguss and sprite-scaling
in Zoom 909. In 1985, Sega's Master System incorporated hardware scrolling, alongside an increased colour palette, greater memory, pseudo-3D effects, and stereoscopic 3-D, gaining a clear hardware advantage over the NES. However, the NES would still continue to dominate the important North American and Japanese markets, while the Master System would gain more dominance in the emerging European and South American markets.
In the later part of the third generation (argued by some as part of the 4th generation as the Turbografx-16
was released in 1987 and the Sega Mega Drive
was released in 1988), Nintendo also introduced the Game Boy
, which almost single-handedly solidified, and then proceeded to dominate, the previously scattered handheld market for 15 years. While the Game Boy product line has been incrementally updated every few years, until the Game Boy Micro
and Nintendo DS
, and partially the Game Boy Color
, all Game Boy products were backwards compatible
with the original released in 1989. Since the Game Boy's release, Nintendo had dominated the handheld market.
The third generation saw many of the first console role-playing video game
s (RPGs). Editing and censorship
of video games was often used in localizing
Japanese games to North America. During this era, many of the most famous video game franchises of all time were founded. Some examples are Super Mario Bros.
, Final Fantasy
, The Legend of Zelda
, Dragon Quest
, Metroid
, Mega Man
, Metal Gear
, Castlevania
, Phantasy Star
, Megami Tensei
, Ninja Gaiden
, and Bomberman
.
The third generation also saw the dawn of the children's educational console
market. Although consoles such as the VideoSmarts and ComputerSmarts systems were stripped down to very primitive input systems designed for children, their use of ROM cartridge
s would establish this as the standard for later such consoles. Due to their reduced capacities, these systems typically were not labeled by their "bits" and were not marketed in competition with traditional video game consoles.
This generation is often mislabeled as the "First Generation" as it saw the beginnings of the video game industry as we know it today (although the grouping of generations is largely arbitrary).
sold by far the most units of any third generation console in North America
and Japan
. This was due to its earlier release, its strong lineup of first-party titles (such as Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario Bros. 3, The Legend of Zelda, and Metroid), and Nintendo's strict licensing rules that required NES titles to be exclusive to the console for two years after release. This put a damper on third party support for the other, less popular consoles. However, Sega
's Master System
was more popular than the NES in Europe, Brazil, Australia, and New Zealand, markets that were first reached by Sega. Many more games for the Master System were released in Europe and Brazil than in North America, and the console had a very long shelf-life in Brazil and New Zealand. In Europe, competition was tough for the NES, which was not as successful as the Master System in those other regions despite the hegemony that it had in the North American and Japanese markets. The industry also started to grow in places west of the Soviet Union
, including Lithuania
via new programmers trained in that area. The Master System was finally discontinued in the late 1990s, while Nintendo of Japan continued to repair Famicom systems until October 31, 2007.
History of computer and video games
The history of video games goes as far back as the 1940s, when in 1947 Thomas T. Goldsmith, Jr. and Estle Ray Mann filed a United States patent request for an invention they described as a "cathode ray tube amusement device." Video gaming would not reach mainstream popularity until the 1970s and...
, the third generation began on July 15, 1983, with the Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese release of both the Nintendo Family Computer
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
(later known as the Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
in the rest of the world) and Sega SG-1000
SG-1000
The SC-3000 was the computer equivalent of the SG-1000.The SC-3000 sold for ¥29,800 in 1983 and was marketed as a computer for beginners...
. This generation marked the end of the North American video game crash of 1983, a shift in the dominance of home video games from the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to Japan, and the transition from single-screen or flip-screen
Flip-screen
In video games, flip-screen is a principle whereby the playing environment is divided into single-screen portions...
graphics to scrolling
Scrolling
In computer graphics, filmmaking, television production, and other kinetic displays, scrolling is sliding text, images or video across a monitor or display. "Scrolling", as such, does not change the layout of the text or pictures, or but incrementally moves the user's view across what is...
graphics, which would prove to be a pivotal leap in game design.
Although the previous generation of consoles had also used 8-bit
8-bit
The first widely adopted 8-bit microprocessor was the Intel 8080, being used in many hobbyist computers of the late 1970s and early 1980s, often running the CP/M operating system. The Zilog Z80 and the Motorola 6800 were also used in similar computers...
processors, it was at the end of this generation that home consoles were first labeled by their "bits". This also came into fashion as 16-bit systems like the Mega Drive/Genesis
Sega Mega Drive
The Sega Genesis is a fourth-generation video game console developed and produced by Sega. It was originally released in Japan in 1988 as , then in North America in 1989 as Sega Genesis, and in Europe, Australia and other PAL regions in 1990 as Mega Drive. The reason for the two names is that...
were marketed to differentiate between the generations of consoles. In the United States, this generation in gaming was primarily dominated by the NES/Famicom. The end of the 3rd generation of video games comes as 8-bit consoles become obsolete in graphics and processing power compared to 16-bit consoles.
Overview
The Family ComputerNintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
(commonly abbreviated the Famicom) became very popular in Japan during this era, crowding out the other consoles in this generation. The Famicom's Western counterpart, the Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
, dominated the gaming market in Japan and North America, thanks in part to its restrictive licensing agreements with developers. This marked a shift in the dominance of home video games from the United States to Japan, to the point that Computer Gaming World
Computer Gaming World
Computer Gaming World was a computer game magazine founded in 1981 by Russell Sipe as a bimonthly publication. Early issues were typically 40-50 pages in length, written in a newsletter style, including submissions by game designers such as Joel Billings , Dan Bunten , and Chris Crawford...
described the "Nintendo craze" as a "non-event" for American video game designers as "virtually all the work to date has been done in Japan." Although the NES dominated the market in Japan and North America, Sega
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
's Master System made large inroads in Europe, Oceania and Brazil, where the NES was never able to break its grip. The Atari 7800
Atari 7800
The Atari 7800 ProSystem, or simply the Atari 7800, is a video game console re-released by Atari Corporation in January 1986. The original release had occurred two years earlier under Atari Inc. The 7800 had originally been designed to replace Atari Inc.'s Atari 5200 in 1984, but was temporarily...
also had a fairly successful life in the United States, and the Sharp X68000
Sharp X68000
The Sharp X68000, often referred to as the X68k, is a home computer released only in Japan by the Sharp Corporation. The first model was released in 1987, with a 10 MHz Motorola 68000 CPU, 1 MB of RAM and no hard drive; the last model was released in 1993 with a 25 MHz Motorola 68030...
began its niche run in Japan in 1987.
The third generation would mark the move from single-screen or flip-screen
Flip-screen
In video games, flip-screen is a principle whereby the playing environment is divided into single-screen portions...
graphics to scrolling
Scrolling
In computer graphics, filmmaking, television production, and other kinetic displays, scrolling is sliding text, images or video across a monitor or display. "Scrolling", as such, does not change the layout of the text or pictures, or but incrementally moves the user's view across what is...
graphics, which would prove to be nearly as pivotal as the leap to 3D graphics
3D computer graphics
3D computer graphics are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images...
during the fifth generation
History of video game consoles (fifth generation)
The fifth-generation era refers to the computer and video games, video game consoles, and video game handhelds available at stores...
. While hardware scrolling had been present in various arcade game
Arcade game
An arcade game is a coin-operated entertainment machine, usually installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars, and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, and merchandisers...
s in the early 1980s, during the golden age of video arcade games, it was not introduced to consoles until the third generation, with the 1983 release of the NES, the first console to feature hardware scrolling. The emergence of scrolling games opened up the possibility of vast worlds that made earlier single-screen games seem quaint. This gave Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
's NES a major advantage over its competitor, the Sega SG-1000
SG-1000
The SC-3000 was the computer equivalent of the SG-1000.The SC-3000 sold for ¥29,800 in 1983 and was marketed as a computer for beginners...
, which was released on the same day but lacked hardware scrolling. Unlike the NES, the SG-1000 initially had very little to differentiate itself from earlier consoles such as the ColecoVision
ColecoVision
The ColecoVision is Coleco Industries' second generation home video game console which was released in August 1982. The ColecoVision offered arcade-quality graphics and gaming style, and the means to expand the system's basic hardware...
and contemporary computers such as the MSX
MSX
MSX was the name of a standardized home computer architecture in the 1980s conceived by Kazuhiko Nishi, then Vice-president at Microsoft Japan and Director at ASCII Corporation...
. Despite the lack of hardware scrolling, Sega's SG-1000 Mark II was able to pull off some scrolling effects in 1984, including parallax scrolling
Parallax scrolling
Parallax scrolling is a special scrolling technique in computer graphics, popularized in the 1982 arcade game Moon Patrol. In this pseudo-3D technique, background images move by the camera slower than foreground images, creating an illusion of depth in a 2D video game and adding to the immersion...
in Orguss and sprite-scaling
2.5D
2.5D , 3/4 perspective and pseudo-3D are terms used to describe either:* 2D graphical projections and techniques which cause a series of images or scenes to fake or appear to be three-dimensional when in fact they are not, or* gameplay in an otherwise three-dimensional video game that is...
in Zoom 909. In 1985, Sega's Master System incorporated hardware scrolling, alongside an increased colour palette, greater memory, pseudo-3D effects, and stereoscopic 3-D, gaining a clear hardware advantage over the NES. However, the NES would still continue to dominate the important North American and Japanese markets, while the Master System would gain more dominance in the emerging European and South American markets.
In the later part of the third generation (argued by some as part of the 4th generation as the Turbografx-16
TurboGrafx-16
TurboGrafx-16, fully titled as TurboGrafx-16 Entertainment SuperSystem and known in Japan as the , is a video game console developed by Hudson Soft and NEC, released in Japan on October 30, 1987, and in North America on August 29, 1989....
was released in 1987 and the Sega Mega Drive
Sega Mega Drive
The Sega Genesis is a fourth-generation video game console developed and produced by Sega. It was originally released in Japan in 1988 as , then in North America in 1989 as Sega Genesis, and in Europe, Australia and other PAL regions in 1990 as Mega Drive. The reason for the two names is that...
was released in 1988), Nintendo also introduced the Game Boy
Game Boy
The , is an 8-bit handheld video game device developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on , in North America in , and in Europe on...
, which almost single-handedly solidified, and then proceeded to dominate, the previously scattered handheld market for 15 years. While the Game Boy product line has been incrementally updated every few years, until the Game Boy Micro
Game Boy Micro
is a handheld game console developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was first released in September 2005 in the market. The system is the last console of the Game Boy line...
and Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
, and partially the Game Boy Color
Game Boy Color
The is Nintendo's successor to the 8-bit Game Boy handheld game console, and was released on October 21, 1998 in Japan, November 19, 1998 in North America, November 23, 1998 in Europe and November 27, 1998 in the United Kingdom. It features a color screen and is slightly thicker and taller than...
, all Game Boy products were backwards compatible
Backward compatibility
In the context of telecommunications and computing, a device or technology is said to be backward or downward compatible if it can work with input generated by an older device...
with the original released in 1989. Since the Game Boy's release, Nintendo had dominated the handheld market.
The third generation saw many of the first console role-playing video game
Role-playing video game
Role-playing video games are a video game genre with origins in pen-and-paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, using much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics. The player in RPGs controls one character, or several adventuring party members, fulfilling one or many quests...
s (RPGs). Editing and censorship
Censorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
of video games was often used in localizing
Internationalization and localization
In computing, internationalization and localization are means of adapting computer software to different languages, regional differences and technical requirements of a target market...
Japanese games to North America. During this era, many of the most famous video game franchises of all time were founded. Some examples are Super Mario Bros.
Super Mario Bros.
is a 1985 platform video game developed by Nintendo, published for the Nintendo Entertainment System as a sequel to the 1983 game Mario Bros. In Super Mario Bros., the player controls Mario as he travels through the Mushroom Kingdom in order to rescue Princess Toadstool from the antagonist...
, Final Fantasy
Final Fantasy
is a media franchise created by Hironobu Sakaguchi, and is developed and owned by Square Enix . The franchise centers on a series of fantasy and science-fantasy role-playing video games , but includes motion pictures, anime, printed media, and other merchandise...
, The Legend of Zelda
The Legend of Zelda
The Legend of Zelda, originally released as in Japan, is a video game developed and published by Nintendo, and designed by Shigeru Miyamoto and Takashi Tezuka. Set in the fantasy land of Hyrule, the plot centers on a boy named Link, the playable protagonist, who aims to collect the eight fragments...
, Dragon Quest
Dragon Quest
, published as Dragon Warrior in North America until 2005,Due to the inconsistent usage by sources since Square Enix obtained the naming rights to Dragon Quest in North America. Dragon Quest has been used by sources to refer to games released solely under the Dragon Warrior titles...
, Metroid
Metroid
is an action-adventure video game, and the first entry in the Metroid series. It was co-developed by Nintendo's Research and Development 1 division and Intelligent Systems, and was released in Japan in August 1986, in North America in August 1987, and in Europe in January 1988...
, Mega Man
Mega Man
Mega Man is a video game franchise from Capcom, starring the eponymous character Mega Man, or one of his many counterparts. The series is well-known and comprises well over fifty releases, easily making it Capcom's most prolific franchise. As of December 31, 2010, the series has sold approximately...
, Metal Gear
Metal Gear
Metal Gear is a series of video games.Metal Gear may also refer to:*Metal Gear , bipedal tanks appearing in the Metal Gear series-Metal Gear video game series:...
, Castlevania
Castlevania
Castlevania, known as in Japan, is a video game series created and developed by Konami. The series debuted in Japan on September 26, 1986, with the release of for the Family Computer Disk System , followed by an alternate version for the MSX 2 platform on October 30...
, Phantasy Star
Phantasy Star
is the first installment in Sega's renowned series of the same name. It was released for the Sega Master System in Japan on December 20, 1987, and then in North America and Europe in 1988. It is considered one of the pioneers amongst console role-playing games, both for its advanced graphics...
, Megami Tensei
Megami Tensei
, commonly abbreviated as , is a Japanese console role-playing game metaseries which was originally based on the novel series Digital Devil Story by Aya Nishitani and has gone to become one of the major franchises of the genre in its native country...
, Ninja Gaiden
Ninja Gaiden
is a series of video games by Tecmo featuring the ninja Ryu Hayabusa as its protagonist. The series was originally known as in Japan. The word "gaiden" in the North American Ninja Gaiden title means "side-story" in Japanese, even though the Ninja Gaiden series is not a spinoff of a previous series...
, and Bomberman
Bomberman
Bomberman is a strategic, maze-based computer and video game franchise originally developed by Hudson Soft. The original game was published in 1983 and new games in the series are still being published to this day. Today, the commercially successful Bomberman is featured in over 70 different games...
.
The third generation also saw the dawn of the children's educational console
Educational game
Educational games are games that have been designed to teach people about a certain subject, expand concepts, reinforce development, understand an historical event or culture, or assist them in learning a skill as they play...
market. Although consoles such as the VideoSmarts and ComputerSmarts systems were stripped down to very primitive input systems designed for children, their use of ROM cartridge
ROM cartridge
A ROM cartridge, sometimes referred to as a cart, is a removable enclosure containing read-only memory devices designed to be connected to a computer or games console....
s would establish this as the standard for later such consoles. Due to their reduced capacities, these systems typically were not labeled by their "bits" and were not marketed in competition with traditional video game consoles.
This generation is often mislabeled as the "First Generation" as it saw the beginnings of the video game industry as we know it today (although the grouping of generations is largely arbitrary).
Nintendo versus Sega
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) / Family Computer (Famicom)Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
sold by far the most units of any third generation console in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. This was due to its earlier release, its strong lineup of first-party titles (such as Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario Bros. 3, The Legend of Zelda, and Metroid), and Nintendo's strict licensing rules that required NES titles to be exclusive to the console for two years after release. This put a damper on third party support for the other, less popular consoles. However, Sega
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
's Master System
Sega Master System
The is a third-generation video game console that was manufactured and released by Sega in 1985 in Japan , 1986 in North America and 1987 in Europe....
was more popular than the NES in Europe, Brazil, Australia, and New Zealand, markets that were first reached by Sega. Many more games for the Master System were released in Europe and Brazil than in North America, and the console had a very long shelf-life in Brazil and New Zealand. In Europe, competition was tough for the NES, which was not as successful as the Master System in those other regions despite the hegemony that it had in the North American and Japanese markets. The industry also started to grow in places west of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, including Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
via new programmers trained in that area. The Master System was finally discontinued in the late 1990s, while Nintendo of Japan continued to repair Famicom systems until October 31, 2007.
Comparison
| Name | Famicom/NES Nintendo Entertainment System The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987... |
SG-1000 SG-1000 The SC-3000 was the computer equivalent of the SG-1000.The SC-3000 sold for ¥29,800 in 1983 and was marketed as a computer for beginners... |
Casio Casio is a multinational electronic devices manufacturing company founded in 1946, with its headquarters in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. Casio is best known for its electronic products, such as calculators, audio equipment, PDAs, cameras, musical instruments, and watches... PV-1000 PV-1000 The PV-1000 was a video game console manufactured by Casio and released in Japan in 1983. The PV-1000 was powered by a Z80A micro-processor, and had only 2 KB RAM available, with 1 KB devoted to its character generator. It had a 256x192 pixel resolution and had 8 available colours... |
Master System | Atari 7800 Atari 7800 The Atari 7800 ProSystem, or simply the Atari 7800, is a video game console re-released by Atari Corporation in January 1986. The original release had occurred two years earlier under Atari Inc. The 7800 had originally been designed to replace Atari Inc.'s Atari 5200 in 1984, but was temporarily... |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Nintendo Nintendo is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel.... |
Sega Sega , usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world... |
Casio Casio is a multinational electronic devices manufacturing company founded in 1946, with its headquarters in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. Casio is best known for its electronic products, such as calculators, audio equipment, PDAs, cameras, musical instruments, and watches... |
Sega Sega , usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world... |
Atari Atari Atari is a corporate and brand name owned by several entities since its inception in 1972. It is currently owned by Atari Interactive, a wholly owned subsidiary of the French publisher Atari, SA . The original Atari, Inc. was founded in 1972 by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney. It was a pioneer in... |
| Console |  |
||||
| Launch prices | ¥14,800 US$199.99 CA$240 |
¥15,000 | ¥14,800 | ¥24,200 US$199.99 |
US$140.00 |
| Release date | |||||
| Media | Cartridge and floppy disk (Japan only) | Cartridge and Cassette (SG-3000) | Cartridge | Cartridge and data card | Cartridge |
| Top-selling games | Super Mario Bros. Super Mario Bros. is a 1985 platform video game developed by Nintendo, published for the Nintendo Entertainment System as a sequel to the 1983 game Mario Bros. In Super Mario Bros., the player controls Mario as he travels through the Mushroom Kingdom in order to rescue Princess Toadstool from the antagonist... (pack-in Pack-in game - Characteristics :Pack-in games are intended to be system-selling games that make good use of the positive features of a given system. Sometimes a pack-in game will be changed to a more popular game, or another game will be added, along with the original pack-in, if it is perceived that a newer... ), 40.23 million (as of 1999) Super Mario Bros. 3 Super Mario Bros. 3 , also referred to as Super Mario 3 and SMB3, is a platform video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System , and is the third game in the Super Mario series. The game was released in Japan in 1988, in the United States in 1990, and in Europe in 1991... , 18 million (as of May 21, 2003) |
N/A | N/A | Hang-On Hang-On Hang-On is an arcade game released by Sega in 1985. It is the world's first full-body-experience video game. In the game, the player controls a motorcycle against time and other computer-controlled bikes. It was one of the first arcade games to use 16-bit graphics and Sega's "Super Scaler"... and Safari Hunt Safari Hunt Safari Hunt is a video game developed and manufactured by Sega for the Master System in 1986. It is a Light-gun game and requires the Sega Light Phaser to play. It was released as a built in game in Version 2.4 of the Master System BIOS.-Gameplay:... (Pack-In) |
Pole Position II Pole Position II Pole Position II is a racing arcade game that was released by Namco in 1983 as the sequel to Pole Position, which was released the previous year. As with the original, Namco licensed Pole Position II to Atari for US manufacture and distribution... (pack-in) |
| Backward compatibility Backward compatibility In the context of telecommunications and computing, a device or technology is said to be backward or downward compatible if it can work with input generated by an older device... |
None | None | None | Sega SG-1000 (Japanese system only) | Atari 2600 Atari 2600 The Atari 2600 is a video game console released in October 1977 by Atari, Inc. It is credited with popularizing the use of microprocessor-based hardware and cartridges containing game code, instead of having non-microprocessor dedicated hardware with all games built in... |
| Accessories (retail) |
|
N/A | N/A |
|
XG-1 The XG-1 is the light gun that came bundled with the Atari XEGS that was released in 1987. The XEGS, which stands for "XE Game System", was an Atari 65XE computer reworked cosmetically to give the appearance of a game console. The light gun was bundled to compete with the Nintendo Entertainment... |
| CPU | Ricoh 2A03 Ricoh 2A03 The Ricoh 2A03 or RP2A03 / Ricoh 2A07 or RP2A07 is the 8-bit microprocessor in the Nintendo Entertainment System video game console. It was manufactured by Ricoh... (based on MOS Technology 6502 MOS Technology 6502 The MOS Technology 6502 is an 8-bit microprocessor that was designed by Chuck Peddle and Bill Mensch for MOS Technology in 1975. When it was introduced, it was the least expensive full-featured microprocessor on the market by a considerable margin, costing less than one-sixth the price of... 1.79 MHz (1.66 MHz PAL) |
NEC 780C (Zilog Z80 Zilog Z80 The Zilog Z80 is an 8-bit microprocessor designed by Zilog and sold from July 1976 onwards. It was widely used both in desktop and embedded computer designs as well as for military purposes... clone) 3.58 MHz for NTSC, 3.55 MHz for PAL |
D780C-1 (Z80A) 3.579 MHz |
NEC 780C (Zilog Z80 Zilog Z80 The Zilog Z80 is an 8-bit microprocessor designed by Zilog and sold from July 1976 onwards. It was widely used both in desktop and embedded computer designs as well as for military purposes... clone) 3.57 MHz (3.54 MHz PAL) |
Custom, 6502C (based on MOS Technology 6502 MOS Technology 6502 The MOS Technology 6502 is an 8-bit microprocessor that was designed by Chuck Peddle and Bill Mensch for MOS Technology in 1975. When it was introduced, it was the least expensive full-featured microprocessor on the market by a considerable margin, costing less than one-sixth the price of... ) 1.79 MHz |
| Memory | 2 KB main RAM 2 KB video RAM 256 bytes sprite RAM 28 bytes palette RAM |
16 kB Main RAM 16 kB video RAM |
2 KB + 1 KB (character generator) | 8 KB main RAM 16 KB video RAM |
4 KB main RAM |
| Video | 64 sprites (8 per scanline) 256x240 resolution 25 simultaneous colors 53 color palette |
256x192 resolution 32 sprites, maximum of 4 sprites per scanline 16 colors |
8 colors 256x192 resolution |
128 colors (16 colors with 8 intensity levels each) | Unlimited sprites 320x200 resolution 25 simultaneous colors 256 color palette |
| Audio | Mono audio with:
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Mono audio with:
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Unknown | Mono audio with:
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Mono audio with:
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Worldwide sales standings
| Console | Units sold |
|---|---|
| Nintendo Entertainment System Nintendo Entertainment System The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987... |
60 million (as of August 4, 2007) |