Game On…Fail On
On the same day I witnessed what it was for a fully grown man to only be able to live day to day life by moving an eyelid and nothing else in the French film The Diving Bell & The Butterfly, I was also privileged to take part in the observation of the history, current status and potential future of one of my favourite hobbies in life…The Gaming Industry.
Held at the Federation Square Acmi building, the expo consisted of nearly every gaming console in history as well as some of the most important and influencial games made since gaming first game into play in 1962 with the first electronic game to be featured, Spacewar!, designed by Steve Russell and friends on the PDP-1 computer. It was a trip to see where video games once were and where they are now. Rarely-seen consoles, controllers, arcade machines, packaging and collectables were brought together in a showcase like no other I had ever seen anywhere accept for my friends bedroom.
Game characters have had a significant cultural impact since Pac-Man was launched in the 1980s. And it was a trip down memory lane consisted of original illustrations by Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto and concept sketches behind classics like Tomb Raider and Sonic the Hedgehog. Which reminded me of how I use to draw him in grade 2 when he dominated my life over basic addition and subtraction. I was also stunned at how these life impacting characters had changed over time from merely a few pixels to fully 3 dimensional life-forms.
A range of rare vintage arcade games followed, including the first manufactured arcade game Computer Space (1971) and Pong (1972) which seemed to be as boring as playing Monopoly to me, but having said that, I have played a lot of excellent games made in 2007 lately. I learnt that Atari founder Nolan Bushnell was responsible for the creation of these games who’s company unfortunately got shafted from gaming forever after the creation of the Playstation (The social gaming console) however Atari went on to develop games with Activision. Other major playable arcade games featured included Space Invaders (1978), Asteroids (1979), Pac-Man (1980) and Donkey Kong (1982), which I played on a little hand held unit I used to own as a young boy. It was a trip playing it again and it was just as difficult to play which really pissed me off towards the end because I thought I would have developed my gaming skills over time. I was also able to get my hands on a few handheld gaming systems, including the Nintendo GameBoy and Milton Bradley’s Microvision, and explore a selection of kids’ games like Nintendo’s famous Game and Watch series and Milton Bradley’s Simon.
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I was also able to play some of the key consoles, including the Magnavox Odyssey (1972), the first console made for the home and I felt sorry for gamers then because of what they had to keep them entertained. I explored the history of gaming which told the stories of the major manufacturers who have brought gaming into the home over the last thirty years: Atari, Commodore, Nintendo, Sega, Sinclair, Microsoft and Sony and the wars that broke out between each console and the games they brought out. One war I particularly interested in learning about was the Nintendo VS Sega war, because over the years as a young boy and teenager I took different sides as different consoles & games came out, showing my loyalty at its strongest (end sarcasm here). I also learnt that Sega was shafted thanks to the efforts of Sony (AGAIN) with the Playstation 2 and not their true rivals Nintendo which would have been a lot more respectful, but I suppose this industry isn’t the nicest industry to be a part of.
I was able to play different types of games made for different types of people including puzzle games, action games, adventure games, shooter games, racing games, fight games, platform games and horror games. All providing me with a different perspective of the gaming world and helping me realise that there are all different types of gamers out there, not just gamers whom like games like teenagers and younger male adults. There are parents, children, females and sometimes the odd grandpa that likes to jump around like a lunatic. And the gaming industry seems to cater to each of these minorities.
The history of games designed for children was explored games like Sesame Street’s Cookie Monster Munch (1983) which were developed as educational tools. Which I had a lot of fun playing, knowing that I was both losing and gaining knowledge as I played…it was quite a trip.
Multiplayer gaming has become one of the most important gaming trends of recent times, changing the landscape of PC, console and arcade-based gaming. I didn’t really need Game On to insight me with this fact because about 80% of the gaming I do is multiplayer but it was still interesting to learn the history of multiplayer gaming. They have been a feature of videogames since the first games console, where 2 to 4 players could play together, right up to MMOs (Massively Multiplayer Online Games) in which thousands of people can play online simultaneously. A range of networked games were featured including Bomberman and Halo 3 which I played for a little and then realised that I could go home and play it without standing up and not feel uncomfortable about the little 10 year old waiting behind me for a go. So I then left and went home feeling great knowing that I played games and watched paralysed men accomplish greatness through an eyelid.
A great day in the history that is my life.
