There are a lot of things within the Video Game Industry that we take for granted. Whether you like to sit on your couch with a controller playing your Xbox 360, or sitting in a leather computer chair microing your units with a mouse and keyboard, have you ever wondered how we got here? This is the Top 20 Most Influential Things to happen to the Video Game Industry. This is not just limited to games, but covers technology related to gaming, events, business practices of game developers, gaming culture, and everything else that influenced the entire industry. This Top 20 list reflects the entire Video Game Industry as a whole. Whether you're a casual or hardcore gamer, professional gamer, game designer, or game shop owner you are affected by almost all of these (if not all), even if you've never heard of any of these before.
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20. "WASD" Configuration
This one might seem strange to a lot of people, but using this configuration in games was originally popularized in first-person shooters by the actual players. Using the W and S keys to move forward and backwards, the A and D keys to sidestep, and the mouse to look, it gives you an unprecedented level of navigation within the game world. It gives your left hand easy access to many keys without feeling overcrowded or too confusing by similar-feeling buttons, giving you a high-level of control over the game. Companies began to acknowledge the utility of this configuration and began to make it the default controls for their games. For left-handed gamers, using your right hand in an "IJKL" configuration with your left hand on the mouse gives you a similar level of control. While there are minor variations of this control scheme in use, such as the "ESDF" configuration used in Tribes 2, millions of gamers today favor the "WASD" keys to play their games. This also helped to shape the controls for games on modern game consoles, where an analog stick or D-pad is used for movement while a secondary analog stick (or movement of the Wiimote) was used for looking and aiming.
How it influenced the industry: It was a discovery made by players that gave them more control over their games. It influenced the development of game controllers and control configurations within games.
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19. Non-destructive Games/Creation-based Games
Instead of killing monsters and saving the princess or some other VIP, you're buildings stuff. Two notable games that fit this description are Tetris and Simcity. Tetris came into existence in the USSR in 1985, gaining popularity with the IBM PC port that spread across the Soviet Union. As silly as the concept was to observers at the time, the the process of stacking blocks on top of each other at a continuously increasing pace was wildly addictive and changed minds quickly. Several computer and game console ports were made, being the most successful on the Gameboy with it's launch in 1989, and many variants of the game appeared overtime.
Simcity was a unique game originally released for the Commondore 64 in 1985. It was a game that could not be won or lost. The game revolved around building a city and attending to its problems such as traffic, crime rates, taxes, disasters, and other demands by its citizens. Game publishers did not believe it could me marketed as a successful game, but once the game finally made its way onto store shelves, it was a success. People liked the concept of having their own city and doing what they wanted with it, whether it be making it the best place to live in or destroying it with natural disasters. Several "Sim" games followed such as "SimEarth", "SimCoptor", "SimAnt", and the widely successful "The Sims".
Other honorable mentions include business management games such as Railroad Tycoon and Rollercoaster Tycoon, where the objective is to profit from a serious business.
How it influenced the industry: These games proved that you don't need violence or even an objective of any sort to create a fun, enjoyable and successful game. Like with most games on the Nintendo Wii, these are games that were easy to learn and can be played "casually".
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18. Final Fantasy Series
Final Fantasy was a game intended to be the final game from Squaresoft due to poor sales and losses from previous games. When the game was released for the NES in 1987, the success of Final Fantasy put Squaresoft back in the game (no pun intended) and ultimately led them to the development of several sequels (or more appropriately, volumes), other franchises, and a merger with Enix. The Final Fantasy series raised the bar for RPGs, popularizing concepts such as real-time battles, a job system, and storytelling with somewhat photo-realistic graphics. The Final Fantasy series has been well received and commercially successful, though there are varying levels of success with each installment.
How it influenced the industry: The Final Fantasy games have popularized many game features and concepts that are widely used in console RPGs.
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17. Dance Dance Revolution (Dancing Stage in Europe)
Dance Dance Revolution's gameplay truly was revolutionary. In 1998, Konami unleashed this arcade game in Japan and it became an instant success. While not the first rhythm-based game to hit any market, Dance Dance Revolution is credited for pioneering rhythm-based video games. Players stand on a mock dance stage and hit colored arrows laid out in a cross with their feet to musical and visual cues. A player's score is determined by how well they time their dance to the patterns presented to them and can select another song if they keep their "dance meter" intact. The simplicity of the game allowed it to be picked up easily by anyone, while offering a challenge to hardcore players. Despite not being localized until 2002 in the form of a PS1 game, DDR machines were imported from Asia and filled most arcades around North America by 2000. Schools in the US have adopted the game as part of student fitness programs. Several clones were made based off of this game-type, such as Pump It Up!, In the Groove, and EZ2Dancer. Rhythm-based games eventually branched off to introduce musical instruments such as GuitarFreaks, DrumMania and Karaoke Revolution. A company called Harmonix expanded on this concept and release a game called "Guitar Hero" in 2005, and in later years released "Rock Band".
When I laid my eyes on Dance Dance revolution for the first time, I thought it was the stupidest concept for a game ever. But when I played it, I found it to be fun and addictive. I also found it physically demanding on harder difficulties.
How it influenced the industry: Dance Dance Revolution popularized rhythm-games, gave exercise to gamers, and became a "cash cow" for the declining arcade market.
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16. Goldeneye 007 (Nintendo 64)
In 1997, Rare released Goldeneye 007 for the Nintendo 64. Based on the movie of the same name, it differed from games like Doom and Quake by offering stealth and objective-based gameplay as opposed to the more popular bunny-hopping, rocket-jumping action. Because of lack of precision and control of the N64 controller, Rare introduced a few features into the game to compensate for this. Autoaiming allowed players to shoot enemies as long as they were on the screen. The game also had the ability to aim weapons manually by pressing either the L or R button and moving the analog stick. The split-screen Deathmatch mode had a high-degree of customization with the ability to select characters, weapons sets, and rules.
How it influenced the industry: Goldeneye popularized first-person shooters on consoles by implementing gameplay features to offset the "limiting" controls of a console controller. It offered a unique experience than that of a PC, and it's 4-player split-screen multiplayer mode was an instant hit.
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15. Starcraft
Starcraft is a real-time strategy game released for the PC in 1997. As one of the best-selling PC games of all time, it brought fresh and original ideas for the genre through the use of having three unique and balanced races as opposed to the usual two sides with similar units and abilities. It also featured free online play on Blizzard's Battle.net services and a map editor to create your own levels.
The game was most influential in South Korea during the 1997-1998 Asian Financial Crisis. The unemployment rate was high, high-speed broadband connections, cheap PCs were being rolled out, and people had a lot of free time. People who were laid off didn't have many options for a source of income. Fortunately "gaming centers" were becoming more popular and were very profitable and easy to setup, so small businesses around this concept were created but needed content for these PCs. Starcraft became the most popular out of all the games offered. As time went on and more players picked up Starcraft, the pro-gaming scene in South Korea came into existence and Starcraft became South Korea's national sport amongst gamers. Successful professional Starcraft and Warcraft III players in South Korea are considered celebrities.
How it influenced the industry: Raised the bar for the Real-Time Strategy genre, helped bring South Korea out of an economic depression and established the pro-gaming scene in that country.
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14. Bawls
"Grab your Bawls, and Run Like Hell!" This was the first energy drink marketed towards gamers. You couldn't find this drink in just any store. You have to go to your local Compucentre or any other computer store to buy them. It cost $2.25 per bottle and were also sold in cases of 12 and 24. It kept you up all night for those long sessions of Quake 3 Arena, Starcraft, and Counter-Strike. Eventually more caffeinated products were introduced such as mints, chocolate-coated coffee beans, and even Mountain Dew Game Fuel to promote Halo 3. You'll be wide awake even after 24 hours of gaming, but your body will ache. =\
How it influenced the industry: It created a market for caffeinated products targeting gamers. Drinks with more caffeine than Coke or Pepsi allowed players to game longer. It is considered essential to have at many events where the primary activity involves long periods of gaming.
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13. Atari 2600
In 1976, Atari realized that the market for home video game consoles that could only play one game was fading fast. They began working on a new cartridge-based home video game system which eventually became known as the Atari 2600. The company was sold to Warner Communications in an effort to secure funding to complete the console. When the console was released in 1977 with a somewhat limited success due to the abundance of inexpensive electronic toys like "Simon". It wasn't until the release of "Space Invaders" ported to the system that the Atari 2600 gained huge market penetration. Eventually, third-party developers began making games for the system to profit from its success. Because of the simplicity of games at the time, it was easy for developers to make games. Too easy, in fact. This led to companies and independent programmers wanting to turn a quick buck from games made in a matter of days. The most notable of this was "E.T." which was released in 1983. Atari wanted to profit from the success of the movie, but only gave the developer a few weeks to create the game. Not only was the game horrible, the quantity of unsold merchandise coupled with the expensive movie license, and the large amount of returns, caused E.T. to be a massive financial failure for Atari. Coupled with other poor-quality games, many companies were met with huge losses and went out of business.
How it influenced the industry: The Atari 2600 popularized the movement from games built into the system to games on swappable cartridges, created a competitive market for console software, and ultimately devastated the video game industry in North America with a huge supply of poor-quality games with little demand for them.
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12. Microsoft Windows
In a effort to promote Windows 95 as a gaming platform, Bill Gates superimposed himself into the game "Doom" and showed a promotional video at a business conference in 1995, discussing the problems with DOS and introducing the capabilities of the DirectX API. At the conference, 75 new PC games were shown to the attendees, one of which was a Windows port of Doom. The introduction of Visual Studio allowed game developers to organize and debug their game code easier, making the development of complex games faster. For the gamers, the point and click interface used to install and play games is leaps and bounds ahead of the older DOS interface of using text commands, bringing it closer to that of inserting a cartridge into a game console to run games. Microsoft's DirectX API enhanced the performance and quality of games to support better graphics, higher-quality sound, and stable network connections for games. Windows and DirectX continued to be refined to support newer technologies that are constantly being introduced. Eventually, DirectX was tweaked and deployed in it's own stand-alone system refered to as a "DirectX Box", or "XBox" for short.
How it influenced the industry: Aside from the influences in Information Technology in general, Windows 95 made it easier for developers to make games with Visual Studio and DirectX API, and as well as made it easier for players to install and run graphically-superior, high-performance games. The success of Windows allowed Microsoft to establish the PC as an immersive gaming platform, and allowed them to penetrate the console market with the Xbox.
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11. PlayStation (PS1)
The PlayStation (formerly abbreviated PSX, now PS1) is a video game console released by Sony Computer Entertainment in December 1994. It was build from the ground up to render 3D graphics, high-performance 2D graphics, and full-motion video. While it did not rival the high-performance capabilities of the Nintendo 64 and despite the lack of experience in the video game industry, developers were still drawn to the system because of the way its games are stored. PS1 games were stored on CD-ROMs, which had a higher storage capacity than that of the Nintendo 64's cartridges and were cheaper to produce. This gave developers more freedom and creativity in their game designs, even going as far as released games such as Final Fantasy VII on multiple discs. This allowed games to be sold at a cheaper price, making it more appealing to gamers than the more expensive cartridge-based games for the Nintendo 64. Other consoles in the past attempted a CD-based game console, but failed to gain market penetration. What set the PS1 aside from the rest is its hardware capabilities, varied selection of games at launch, and a unique series of ad campaigns. Future game consoles utilized the use of optical drives as well. Starting with the sixth-generation, game consoles now have their games on optical storage mediums.
How it influenced the industry: Gave game developers a successful platform to release their games on, and allowed them to be more creative with their game designs by essentially "removing" the storage limit. It also reduced the cost of mass-production of the game and passed the savings onto the consumers. This resulted in higher-quality games at a lower price.
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10. Video Game Rentals
Renting reusable products has always been a profitable business venture by taking advantage of the need for the temporary use of expensive products. Movies, heavy machinery, cars, appliances, or even entire buildings. In this case, the ability to rent video games is just as influential as with any other application of this business model. Video game rentals have always been a great way for gamers to enjoy a variety of games for a few dollars each instead of paying the full price of around $50 to $60. For many years, gamers have enjoyed the ability to try out games before they make a decision to commit to purchase. It even allowed lower-income families to enjoy video games for a few days when purchasing a game was not an option. Blockbuster is widely known in North America for this concept. Not only could you rent movies and games the day it's released, but they also offered game consoles for rent as well. With new developments emerging within the video game rental arena, online services like GameFly and Gottaplay have been providing an even more convenient method of testing out a variety of video games.
How it influenced the industry: It allowed gamers to experience more games at a lower cost, and made video games more accessible to those who couldn't afford purchasing games.
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9. LAN Parties
Events were you Bring Your Own Computer (BYOC) are popular amongst PC gamers, where hundreds (even thousands) setup their computer on a high-speed network in a large building such a conference center and playing games with each other with a 5 millisecond ping time for several days straight. These LAN parties are usually sponsored by companies like Intel, NVidia, Corsair, Razer, and others, supplying equipment for the event and providing prizes exceeding thousands of dollars for tournaments and random draws. DreamHack is the largest LAN Party in the world, holding the world record with 10,554 computers and 11,060 attendees as of 2007. Instead of talking trash to your opponents through your microphone or typing words, walk a few meters over to them and point and laugh at them. Careful not to get your ass kicked though.
How it influenced the industry: Companies can promote their gaming products while gamers can enjoy lag-free multiplayer games with enough players to fill the server.
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8. Shareware/Demos
Who could resist playing free games? This is why the Shareware Distribution Model was successful. Instead of shelling out $60 for a game and then finding out if you like it or not, you could obtain a limited, free portion of the game and see if it's to your liking. This meant that developers didn't need to spend much money on advertising, but they had to rely solely on the quality of their game in order to profit from it (which is how it should be). This is how companies like id Software and Epic Megagames (now known as Epic Games) got their start with little money in their pocket.
How it influenced the industry: It brought the "Try before you buy" concept to the Video Game Industry, and allowed people to startup game development studios with little expense. It also allowed companies to show off their product before the game is complete.
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7. Arcades/Gaming Centers
While not the most economical way to spend your money for gaming, it was the cheapest. Drop in 25 cents or $1 and you're good to go for a few minutes of gameplay. There's a wide selection of games to choose from: Fighting games, light gun games, racing games, etc. It also had the social aspect of gaming because you can interact with other gamers as well. In recent years, arcades have been on the decline with arcade machines being replaced or mixed with high-end computers networked together, as well as game consoles on huge 1080p LCD TVs. These "Gaming Centers" retain this same concept, charging a few dollars for a hour of game time.
How it influenced the industry: Arcades and Gaming Centers promote the social aspect of gaming. Play games when you're out with your friends and have a great time!
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6. e-Sports
This is not just for hardcore gamers. This is where players compete in their favorite games professionally. Major League Gaming (MLG) and the World Cyber Games (WCG) are just two example of leagues where teams compete for huge amounts of cash in games like Starcraft, Halo, and Counter-Strike. Professional teams are usually sponsored by a company such as Intel or Razer, and are promoted by having players wear paraphernalia with the company's logo on it during matches. In countries like South Korea and Germany, these games are televised on national TV.
Before the development of e-sports, clans were organized and competed against each other. While clans still exist today, they were originally the only way to play a game with a high level of strategy, teamwork and communication. Skirmishes between clans were organized through programs like mIRC or ICQ, while leagues were formed to organize many games between a large number of clans. These leagues were for fun and simply offered the opportunity for players to play these "high-level games". But as time went on and people started to take online gaming more seriously, leagues started to award winners with actual cash and prizes.
How it influenced the industry: Clans offered players the experience of "high-level gameplay". While competition for the fun of it still exists between clans for many games, professional teams competing against each other is something spectacular to watch. It's like watching ESPN, except you're watching people play video games. 'Nuff said.
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5. NES
The Video Game Market Crash of the early 80s was a grim time for developers and gamers alike in North America. A huge stockpile of consoles and poor-quality games for them meant no one wanted to waste money on them. The industry on the continent was revived with the success of the Nintendo Entertainment System. Not only did it have huge third-party support, but Nintendo also produced their own games such as Super Mario Bros. and Legend of Zelda. By taking measures to ensure the quality of each game produced for the console, this provided their customers a basic level of assurance they need for them to be confident in their new investment. Fortunately, video games were going strong for both Europe and Asia and were unaffected by the market crash in North America. The NES was also the last great console to be unaffected by PC gaming.
How it influenced the industry: Even though the NES didn't save video gaming which is the popular belief, millions of us wouldn't be gaming today if it wasn't for the NES. It introduced a layer of quality-control for third-party games and gave North America a strong customer base for future games to come.
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4. Doom
John Carmack is a genius. While you kids were playing your kiddie games on the SNES and Genesis, some of us were blasting demons away with big guns in the depths of hell. Originally offered as shareware in 1993, Doom was the most innovative game of the time, having the most realistic graphics, the most violence and gore (Mortal Kombat being 2nd IMO), and even had network multiplayer for up to 4 players. The game was considered unproductive in the office environment because the staff would end up playing Doom deathmatch instead of "doing their job". Several games based on the Doom engine that were made were called "Doom-clones". Eventually, enough of these games were made along with the release of Quake and games based on that engine that people started referring to them using the broader term "first-person shooters". Console gamers also got their first taste of these games from ports of PC games. After a few years, John Carmack released the source code for Doom which led to the development of an enhanced version of the game by the community which added visuals comparable to that of modern games, such as transparency, texture filtering, anti-aliasing, the ability to look up and down, etc.
How it influenced the industry: Further popularized the concept of "first-person shooters", and raised the bar for visual quality of video games. The release of the source code into the public domain had an impact within the open source community.
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3. Game Mods
A game mod is something that changes a game into something it's not, effectively turning it into a relatively different game. Quake had several mods such as Threewave CTF which standardized the Capture The Flag game mode in every modern first-person shooter out there, and Team Fortress which was remade for Half-Life and eventually spawned the commercial remake "Team Fortress 2". Heck, even Quake Team Fortress had it's own mods called "Deadlode TF" and "Mega TF" which changes the weapons and abilities of each class. Game mods extended the life of many PC games by double, triple, or even quadruple its shelf life.
How it influenced the industry: It is the most cost-effective way for game companies to extend the commercial lifespan of their products, and players gain more game content for free. It really stretches that $50 above and beyond its worth. Companies these days try to make their games as "modable" as possible. In some cases, mods are remade into commercial games.
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2. 3D Hardware Acceleration
You know it, I know it, and your parents know it if they work in the industry. Hardware acceleration offloads graphics-related calculations from the CPU to a separate processor and memory dedicated to it. This means you can get better graphics and higher framerates. Back then, graphics were pixelated to keep video requirements to a minimum. 3D acceleration was first used in arcades machines due to it's high cost. Eventually the cost of producing video cards for the consumer market became feasible, and we began to see games coming with the option to use hardware acceleration in the form of OpenGL and Direct3D. Once the new millennium began, hardware acceleration became a requirement. ATi and NVidia chipsets began appearing on consoles beginning with the 6th generation. And with the beautiful scenes we see in today's games, we absolutely need it in order to play these games at a playable framerate. After all, it is a fact that you play better at a smooth 60fps than a slow 10fps.
How it influenced the industry: It gave games better graphics, higher framerates, and an overall more immersive experience. Every single game made within the past decade uses hardware acceleration.
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And finally, the #1 Most Influential Thing to happen to the Video Game Industry...
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1. The Internet
Originating as an application of the US Government, the Internet "opened the floodgates" of information. What happened to the Video Game Industry as a result? Gaming websites such as ScrewAttack and Kotaku share industry information with the world. Gamers share strategies and ideas with each other. People "modded" games and shared their creations with the world. We no longer needed to read a gaming magazine or hear it from the game shop owner who had "inside information". These days, we just need a computer and an internet connection to find out about awesome games that are coming out or what effective tactics to use in a game. But that's not the best part...
Back in 1996, we were introduced to Quakeworld and QuakeSpy. Quakeworld is a multiplayer-only client for Quake with improves playability over the internet with features like "Player Prediction". Using an application called QuakeSpy (later evolved into GameSpy), players could easily locate servers to play on that supported up to 32 players. That's right. 32-player deathmatches! Some modern console games don't even support that many players! And even with the games like Goldeneye 007 for the Nintendo 64 that supports up to 4 players, all 4 players must be present at the console and TV to play, not to mention all players can see where each other is by looking at another player's portion of the screen. When you start QuakeSpy, you're guaranteed to find a server with people to play with because while players from North America are sleeping, Europe is gaming. The communication medium known as the Internet not only made multiplayer gaming more accessible, it was profitable for the companies.
Quake was free to play online. Before that, there were games that could only be played on a network. These games could be played online through network emulation using subscription-based applications such as TEN and Dwango. These cost money to play. However, it was not Quake that undermined this business model. Blizzard Entertainment released Diablo in 1997 stating that offering online multiplayer capabilities for free will boost game sales. PC game publishers started following this. Multiplayer games could be played for free online, and subscription-based online gaming because a thing of the past... only to be revived by Microsoft and its XBox Live service. Seriously, how did this happen?
As more online capable games were being released for the PC, console developers realized that the ability to play games over the internet was a solid investment to make. Starting with Dreamcast, console gamers got their first taste of online gameplay. By the time the 7th generation consoles were made, it was expected for consoles to be able to connect to the internet with a vast library of games having the ability to be played online.
There was also the introduction of Ultima Online, which popularized MMORPGs back in 1997. Although it uses a subscription-based business model, the reason behind it is to be able to maintain the game servers. Unlike games like Quake, Ultima Online has its own proprietary servers that the companies maintain to create the effect that there is only one world to play in, and everyone who plays will be in it. There are also admins hired to patrol the game and resolve disputes amongst players and enforce the rules and terms of service. This offered a completely different experience than that of first-person shooters where the worlds reset when a map changes or when you move to a different server.
How it influenced the industry: It changed the way game companies do business with gamers, it changed the way gamers obtain industry information, but most importantly, it changed the way we play games with each other.
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There are some honorable mentions I would like to point out; Rainbow Six (PC) for popularizing the tactical shooter sub-genre, Commodore 64 and Sinclair ZX Spectrum for its influence in Europe, the Sega Master System for it's market penetration and influence in South America, and Educational Games for teaching valuable skills to kids in a way that entertains them.
Another thing I would like to point out is that I mentioned Quake in several items on this list, yet Quake is not on the actual list. The reason for this is because Quake most notably introduced #3 (Game Mods), #2 (3D Hardware Acceleration), and #1 (Multiplayer Gaming through the Internet). While many items on the list have influenced the development of others on the list, I believe there is a major overlap with these 3 major items becoming more influential than Quake itself.
On a side note, some of you may disagree and argue that the NES saved gaming. I can tell you as a matter of fact, backed by a lot of freely available research, that the NES did not save gaming. The Video Game Market Crash of the 80s only affected North America. Europe and Asia were still major video game markets at the time. You also need to consider that the NES originated from Japan as the "Famicon". I believe it's contribution to the revitalization of the industry in North America is substantial, but video games would still exist without it. The Video Game Market Crash in North America was not a killing blow to the overall industry as people make it out to be.
Great List!
But in my opinion, E-Sports should not be in 6th, due to the fact that it honestly didn't have an impact. Well, it had a huge one in Korea (Only because of Starcraft), and it's not well known as classics like Goldeneye, and the Playstaion that truly revolutionized gaming at the time.
But still, gotta agree 100% with The Internet being number 1.
Well
Great list but Bawls shouldn't have been there (Not so popular everywhere I never heard about bawls before coming here.) and both Atari and Nes should've been over Doom (Sorry but a Game can't influence the gaming industry more then both these systems)
Optical discs mario analog
Optical discs
mario
analog stick
start button
Good list
Nice list full of facts and history. Liked how you talked about how dramcast was important to online gaming today
Pretty good list, I don't
Pretty good list, I don't completely agree with the placement of certain items on the list but everyone has their own perception of what and how much everything has helped shape the gaming industry we have today.
I think this blog would have had an even sweeter ending if all the text after the ScrewAttack image was dropped off.
Wow
The most well written and detailed blog I have seen on the site in weeks. Great work.
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How amusing... is that all you can muster?
Creator and Host of Japan Now!
www.kazekawa.com
g1 points: 1984 - g1 rank: 13/7850
Funny, I could have sworn
Funny, I could have sworn I've seen this post awhile back.
FUCK YEA!
SCREWATTACK #1 BITCHES
questionable choices
the atari 2600 should have been ahead of the nes. Bawls and e-sports shoudnt have been there at all. Doom also should not have been at number 4.
But, these were your choices, and you did an absolutely fantastic job with this blog.
Wait a minute....
I know I've seen this list before...but that was in the form of a top ten list...
And even with those reasons, how the hell is Bawls one of the things that shaped the industry?
Make games, not war.
Missing a few things perhaps?
Look, I like your idea and the way you write about each entry in your countdown, but to put it british, you have got this "Arse about face". Instead of mentioning the NES because of its revival of the industry in the 80's, why not mention Nintendo as a whole? A successful hardware company isn't measured by one console alone, it's about how it evolves and becomes something really signficant. Nintendo is a testament to that. And, come on, Bawls?? I am from europe, a hotbed of gaming talent and industry (it's true). I cannot think of any shop, supermarket or stall I have ever come across where I can purchase this drink. This is totally wrong. When something becomes global, then it can be claimed to be influential. Where is Sonic? Counter srike? SNK? Mortal Kombat? Final Fantasy? Street Fighter? FUCKIN ZELDA!! The game industry, at the very least, is about the GAMES!!!
I can understand where
I can understand where you're coming from, but I'd have to disagree with you.
The SNES, although a very successful platform, didn't actually do quite as well as the NES. I find that the only platforms made by Nintendo that truly were ground-breaking are the NES, Wii, and DS. But the NES had the biggest impact of them all. I'm not simply talking about sales numbers, but the adoption of industry standards.
Bawls will probably be the most confusing thing on the list, so bare with me as I try to explain further. Bawls has a substantial market share in North America. It didn't really change the industry per se, but rather it created its own sub-market within the video game industry (which is rare) and competition in that market was spawned. It's starting to creep onto other continents as well. americansoda.co.uk is a site that imports NA food products to the UK. Bawls also affects how to play games because you get more caffeine while taking less bathroom breaks (less interruptions in gaming).
Sonic had high-speed sidescrolling gameplay that was rarely (if at all) replicated in other games. Counter-Strike is a mod turned commercial game. SNK had somewhat unsuccessful consoles and very good, very fun, but otherwise generic games. Mortal Kombat was fun but it's only highlight were its fatalities and extreme violence. Final Fantasy is on the list. Street Fighter would probably go with e-sports (sorry for not mentioning it). Legend of Zelda helped the success of the NES, but as a game I would personally consider it an honorable mention.
It's true that the Video Game Industry is about video games, but there's more to it than that. How do you control the games? What is the underlying technology that runs the games? How do businesses profit from the video game industry? There are literally thousands of things that could have been on this list, but I chose 20 of them. It's unlike a Top 10 list of games of a specific genre and/or platform where there's really only a handful to choose from.
:D
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SentryIII
Abandonware/Freeware PC Game Reviewer
http://www.youtube.com/user/S3JasonU
Freaking awesome list!
I feel kind of a shamed that I've hardly played Doom, but that's me...
Decent list...but...
...you repeated yourself a few times, you didn't give go into detail really as to why they should be on the list, and you left out things that should be, like the analog stick, and the internet, while extremely important and effective, needs to go behind something else you sort of put on your list, and the reason the NES is labeled the heraled of new gaming by some, Shigeru Miyamoto. He gave gaming the ability to do more than rack up points. He was the first to really tell a story. So...either Donkey Kong, or his emergence, would technically trump the internet in that way. However, the net does come an extremely close second. Finally, your note on 3D graphics seems skewed, you attribute it to allowing games to progress, however, in some cases, such has never been the case. Take Street Fighter for example. Always a horrible 3D game, but 2D, it's art. Now, yes, it was an impact, but you need to be more clear on your explanation of why, and should probably be further down the list.
-Seraph
Yeah there are a few parts
Yeah there are a few parts that could have been explained better, but in all fairness the text that I have right now is 35.7kb. =\
Analog stick? Atari had analog joysticks but I don't believe any games took advantage of it's precision. It wasn't until Sony released the PS1 that games took advantage of it, but I think there were flight simulators for the PC already doing this (not fact-checking right now :D). Assuming I did put the analog stick on the list, I would consider the Mouse more influential to the Video Game Industry because of it's extreme level of precision.
I should also mention that just because something introduced a cool feature or technology doesn't necessarily mean that feature or technology will gain widespread adoption because of it. Wolfenstein 3D popularized first-person shooters, but Doom popularized it even more, and it also introduced a new level of technology and immersive gameplay as well. Wolfenstein 3D unintentionally introduced modding, Doom was made easier to mod, but Quake popularized modding. Still, the NES brought a lot of ideas to the table and deserves its spot at #5.
I do agree that my explanation of 3D graphics is skewed, but the idea still stands. A lot of 2D games actually use hardware acceleration. That's how games like Marvel VS Capcom are able to have ultra-fast framerates even with all the awesome special effects and projectiles shown on the screen. I just have a habit of associating hardware-acceleration with 3D. Faster framerates translates to better playability. Sorry for the misunderstanding.
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SentryIII
Abandonware/Freeware PC Game Reviewer
http://www.youtube.com/user/S3JasonU
Great list. It was a bit
Great list. It was a bit different than what i expected but number 1 was a great choice.
(I see you used the older screwattack page..nice)
One thing
True the NES saved the North American game market, but it was a little different in Europe. From research, Europe was getting into PC games which are sometimes considered to be different from the home gaming market. That was also the big thing in America at the time. Companies were marketing computers as the replacement for home gaming consoles. Of course it was just an industry crash though since games were still able to be purchased (for an extremely cheap price too). You did nail Japan though.
Anyway, it is a good list, but you are missing two important events: Pong and the Magnavox Odyssey. They at least deserve the first spot since they started gaming. Odyssey is considered the first "video game" (Ralph Baer called them T.V. games so yeah) and Pong made games popular.
One other honorable mention is the SEGA Genesis which is the reason for the SNES coming out. No seriously. Nintendo's next console was in dev., but they did not plan to release a new one since the NES was doing so well. Genesis made them move quickly to get a new console out to compete with the Genesis. In Japan I would assume the PC Engine did the same. Of course this is only an honorable mention as a new console would have come out eventually when the NES' popularity went down.
Though yeah, I totally agree with number 1.
Odyssey
Good call on Odyssey. I still have mine and it still works. I even have the 12 or 13 or so sheets for the 13 " tv to change the "game" lol.
Interestingly enough, didn't Nintendo distribute Odyssey in Japan?
Feels bad...
Feels bad that the work from Valve where forgotten on this list.
Cause the first hl did bring so much new things to the future in storytelling in fps. This can be seen as the first of all really action fps to have a deep story that makes fans to speculate these days too.
Another thing is that they did not throw away the work they had
done with Gordon Freemans adventure, they did come up with one of the greatest expansion so far in gaming history. Even if Adrian Shepardd have been left out in half life 2 and that blue shift where not so good at all so is there probabbly tons of fans that want to have Adrian Shepard in to the story!
But what can i actually say when every work from valve so far have been great and that they only have told to the fans that Shepard is not forgotten.
Another thing with Valve is that they are one of the few independent studios that can take all time in the world to make a new game. The result from that is that their motto is: Allow us to show the world the greatness of perfection.
So otherwise was this a good list except that you took bawls in the list but that can be explained to me cause im a scandinavian.
One last thing is that your number 1 is totally perfect. With showing even the greatest site on the picture...
Keep it up.
/Granie
Incredibly well written,
Incredibly well written, informative blog. Good job!
And about #1, Paying for online SUCKS! Microsoft just wants to suck all your money from your wallet.
Guys,
Guys, stop bitching about how he "missed" Mario, Halo, and other shit. This isn't your list, its his, thus, these are merely opinions, while they're supported by facts. So everyone should just stop complaining and enjoy the blog for what it is, someone's thoughts on the video game industry, not a forum where you can bitch about how you think that Halo is the most influential thing in the universe.
It's fine.
People get into video games from all different walks of life. Though I would appreciate it more if people would explain better (or at all) their disagreements. I practically grew up with the industry, but I don't necessarily know everything and I would like to learn more about other people's individual perspectives.
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SentryIII
Abandonware/Freeware PC Game Reviewer
http://www.youtube.com/user/S3JasonU
wait one frikken min. here
Your saying that modding games is more influential then Doom. Without doom there would be no game modding.
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Im here to kick ass and watch AVGN and i forgot my computer
Hey, what's the big idea
No hand-helds? I think the Game Boy is pretty influential.
I don't know if the internet is the most influential, it's still relatively new in the console market, though it's definitely influenced PC gaming a lot more.
Pretty decent list otherwise though.. though I'm not sure how Bawls can be more influential than Goldeneye.
Final Fantasy
They actually copied almost all the ideas from Dragon Warrior
True
Ultima and Phantasy Star were very influential in RPG gaming as well.
great list
this deserves a spot on the top g1 posts
WW2
WWII was influential, i mean look how many damn games one war has based on, measuring from the 1st ww2 game to what i guess Brothers in Arms WWII as a game lasted longer then the actual war
Currently Playing:
Final Fantasy Tactics A2
N+
Pac Man
This little round guy should have made the list.
Good list
Though some of the numbers look a little off to me, I do agree with a lot of list. I quite like seeing UO being held in such high regard as to me it was one of the most important steps the online gaming business.
very nice
i do agree fully but i would of had dreamcast in there somewhere because it was the first with online play
digg
This is on the front page of digg, congrats!
Currently has 550 diggs.. pay no attention to the digg counter on this page.
Also, great list!
http://www.youtube.com/Master0fHyrule
That's awesome!
Thanks for the heads up!
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SentryIII
Abandonware/Freeware PC Game Reviewer
http://www.youtube.com/user/S3JasonU
That's one heck of a list!
That's one heck of a list!
Other than Doom and Windows
Other than Doom and Windows (Nobody gives a damn) I totally agree.
Especially on Screwattack ;)
List Was Good Until The Top 5
Wow, to say that the Internet, Doom, Hardware Acceleration, Game Mods were more influential to gaming than the NES is insane. I really want the drugs that whoever made the top 5 was taking. I guess this is a PC fanboy site, because without the NES, none of the top 4 would exist. It's in hindsight I know, but in the way things turned out it is the case. How the NES isn't #1 is beyond me, considering it saved video games from going into economic decay and possibly being erased forever.
NES
I would humbly disagree with your statement. When people say the NES saved gaming, they don't mean that gaming wouldn't exist without it. Basically, without it we would still be generations behind because without the NA sector it would have taken much longer for gaming to be popular enough again to increase interest in developement.
Octale and Hordak vs the world
I dont know if anyone else listence to WoW radio but this post was featured and discused on Octale and Hordak vs the world.
Well Let's see
I liked your list overall, but NES should have been higher in my opinion. It is pretty much a fact that video games as we currently know them now would not exist in the same fashion if it wasn't for the NES.
I also would have made mention somewhere the adoption of the Game Save feature, and the Pause button...things that people take for granted now.
Also honorable mention to Computer Space. The first videogame released to the public. Also to:
Defender, Williams, 1980. Defender signaled the beginning of a new type of video game. It was the first to include, what was in essence, a "virtual world", where events off of the main screen affected your gameplay. It was also one of the first games to include distinctive behaviors for different types of enemies and an amazing scrolling playfield with color graphics.
But again I enjoyed your list, and we all have different ideas of what influenced gaming to what it is today.