Video game console Reference Libraries
The Fairchild Channel F is a game console manufactured by Fairchild Semiconductor that was released in August 1976. It was the first programmable ROM cartridge-based video game console as well as the first to use a microprocessor. The original name for the system was the Video Entertainment System, but when Atari released their VCS the name was changed to Channel F. By 1977 sales had reached...
The Sega Genesis is the fourth generation of game consoles developed by Sega. It was also known as the Sega Mega Drive released in Japan on October 29, 1988. It was released in other regions as the Sega Genesis. In the US, New York and Los Angeles were the first cities to get the console on on August 14, 1989 in. On September 15, 1989 it was released to the rest of North America. It was...
The Sega Master System (SMS) was manufactured by Sega as the third generation video game console, released on October 20, 1985 as the Sega Mark III in Japan. The system was redesigned and released as the SMS in June 1986 in North America, 1987 in Europe, and 1989 in Brazil. A re-release of the SMS came in late 2006 with a hand held device that used 3 AAA batteries and contained 20 built in...
The Nintendo 64 (N64) is a game console produce and sold by Nintendo. It was released in June 1996 in Japan; September 1996 in North America; March 1997 in Europe and Australia; September 1997 in France; and December 1997 in Brazil. The N64 was the third generation home game console from Nintendo and the last to use ROM cartridges. The N64 was discontinued worldwide by the end of 2003. Its...
The Nintendo GameCube (NGC in Japan, GCN in North America) is a video game console produced by Nintendo and released on September 14, 2001 in Japan, November 14, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia. It is the sixth generation game console produced by Nintendo that uses optical discs as the primary storage, and uses miniDVDs instead of full sized DVDs....
The Magnavox Odyssey was the first home video console produced in the world. It was manufactured by Magnavox and released in August 1972. The unit was discontinued in 1975 with a total of 330,000 systems sold. Its successor was the Magnavox Odyssey 2. A working prototype of the console was finished in 1968, known as the brown box. This prototype is displayed at the Smithsonian...
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System, or SNES, is a 16-bit video game console manufactured by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan in 1990 as the Super Famicom. The SNES brand was released in North America on August 23, 1991, in Europe and Australia April 1992, and in South America 1993. This system was the successor to the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) and featured advanced...
The Nintendo Entertainment System, or NES for short, is an 8-bit video game console that was released in 1983 in Japan, 1985 in North America, 1986 in Europe, and 1987 in Australia. It was manufactured by Nintendo, originally called Famicom. The initial plans of the Famicom was to be a 16-bit computer with keyboard and floppy disc drive, but Nintendo president decided to build a cartridge-based...
The PlayStation is a game console developed by Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI) first sold on December 3, 1994 in Japan. It has sold over 100 million units worldwide since its release. Ken Kutaragi known as “The Father of the PlayStation” is the creator of the PlayStation game console and a Sony executive. In 1988, Sony and Nintendo formed a partnership to develop a CD-ROM for the...
The Dreamcast is a video game console released by Sega in November 1998 in Japan, September 1999 in North America, October 1999 in Europe, and November 1999 in Australia. In the first 24 hours of release 225,132 units were sold and a total of 500,000 in the first two weeks. On January 31, 2001, Sega announced it would discontinue the production of the Dreamcast in March 2001 and concentrate...
