What is the oldest video game?

The oldest video game is generally considered to be Tennis for Two, developed in 1958, or Spacewar!, created in 1962. Both games are significant milestones in the early history of video games, though their purposes, technologies, and platforms differed.

Here's a look at the key contenders for the title of the oldest video game:

1. Tennis for Two (1958)

• Developer: William Higinbotham
• Platform: Oscilloscope (an early form of a visual display)
• Description: Tennis for Two is one of the earliest known video games. It was designed by physicist William Higinbotham at the Brookhaven National Laboratory to entertain visitors. It was displayed on an oscilloscope, a type of laboratory instrument used to graph electrical signals, and it simulated a game of tennis where two players could control paddles and hit a ball back and forth.

While this game wasn't played on a typical video game console or computer, it was a key moment in the history of interactive entertainment.

2. Spacewar! (1962)

• Developer: Steve Russell and others at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
• Platform: PDP-1 (a mainframe computer)
• Description: Spacewar! is often regarded as one of the first true video games in the modern sense. It was created by Steve Russell and his team at MIT, and it featured two players controlling spaceships engaged in combat in outer space, trying to avoid a star's gravity and shoot at each other. Unlike Tennis for Two, which was limited to a single display device, Spacewar! was developed for the PDP-1, an early mainframe computer, and could be played by multiple players using input devices.

Spacewar! was hugely influential in the development of video games and was one of the first games to be distributed widely (within academic and research circles), laying the groundwork for future video game development.

3. The First Commercial Video Game: Pong (1972)

• Developer: Nolan Bushnell and Atari
• Platform: Arcade Machine
• Description: While Tennis for Two and Spacewar! predate it, Pong is often considered the first commercially successful video game. Released in 1972 by Atari, Pong was a simplified version of Tennis for Two, designed for arcade machines. The game featured two paddles and a ball bouncing between them, with the goal of one player trying to score by getting the ball past their opponent's paddle.

Conclusion:

• The oldest known video game is Tennis for Two, created in 1958, though it was more of an experimental display rather than a game in the modern sense.
• Spacewar! (1962) is often seen as the first true video game, being an interactive experience on a computer.
• Pong (1972), created by Atari, is widely regarded as the first commercial video game that helped launch the video game industry.

For a more in-depth look into the history of video games, you can visit resources like Wikipedia's article on the History of Video Games.