Since consoles have existed, console wars have been going on. The original game “Pong” is already the subject of disputes: Atari is looking at the idea from the first game console, the Magnavox Odyssey. But its inventor Ralph Baer is so far-sighted as to have his invention of the “television gaming and training apparatus” patented. The courts are concerned with the idea of ​​tennis on screen; and finally, Atari and others have to pay royalties. In the eighties, Nintendo tried to take action against the patents – without success. By the time they run out in the early 1990s, Magnavox had made more than 100 million dollars . Far more than selling its own consoles.

At the end of the 1980s, the console market was firmly in the hands of Nintendo. The NES (8 bit) is selling well; therefore you take your time with a successor. Sega takes the chance and dashes with the Mega Drive ( Bit) before: “Welcome to the next level”. Nice graphics, low price, an included game, licenses for American films and series. The Mega Drive offered more adult games, like the bloodthirsty “Mortal Kombat”, and a mascot: cooler and faster than Mario, the blue hedgehog Sonic, who sweeps through the scrolling levels like lightning. That works. Especially in the USA (where the device is called Genesis) and in Europe, the Mega Drive is at times level with Nintendo. Part of the success is the cheeky advertising that relates directly to the competitor: “Genesis Does What Nintendon’t”.

The age of the CD In the nineties, the console market becomes confusing. Sure, Nintendo and Sega dominate. But especially in Japan there is still NEC with the PC engine. SNK publishes the Neo Geo. Atari brings out the jaguar. Not to mention the mobile systems: The Game Boy is followed by Game Gear from Sega, Lynx from Atari and WonderSwan from Bandai.

The compact disc is increasingly being used. Philips with the CDi, Panasonic and Goldstar with the 3DO, Commodore with the CDTV (based on the Amiga). Apple develops the hapless Pippin console (based on the PowerPC). The CD is the data carrier of the future. Access to the data takes longer compared to the previous plug-in modules, but it offers a lot more space; for more levels, for video sequences, for music and for voice output. Instead of a new model, some manufacturers choose an intermediate step: the old console, but with a CD drive. This is how the Neo Geo CD appears. CD attachments are available for the Jaguar and the Mega Drive.

The new data carrier is also of interest to Microsoft. A subsidiary for multimedia software publishes CD-ROMs such as the encyclopedia “Encarta” and the book collection “Bookshelf”.

Nintendo Play Station Nintendo does not want to shut itself off from development either. A partnership is agreed with Sony. Sony is supposed to deliver a CD drive for the SNES and wants to develop its own device that plays Nintendo software: Play Station. When Nintendo realizes what’s going on with it, the management breaks the agreement and instead allies with Philips. A CD drive for the Super Nintendo does not appear after all; but Sony is angry and does not want to give up the preparatory work.

The PlayStation, now written as one word, appears 1994 in Japan. It is much cheaper than the CD competition, and Sony is concentrating on games instead of marketing an expensive multimedia device for films and reference books (as with CD-i & Co). The timing is not bad. Nintendo is not yet ready with its SNES successor; the Nintendo , which was created in cooperation with Silicon Graphics, is only two years away out later.

Console Wars: Not only Xbox against Playstation (8 pictures) Already the first game console, the Magnavox Odyssey by 1972, is the subject of disputes. Atari steals the idea of ​​playing tennis for his “pong”

(Image: René Meyer) And with a single word you take Sega and its Saturn, the CD-based successor to the Mega Drive released at the same time, the wind out of their sails. During the memorable keynote speech on the introduction of the PlayStation in the USA by Sony man Steve Race at E3 1994. He is announced, runs to the stage to applause, with his lecture text in hand, bends over to the microphone, says a single word, and calmly goes back to his seat. “299”. 299 dollars. Sega has just announced 299 dollars for Saturn.

The rest is history. The PlayStation is 71 sold millions of times, significantly more than any other game console before . Microsoft does not miss this either.

MSX computer In the 1980s, Sony and Microsoft even worked together on a home computer standard: MSX. It is the golden era of these devices; and there, too, there is “war”, especially Commodore against Atari: The fact that Commodore founder Jack Tramiel is fired from his own company and buys Atari with the proceeds from his shares is the stuff of legends. Japanese companies are watching so far. That should change. An idea is developed under the leadership of ASCII: Many manufacturers each build their own computers that are mutually compatible. Right at the front: Sony with the chic, but quite expensive hit bit.

Microsoft, in turn, would like to have more influence on the market. The popular Microsoft BASIC runs on many computers; but the star begins to burn out. For the BASIC in C 64 Microsoft only receives a one-time license fee. Microsoft BASIC is initially planned for the Atari home computers; but when it turns out that the port exceeds the space of an 8 KByte chip, Atari has a new BASIC developed without further ado. The Schneider CPC also has its own BASIC.

With MSX BASIC, Microsoft is getting into the ROMs of home computers from a number of manufacturers; especially in the attractive market of Japan. The MSX computers are selling well there, but are not a great success in the USA or Europe. They are most likely to spread in the Netherlands and Belgium, as Philips is on board.

Sony uses the MSX platform to establish itself as a publisher. A whole series of games that appear for MSX computers are published by Sony, including the classic “Loderunner”; MobyGames also lists Sony as the developer for three games.

1989 Sony establishes a video game subsidiary that primarily publishes games for Nintendo and Sega consoles; the label “Sony Imagesoft” is also on the packs of games for the Game Boy.