Tennis for Two
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Tennis for Two was a game developed in 1958 on an oscilloscope which simulated a game of tennis or ping pong. It was based on analog, rather than digital computing.
The game was created by William Higinbotham to cure the boredom of visitors to the nuclear power plant in which Mr. Higinbotham worked. The game was only brought out twice, on "Visitor's Day" at the power plant. Tennis for Two was the predecessor of PONG, one of the most widely recognized video games as well as one of the first. Unlike PONG and similar early games, Tennis for Two shows a simplified tennis court from the side instead of a top-down perspective. The ball appears to be affected by gravity and must be played over the net. The game was controlled by an analog computer and "consisted mostly of resistors, capacitors and relays, but where fast switching was needed – when the ball was in play – transistor switches were used". It is also considered -by many people- to be the first video game.
See also
External links
- [Page from Brookhaven National Laboratory] showing the game
- [Brookhaven History - The First Video Game]. Includes a video of the game.
- [Tennis For Two simulator] available for download.
- [The Dot Eaters entry] on Tennis for Two and creator Willy Higinbotham
- [Who Really Invented The Video Game?]
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