Did You Know About Arcade Games or Computers First?

[conrad]

I saw Computer Space at Canobie Lake park in the mid 70s, so arcade first. Then my uncle Mark's TV-connected Pong (probably from Sears) a few years later (none of the above, I guess). Then Space Invaders in a Pizza Shop in Quincy Center in 1978 (arcade). Followed by Galaxian. Etc., etc.

So arcade for me. The Atari 2600 was my first home video game experience.

 

[Phetishboy]

I can remember when I was in about ninth grade and they brought in an Amiga sales rep with a Amiga computer on an AV cart. They had him set up in the middle of the library and we were able to go in to watch the demonstration and play with the computer in groups of about 15. I swear to God, I thought that was the future of art/graphic computers. That was my passion and what I planned on doing as an adult. So I was completely fixated on the Amiga. And then they just sort of disappeared. Next thing I knew I was in college and everything was Power Mac 8100, 9500 and the awesome G3 with any graphics program you could ever want. Makes me sad that the Amiga never really made it big.

 

[meyer980]

Funny enough, the first video game I ever played was Frogger but on a computer! This would have been about 1992.

Definitely played Odell Lake in a computer.lab, probably 3rd grade or so. By then it was already an old game but I had no idea and remember enjoying it.

 

[obitus1990]

Poor leadership on Commodore's part (especially Medhi Ali) killed the Amiga. I had one from 1990 until 1994. The PC at the time couldn't touch it, and the Amiga had been out since 1986 with those same capabilities. Rather than continuing to improve the capabilities, they sat on the same architecture from '86 until '92, and their '92 upgrade was so lackluster due to leadership stifling then rushing engineering, it put the final nail in the coffin. Such a better OS than anything else available at the time and even beyond.

 

[Azure Oz2]

Playing EM Pinballs from a young age, so I think they were first. If they don't count Pong was not around where I lived but I was working in the Arcade industry when the first electronic pinballs and Space Invaders took off in Australia in the late 70's.
Started programming computers at school in 1973 and had to write programs to run on a mainframe terminal for a school excursion. Knew about computers before that as I was into electronics and magazines and was building a TTL DIY computer called the EDUC-8 with 32 bytes of memory. Then went on to build S-100 systems for arcade work to program and modify games before PC's were generally available. Then PC's started getting popular and I went to work for a computer company.
I guess EM Pinball first and if that does not count, Computers.

 

[manadams]

Arcade games first, local skating rink had Asteroids, Galaxian and Space Invaders which started the obsession before my weekend hangs at Aladdin's castle/Diamond Jim's in the local mall.

 

[Phetishboy]

Poor leadership on Commodore's part (especially Medhi Ali) killed the Amiga. I had one from 1990 until 1994. The PC at the time couldn't touch it, and the Amiga had been out since 1986 with those same capabilities. Rather than continuing to improve the capabilities, they sat on the same architecture from '86 until '92, and their '92 upgrade was so lackluster due to leadership stifling then rushing engineering, it put the final nail in the coffin. Such a better OS than anything else available at the time and even beyond.

Yeah, I was a freshman 87-88, so it might've been out a year or so by the time we saw it. I had no idea of the history. I guess I could've googled it or went on Wiki, but I just never did. Over the years, I just wondered whatever happened to those fuckers

 

[Torin]

Arcade games first and then an Apple IIe. Played the shit out of Lode Runner and Swashbuckler!

 

[Phetishboy]

I probably played Load Runner, but other really vivid computer game memory was playing Conan.

 

[JamBurglar]

Really hard to say for me. I have very early memories of arcade games in many locations (grocery stores, drug stores, laundry mats, arcades, etc.). Still, there were computers in that same timeframe. My next door neighbors had a computer that used cassette tapes! It was probably a Tandy/Radio Shack but I can't remember that clearly. I can't believe they let us little kids around them. Cool memories but I was so young that I couldn't really put them in the correct order.

I remember the Apple IIe being around in my early years but I believe that would have been well after I was exposed to arcade games.

 

[j0novision]

First thing I ever remember was an Apple IIe with Number Crunchers at my elementary school classroom in 2nd grade.

Second thing I remember was typing "LOAD *" on a Commodore (?) at my after-school program.

Third thing was a Donkey Kong at the only public pool in my city.

 

[cdjump]

I can remember having an apple ][ or ][ plus when i was in elementary school, either 2nd or 3d grade (which would've been 79 or 80). I definitely remember seeing a Pac-man in the grocery store in a friend's neighborhood, so that would've been slightly later, i think. It was pretty close to the same time. I'm sure i saw a Pong before that, but don't think i ever played it.

 

[quickray]

I can remember when I was in about ninth grade and they brought in an Amiga sales rep with a Amiga computer on an AV cart. They had him set up in the middle of the library and we were able to go in to watch the demonstration and play with the computer in groups of about 15. I swear to God, I thought that was the future of art/graphic computers. That was my passion and what I planned on doing as an adult. So I was completely fixated on the Amiga. And then they just sort of disappeared. Next thing I knew I was in college and everything was Power Mac 8100, 9500 and the awesome G3 with any graphics program you could ever want. Makes me sad that the Amiga never really made it big.

I remember seeing this game on Amiga called Elvira Mistress of the Dark and being amazed at the graphics on that game. I was completely floored.

I was also always obsessed with Gauntlet on the Atari ST. It looked so close to the arcade at the time.

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forums.arcade-museum.com

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forums.arcade-museum.com

 

[bobbyb13]

Man, that goes back a way, but definitely arcade games.

First arcade machine was a pin actually, and not in an arcade but at a neighbor's house- EM Space Mission.
Recall being stunned that anyone would actually have a pinball machine in their basement!
Now that I look at when it was first released my freind's dad must've bought it brandy new because that would've been 1977 that I first played it.

First arcade video game was Space Invaders.
Another friends' parents were the local 7-11 franchisees.

First computer activity was roaming around the Great Underground Empire on an IBM with an amber character screen owned by our computer geek neighbor.

Fun stuff.

 

[mnrocketry]

Computer
My first definitive memory of encountering a computer was when I was in 3rd grade (1979-1980). My teacher wheeled a cart into our classroom. On it was an Apple ][ (or ][ plus) with a small color TV. I recall the whole class (as a group) playing a hangman type game on it. You guessed the letters in a word, and a boat [in brightly colored Apple lo-res graphics] sank a little more each time you guessed wrong. [I should attempt to figure out if that was a MECC program.]

Arcade
A new restaurant was constructed in my tiny home town (late 70s?). My whole family was eating there after church one Sunday. I think that I finished eating and was bored. Someone (my mother?) told me that they'd heard there were games in the basement. I cautiously went down there into a dimly lit room to find a group of "big kids" playing Space Invaders on a Taito Trimline cabinet. I didn't have a quarter to play it myself, but I watched them play in amazement. As best I can recall, that was my first encounter with a coin operated video arcade game.

Since SI came out in '78, my first arcade game encounter may have come first, but I really can't say for sure.

 

[steph]

For me it's a close call as the Commodore PET came out in 1979 and vectors were also becoming alive in the Arcades.

[ Must be an "Ottawa" thing .. I have nearly the same story... ]

Went on family trip to the Kennedy Space center in Florida in the summer of 1980
and saw an Atari Lunar Lander game there. Blew my mind !

Then, I started grade 10 in Sept 1980 (yah, I'm old...) , and the school had just bought 2 Commmodore PET 4032's .
(... the janitor had to kick me out of school at 5:00pm every night because I was always on those damn things ).

So in my case, vids beat out home PC's by 2 months !

Steph

 

[VectorCollector]

[ Must be an "ONTARIO" thing .. I have nearly the same story... ]

Steph

FTFY

Well, I grew up in TO. So, I would guess it was more of a provincial coincidence.

Fascinating to read that schools were being provided in late 70s / early 80s with Apple II or Commodore PETs.

I had forgot, however, that my first computer experience was filling out bubbles on a stack of cards to get a program to run.

 

[VectorCollector]

I also remember that STAR FORCE on the PET blew my mind ...

 

[alfonzotan]

I also remember that STAR FORCE on the PET blew my mind ...

First time I've seen that one. Basically a clone of Exidy's Star Fire.

 

[Schusler]

Arcades defintely first for me. I recall visiting the cousins in Chicago area, visiting an arcade by them that still was rocking the E.M. rifle games circa mid '70sish. The one arcade upright I do vividly recall was an Atari Pool Shark machine where my folks bowled. Still love to find one.

Computers it was either at school or at the neighbors house. It was an Apple II computer (on both accounts) and about the time frame Castle Wolfenstein was released. Gawd, I loved that game!