Anatomy of the First Video Game, Born 1958

afabbro writes "Fifty years ago, before 'Pong' and 'Space Invaders,' a nuclear physicist created 'Tennis for Two,' a 2-D tennis game that some say was the first video game ever. Built in 1958, it was 'gynormous.' 'In addition to the oscilloscope screen and the controller, the guts of the original game were contained in an analog computer, which is "about as big as a microwave oven."' 'We have to load it into the back of a station wagon to move it. It's not a Game Boy that you put in your pocket.'"

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Re:Writing quality?

[Anonymous Coward]

He obviously means to indicate that it is fat and womanly, like the average modern-day video game player.

Where can I download the emulator?

[erroneus]

Sounds like a great game!

And I don't want to play pong tennis. I want the whole analog computer emulated in some way and the oscilloscope's vector graphics too.

Re:Writing quality?

[lgw]

Agreed! Clearly "hugantic" is the preferable adjective.

Re:Thank you, captain obvious.

[khellendros1984]

It's not a Game Boy you put in your pocket. It's a series of tubes. No, literally, I mean it.

Re:Writing quality?

[mrsteveman1]

With all the rental services around now, that's inexcusable.

Re:Nope, it was the second video game.

[Anonymous Coward]

No it's not, tic-tac-toe is a trivially solved game and anyone can tie (or win) if they following something like nine rules. It'd actually be sad if you couldn't write an AI to play it perfectly given that.

OK, so tell us how you'd write an AI that follows "something like nine rules", please? I'm dying to see someone code that.

Re:Shopping Cart Pants.

[Weedlekin]

That's because marine aircraft were smaller in those days. You wouldn't more than three of today's planes into the back of a 1950s station wagon, and even they'd be a tight fit.