1974 in video games

Overview of the events of 1974 in video games

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1974 had new titles such as Speed Race, Gran Trak 10, Tank and TV Basketball. The year's best-selling arcade game was Tank by Kee Games.

## Best-selling arcade video games in the United States

[edit]

The following titles were the best-selling arcade video games of 1974 in the United States, according to annual arcade cabinet sales estimates provided by Ralph H. Baer.[1]

Rank  | Title  | Arcade cabinet sales  | Developer  | Manufacturer  | Genre

|
|
|
|
|

1  | Tank | 10,000  | Kee Games | Kee Games | Maze
2  | Formula K (Gran Trak 10) | 5,000  | Atari, Inc. | Kee Games | Racing
3  | Clean Sweep | 3,500  | Ramtek | Ramtek | Block breaker
4  | Flim-Flam | 1,500  | Meadows Games | Meadows Games | Pong
5  | Leader | 1,000  | Midway Manufacturing | Midway Manufacturing
TV Flipper | 1,000  | Midway Manufacturing | Midway Manufacturing | Pinball
7  | Gran Trak 20 | 500  | Atari, Inc. | Atari, Inc. | Racing
Robot | 500  | Allied Leisure | Allied Leisure | Pong
TV Basketball | 500  | Taito | Midway Manufacturing | Sports
TV Pinball | 500  | Chicago Coin | Chicago Coin | Pinball

## Events

[edit]

* Namco acquires the Japanese division of Atari, Inc. and formally enters the video arcade game market.[2]
* Atari acquires Kee Games. Atari will continue to use the "Kee Games" title as a brand name until 1978.[2]

## Notable releases

[edit]

### Magazines

[edit]

* Play Meter, the first magazine devoted to coin-operated amusements (including arcade games), publishes its first issue.[2]

### Arcade games

[edit]

* February – Taito releases Basketball,[3] an early example of sprite graphics, used to represent baskets and player characters,[4] making it the first video game with human figures.[3] The same month, Midway licenses the game for a North American release under the title TV Basketball, making it the first Japanese game licensed for North American release.[3]
* July 24 – Atari releases Gran Trak 10, the first car-racing video game, to video arcades.[5]
* November – Taito releases Tomohiro Nishikado's Speed Race,[6] the second car-racing video game. It introduces scrolling sprite graphics with collision detection,[7] and uses a racing wheel controller.[8] Midway releases it as Wheels and Racer in the United States.[7]
* November 5[9] – Prior to their acquisition by Atari, Kee Games releases Tank to video arcades.[2]
* Date Unknown - Nintendo releases Wild Gunman and Shooting Trainer in Japan. Outside of trade show demonstrations, the two games remain exclusive to the region until Sega releases them internationally in April 1976.[10]

### Computer games

[edit]

* Jim Bowery develops Spasim for the PLATO system. Two versions are released, the first in March and the second in July.[11] It is also recognized as an ancestor of the first-person shooter genre.
* Gary Whisenhunt and Ray Wood develop dnd, the first game with a boss, and arguably the first role-playing video game, for the PLATO system.[12] Development continued into 1975; it is unclear at what point the game became playable.

### Video game consoles

[edit]

* Magnavox reissues the Odyssey and releases it in Australia, Belgium, the United Kingdom, France, West Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy, Switzerland, and Venezuela.[13]

## See also

[edit]

* 1974 in games

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Baer, Ralph H. (2005). Videogames: In the Beginning. Rolenta Press. pp. 10–3. ISBN 978-0-9643848-1-1.
2. ^ a b c d Thomas, Donald A. Jr. (2005). "–1974–". ICWhen.com. Archived from the original on March 17, 2006. Retrieved February 16, 2006.
3. ^ a b c "The Golden Age Arcade Historian: Video Game Firsts??". November 22, 2013. Archived from the original on November 5, 2017. Retrieved November 4, 2014.
4. ^ Basketball at the Killer List of Videogames
5. ^ Cassidy, William (2003). "Hall of Fame / Gran Trak 10 and Sprint 2". GameSpy. Archived from the original on February 3, 2010. Retrieved February 16, 2006.
6. ^ "Speed Race, Arcade Video game by Taito (1974)". Archived from the original on November 27, 2020. Retrieved November 4, 2014.
7. ^ a b Bill Loguidice & Matt Barton (2009), Vintage games: an insider look at the history of Grand Theft Auto, Super Mario, and the most influential games of all time, p. 197, Focal Press, ISBN 0-240-81146-1
8. ^ Speed Race at the Killer List of Videogames
9. ^ "Tank, Arcade Video game by Kee Games (1974)". Archived from the original on November 4, 2014. Retrieved November 4, 2014.
10. ^ "SEGA Introduces Two New Games" (PDF). Cashbox. April 24, 1976. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
11. ^ Bowery, Jim (2010). "Spasim (1978) The First First-Person-Shooter 3D Multiplayer Networked Game". Archived from the original on October 18, 2009. Retrieved February 16, 2006.
12. ^ Koster, Raph (February 17, 2002). "Online World Timeline". Raph Koster's Website. Archived from the original on January 17, 2009. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
13. ^ Gegan, Shaun and David Winter (2003). "Magnavox Odyssey FAQ version 2.9.1" (text). Archived from the original on February 13, 2006. Retrieved February 16, 2006.

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Action|

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Shooter|

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Action-adventure|

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Role-playing|

* Action role-playing
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Simulation|

| Life|

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|

CMS|

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Sports|

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Other|

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Strategy|

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* Cozy
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Related concepts|

| Themes|

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Video games by country

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