1983 in video gaming

Events

• A major shakeout of the video game industry begins. By 1986, total video games sales will decrease from US$3.2 billion to US$0.1 billion.^[1]
• MCA Universal files suit against Nintendo, claiming that the latter company's video arcade hit Donkey Kong violated Universal's copyright on King Kong. After a brief trial, the judge determined that the rights to the original Kong had passed into the public domain. The case was dismissed, and MCA Universal paid $1.8 million USD in damages to Nintendo.^[2]
• Atari files suit against Coleco, claiming violation of Atari's patents on the Atari 2600 video game console. The previous year, Coleco released a peripheral device that made it possible for Atari 2600 game cartridges to be run on the ColecoVision console.^[3]
• Infogrames Entertainment SA is established by Bruno Bonnell and Christophe Sapet in Lyon, France.^[4]
• Origin Systems is founded by Robert, Richard, and Owen K. Garriott and Chuck Bueche in Austin, Texas; Richard will become better known by the name of his fictional character, Lord British.^[5]
• Interplay Productions is founded by Brian Fargo in southern California.^[6]
• Navarre Corporation is founded.^[7]
• Amusement Developing Section 8 (later known as Sega-AM2), a research and development department of Sega, is established under the supervision of Yu Suzuki in Tokyo, Japan.^[8]
• According to Nintendo, total video game sales for 1983 are $3.2 billion USD.^[1]

Notable releases

Arcade games

• Bally/Midway releases Spy Hunter, an action/racing game.^[9]
• Cinematronics releases Advanced Microcomputer Systems's Dragon's Lair, the first laserdisc video game.^[10]
• Atari releases Star Wars, a vector graphics-based game based on the popular film franchise.^[11]
• Konami releases Gyruss in Japan. Centuri distributes the game in North America.^[12]
• Namco releases Mappy, Pac & Pal, Phozon, Libble Rabble and Pole Position II.

• Nintendo releases arcade games Mario Bros. and Donkey Kong Jr. Math

Personal computer and console games

• Mattel Electronics publishes World Series Baseball by Don Daglow and Eddie Dombrower, the first video game to use multiple camera angles, for the Intellivision.^[13]
• Origin Systems publishes Ultima III: Exodus by Richard Garriott, better known as Lord British. Ultima III was the first role-playing video game to feature tactical, turn-based combat, for the Apple II, Atari 800, Commodore 64, and IBM PC.^[5]
• Electronic Arts publishes Dan Bunten's M.U.L.E., an influential multiplayer strategy game, for the Commodore 64.^[14]
• Electronic Arts publishes Bill Budge's Pinball Construction Set, the first example of the "builder" (or "construction set") computer and video game genre, for the Apple II, Atari 800, and IBM PC.^[15]
• Bug-Byte releases Matthew Smith's Manic Miner, an influential early platform game, for the ZX Spectrum.^[16]
• Ultimate Play The Game, later known as Rare, releases its first video games, Jetpac and Atic Atac, for the ZX Spectrum.^[17]

^[18]

• Psion release Chequered Flag, the first driving game published for the ZX Spectrum,^[19] one of the first computer car simulators, and the first driving game with selectable cars and circuits.^[20]
• Spiderdroid is released for the Atari 2600 from Froggo Games Corporation.

Hardware

• Sega releases the SC-3000 personal computer and the SG-1000 console in Japan.^[21]
• Nintendo releases the Family Computer console in Japan. Shortly after its release, complaints begin to surface about rampant system instability, prompting Nintendo to issue a product recall and to rerelease the machine with a new motherboard.^[1]
• Coleco releases the Adam home computer.^[22]
• Mattel Electronics releases the Aquarius home computer, originally designed by Radofin Electronics Far East.^[23]
• Acorn Computers release the Acorn Electron, a cut down version of their BBC Micro to compete in the under £200 home computer market. Problems in manufacture see only 1 in 8 presales being delivered for the Christmas market.

References