Companies that shaped the history of video games
A documented exploration of the companies that shaped the world of video games, from arcade pioneers to modern entertainment giants.
From the first electronic experiments of the 1970s to the consolidation of major industry players, the history of video games is also the history of the companies that drove their evolution. Each manufacturer contributed ideas, technologies and ways of understanding entertainment that defined entire generations of players.
Here we bring together those trajectories: stories of technical breakthroughs, rivalries, creative visions and moments that forever changed the way we play. A journey through the roots of video games to understand how everything we enjoy today was built.
3DO Company
The risky bet on an open standard that arrived too early.
USA · Home consoles
Atari
The birth of the home video game industry and the crash that changed the sector forever.
USA · Arcade · Home consoles
Bally–Midway
The glow of pinball machines, arcade cabinets, and the golden age of arcades.
USA · Arcade
Bandai-Namco
From success in toys to an entertainment powerhouse with timeless franchises.
Japan · Arcade · Home consoles
Coleco
It brought the arcade experience into the living room before the market’s major expansion.
USA · Home consoles
Magnavox Corporation
The absolute pioneers of home video gaming with the revolutionary Odyssey.
USA · Home consoles
Microsoft
The software giant that entered the console market and changed online gaming forever.
USA · Home consoles
NEC–Hudson Soft
The alliance that brought the TurboGrafx-16 to market and left an unforgettable mark.
Japan · Home consoles
Nintendo
From Hanafuda playing cards to becoming the greatest creative reference in modern video games.
Japan · Home consoles · Handheld consoles · Hybrid consoles
Sega
From legendary arcade machines to the console war that defined the 1990s.
Japan · Arcade · Home consoles · Handheld consoles
SNK
The pride of Japanese arcades and the technical legacy of Neo Geo.
Japan · Arcade · Home consoles · Handheld consoles
Sony
Consumer electronics gave rise to PlayStation, the brand that revolutionized the industry.
Japan · Home consoles · Handheld consoles
These stories are essential fragments of the path that has led us to the modern era of video games. Looking at them in perspective helps us understand not only how technology evolved, but also how our ways of playing, imagining and creating have changed.