1983 in video games

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

List of years in video games
+...

1983 has seen many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Mario Bros. and Pole Position II, along with new titles such as Astron Belt, Champion Baseball, Dragon's Lair, Elevator Action, Spy Hunter and Track & Field. Major events include the video game crash of 1983 in North America, and the third generation of video game consoles beginning with the launch of Nintendo's Family Computer (Famicom) and Sega's SG-1000 in Japan. The year's highest-grossing video game was Namco's arcade game Pole Position, while the year's best-selling home system was Nintendo's Game & Watch for the third time since 1980.

Financial performance[edit]

  • In the United States, arcade video game revenues are worth $2.9 billion[1] (equivalent to $8.87 billion adjusted for inflation).
  • In the United States, home video game sales are worth $2 billion[2] (equivalent to $6.12 billion adjusted for inflation).
  • In Japan, home video game sales approach ¥400 billion[3] (equivalent to $1.68 billion at the time, or $5.69 billion adjusted for inflation).

Highest-grossing arcade games[edit]

Pole Position, a racing game by Namco, was the most successful arcade game of 1983.[4]

Japan[edit]

In Japan, Game Machine magazine began publishing half-monthly charts of top-grossing arcade games from June 1, 1983.[5] The following titles were the top-grossing arcade video games on the Game Machine charts from June to December 1983.

Month Table arcade cabinet Upright/cockpit cabinet Ref
First half Second half First half Second half
May Champion Baseball Astron Belt [6]
June [7][5]
July [8][9]
August Champion Baseball Elevator Action [10][11]
September Elevator Action Ultra Quiz Astron Belt [12][13]
October Pole Position Star Wars [14][15]
November Xevious Joshi Volleyball Laser Grand Prix Pole Position II [16][17]
December Exerion Hyper Olympic TX-1 [18][19]

United States[edit]

In the United States, the following titles were the highest-grossing arcade games of 1983, according to RePlay magazine, the Amusement & Music Operators Association (AMOA), and Cash Box magazine.

Rank RePlay AMOA[20] Cash Box[21] Play Meter
1 Pole Position[22] Pole Position[23] Ms. Pac-Man,
Pole Position
Dragon's Lair[24]
2 Dragon's Lair,
Mr. Do![25]
Bump 'n' Jump,
Galaga,
Ms. Pac-Man,
Mr. Do!,
Bag Man,
Nibbler,
Buck Rogers: Planet of Zoom,
Jungle King (Jungle Hunt)
Donkey Kong,
Joust,
Time Pilot,
Q*bert
Un­known
3 Dragon's Lair
4 Un­known Millipede
5 Un­known
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13

Best-selling home video games[edit]

The following titles were the best-selling home video games of 1983.

Rank Title Platform Publisher Licensor Release Year Genre Sales Ref
1 Ms. Pac-Man Atari 2600 Atari, Inc. Midway 1983 Maze 1,963,078 [26]
2 Donkey Kong ColecoVision Coleco Nintendo 1982 Platformer 1,500,000 [27]
3 Centipede Atari 2600 Atari, Inc. 1983 Shoot 'em up 1,475,240 [26]
4 Pitfall! Atari 2600 Activision 1982 Platformer 1,000,000+ [28][29]
5 Pac-Man Atari 2600 Atari, Inc. Namco 1982 Maze 684,569 [26]
6 Night Driver Atari 2600 Atari, Inc. 1980 Racing 580,959
7 Space Invaders Atari 2600 Atari, Inc. Taito 1980 Shoot 'em up 435,353
8 Warlords Atari 2600 Atari, Inc. 1981 Action 372,672
9 Breakout Atari 2600 Atari, Inc. 1978 Block breaker 312,672
10 Centipede Atari 2600 Atari, Inc. 1983 Shoot 'em up 100,499

Best-selling home systems[edit]

Rank System(s) Manufacturer Type Generation Sales
Japan Worldwide
1 Game & Watch Nintendo Handheld 5,300,000[30]
2 Atari 2600 (Atari VCS) Atari, Inc. Console Second 3,000,000[31]
3 Commodore 64 (C64) Commodore Computer 8-bit 2,000,000[32]
4 ColecoVision Coleco Console Second 1,500,000[27]
5 Family Computer (Famicom / NES) Nintendo Console Third 1,000,000+[33][34] 1,000,000+
6 IBM Personal Computer (IBM PC) IBM Computer 8-bit / 16-bit 850,000[35]
7 Intellivision Mattel Console Second 750,000[36]
8 Atari 400 / Atari 800 Atari, Inc. Computer 8-bit 500,000[32]
9 Apple II Apple Inc. Computer 8-bit 420,000[32]
10 NEC PC-88 / PC-98 NEC Computer 8-bit / 16-bit 360,000[37][38] 360,000+

Major awards[edit]

Award 4th Arcade Awards (US)[39] Video Games Player Golden Joystick Awards (US)[40] Golden Joystick Awards (UK)[41]
Arcade Console Computer Standalone Arcade Console Computer Computer
Game of the Year Pole Position Lady Bug Lode Runner Q*bert Robotron: 2084 Pitfall! Shamus Jetpac
Ms. Pac-Man
Best Arcade Adaptation Kangaroo Frogger Donkey Kong Frogger
Best Movie Adaptation Empire Strikes Back
Most Innovative Game Q*bert Archon Astron Belt Microsurgeon Baseball
Best Original Game Ah Diddums
Best Graphics Pole Position Zaxxon Wayout
Best Special Effects SubRoc-3D
Audio/Visual Effects Dragon's Lair Donkey Kong Jr.
Arcade-Style Game Manic Miner
Best Action Game River Raid Centipede Centipede Centipede Crossfire
Best Ladder Game Donkey Kong Donkey Kong Miner 2049er
Best Maze Game Ms. Pac-Man Pac-Man
Science Fiction/Fantasy Xevious Vanguard
Best Space Game Buck Rogers Demon Attack Defender
Best Adventure Game Advanced D&D Witness Dragonstomper Zork
Best Sports Game Soccer
Strategy/War Game Legionnaire The Hobbit
Best Mini-Arcade Game 3-D Sky Attack
Best Software House Ultimate Play the Game

Events[edit]

Business[edit]

Notable releases[edit]

Games[edit]

Arcade

Personal computer

Console

Hardware[edit]

Arcade

Console

Family Computer
  • July 15 – Sega releases the SG-1000 console in Japan,[70] on the same day as the Famicom.
  • July 15 – Nintendo releases the Family Computer (Famicom) 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.[43] It would later be released worldwide as the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES).
  • October – Casio launches the Casio PV-1000 in Japan. It does not remain on the market for long.
  • October – Gakken launches the Compact Vision TV Boy in Japan. It's the last second generation console released. It was expensive and obsolete at launch, being discontinued shortly after.
  • GameLine, a combination modem and dialup game distribution service for the Atari 2600, is announced but never ships.

Personal computer

  • January – Apple Computer releases the Apple IIe, which becomes their most popular 8-bit machine.
  • June 16 – Microsoft Japan releases MSX, an early standardized home computer architecture.
  • March – Atari releases the poorly received 1200XL computer. Late in the year it and the rest of the Atari 8-bit family are replaced by the 600XL and 800XL.
  • June – Mattel Electronics releases the Aquarius home computer, originally designed by Radofin Electronics Far East.[71]
  • October – Coleco releases the Adam home computer.[72] It is only on the market for 15 months.
  • October – Mattel discontinues the Aquarius.
  • 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.
  • Sega releases the SC-3000, a personal computer version of the SG-1000 console, in Japan.[70]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Video Game Myth Busters - Did the "Crash" of 1983/84 Affect Arcades?, The Golden Age Arcade Historian (December 27, 2013)
  2. ^ Lindner, Richard (1990). Video Games: Past, Present and Future; An Industry Overview. United States: Nintendo of America.
  3. ^ "The Home Video-Game Industry (1983-1996" (PDF). gbrc.jp. p. 43.
  4. ^ "Racing Games Roundup: Facts". Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition. Little Brown Books. 2008. p. 154. ISBN 9781904994213.
  5. ^ a b "Best Hit Games 25" (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 215. Amusement Press, Inc. July 1, 1983. pp. 29–30.
  6. ^ "Best Hit Games 25" (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 213. Amusement Press, Inc. June 1, 1983. p. 29.
  7. ^ "Best Hit Games 25" (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 214. Amusement Press, Inc. June 15, 1983. p. 27.
  8. ^ "Best Hit Games 25" (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 216. Amusement Press, Inc. July 15, 1983. p. 37.
  9. ^ "Best Hit Games 25". Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 217. Amusement Press, Inc. August 1, 1983. p. 29.
  10. ^ "Best Hit Games 25" (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 218. Amusement Press, Inc. August 15, 1983. p. 27.
  11. ^ "Best Hit Games 25" (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 219. Amusement Press, Inc. September 1, 1983. p. 29.
  12. ^ "Best Hit Games 25" (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 220. Amusement Press, Inc. September 15, 1983. p. 29.
  13. ^ "Best Hit Games 25" (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 221. Amusement Press, Inc. October 1, 1983. p. 29.
  14. ^ "Best Hit Games 25" (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 222. Amusement Press, Inc. October 15, 1983. p. 35.
  15. ^ "Best Hit Games 25" (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 223. Amusement Press, Inc. November 1, 1983. p. 33.
  16. ^ "Best Hit Games 25" (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 224. Amusement Press, Inc. November 15, 1983. p. 29.
  17. ^ "Best Hit Games 25" (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 225. Amusement Press, Inc. December 1, 1983. p. 33.
  18. ^ "Best Hit Games 25" (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 226. Amusement Press, Inc. December 15, 1983. p. 33.
  19. ^ "Best Hit Games 25" (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 227. Amusement Press, Inc. January 1, 1984. p. 37.
  20. ^ "AMOA Votes On Annual Game Awards". Cash Box. October 29, 1983. p. 60.
  21. ^ "Cash Box Jukebox/Games Survey". Cash Box. Cash Box Pub. Co. October 29, 1983. p. 46.
  22. ^ "Top Hits of Last 5 Years". RePlay. March 1987.
  23. ^ "Around The Route". Cash Box. Cash Box Pub. Co. November 26, 1983. p. 32.
  24. ^ "1983". Play Meter. Vol. 20, no. 13. December 1994. p. 70.
  25. ^ Adlum, Eddie (November 1985). "The Replay Years: Reflections from Eddie Adlum". RePlay. Vol. 11, no. 2. pp. 134-175 (168-70).
  26. ^ a b c Cartridge Sales Since 1980. Atari Corp. Via "The Agony & The Ecstasy". Once Upon Atari. Episode 4. Scott West Productions. August 10, 2003. 23 minutes in.
  27. ^ a b McFerran, Damien (September 18, 2010). "Feature: How ColecoVision Became the King of Kong". Nintendo Life. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  28. ^ Capparell, James (June 1984). "Activision's James Levy: A software success story". Antic. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  29. ^ Sigel, Efrem; Giglio, Louis (1984). Guide to Software Publishing: An Industry Emerges. Knowledge Industry Publications. p. 22. ISBN 978-0-86729-108-7. Pitfall won the award from Electronic Games magazine as the best video game adventure of 1983, and in 1982 sold more than 1 million copies.
  30. ^ Fujii, Daiji (June 10, 2005). "The Birth of "Final Fantasy": Square Corporation". 岡山大学経済学会雑誌 (Okayama Economic Review). 37 (1). Okayama University: 63–88 (67–71). ISSN 0386-3069 – via Okayama University Scientific Achievement Repository.
  31. ^ Guins, Raiford (January 24, 2014). Game After: A Cultural Study of Video Game Afterlife. MIT Press. p. 324. ISBN 978-0-262-32018-4.
  32. ^ a b c Reimer, Jeremy (December 15, 2005). "Total share: 30 years of personal computer market share figures". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on June 7, 2012. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  33. ^ Donovan, Tristan (2010). "12. A Tool To Sell Software". Replay: The History of Video Games. East Sussex, England: Yellow Ant. p. 158. ISBN 978-0-9565072-0-4. Archived from the original on November 27, 2021. Retrieved November 26, 2021. Within two months of the Famicom's July 1983 launch around 500,000 had been sold. By the end of the year sales had topped the million mark.
  34. ^ Wolf, Mark J. P. (May 1, 2015). Video Games Around the World. MIT Press. p. 322. ISBN 978-0-262-52716-3. The Nintendo Famicom was released in July of 1983 and by the end of the year had sold more than a million units.
  35. ^ Shea, Tom (February 6, 1984). "Companies register big sales during Christmas season". InfoWorld. Vol. 6, no. 6. p. 16. ISSN 0199-6649.
  36. ^ Hayes, Thomas C. (February 4, 1984). "Mattel Is Counting on Its Toys". The New York Times. Retrieved November 26, 2021.
  37. ^ Methe, David; Mitchell, Will; Miyabe, Junichiro; Toyama, Ryoko (January 1998). "Overcoming a Standard Bearer: Challenges to NEC's Personal Computer in Japan". Research Papers in Economics (RePEc): 35 – via ResearchGate.
  38. ^ Juliussen, Egil; Juliussen, Karen (1990). The Computer Industry Almanac 1991. Pearson P T R. pp. 10–47, 10–48. ISBN 978-0-13-155748-2.
  39. ^ "1984 Arcade Awards", Electronic Games, January 1984, pages 68–81.
  40. ^ "Video Games Player 1983 Golden Joystick Awards". Video Games Player. Vol. 2, no. 1. United States: Carnegie Publications. September 1983. pp. 49–51.
  41. ^ "1983 Golden Joystick Awards". Computer and Video Games (30). Future Publishing: 81. April 1984. Retrieved January 13, 2012.
  42. ^ "The Player's Guide to Climbing Games". Electronic Games. 1 (11): 49. January 1983.
  43. ^ a b Liedholm, Marcus and Mattias. "The Famicom rules the world! – (1983–89)". Nintendo Land. Archived from the original on January 1, 2010. Retrieved February 14, 2006.
  44. ^ "25 Dumbest Moments in Gaming / Universal Goes Ape". GameSpy.com. 2003. Archived from the original on June 10, 2007. Retrieved February 14, 2006.
  45. ^ "Atari and Coleco". New York Times. February 8, 1983. Retrieved February 14, 2006.
  46. ^ "SEGA-AM2 Co., LTD". MobyGames. Archived from the original on February 14, 2006. Retrieved February 14, 2006.
  47. ^ "Atari – 1972–2004". Atari – Official Corporate Site. Archived from the original on October 19, 2006. Retrieved February 14, 2006.
  48. ^ a b GameSpot Staff (2000). "15 Most Influential Games of All Time / Ultima III: Exodus". GameSpot. Archived from the original on July 3, 2007. Retrieved February 14, 2006.
  49. ^ Ackerman, Kyle (2002). "The Saga Behind the Sagas: Interplay and the Business of Gaming". Frictionless Insight. Retrieved February 14, 2006.
  50. ^ "Navarre Corporation Completes $12.5 Million Private Placement". Navarre Corporation. 2003. Archived from the original on November 17, 2006. Retrieved February 14, 2006.
  51. ^ "Star Wars". KLOV.com. Archived from the original on February 22, 2019. Retrieved February 14, 2006.
  52. ^ "Gyruss". KLOV.com. Archived from the original on May 28, 2015. Retrieved February 14, 2006.
  53. ^ "Dragon's Lair". KLOV.com. Retrieved February 14, 2006.
  54. ^ "Bega's Battle arcade video game by Data East USA, Inc. (1983)". www.arcade-history.com.
  55. ^ Travis Fahs (March 3, 2008). "The Lives and Deaths of the Interactive Movie". IGN. Retrieved March 11, 2011.
  56. ^ "Astron Belt arcade game review". www.solvalou.com. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  57. ^ "Astron Belt arcade video game by Bally Midway Mfg. (1983)". www.arcade-history.com.
  58. ^ "Spy Hunter". KLOV.com. Archived from the original on June 9, 2007. Retrieved February 14, 2006.
  59. ^ John Szczepaniak (February 2011). "Portopia Renzoku Satsujin Jiken". Retro Gamer. Retrieved March 16, 2011. (Reprinted at John Szczepaniak. "Retro Gamer 85". Hardcore Gaming 101. Retrieved March 16, 2011.)
  60. ^ "VC ボコスカウォーズ". www.nintendo.co.jp.
  61. ^ "Dru Hill: The Chronicle of Druaga". 1up.com. Archived from the original on January 19, 2005.
  62. ^ Vestal, Andrew (November 2, 1998). "The History of Console RPGs". GameSpot. Archived from the original on June 8, 2009. Retrieved January 6, 2011.
  63. ^ Corriea, Alexa Ray (March 21, 2013). "30 years ago Electronic Arts shipped its first batch of five games". Polygon.
  64. ^ Broad, Andrew (2006). "Manic Miner/Jet Set Willy". Archived from the original on October 26, 2009. Retrieved February 14, 2006.
  65. ^ "GAMES / timeline". Welcome to Rare. Archived from the original on August 22, 2006. Retrieved April 3, 2006.
  66. ^ "The Complete YS Guide to Driving Games". Your Sinclair (59): 77. November 1990.
  67. ^ "Road Racers". CRASH (16): 45. May 1985.
  68. ^ "Classic Gaming Expo – Don Daglow". Classic Gaming Expo. 2005. Retrieved February 14, 2006.
  69. ^ "Star Jacker arcade video game by SEGA Enterprises (1983)". www.arcade-history.com.
  70. ^ a b "Sega SC-3000 / SG-1000". Obscure Pixels. Archived from the original on February 6, 2006. Retrieved February 14, 2006.
  71. ^ "Player 3 Stage 3: Contender to the Throne". The Dot Eaters. Archived from the original on November 9, 2006. Retrieved February 14, 2006.
  72. ^ Klein, Eric S. "Coleco Adam". Eric Klein's Vintage Computers. Archived from the original on January 31, 2006. Retrieved February 14, 2006.