TiVo Alert: History of video games on CNBC
by Christopher Grant 
{ Nov 9th 2006 at 9:25AM }
CNBC, not a network typically associated with two-hour documentaries on video games, will be airing a two-hour documentary on video games Wednesday, November 15th, "just two days before the scheduled release of Sony's highly anticipated PlayStation 3" -- and four days before the scheduled release of Nintendo's highly anticipated Wii (there, we said it for you). So, what does the Consumer News and Business Channel have to say about video games in Game On! The Unauthorized History of Video Games? We're expecting the usual history lesson (Tennis for Two, Spacewar, Yo! Noid ... the classics) combined with lots of big numbers, regaling viewers with tall tales of how video games outsell movies (not really true ... box office only, folks). They do promise that "the program also includes riveting stories about the corporate power struggles that won (and lost) billions and how a single blunder helped destroy Atari's $2 billion-a-year-empire." So, maybe you'll learn something or, more importantly, maybe someone who doesn't know anything about video games (beyond MSFT and SNE) may catch the show on Wednesday, November 15th at 9 PM and 12 AM ET -- or even the rebroadcast on Sunday, November 19th at 9PM and 12AM ET -- and reconsider video games. They do outsell movies, y'know.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Brian @ Nov 9th 2006 9:53AM
Games cost $60 movie ticket costs $8. Of course games make more they're expensive.
Chilly Hollow @ Nov 9th 2006 10:05AM
I wonder if this is a replay of the Discovery Channel history of video games?
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3637639460474263178&q=history+of+video+games&pl=true
Jason @ Nov 9th 2006 11:16AM
how about we all just bend over and show our love for sony? good grief...
Chris @ Nov 9th 2006 10:13AM
How much you want to bet the end is all about the PS3 and then they say, "The Wii is also coming out, Nintendo's new flagship." or some other throw away line.
Steve @ Nov 9th 2006 10:42AM
I assume that when they mention Atari's big blunder that they're refering to the ET game because I've heard the ET situation mentioned many times in Atari's downfall. The thing I don't get about this is that I actually liked the ET game when I was a kid. This was, after all, Atari and none of the games could be called advanced, but for an Atari game it seemed fine. I really don't understand why it was so hated!
ackmondual @ Nov 9th 2006 11:17AM
I'd say it's more like $45 - $60 for video games. Handheld games like DS and PSP go for $15 to $40. Movie tickets go for $6.5 to $12 depending on where u live (cursed NYC and DC !@#$). In sheer $$, vid games are a bigger industry (AFAIK), but keep in mind that while movie tickets are MUCH cheaper, they also sell much quicker and and more en masse.
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@ #4
I just saw a friend play ET on his (actual) Atari 7800. It looked neat (for a game of that day), but I was confused about how to play the game even though I saw the movie. It turns out the game sold 5 mil copies, but 4 million of those copies got returned b/c ppl were also confused about what to do in the game. The main problem was nobody bothered to read the instruction manual, so they didn't bother to figure out what any of those icons at the top of the screen meant or that ET could fly.
K-man @ Nov 9th 2006 3:38PM
I want someone to do a documentry on the Future of Gaming. I watched a history of video games on OPB awhile back and during the last five minutes they had a breif segment on the future of gaming that was so cool. I've looked all over the net for information on where the gaming industry is heading in 5, 10, or 20 years from now. So far I can't find anything.
ackmondual @ Nov 9th 2006 5:35PM
@ #7
How's about...
"256MB of video RAM is all anyone will ever need"
ByteCrawler @ Jul 28th 2009 9:20PM
I caught the whole show last night at 9pm. All I got to say is any vintage gamer will love it. I thought it was great, put together well, and impartial. I already knew about a lot of the stuff they talked about but some stuff I had no clue.
Anthony @ Nov 16th 2006 9:14PM
Err.. I don't think my other comment went through and if it did sorry!
Anyway... I personally though it was a great program but got tired (not of the program) at 10:40pm. Essentially it had some great and interesting facts, and I enjoyed it. Ps: Nintendo shall prevail!!!
Keith Feinstein @ Nov 17th 2006 12:00AM
I was on the show, and (despite that fact) thought they did a very good job - and they did not give Nintendo short shrift in any way. A few of the points of discussion we had about Nintendo and the Wii made it in there. Heck, I saw film clips of Atari's production lines that I had never seen before.
B @ Nov 19th 2006 10:03PM
This history was horribly researched...It completely leaves out several important things in gaming, fails to mention any sort of thing about Saturn, Dreamcast, Nintendo 64, gamecube, or even the Super Nintendo as playing any roll in gaming history...Also, It does not discuss sega's departure from console development or any aspect of Xbox live playing a role in the future of games...Horrible history
William Young @ Dec 8th 2006 10:04AM
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