Notable events of 1980 in computer and video games. See also history of computer and video games. 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... see also: 1979 in games, 1981 in games Games Released or Invented in 1980 DragonQuest Empires of the Middle Ages Rolemaster The Longest Day Titan Games awards given in 1980 Spiel des Jahres: Rummikub - Ephraim Hertzano, Intelli See also 1980 in video gaming Categories: | ... See also: 1978 in video gaming, other events of 1979, 1980 in video gaming, history of video games Events Asteroids was the first arcade game that players could enter their initials in as high scores. ... Notable events of 1981 in computer and video games. ... Although the history of computer and video games spans almost five decades, computer and video games themselves did not become part of the popular culture until the late 1970s. ...

Events

Pac-Man became an instant hit when it was launched in Japan in the autumn.

Image File history File links Screenshot of Pac-Man by Namco. ... Image File history File links Screenshot of Pac-Man by Namco. ... Pac-Man is an arcade game developed by Namco and licensed for distribution by Midway Games in 1979. ...

Notable releases

• Richard Garriott creates Akalabeth, a computer role-playing game for the Apple IIe. It launches Garriott's career and is a precursor to his highly successful Ultima series.
• Mattel releases the Intellivision video game console.
• Namco releases Toru Iwatani's Pac-Man arcade game.
• Rogue is written by Michael Toy, Glenn Wichman and Ken Arnold, spawning the category of roguelike games.
• Nintendo releases the Radar Scope arcade game and the Game & Watch handheld LCD game by Gunpei Yokoi.
• Sinclair Research releases the ZX80 home computer, the first 'domestic' computer to play games in the UK.
• Stern Electronics (a subsidiary of Universal Research Laboratories) releases the Berzerk arcade game.
• Warner Communications' Atari releases the Missile Command arcade game, and the Battlezone arcade game (it was later enhanced for the US Army for military training) – the first video game to employ 3-D graphics, albeit relying on specialized vector graphics hardware.
• Williams Electronics releases the Defender arcade game.
• Warner Communications' Atari releases the Centipede (by Ed Logg & Dona Bailey) and Warlords arcade games and also the Tempest color vector arcade game.

Richard Garriott in Lord British attire Richard Allen Garriott (born July 4, 1961; nickname Lord British) is a significant figure in the video game industry. ... In the map view, the player (a +) could visit towns (five squares), dungeons (x), and Lord Britishs castle. ... Computer role-playing games (CRPGs), often shortened to simply role-playing games (RPGs), are a type of video or computer game that traditionally uses gameplay elements found in paper-and-pencil role-playing games. ... The Apple IIe was the third model in the Apple II line of personal computers, produced by Apple Computer. ... Ultima is a series of fantasy computer role-playing games from Origin Systems, Inc. ... Mattel Inc. ... The Intellivision is a video game console released by Mattel in 1980; development of the console began in 1978 (less than a year after the introduction of its main competitor, the legendary Atari 2600 aka the Atari VCS). ... A video game console is a dedicated electronic machine designed to play video games. ... Namco is a company based in Japan, best known for developing video games. ... Toru Iwatani Toru Iwatani (born January 25, 1955) was a video game designer in the 1980s, and created one of the most popular arcade games of all time, Pac-Man. ... Pac-Man is an arcade game developed by Namco and licensed for distribution by Midway Games in 1979. ... Centipede by Atari is a typical example of a 1980s era arcade game. ... Rogue is a dungeon-crawling computer game dating from 1980. ... A roguelike is a computer game that borrows some of the elements of another computer game, 1980s Rogue. ... Nintendo (Japanese: 任天堂, ニンテンドー Nintendō; NASDAQ: NTDOY, TYO: 7974 ) is an international company originally founded in Japan on November 6, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi to produce handmade hanafuda cards, for use in a Japanese playing card game of the same name. ... Radar Scope is an early arcade game made by Nintendo, and released in 1980. ... Fire, 1981. ... Reflective twisted nematic liquid crystal display. ... Gunpei Yokoi, also seen as Gumpei Yokoi (横井 軍平 Yokoi Gunpei, September 10, 1941 - October 4, 1997) was one of the most important figures in the history of the video game company Nintendo. ... Sinclair Research Ltd was a home computer company founded by Clive Sinclair in Cambridge, England. ... Sinclair ZX80 The Sinclair ZX80 was a home computer brought to market in 1980 by Sinclair Research of Cambridge, England. ... Stern is the name of two different but related arcade gaming companies. ... Berzerk is a shooter video game, released in 1980 by Stern Electronics of Chicago. ... For the concept Atari (当たり) in the board game of Go, see Atari (go term). ... Missile Command a is 1980 arcade game by Atari. ... Battlezone is an arcade game from Atari released in 1980. ... US Army Seal HHC, US Army Distinctive Unit Insignia The Army is the branch of the United States armed forces that has primary responsibility for land-based military operations. ... Steam Locomotive 7646 as a vector, originally Windows Metafile (converted to GIF for display here). ... Williams is a long-standing electronic gaming and amusement company based in Chicago, Illinois. ... This page is about the arcade game Defender. ... For the concept Atari (当たり) in the board game of Go, see Atari (go term). ... Centipede is a vertically-oriented shootem up arcade game produced by Atari in 1980. ... Ed Logg was a co-developer of the video game Asteroids, with Lyle Rains. ... Warlords may refer to: The plural of Warlord, a name for a figure who has military authority but not legal authority over a subnational region. ... Tempest is an arcade game by Atari. ...

Business

• New companies: Mindscape, Inc., Sierra On-Line.
• Mattel creates the original five-programmer Intellivision game design team, nicknamed the Blue Sky Rangers by a magazine writer when the company keeps their names secret in a TV Guide interview.