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History of video games/Platforms/Intellivision

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  • The Intellivision console with one controller extended.
    The Intellivision console with one controller extended.

History

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Development

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Reunion of the Blue Sky Rangers in 2011, people who worked on Intellivision games.

The Intellivision is based on the General Instrument GIMINI 8900 platform.[1]

Test marketing for the Intellivision occurred in the area around Fresno, California in 1979.[2]

Launch

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Intellivision logotype.

The Intellivision was released in 1980.[3] In 1981 the system cost $299.95.[4] Cartridges for the system cost between $24.95 and 34.95 in 1981.[4]

An internal group of highly paid, hardworking, and secretive team of developers known as the Blue Sky Rangers worked on producing games for the Intellivision through at least 1982.[5] A 1982 Ford concept car featured a built in Intellivision.[6]

The Intellivision and the Atari 2600 competed fiercely in the market, leading to the first major console war.[7]

Legacy

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The Intellivision lasted on the market until 1990.[3] The Intellivision sold over 3 million consoles.[8]

Mattel's next console was the HyperScan in 2006, though there is little relation beyond the parent company between these consoles.

Technology

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Compute

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The Intellivision had a 16 bit General Instrument CP1610 CPU with 10 bit instructions clocked at 894.886 kilohertz (About 0.89 megahertz) and 1352 bytes of total RAM.[3][9][10]

The Intellivision output at a resolution of 160 by 196 pixels with 16 colors.[3]

Software

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PlayCable

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Wikipedia has related information at PlayCable

The Intellivision had an online service called PlayCable that operated from 1980 to 1983 that allowed downloading games over a cable TV connection.[9]

Third Party Lockout

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The Intellivision II was released in 1982, featuring a ROM that tried to keep third parties who were not licensed from making games for the system.[11][12] This was among the first lockout methods used on a major console, and would refuse to boot unless a Mattel copyright screen was shown, though because this was implemented while the console had already been on the market, it caused incompatibility with some prior official games.[12] The system was not effective in stopping unauthorized third parties from publishing Intellivision games.[11][12]

Notable Games

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125 games were released on the Intellivision.[3]

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Mattel Intellivision

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Sears Tele Games Super Video Arcade

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    The Sears Tele-games had a marble finish.
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Redesigns

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    Intellivision II
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    INTV System III

Accessories

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    Intellivision controller
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    The Intellivoice module.

References

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Wikipedia has related information at Intellivision

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Intellivision

  1. ↑ "GIMINI Systems – The Video Game Kraken". Retrieved 27 November 2020.
  2. ↑ "Blue Sky Rangers Intellivision History". history.blueskyrangers.com. Retrieved 28 October 2020.
  3. ↑ a b c d e "Gamasutra - A History of Gaming Platforms: Mattel Intellivision". www.gamasutra.com. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
  4. ↑ a b Kunkel, Bill; Katz, Arnie (21 November 1981). "THE VIDEOGAMES: HOW THEY RATE (Published 1981)". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/1981/11/21/style/the-videogames-how-they-rate.html. 
  5. ↑ "Intellivision Classic Video Game System / TV Guide Profile". web.archive.org. 14 May 2013. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
  6. ↑ Torchinsky, Jason (11 February 2021). "Ford's 1982 Concept Car Had Pre-GPS SatNav And The First Integrated Video Game Console" (in en-AU). Gizmodo Australia. https://www.gizmodo.com.au/2021/02/fords-1982-concept-car-had-pre-gps-satnav-and-the-first-integrated-video-game-console/. 
  7. ↑ "PS4, XBox continue bit battles" (in en). The Blade. https://www.toledoblade.com/business/technology/2013/11/10/Fight-for-gaming-consoles-supremacy-started-with-Atari-vs-Intellivision/stories/20131110042. Retrieved 28 October 2020. 
  8. ↑ "Intellivision - Game Console - Computing History". www.computinghistory.org.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2020.
  9. ↑ a b "OLD-COMPUTERS.COM : The Museum". www.old-computers.com. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
  10. ↑ "Intellivision". kevtris.org. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  11. ↑ a b "CVGA Disassembled Second Generation (1976-1984) · Online Exhibits". apps.lib.umich.edu. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
  12. ↑ a b c "A Short History of Device Lockout Methods in Consumer Electronics, Part 1 Fantranslation.org". fantranslation.org. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
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