History of video games/Platforms/TV Tennis Electrotennis
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The Epoch TV Tennis Electrotennis
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History
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Launch
editTV Tennis Electrotennis was released by Epoch on September 12th, 1975 at a cost of either ¥19,000 yen or ¥19,500 yen.[1][2] The TV Tennis Electrotennis was the first Japanese video game console.[2][3]
Legacy
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Sales figures
editMost sales figures for the TV Tennis Electrotennis are in the ballpark of around 10,000,[2] to 20,000 consoles sold.[4]
The German website Gamona even goes so far as to say the console could have sold over three million units, though this source notes that they were unsure of this claim.[5]
Influences
editThe ability for the TV Tennis Electrotennis to broadcast television signals inspired Famicom and NES designer Masayuki Uemura to consider adding a similar wireless broadcast function to the Famicom, though this was not pursued due to cost.[6]
TV Tennis Electrotennis (テレビテニス) is also known by its affectionate nickname "Pon Tennis" (ポンテニス).[7]
Technology
editAs the name suggests, the TV Tennis Electrotennis could only play tennis.[3] The system broadcast a television signal over a UHF antenna and ran on batteries so it did not need to be plugged into anything to work.[3][8]
External Resources
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- Game Medium - TV Tennis Electrotennis page.
- Super Gaijin Ultra Gamer - TV Tennis Electrotennis page.
References
edit- ↑ "ニッポンのゲーム37年史を学ぼう！". nippon.com (in Japanese). 3 October 2011. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
- ↑ a b c "Japan’s 1st Video Game Console was released 40 Years ago!" (in en). Toarcade. 12 September 2015. https://toarcade.wordpress.com/2015/09/12/japans-1st-video-game-console-was-released-40-years-ago/. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
- ↑ a b c "1st Generation – Game Bros Central". Retrieved 26 October 2020.
- ↑ "TV Tennis Electrotennis". Wikipedia. 11 November 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
- ↑ "Retro-Gaming: Die allererste japanische Videospielkonsole feiert 40. Jubiläum". web.archive.org. 22 January 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190122044225/http://www.gamona.de/games/retro-gaming,die-allererste-japanische-videospielkonsole-feiert-40:news.html.
- ↑ "Feature: NES Creator Masayuki Uemura On Building The Console That Made Nintendo A Household Name". Nintendo Life. 3 March 2020. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
- ↑ "アタリ・ヴィデオ・コンピューター・システム – ザ・プロトタイプ20世紀が見た夢". WIRED.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 1 December 2020.
- ↑ Picard, Martin (December 2013). "The Foundation of Geemu: A Brief History of Early Japanese video games". Game Studies. Retrieved 4 November 2020.