A History of Gaming Platforms: Atari 2600
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Although not the first video game console and astonishingly primitive by today's standards, the Atari 2600 Video Computer System (VCS) became a fundamental part of Eighties culture and remains one of the most revered 8-bit gaming platforms ever designed. However, the explosive growth triggered by the 2600 led to The Great Videogame Crash of 1984, which toppled the industry and threatened the future of electronic gaming in America.
In 1977, Atari released what is perhaps the most famous of the pre-Nintendo videogame consoles: the Video Computer System (VCS), later known as the Atari 2600. The company had scored an earlier triumph for the burgeoning industry with its Pong console, but the deluge of cheap knockoffs threatened its future.
Like the other new videogame systems at the time, the Fairchild Video Entertainment System (VES) and RCA Studio II, the VCS sold only a few hundred thousand units early on. However, an influx of funds from parent company Warner Communications supported Atari during the fledgling videogame market of the late 1970s, which was still transitioning from fixed-game devices to interchangeable cartridge-based consoles. This combination of Warner's financial support and increasingly exciting games helped Atari sell millions of VCS consoles by 1980.
