Hardware Retrospective: The Magnavox Odyssey
May 20, 2014 14:51:01 GMT -5
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Post by Devil Mingy on May 20, 2014 14:51:01 GMT -5
Rather than focusing on the latest in technology, I figured I'd kick this off with an old blog post about the beginning of console gaming. When the Enthusiacs forums is online, I am hoping to make this an ongoing series, detailing many consoles in hopes of telling part of the story of console gaming through the technology that defined it. Pictured are provided courtesy of myself... and there will be many pictures.
In 1966, Ralph Baer was a worker for Sanders Associates, a contractor company for the US military. While waiting for an associate on one April day, he jotted down a four page transcription for an idea he had been mulling over for years: a box that could be hooked up to a television and play quick, interactive games. Working on the side with some co-workers, Baer creates a simple mechanism that uses spot generators (a circuit pattern that can manipulate radio frequencies) to display two white dots, and a pair of knobs that can move them around the screen. With the help of fellow engineers Bill Harrison and Bill Rusch, this prototype was given new capabilities, including a light detection system (for a light gun peripheral) and a third spot generator that could produce a projectile that could be caught or bounced between the original two dots. Unbeknownst to them, this was the beginning of what would become a billion dollar industry.
After impressing the director of Sanders' R&D, Baer took his invention (and the patents on the technology) to various television manufactures. Unfortunately, it wouldn't be until 1971 before Magnavox reluctantly agreed to license the invention. One year later, Magnavox retailers began selling the first home video game console, The Odyssey.
Aesthetically, the console is certainly a product of its age: an elegant, space-age appliance. It's meant to be futuristic by 1970s standards, which makes it utterly alien looking in hindsight the same way 19th century steampunk technology is absurd by modern perception. And considering that most game consoles of the 70s were defined either by crude, economic simplicity or classy faux-wood grain, it is one of the more distinct consoles of its era.
The Odyssey features detachable controllers, detachable power and connector cords, and interchangeable cartridges. It is the only console from its era that I own (and have seen) to do all of this, despite being the standard to follow in the 80s and 90s. Heck, of all the consoles I own, only two from the 1970s do not include controllers that aren't hard-wired or fully integrated into the main console. Curiously, the system also allows itself to be powered by 6 C batteries, an idea that did inspire several PONG consoles.
To give some credit, the Odyssey doesn't use the cartridges in the same way the Atari 2600 or the NES would. As there is no ROM or command codes for the Odyssey to interpret (more on this later), the Odyssey's cartridges modified the jumper circuits within the Odyssey itself (as well as completing the electrical circuit to turn the system on). It's far more similar to how switches were able to change settings and rules on early PONG consoles.
The controller consists of a single reset button and three knobs. As labeled, the right knob controls vertical movement while the left knob controls horizontal movement. The third (English) knob was for special functions such as the ball trajectory in table tennis
One of the cited reasons for the relative failure of the Odyssey is that Magnavox's poor marketing convinced many people that it would only work with a Magnavox television. While completely false, I can get why many might think that when I look at the TV input input. Back in the 70s, the only way to get a signal to a TV was through the antenna terminals (though while the Odyssey was being mass-produced, Baer did suggest that Magnavox standardize a dedicated audio-video input into their televisions, but it was deemed too costly), usually requiring a switchbox. While uncommon, most
American manufacturers had decided on a standard switchbox and input (The 75 ohm F-type, on the left above)... except Magnavox. They had their own RF input lead that required its own proprietary switchbox (on the right above), which might be sold separately depending on which shipment of the Odyssey you purchased (mine, a 1973 run, did not include an AC adapter or a switchbox). This switchbox was, naturally, only available at Magnavox retailers. Thankfully, the future Odyssey 2 uses the same input and switchbox, so I was able to use it to connect the Odyssey in favor of some time traveling.
Pictured above are the Odyssey's many, MANY accessories. Magnavox wasn't very confident in the idea of games on the TV, so they wanted to make sure they could give it a mile-long feature list so it could appeal to as many people as possible. While Baer believed the table tennis and shooting games would be enough to market the Odyssey, Magnavox decided to go overboard with games and accessories and rule-sets. Of the six initial cartridges released for the Odyssey, Magnavox came up with rules for twelve games, some of which were simply standalone board games that utilized the Odyssey as a single game action.
In addition to the accessories and rulebook were these overlays, which helped contextualize some of the more outlandish Odyssey games as well as add some color to the screen. While the prototype Baer demonstrated had color functionality, the mass-produced Odyssey was limited to black and white to keep it affordable.
Finally, we take a look under the hood. In this regard, the Odyssey is truly in a class of its own, barely comparable to any console that came after it. I've gotta say... this thing is a marvel of engineering. I'm familiar enough with computers to understand how most game consoles work, but the Odyssey is completely alien to me. It was designed so that Magnavox could build it using what they had on-hand from building televisions: a lot of capacitors and transistors. There is no processor, no gpu, and no RAM. This giant motherboard with a dozen linked daughterboards actually creates interactive games that can be displayed through a TV, despite the fact that you could probably build one yourself out of $60 worth of spare parts from RadioShack. The blue potentiometers can even be turned to modify the games further. For example, the one in the center can be used to change the size of the paddle for player one in the table tennis game.
Overall, the Magnavox Odyssey was an idea undone by a combination of being too limited by what it was and Magnavox being too ambitious with what they thought it should be. The games are simple, its rules and mechanics set to the honor system, and the nature of the system limited engineers from ever being able to do much more with it. However, in it you can see the common foundations of gaming consoles for decades after its discontinuation. While it may lack the basic components on the inside, its design decisions better predicted the choices of industry juggernauts of the 80s and 90s than most of"truer" consoles that followed it.
Sources:
1. www.ralphbaer.com/video_game_history.htm
2. irategamersucks.blogspot.com/2011/03/ralph-baer-responds-no-chris-he-didnt.html
Sing In Me, Muse
In 1966, Ralph Baer was a worker for Sanders Associates, a contractor company for the US military. While waiting for an associate on one April day, he jotted down a four page transcription for an idea he had been mulling over for years: a box that could be hooked up to a television and play quick, interactive games. Working on the side with some co-workers, Baer creates a simple mechanism that uses spot generators (a circuit pattern that can manipulate radio frequencies) to display two white dots, and a pair of knobs that can move them around the screen. With the help of fellow engineers Bill Harrison and Bill Rusch, this prototype was given new capabilities, including a light detection system (for a light gun peripheral) and a third spot generator that could produce a projectile that could be caught or bounced between the original two dots. Unbeknownst to them, this was the beginning of what would become a billion dollar industry.
After impressing the director of Sanders' R&D, Baer took his invention (and the patents on the technology) to various television manufactures. Unfortunately, it wouldn't be until 1971 before Magnavox reluctantly agreed to license the invention. One year later, Magnavox retailers began selling the first home video game console, The Odyssey.
Aesthetically, the console is certainly a product of its age: an elegant, space-age appliance. It's meant to be futuristic by 1970s standards, which makes it utterly alien looking in hindsight the same way 19th century steampunk technology is absurd by modern perception. And considering that most game consoles of the 70s were defined either by crude, economic simplicity or classy faux-wood grain, it is one of the more distinct consoles of its era.
The Odyssey features detachable controllers, detachable power and connector cords, and interchangeable cartridges. It is the only console from its era that I own (and have seen) to do all of this, despite being the standard to follow in the 80s and 90s. Heck, of all the consoles I own, only two from the 1970s do not include controllers that aren't hard-wired or fully integrated into the main console. Curiously, the system also allows itself to be powered by 6 C batteries, an idea that did inspire several PONG consoles.
To give some credit, the Odyssey doesn't use the cartridges in the same way the Atari 2600 or the NES would. As there is no ROM or command codes for the Odyssey to interpret (more on this later), the Odyssey's cartridges modified the jumper circuits within the Odyssey itself (as well as completing the electrical circuit to turn the system on). It's far more similar to how switches were able to change settings and rules on early PONG consoles.
The controller consists of a single reset button and three knobs. As labeled, the right knob controls vertical movement while the left knob controls horizontal movement. The third (English) knob was for special functions such as the ball trajectory in table tennis
One of the cited reasons for the relative failure of the Odyssey is that Magnavox's poor marketing convinced many people that it would only work with a Magnavox television. While completely false, I can get why many might think that when I look at the TV input input. Back in the 70s, the only way to get a signal to a TV was through the antenna terminals (though while the Odyssey was being mass-produced, Baer did suggest that Magnavox standardize a dedicated audio-video input into their televisions, but it was deemed too costly), usually requiring a switchbox. While uncommon, most
American manufacturers had decided on a standard switchbox and input (The 75 ohm F-type, on the left above)... except Magnavox. They had their own RF input lead that required its own proprietary switchbox (on the right above), which might be sold separately depending on which shipment of the Odyssey you purchased (mine, a 1973 run, did not include an AC adapter or a switchbox). This switchbox was, naturally, only available at Magnavox retailers. Thankfully, the future Odyssey 2 uses the same input and switchbox, so I was able to use it to connect the Odyssey in favor of some time traveling.
Pictured above are the Odyssey's many, MANY accessories. Magnavox wasn't very confident in the idea of games on the TV, so they wanted to make sure they could give it a mile-long feature list so it could appeal to as many people as possible. While Baer believed the table tennis and shooting games would be enough to market the Odyssey, Magnavox decided to go overboard with games and accessories and rule-sets. Of the six initial cartridges released for the Odyssey, Magnavox came up with rules for twelve games, some of which were simply standalone board games that utilized the Odyssey as a single game action.
In addition to the accessories and rulebook were these overlays, which helped contextualize some of the more outlandish Odyssey games as well as add some color to the screen. While the prototype Baer demonstrated had color functionality, the mass-produced Odyssey was limited to black and white to keep it affordable.
Finally, we take a look under the hood. In this regard, the Odyssey is truly in a class of its own, barely comparable to any console that came after it. I've gotta say... this thing is a marvel of engineering. I'm familiar enough with computers to understand how most game consoles work, but the Odyssey is completely alien to me. It was designed so that Magnavox could build it using what they had on-hand from building televisions: a lot of capacitors and transistors. There is no processor, no gpu, and no RAM. This giant motherboard with a dozen linked daughterboards actually creates interactive games that can be displayed through a TV, despite the fact that you could probably build one yourself out of $60 worth of spare parts from RadioShack. The blue potentiometers can even be turned to modify the games further. For example, the one in the center can be used to change the size of the paddle for player one in the table tennis game.
Overall, the Magnavox Odyssey was an idea undone by a combination of being too limited by what it was and Magnavox being too ambitious with what they thought it should be. The games are simple, its rules and mechanics set to the honor system, and the nature of the system limited engineers from ever being able to do much more with it. However, in it you can see the common foundations of gaming consoles for decades after its discontinuation. While it may lack the basic components on the inside, its design decisions better predicted the choices of industry juggernauts of the 80s and 90s than most of"truer" consoles that followed it.
Sources:
1. www.ralphbaer.com/video_game_history.htm
2. irategamersucks.blogspot.com/2011/03/ralph-baer-responds-no-chris-he-didnt.html