Fueled by the previous year's release of the colorful and appealing ''

Pac-Man originally called ''Puck Man'' in Japan, is a 1980 maze action video game developed and released by Namco for arcades. In North America, the game was released by Midway Manufacturing as part of its licensing agreement with Namco America. Th ...

'', the audience for

arcade games An arcade game or coin-op game is a coin-operated entertainment machine typically installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are presented as primarily games of skill and include arcad ...

in 1981 became much wider. ''Pac-Man'' influenced

maze games Maze game is a video game genre description first used by journalists during the 1980s to describe any game in which the entire playing field is a maze. Quick player action is required to escape monsters, outrace an opponent, or navigate the maze ...

began appearing in arcades and on home systems. ''Pac-Man'' was again the year's highest-grossing video game for the second year in a row.

Nintendo is a Japanese multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles. Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produced handmade playing cards ...

released the arcade game ''

Donkey Kong is a video game franchise created by Shigeru Miyamoto and owned by Nintendo. It follows the adventures of a gorilla named Donkey Kong (character), Donkey Kong and his clan of other Ape, apes and monkeys. The franchise primarily consists of plat ...

'', which defined the platformer genre. Other arcade hits released in 1981 include '' Defender'', ''

Scramble Scramble, Scrambled, or Scrambling may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Games * ''Scramble'' (video game), a 1981 arcade game Music Albums * ''Scramble'' (album), an album by Atlanta-based band the Coathangers * ''Scrambles'' (album) ...

'', ''

Frogger is a 1981 arcade action game developed by Konami and manufactured by Sega. In North America, it was released by Sega/Gremlin. The object of the game is to direct a series of frogs to their homes by crossing a busy road and a hazardous rive ...

'', and ''

Galaga is a 1981 fixed shooter arcade video game developed and published by Namco. In North America, it was released by Midway Manufacturing. It is the sequel to '' Galaxian'' (1979), Namco's first major video game hit in arcades. Controlling a star ...

''. The year's best-selling home system was Nintendo's

Game & Watch The Game & Watch brand ( ''Gēmu & Uotchi''; called ''Tricotronic'' in West Germany and Austria, abbreviated as ''G&W'') is a series of handheld electronic games developed, manufactured, released, and marketed by Nintendo from 1980 to 1991. C ...

, for the second year in a row.

Financial performance

* The

arcade video game An arcade video game takes player input from its controls, processes it through electrical or computerized components, and displays output to an electronic monitor or similar display. Most arcade video games are coin-operated, housed in an arc ...

market in the US generates $4.8 billion in revenue. * The home video game market in the US generates $1 billion in sales revenue, with

Atari Atari () is a brand name that has been owned by several entities since its inception in 1972. It is currently owned by French publisher Atari SA through a subsidiary named Atari Interactive. The original Atari, Inc., founded in Sunnyvale, Ca ...

remaining the market leader. * The home video game market in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

is worth $200 million.

Highest-grossing arcade games

The year's highest-grossing video game was ''

'' with in

arcade game An arcade game or coin-op game is a coin-operated entertainment machine typically installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are presented as primarily games of skill and include arcade vi ...

revenue, three times the box office revenue of the

highest-grossing film Films generate income from several revenue streams, including theatrical exhibition, home video, television broadcast rights, and merchandising. However, theatrical box-office earnings are the primary metric for trade publications in assess ...

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has been expanded into various film ...

'' (1977) in five years.

Japan

In Japan, the following titles were the highest-grossing

s of 1981, according to the annual '' Game Machine'' chart.

United States

In the United States, the following titles were the top three highest-grossing arcade games of 1981, according to the annual ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an onli ...

'' and ''RePlay'' arcade charts. The following titles were the top-grossing arcade games of each month in 1981, according to the ''

Play Meter ''Play Meter'' (initially ''Coin Industry Play Meter'') was an American trade magazine focusing on the coin-op amusement arcade industry, including jukebox and arcade game machines. It was founded in December 1974 by publisher and editor Ralph C. ...

'' and ''RePlay'' arcade charts.

Best-selling home video games

The following titles were the best-selling home video games in 1981. Via

Best-selling home systems

Events

Magazines

* January – Atari computer magazine ''

ANALOG Computing ''ANALOG Computing'' (an acronym for Atari Newsletter And Lots Of Games) was an American computer magazine devoted to the Atari 8-bit family of home computers. It was published from 1981 until 1989. In addition to reviews and tutorials, ''ANAL ...

'' begins 9 years of publication. Most issues include at least one BASIC game and one machine language game. * November – The British video game magazine ''

Computer and Video Games ''Computer and Video Games'' (also known as ''CVG'', ''Computer & Video Games'', ''C&VG'', ''Computer + Video Games'', or ''C+VG'') was a UK-based video game magazine, published in its original form between 1981 and 2004. Its offshoot website w ...

'' (C&VG) starts. * Winter – Arnie Katz and Bill Kunkel found ''

Electronic Games An electronic game is a game that uses electronics to create an interactive system with which a player can play. Video games are the most common form today, and for this reason the two terms are often used interchangeably. There are other common ...

'', the first magazine on video games and generally recognized as the beginning of

video game journalism Video game journalism is a branch of journalism concerned with the reporting and discussion of video games, typically based on a core "reveal–preview–review" cycle. With the prevalence and rise of independent media online, online publicati ...

Business

* New companies:

DK'Tronics DK'Tronics Ltd (stylised as dk'tronics) was a British software and hardware company active during the 1980s. It primarily made peripherals for the ZX Spectrum and Amstrad CPC but also released video games for the ZX81, ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, ...

Games by Apollo Games by Apollo Inc. (also known as Apollo) was a third-party developer of games for the Atari 2600 video game system, based in Richardson, Texas. It was founded in October 1981 by Pat Roper as a subsidiary of his National Career Consultants ...

, Gebelli Software,

Imagic Imagic ( ) was an American video game developer and publisher that created games initially for the Atari 2600. Founded in 1981 by corporate alumni of Atari, Inc. and Mattel, its best-selling titles were ''Atlantis'', ''Cosmic Ark'', and ''Demo ...

, Spectravision,

Starpath Starpath was a U.S. company known for creating the Starpath Supercharger in August 1982. The company was founded under the name Arcadia Corporation in 1981 by Alan Bayley, Robert Brown, and Craig Nelson. It changed its name to Starpath shortly ...

Synapse Software Synapse Software Corporation (marketed as SynSoft in the UK) was an American video game development and publishing company founded in 1981 by Ihor Wolosenko and Ken Grant. It initially focused on the Atari 8-bit family, then later developed for th ...

* Defunct: APF Electronics

Births

May

* May 11 –

JP Karliak John Paul "JP" Karliak is an American actor and comedian. He is known for voicing characters, such as Linus in ''The Stinky & Dirty Show'' and Wile E. Coyote in '' Wabbit/New Looney Tunes'', Naysaya in the Disney XD animated series '' Star vs. th ...

: American actor, voice actor and comedian

Notable releases

Games

;Arcade * February –

Konami , is a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Chūō, Tokyo, it also produces and distributes trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, pachinko machines, slot machines, and arcade cabinets. Konami has ca ...

releases ''

'', the first

side-scrolling shooter Shoot 'em ups (also known as shmups or STGs ) are a sub-genre of action games. There is no consensus as to which design elements compose a shoot 'em up; some restrict the definition to games featuring spacecraft and certain types of charact ...

with forced

scrolling In computer displays, filmmaking, television production, and other kinetic displays, scrolling is sliding text, images or video across a monitor or display, vertically or horizontally. "Scrolling," as such, does not change the layout of the text ...

and multiple distinct levels.Game Genres: Shmups
Professor Jim Whitehead, January 29, 2007, Accessed June 17, 2008 * February –

Williams Electronics WMS Industries, Inc. was an American electronic gaming and amusement manufacturer in Enterprise, Nevada. It was merged into Scientific Games in 2016. WMS's predecessor was the Williams Manufacturing Company, founded in 1943 by Harry E. Williams ...

releases influential scrolling shooter '' Defender''. * July 9 –

releases ''

'', which introduces the characters of

and

Mario is a character (arts), character created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the title character of the ''Mario (franchise), Mario'' franchise and the mascot of Japanese video game company Nintendo. Mario has appeared in ...

, and sets the template for the

platform game A platform game (often simplified as platformer and sometimes called a jump 'n' run game) is a sub-genre of action video games in which the core objective is to move the player character between points in an environment. Platform games are charac ...

genre. It is also one of the first video games with an integral storyline. * August –

releases ''

''. * September –

Namco was a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company, headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo. It held several international branches, including Namco America in Santa Clara, California, Namco Europe in London, Namco Taiwan in Kaohsiun ...

releases ''

'', the sequel to ''

Galaxian is a 1979 fixed shooter arcade video game developed and published by Namco. The player assumes control of the Galaxip starfighter in its mission to protect Earth from waves of aliens. Gameplay involves destroying each formation of aliens, wh ...

'' which becomes more popular than the original. * October – ''Frogger'' is distributed in North America by Sega-Gremlin. * October 18 –

Sega is a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its international branches, Sega of America and Sega Europe, are headquartered in Irvine, California and London, respectively. Its division ...

releases ''

Turbo In an internal combustion engine, a turbocharger (often called a turbo) is a forced induction device that is powered by the flow of exhaust gases. It uses this energy to compress the intake gas, forcing more air into the engine in order to pr ...

'', a

racing video game Racing games are a video game genre in which the player participates in a racing competition. They may be based on anything from real-world racing leagues to fantastical settings. They are distributed along a spectrum between more realistic rac ...

that features a third-person perspective, rear-view racer format. *October 21 –

releases ''

Stargate ''Stargate'' (often stylized in all caps) is a military science fiction media franchise based on the film directed by Roland Emmerich, which he co-wrote with producer Dean Devlin. The franchise is based on the idea of an alien Einstein–Rosen ...

'', the sequel to '' Defender''. * October –

Rock-Ola The Rock-Ola Manufacturing Corporation is an American developer and manufacturer of juke boxes and related machinery. It was founded in 1927 by Coin-Op pioneer David Cullen Rockola to manufacture slot machines, scales, and pinball machines. The ...

's ''

Fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and d ...

'' is the first game with a continue feature. *October – Atari Inc. releases ''

Tempest Tempest is a synonym for a storm. '' The Tempest'' is a play by William Shakespeare. Tempest or The Tempest may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Films * ''The Tempest'' (1908 film), a British silent film * ''The Tempest'' (1911 film), a ...

,'' one of the first games to use Atari's Color-

QuadraScan A vector monitor, vector display, or calligraphic display is a display device used for computer graphics up through the 1970s. It is a type of CRT, similar to that of an early oscilloscope. In a vector display, the image is composed of drawn ...

vector Vector most often refers to: *Euclidean vector, a quantity with a magnitude and a direction *Vector (epidemiology), an agent that carries and transmits an infectious pathogen into another living organism Vector may also refer to: Mathematic ...

display technology. It was also the first game to allow the player to choose their starting level (a system Atari dubbed "SkillStep"). * November – Namco releases ''

Bosconian is a multidirectional scrolling shooter arcade game which was developed and released by Namco in Japan in 1981. In North America, it was manufactured and distributed by Midway Games. The goal of the game is to earn as many points as possible b ...

'', a multidirectional shooter with voice. * December – '' Jump Bug'', the first

, developed by Hoei/Coreland and

Alpha Denshi , formerly known as , was a Japanese video game developer founded in 1980. ADK began as a developer of arcade games and is best known for their library of SNK Neo Geo titles, including for its home consoles, produced in partnership with SNK. ...

, is distributed in North America by

under license from Sega. * Midway releases fixed-shooter ''

Gorf ''Gorf'' is an arcade video game released in 1981 by Midway Manufacturing, whose name was advertised as an acronym for "Galactic Orbiting Robot Force". It is a fixed shooter with five distinct levels, the first of which is based on ''Space Inva ...

'' with multiple distinct stages. *

Taito is a Japanese company that specializes in video games, toys, arcade cabinets and game centers, based in Shinjuku, Tokyo. The company was founded by Michael Kogan in 1953 as the importing vodka, vending machines and jukeboxes into Japan. I ...

releases abstract, twin-stick shooter '' Space Dungeon''. *

Data East , also abbreviated as DECO, was a Japanese video game, pinball and electronic engineering company. The company was in operation from 1976 to 2003, and released 150 video game titles. Its main headquarters were located in Suginami, Tokyo. The A ...

releases the vertically-scrolling isometric maze game ''

Treasure Island ''Treasure Island'' (originally titled ''The Sea Cook: A Story for Boys''Hammond, J. R. 1984. "Treasure Island." In ''A Robert Louis Stevenson Companion'', Palgrave Macmillan Literary Companions. London: Palgrave Macmillan. .) is an adventure no ...

''. ;Console * Atari, Inc.'s port of ''

Asteroids An asteroid is a minor planet of the inner Solar System. Sizes and shapes of asteroids vary significantly, ranging from 1-meter rocks to a dwarf planet almost 1000 km in diameter; they are rocky, metallic or icy bodies with no atmosphere. ...

'' is a major release for the Atari VCS, and is the first game for the system to use bank-switching. *

Mattel Mattel, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational toy manufacturing and entertainment company founded in January 1945 and headquartered in El Segundo, California. The company has presence in 35 countries and territories and sells products in mor ...

releases ''

Utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imaginary community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book '' Utopia'', describing a fictional island soc ...

'' for

Intellivision The Intellivision is a home video game console released by Mattel Electronics in 1979. The name is a portmanteau of "intelligent television". Development began in 1977, the same year as the launch of its main competitor, the Atari 2600. In 198 ...

, one of the first city construction games and possibly the first sim game for a console. ;Computer * June – '' Ultima'' is released, beginning a successful computer role-playing game series. * September – ''

Wizardry ''Wizardry'' is a series of role-playing video games, developed by Sir-Tech, that were highly influential in the evolution of modern role-playing video games. The original ''Wizardry'' was a significant influence on early console role-playing ...

'' for the Apple II is the first in a computer role-playing franchise that eventually spans eight games. * IBM and

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washi ...

include the game '' DONKEY.BAS'' with the

IBM PC The IBM Personal Computer (model 5150, commonly known as the IBM PC) is the first microcomputer released in the IBM PC model line and the basis for the IBM PC compatible de facto standard. Released on August 12, 1981, it was created by a team ...

, arguably the first

IBM PC compatible IBM PC compatible computers are similar to the original IBM PC, XT, and AT, all from computer giant IBM, that are able to use the same software and expansion cards. Such computers were referred to as PC clones, IBM clones or IBM PC clones ...

game. *

Muse Software Micro Users Software Exchange, Inc., doing business as Muse Software, was an American video game developer based in Baltimore, Maryland, focusing on the development of games for the first generation of home computers. The company began with de ...

releases the stealth action adventure ''

Castle Wolfenstein ''Castle Wolfenstein'' is a 1981 action-adventure game that was developed by Muse Software for the Apple II home computer. It is one of the earliest games to be based on stealth mechanics. An Atari 8-bit family port was released in 1982 and w ...

'' for the Apple II. * The

Atari Program Exchange Atari Program Exchange (APX) was a division of Atari, Inc. that sold software via mail-order for the Atari 8-bit family of home computers. Quarterly APX catalogs were sent to all registered Atari 8-bit owners. APX encouraged any programmer, not j ...

publishes '' Caverns of Mars'', a vertically scrolling shooter for the

Atari 8-bit family The Atari 8-bit family is a series of 8-bit home computers introduced by Atari, Inc. in 1979 as the Atari 400 and Atari 800. The series was successively upgraded to Atari 1200XL , Atari 600XL, Atari 800XL, Atari 65XE, Atari 130XE, Atari 800XE, ...

, and wargame ''

Eastern Front (1941) ''Eastern Front (1941)'' is a computer wargame for the Atari 8-bit family created by Chris Crawford and published through the Atari Program Exchange (APX) in 1981. A scenario editor and assembly language source code for the game were also sol ...

''. APX also sells the source code to ''Eastern Front''. *

Epyx Epyx, Inc. was a video game developer and publisher active in the late 1970s and 1980s. The company was founded as Automated Simulations by Jim Connelley and Jon Freeman, originally using Epyx as a brand name for action-oriented games before ren ...

releases turn-based monster game ''

Crush, Crumble and Chomp! ''Crush, Crumble and Chomp!'' is a 1981 video game where the player takes control of a movie monster and attacks a major city, such as New York or San Francisco. It was published in 1981 for the TRS-80, Apple II, and Atari 8-bit family. Ports to ...

''. *

BudgeCo Bill Budge (born August 11, 1954) is a retired American video game programmer and designer. He is best known for the Apple II games '' Raster Blaster'' (1981) and ''Pinball Construction Set'' (1983). Early games Budge says he became interested i ...

's ''

Raster Blaster ''Bill Budge's Raster Blaster'' (or ''Rasterblaster'' on the disk label) is a pioneering home computer pinball simulation written by Bill Budge for the Apple II and published in 1981 by Budge's company, BudgeCo. It was ported to the Atari 8-bit ...

'' sparks interest in more realistic Apple II pinball simulations and is the precursor to ''

Pinball Construction Set ''Pinball Construction Set'' is a video game by Bill Budge written for the Apple II. It was originally published in 1982 through Budge's own company, BudgeCo, then was released by Electronic Arts in 1983 along with ports to the Atari 8-bit famil ...

''. *

Infocom Infocom was an American software company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that produced numerous works of interactive fiction. They also produced a business application, a relational database called '' Cornerstone''. Infocom was founded o ...

releases '' Zork II: The Wizard of Frobozz''.

Hardware

;Arcade * July – the Namco Warp & Warp

arcade system board An arcade video game takes player input from its controls, processes it through electrical or computerized components, and displays output to an electronic monitor or similar display. Most arcade video games are coin-operated, housed in an arc ...

is released. * October – the VCO Object, the first

dedicated to

pseudo-3D 2.5D (two-and-a-half dimensional) perspective refers to gameplay or movement in a video game or virtual reality environment that is restricted to a two-dimensional (2D) plane with little to no access to a third dimension in a space that otherwis ...

, sprite-scaling graphics, debuts with the release of ''Turbo''. ;Computer * March 5 – Timex releases the

Sinclair Research Sinclair Research Ltd is a British consumer electronics company founded by Clive Sinclair in Cambridge. It was originally incorporated in 1973 as Westminster Mail Order Ltd, renamed Sinclair Instrument Ltd, then Science of Cambridge Ltd, then ...

ZX81 in the UK, which is significantly less expensive than other computers on the market. * June –

Texas Instruments Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) is an American technology company headquartered in Dallas, Texas, that designs and manufactures semiconductors and various integrated circuits, which it sells to electronics designers and manufacturers globa ...

releases the

TI-99/4A The TI-99/4 and TI-99/4A are home computers released by Texas Instruments in 1979 and 1981, respectively. Based on the Texas Instruments TMS9900 microprocessor originally used in minicomputers, the TI-99/4 was the first 16-bit home computer. ...

, an update to 1979's TI-99/4. * August 12 – the

IBM Personal Computer The IBM Personal Computer (model 5150, commonly known as the IBM PC) is the first microcomputer released in the IBM PC model line and the basis for the IBM PC compatible de facto standard. Released on August 12, 1981, it was created by a tea ...

is released for

USD The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

$1,565, with 16K RAM, no disk drives, and 4-color CGA graphics. * Astrovision distributes the Bally Computer System after buying the rights from Bally/ Midway. *

Acorn Computers Ltd The acorn, or oaknut, is the nut of the oaks and their close relatives (genera ''Quercus'' and ''Lithocarpus'', in the family Fagaceae). It usually contains one seed (occasionally two seeds), enclosed in a tough, leathery shell, and borne ...

releases the

BBC Micro The British Broadcasting Corporation Microcomputer System, or BBC Micro, is a series of microcomputers and associated peripherals designed and built by Acorn Computers in the 1980s for the BBC Computer Literacy Project. Designed with an emphas ...

home computer. *

Commodore Business Machines Commodore International (other names include Commodore International Limited) was an American home computer and electronics manufacturer founded by Jack Tramiel. Commodore International (CI), along with its subsidiary Commodore Business Mach ...

releases the

VIC-20 The VIC-20 (known as the VC-20 in Germany and the VIC-1001 in Japan) is an 8-bit home computer that was sold by Commodore Business Machines. The VIC-20 was announced in 1980, roughly three years after Commodore's first personal computer, the ...

home computer. *

NEC is a Japanese multinational information technology and electronics corporation, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. The company was known as the Nippon Electric Company, Limited, before rebranding in 1983 as NEC. It provides IT and network soluti ...

releases the PC-8801 home computer in Japan. ;Handheld * November –

is released in

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic countries, Nordic c ...

. * Microvision is discontinued.

References

{{History of video games

Video games Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This feedbac ...

Video games by year

Financial performance

Highest-grossing arcade games

Japan

United States

Best-selling home video games

Best-selling home systems

Events

Magazines

Business

Births

May

Notable releases

Games

Hardware

See also

References