Console Wars

The passionate debates among gamers about which console is the better one obscure the fact that such rivalries were usually fuelled by the economic interests of the manufacturers. The history of video games, especially in the console area (due to proprietary technology), is not least economic history.

In addition to some skirmishes, which are considered legendary mainly because they are about famous and successful games (Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, Tetris), the following three conflicts have shaped the game world in a lasting way:

• Console War Coleco vs. Atari
• Console War Atari vs. Nintendo
• Nintendo vs. Sega