Classic Video Games

Book excerpt: In the early 1970s, video arcade games sprung to life in the form of Pong, Space Invaders, Asteroids, and Pac-Man, and if you were lucky enough to have an Atari system you could play Frogger or Galaga at home. By the 1980s, arcade and video games were entrenched as a pop culture phenomenon and were ubiquitous. But as quickly as the form took flight it began to change with the advent of hand-held games and more sophisticated home-gaming. Brian Eddy here traces the evolution of arcade video games, giving readers an inside look at the stratospheric rise-and transformation-of the industry.