This week's emulator is https://freeinvaders.org, allowing me to check the box with a round while confidently expecting that I'll find a Space Invaders cabinet at an arcade bar sometime to make a tactile connection to 1978. In the meantime - it's still as fun, easy to pick up, and surprisingly stressful as ever. I ran the game I played to 52,000 points (plus an extra 200) because that seemed like an appropriate number in regards to this project.
I also played a bit of Space Invaders: Infinity Gene on Xbox:
Next up: the concept of a handheld video game is an interesting one in the early years. From the Mattel football game from last week to countless Game & Watch systems, that which constitutes a handheld game, before Game Boy arrived and locked in the standard, is a bit fluid.
So, while I never would have considered Simon to be a handheld game, it came up as the best-selling game/system/toy hybrid of the year and, the more I think about it, the more it fits in with prototype portable games.
Plus, I definitely played it. A lot.
I know I could pick it up today at Best Buy or Walmart, but I'd rather keep my eye out at a Goodwill throughout the year for an older one. In the meantime, I enjoyed watching this: https://youtu.be/-kSXWapXLn0
Lastly: just when you thought Color TV-Game 6 was the height of home gaming technology - now there are 15 games! And yes, they're all variations on Pong!
The picture above is from this exhaustive look into the games and system: https://nicole.express/2023/not-another-color-post-i-swear.html, and while the detachable controllers seem like a a worthwhile upgrade (and very much in Nintendo's wheelhouse), the actual gameplay with the controllers doesn't sound so good.
Is 1978 the final year for Pong's grip on the home console market? I actually don't remember the answer off-hand, but I'll find out this weekend when I flip the calendar.
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