1978 in video games

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1978 saw the release of new video games such as Space Invaders. The year is considered the beginning of the golden age of arcade video games. The year's highest-grossing video game was Taito's arcade game Space Invaders, while the best-selling home system was the Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS).

Financial performance

Highest-grossing arcade games

Space Invaders was the top-grossing video game worldwide in 1978.^[1] The following table lists the top-grossing arcade games of 1978 in Japan, the United Kingdom, United States, and worldwide.

Market	Title	Gross revenue	Inflation	Cabinet sales	Developer	Distributor	Genre	Ref
Japan	Space Invaders	$670,000,000^[2]	$3,100,000,000	100,000	Taito	Taito	Shoot 'em up	^[3]^[4]^[5]
United Kingdom	Space Invaders	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown^[a]	Taito	Midway Manufacturing	Shoot 'em up	^[1]
United States	Space Wars	Unknown	Unknown	10,000	Cinematronics	Cinematronics	Shooter	^[6]^[7]^[8]
Worldwide	Space Invaders				Taito		Shoot 'em up	^[1]

Japan

In Japan, the following titles were the highest-grossing arcade games of 1978, according to the third annual Game Machine chart, which lists both arcade video games and electro-mechanical games (EM games) on the same arcade game chart. Taito's Space Invaders was the first video game to become highest-grossing overall arcade game on the annual Game Machine charts, after the two previous charts were topped by an EM game, F-1 by Namco.^[3]^[4]

Arcade video games						Arcade electro-mechanical games (EM games)
Rank	Title	#1	#2	#3	Points	Rank	Title	#1	#2	#3	Points
1	Space Invaders	48	7	4	162	1	F-1	2	4	0	14
2	Super Speed Race V	1	18	8	47	2	Shoot Away	0	2	7	11
3	Block Kakuhi^[b]	4	9	8	38	3	Flipper (Pinball)^[c]	1	3	1	10
4	Scratch	3	4	5	22	4	Mogura Taiji (Whac-A-Mole)	1	2	2	9
5	Speed Race DX	3	4	3	20	5	Submarine	0	3	2	8
6	Cosmic Monsters	2	3	0	14	6	Magnetic Crane^[d]	1	1	1	6
7	Acrobat	1	2	2	9	7	Pai Pai 45^[e]	0	1	1	3
8	Gee Bee	1	1	3	8	8	Bank Robbers^[f] (Kasco)^[g]	1	0	0	3
9	Super Breakout	0	2	2	6	9	Clay Champ	0	0	2	2
10	Castle Take^[h] (Sankyo)	0	1	2	4	9	Oni Nakase^[i]	0	1	0	2

The following titles were the highest-grossing games on each Game Machine arcade chart. Nintendo's EVR Race was the highest-grossing medal game for the third year in a row.^[3]^[4]

Chart	Top title	Gross revenue	Inflation	Cabinet sales	Manufacturer	Genre	Ref
Arcade game	Space Invaders	$670,000,000^[2]	$3,100,000,000	100,000	Taito	Shoot 'em up	^[3]^[4]^[5]
Medal game	EVR Race	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Nintendo	Racing	^[4]

United States

In the United States, the following titles were the top ten highest-grossing arcade video games of 1978, in terms of coin drop earnings according to the annual Play Meter and RePlay charts.

Rank	Play Meter^[9]	RePlay^[7]	Cabinet sales
1	Space Wars		10,000^[8]
2	Sprint 2		Unknown
3	Sea Wolf	Sprint 1
4	Sea Wolf II	Sea Wolf
5	Super Bug	Breakout
6	Starship 1	Super Bug
7	Circus	Starship 1
8	Breakout	Sea Wolf II
9	Night Driver	Smokey Joe
10	Sprint 1	LeMans

Best-selling home systems

Rank	System(s)	Manufacturer(s)	Type	Generation	Sales	Ref
1	Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS)	Atari, Inc.	Console	Second	300,000	^[10]
1	Bandai Baseball	Bandai	Handheld	—	300,000	^[11]
3	TRS-80	Tandy Corporation	Computer	8-bit	150,000	^[12]
4	Commodore PET	Commodore International	Computer	8-bit	30,000	^[12]
5	Apple II	Apple Inc.	Computer	8-bit	20,000	^[13]
6	IMSAI 8080	IMS Associates, Inc.	Computer	8-bit	5,000	^[13]
6	IBM 5110	IBM	Computer	—	5,000	^[13]
8	Altair 8800	MITS	Computer	8-bit	4,000	^[12]
8	HP 9800 series	Hewlett-Packard	Computer	—	4,000	^[13]
10	Pertec/MITS 300	Pertec Computer	Computer	8-bit	3,000	^[13]

Events

Consumer-oriented video game journalism begins with the golden age of arcade video games, soon after the success of Space Invaders, leading to hundreds of favourable articles and stories about the emerging video game medium being aired on television and printed in newspapers and magazines.^[14]
In North America, the first regular consumer-oriented column about video games, "Arcade Alley" in Video magazine, is penned by Bill Kunkel, Arnie Katz, and Joyce Worley.^[15]

Business

New companies: Automated Simulations (later Epyx), Koei, Muse, Supersoft, Synergistic, U.S. Games.
The American arcade game market earns a revenue of $1 billion^[16] (equivalent to $4.67 billion in 2024).
The American home video game market is worth $200 million.^[17]

Notable releases

Games

Arcade

June – Taito releases Space Invaders in Japan. The worldwide success of Space Invaders marks the beginning of the golden age of arcade video games. It sets the template for the fixed shooter genre^[18] and influences most subsequent shooters.^[19]
October – Midway gives Space Invaders a wide release in North America.
October – Namco releases their first arcade video game, Gee Bee, in Japan.
Atari, Inc. popularizes the trackball controller with Football.
Atari, Inc. releases Super Breakout, the multi-directionall scrolling game Fire Truck, Canyon Bomber, and Avalanche. Avalanche later inspires Activision's Kaboom!
Konami Corporation releases their first arcade video game, Block Game.
Nintendo releases their first arcade video game, Computer Othello.

Computer

The book BASIC Computer Games, microcomputer edition, is released.

Hardware

Computer

Elektor releases the TV Games Computer.

Console

December – Magnavox launches the Odyssey².
APF Electronics releases the APF-M1000.
Bally/Midway releases the Bally Professional Arcade.
Entreprex releases the Apollo 2001.
Interton releases the VC 4000.

Notes

^ Space Invaders sold 85,000 cabinets in the United Kingdom between 1978 and 1979.^[1]
^ ブロック各被, Burokku Kakuhi
^ フリッパー, Furippā
^ 各磁クレーン
^ パイパイ 45, Paipai 45
^ バンクロバーズ, Banku Robāzu
^ 湘阿織機, Kansai Seiki
^ キャッスルテイク, Kyassuru Teiku
^ 鬼泣かせ

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "After Pong". ACE. No. 6 (March 1988). February 4, 1988. pp. 29–32 (29).
^ ^a ^b Cohen, Daniel (1982). Video Games. New York: Pocket Books. p. 15. ISBN 0-671-45872-8.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "人気マシン・ベスト3" [Popular Machines: Best 3] (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 113. Amusement Press, Inc. February 1979. pp. 2–3.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "調査対象5年間のベスト1" [Best 1 of the 5 Years Surveyed] (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 159. Amusement Press, Inc. February 15, 1981. p. 1.
^ ^a ^b "Can Asteroids Conquer Space Invaders?" (PDF). Electronic Games. Vol. 1, no. 1. Winter 1981. pp. 30–33 (31). Retrieved February 12, 2021.
^ Kubey, Craig (1982). The Winners' Book of Video Games. New York: Warner Books. p. 90. ISBN 978-0-446-37115-5.
^ ^a ^b "Video Games". RePlay. November 1978.
^ ^a ^b Bloom, Steve (1982). Video Invaders. Arco Publishing. p. 18. ISBN 978-0-668-05520-8.
^ "The 'Winners' of '78: Top Arcade Games". Play Meter. 1978.
^ Rubin, Michael (2006). "Eighteen: A Hole in the Desert [1982–1983]" (PDF). Droidmaker: George Lucas and the Digital Revolution. Triad Publishing Company. pp. 291-314 (292-3). ISBN 978-0-937404-67-6.
^ "昔(1970年代）のテレビゲームは何台売れた？" [How many old (1970s) video games sold?]. Classic Videogame Station Odyssey (in Japanese). Archived from the original on January 9, 2014. Retrieved April 16, 2021.
^ ^a ^b ^c
Reimer, Jeremy (December 15, 2005). "Total share: 30 years of personal computer market share figures". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on June 7, 2012. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
- Jeremy Reimer (December 7, 2012). "Total Share: Personal Computer Market Share 1975-2010". Jeremy Reimer.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "BYTE News... Radio Shack Has Over 50 Percent of Personal Computer Business". BYTE. Vol. 4, no. 5. May 1979. p. 117.
^ "Players Guide To Electronic Science Fiction Games". Electronic Games. 1 (2): 35–45 [36]. March 1982. Retrieved February 1, 2012.
^ Kohler, Chris (September 6, 2011). "Bill Kunkel, Original Gaming Journalist, Dies at 61". Wired. Retrieved March 1, 2012.
^ "Coin-Op history – 1975 to 1997 – from the pages of RePlay". RePlay. 1998. Archived from the original on April 28, 1998. Retrieved April 21, 2021.
^ Yuko Aoyama & Hiro Izushi (2003), Hardware gimmick or cultural innovation? Technological, cultural, and social foundations of the Japanese video game industry Archived March 6, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, Research Policy 32: 423-44
^ "Essential 50: Space Invaders". 1UP.com. Archived from the original on December 8, 2012. Retrieved March 26, 2011.
^ Edwards, Benj. "Ten Things Everyone Should Know About Space Invaders". 1UP.com. Archived from the original on February 26, 2009. Retrieved July 11, 2008.

[6] Space Invaders sold 85,000 cabinets in the United Kingdom between 1978 and 1979.^[1]

[10] ブロック各被, Burokku Kakuhi

[11] フリッパー, Furippā

[12] 各磁クレーン

[13] パイパイ 45, Paipai 45

[14] バンクロバーズ, Banku Robāzu

[15] 湘阿織機, Kansai Seiki

[16] キャッスルテイク, Kyassuru Teiku

[17] 鬼泣かせ

[ACE-1] "After Pong". ACE. No. 6 (March 1988). February 4, 1988. pp. 29–32 (29).

[Cohen-2] Cohen, Daniel (1982). Video Games. New York: Pocket Books. p. 15. ISBN 0-671-45872-8.

[GM113-3] "人気マシン・ベスト3" [Popular Machines: Best 3] (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 113. Amusement Press, Inc. February 1979. pp. 2–3.

[GM159-4] "調査対象5年間のベスト1" [Best 1 of the 5 Years Surveyed] (PDF). Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 159. Amusement Press, Inc. February 15, 1981. p. 1.

[EG1-5] "Can Asteroids Conquer Space Invaders?" (PDF). Electronic Games. Vol. 1, no. 1. Winter 1981. pp. 30–33 (31). Retrieved February 12, 2021.

[7] Kubey, Craig (1982). The Winners' Book of Video Games. New York: Warner Books. p. 90. ISBN 978-0-446-37115-5.

[Replay-8] "Video Games". RePlay. November 1978.

[Bloom-9] Bloom, Steve (1982). Video Invaders. Arco Publishing. p. 18. ISBN 978-0-668-05520-8.

[18] "The 'Winners' of '78: Top Arcade Games". Play Meter. 1978.

[19] Rubin, Michael (2006). "Eighteen: A Hole in the Desert [1982–1983]" (PDF). Droidmaker: George Lucas and the Digital Revolution. Triad Publishing Company. pp. 291-314 (292-3). ISBN 978-0-937404-67-6.

[20] "昔(1970年代）のテレビゲームは何台売れた？" [How many old (1970s) video games sold?]. Classic Videogame Station Odyssey (in Japanese). Archived from the original on January 9, 2014. Retrieved April 16, 2021.

[:222-21] Reimer, Jeremy (December 15, 2005). "Total share: 30 years of personal computer market share figures". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on June 7, 2012. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
Jeremy Reimer (December 7, 2012). "Total Share: Personal Computer Market Share 1975-2010". Jeremy Reimer.

[22] Jeremy Reimer (December 7, 2012). "Total Share: Personal Computer Market Share 1975-2010". Jeremy Reimer.

[:0-22] "BYTE News... Radio Shack Has Over 50 Percent of Personal Computer Business". BYTE. Vol. 4, no. 5. May 1979. p. 117.

[eg_2_36-23] "Players Guide To Electronic Science Fiction Games". Electronic Games. 1 (2): 35–45 [36]. March 1982. Retrieved February 1, 2012.

[wired_kunkel-24] Kohler, Chris (September 6, 2011). "Bill Kunkel, Original Gaming Journalist, Dies at 61". Wired. Retrieved March 1, 2012.

[replaymag-25] "Coin-Op history – 1975 to 1997 – from the pages of RePlay". RePlay. 1998. Archived from the original on April 28, 1998. Retrieved April 21, 2021.

[26] Yuko Aoyama & Hiro Izushi (2003), Hardware gimmick or cultural innovation? Technological, cultural, and social foundations of the Japanese video game industry Archived March 6, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, Research Policy 32: 423-44

[1UP-50-27] "Essential 50: Space Invaders". 1UP.com. Archived from the original on December 8, 2012. Retrieved March 26, 2011.

[1UP-10things-28] Edwards, Benj. "Ten Things Everyone Should Know About Space Invaders". 1UP.com. Archived from the original on February 26, 2009. Retrieved July 11, 2008.

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