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Where did the time go? Video game 'Pong' is turning 50

(SOUNDBITE OF VIDEO GAME, "ELDEN RING")

ANTHONY HOWELL: (As Margit the Fell) Someone must extinguish thy flame. Let it be Margit the Fell.

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

So that is the sound of a video game. These days, games have the look and feel of being dropped right into an action movie. This, for example, is from a game called Elden Ring.

(SOUNDBITE OF ITEMS SHATTERING)

MARTIN: Now, this is a far cry from how video games began.

(SOUNDBITE OF VINTAGE ARCADE GAME TONES)

MARTIN: No, that's not your radio glitching. That is the sound of Pong. And tomorrow marks 50 years since Atari announced it would bring all the thrills of table tennis to a video screen.

A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:

Sweet. Now, Pong wasn't the first video game, but it was the first one to become a huge hit. Arcade owners started moving their pinball machines to make room for this hulking box with a black-and-white screen and two rotating knobs that controlled pixelated paddles on each side. The ball that bounced from one side to the other proved harder to volley than it looked.

(SOUNDBITE OF VINTAGE ARCADE GAME TONE)

MARTIN: The Pong craze was the unofficial start of the video game industry. Then Pac-Man came along nearly a decade later, and video games ruled the culture. Arcades filled with Gen Xers plugging quarters into beeping, blooping, glowing machines. Then home gaming took over and transformed all of it.

MARTÍNEZ: Today the video game industry collects almost $200 billion a year globally, and gamers like to point out that their obsession now generates more sales than the film industry. And 50 years ago, it all began with a...

(SOUNDBITE OF VINTAGE ARCADE GAME TONE)

MARTÍNEZ: And a...

(SOUNDBITE OF VINTAGE ARCADE GAME TONE)

MARTÍNEZ: ...And a dream. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.