Pong: The Game That Started It All

Pong wasn't the first video game, but it was the first commercially successful one — and it launched an industry worth hundreds of billions of dollars today. Created by Atari's Allan Alcorn in 1972, Pong was based on a table tennis simulation from the Magnavox Odyssey but simplified to its absolute essence: two paddles, one ball, keep it away from your opponent. The genius of Pong is in its physical intuition — anyone who has ever played table tennis understands immediately what they're supposed to do. Alcorn added a subtle trick that made Pong more interesting than it sounds: the paddle is divided into sections that send the ball at different angles, meaning skilled players can aim rather than just react. The game's original cabinet was installed at Andy Capp's Tavern in Sunnyvale, California, and broke down within days — because the coin box was overflowing with quarters. Pong's simplicity is its legacy, proving that great game design is about clarity, not complexity.