The Game That Started It All – How Tennis for Two Launched the Video Game Industry

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You’ve likely never heard of Tennis for Two, but it’s arguably the most important video game ever created. Developed in 1958, it predates all other video games. While many believe Pong was the first, that’s not quite right. Pong was hugely successful and proved video games could be sold, but it came much later – decades after Tennis for Two pioneered the concept.

As a historian and longtime gamer, I often write about classic content, preserving video games, and their history on ComicBook. It really bothers me when people claim Pong was the first video game, so I wanted to share the story of the actual first game – Tennis for Two. It’s a simple game, but its creation in 1958 marked the beginning of the entire video game industry. Think about a world without video games – no games on your phone, no consoles, nothing at all! Tennis for Two is the reason we don’t live in that world.

Tennis for Two Is the World’s First Video Game

I recently learned about this really cool, early video game called Tennis for Two, and it’s fascinating! It wasn’t made to be sold or anything – it was actually built as a demonstration piece for visitors at Brookhaven National Laboratory. They wanted to show off one of their computers, this Donner Model 30. The game itself was displayed on a special oscilloscope – you know, one of those old radar-style screens. William Higinbotham created it in just three weeks! It’s surprisingly simple: basically a side view of a tennis court with a line for the floor, a net, and a dot representing the ball. And he made the controllers himself out of aluminum! It’s amazing to think how far video games have come from something so basic.

The game is played by turning a dial to aim, then pressing a button to launch the ball. Realistic physics governed the ball’s movement and gravity, allowing for strategic bounces in and out of the playing area, which created exciting and unpredictable gameplay. It was a major success at the three-day exhibition – people had never experienced anything like it before. Higinbotham built the game using a small analog computer; the computer’s components created the visuals you saw on the screen using curves displayed on an oscilloscope.

Originally, the game used a small, 5-inch screen, but by 1959 it had grown to 17 inches. Players could even choose to play on the Moon or Jupiter, which changed the gravity and affected how the ball moved – a remarkably advanced feature for its time. Despite these innovations and upgrades, the system was put away and mostly forgotten for years. More recently, Brookhaven National Laboratory rebuilt the original game, allowing the public to experience Higinbotham’s pioneering work and its lasting influence on video games.

Why Tennis for Two Matters

It’s worth noting that some people don’t consider Tennis for Two a true video game, as it used an oscilloscope instead of a traditional video screen. Plus, simpler entertainment devices existed before it. However, Tennis for Two remains historically significant as the first game to use a screen for interactive play between multiple people. It demonstrated the potential of computers for creating entertainment, making it a landmark program in computing history. It’s hard to say how gaming would have evolved without it.

Did you know about the game Tennis for Two before reading this? Share your thoughts in the comments below and join the discussion in the ComicBook Forum!

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2026-04-26 19:12