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Episode 31:

This Means War...In Space!

Runtime: 65 Minutes

We go all the way back to 1962, to discuss, "SpaceWar!," one of the most influential titles in video game history, written for the PDP-1 microcomputer. As part of our discussion, we'll look at the entirety of video game history leading up to this point, before talking about what makes this particular game so influential. We also talk about the game canon at the Library of Congress, the first gamepad, as well as the first commercially available video game. Finally, the gaming question of the week has us all talking about our earliest video game memories. Join us for a historical trip down Memory Card Lane.

SpaceWar!

References:

Wikipedia Article:

  Wikipedia - SpaceWar!

Game-Specific Wiki:

  Not Available

Additional Sources:

Wikipedia - Early History of Video Games:

  Wikipedia - Early History of Video Games

Wikipedia - Cathode-ray tube amusement device:

  Wikipedia - Cathode-ray tube amusement device

Wikipedia - Bertie the Brain:

  Wikipedia - Bertie the Brain

Wikipedia - Nimrod (computer):

  Wikipedia - Nimrod (computer)

Wikipedia - Christopher Strachey:

  Wikipedia - Christopher Strachey

Wikipedia - Tennis for Two:

  Wikipedia - Tennis for Two

Wikipedia - PDP-1:

  Wikipedia - PDP-1

Wikipedia - Galaxy Game:

  Wikipedia - Galaxy Game

Wikipedia - Computer Space:

  Wikipedia - Computer Space

Wikipedia - Hacker culture:

  Wikipedia - Hacker culture

Computer History Museum - PDP-1 Restoration Project:

  PDP-1 Restoration Project

SpaceWar! Emulator:

  SpaceWar! Emulator

Audio Sources:

Cold Open Music:

Comfortable Mystery by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3531-comfortable-mystery

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Podcast Intro Music:

Open Those Bright Eyes by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4171-open-those-bright-eyes

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/