Category: 1958
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Tennis for Two
Game Description
Tennis for Two (also known as Computer Tennis) is a sports video game that simulates a game of tennis. It was one of the first games created in the history of video games. After discovering that the government research institution’s Donner Model 30 analog computer could simulate trajectories with wind resistance, American physicist William Higinbotham created Tennis for Two in 1958 for display at the Brookhaven National Laboratory’s annual public exhibition. He created Tennis for Two in a matter of hours, and he and technician Robert V. Dvorak worked on it for three weeks. Table Tennis for Two was played with two custom aluminum controllers and was displayed on an oscilloscope. Its visuals depict a tennis court from the side, and players adjust the angle of their shots with a knob on their controller before attempting to hit the ball over the net by pressing a button.
During the three-day exhibition, players waited in line to see Tennis for Two, especially high school students. The following year, it was shown again, this time with a larger oscilloscope screen and a more complicated design that could simulate different gravity levels. It was then dismantled and largely forgotten until the late 1970s when Higinbotham testified about Table Tennis for Two in court during Magnavox and Ralph H. Baer’s video game patent lawsuits. It has since been recognized as one of the first video games, and Brookhaven has recreated the original device. Tennis for Two is considered the first video game by some because, while it did not include any technological innovations over previous games, it was the first computer game created purely for entertainment rather than academic research or commercial technology promotion.
Publishers N/A Developers William Higinbotham Release date 1958 Genre Sports Download [title]
We might have Tennis for Two available for more than one platform. Tennis for Two is currently available on these platforms:
Donner Model 30 analog computer (1958)
The original Tennis for Two is a lost video game. However, you can download a simulated version for Windows:
How to play on Windows
- Download and Extract “Tennis_for_Two_Simulated_Win_EN.zip”
- Open the “Game Files” folder and run TennisForTwo.exe
- Play the game
[title] Screenshots
Donner Model 30 analog computer
Windows simulator
