Early history of video games
The history of video games spans a period of time between the invention of the first electronic games and today, covering a long period of invention and changes. Video gaming reached mainstream popularity in the 1970s and 1980s, when arcade video games, gaming consoles and home computer games were introduced to the general public. Since then, video gaming has become a popular form of entertainment and a part of modern culture in most parts of the world. The early history of video games, therefore, covers the period of time between the first interactive electronic game with an electronic display in 1947, the first true video games in the early 1950s, and the rise of early arcade video games in the 1970s ("Pong" and the beginning of the first generation of video game consoles with the Magnavox Odyssey, both in 1972). During this time there were a wide range of devices and inventions corresponding with large advances in computing technology, and the actual first video game is dependent on the definition of "video game" used.
History of Western role-playing video games
The earliest role-playing video games were created in the mid-to-late 1970s, as offshoots of early university mainframe text-based RPGs that were played on PDP-10, PLATO and Unix-based systems. These included "Dungeon", written in 1975 or 1976, "pedit5", created in 1975, and "dnd", also from 1975. These early games were inspired by pen-and-paper role-playing games, particularly "Dungeons & Dragons", which was first published in 1974, and J. R. R. Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy. Some of the first graphical computer RPGs (CRPGs) after "pedit5" and "dnd" included "orthanc" (1978), which was named after Saruman's tower in "Lord of the Rings", "avathar" (1979), later renamed "avatar", "oubliette" (1977), named after the French word for "dungeon", "moria" (1975), "dungeons of degorath", "baradur", "emprise", "bnd", "sorcery", and "dndworld". All of these were developed and became popular on the PLATO system during the late 1970s, in large part due to PLATO's speed, fast graphics, and large number of players with access to its nationwide network of terminals. PLATO was a mainframe system that supported multiple users and allowed them to play simultaneously, a feature not commonly available to owners of home personal computer systems at the time. These were followed by games on other platforms, such as "Temple of Apshai", written in 1979 for the TRS-80 and followed by two add-ons; "" (1980), which gave rise to the well-known "Ultima" series; "Wizardry" (1981), and "Sword of Fargoal" (1982). Games of this era were also influenced by text adventures such as "Colossal Cave Adventure" (1976) and "Zork" (1976); early MUDs, tabletop wargames such as "Chainmail" (1971), and sports games such as "Strat-O-Matic".