February 1962: "Spacewar!"

Created at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology starting in 1961, the "Spacewar!" video game was in full working mode by the following February. It quickly proved popular among computer enthusiasts and helped lay the foundation for video game development. In the game, two players steer spaceships and try to destroy the other, all set against a background of stars.

* Play the game: @ and @

* Entry from MIT Museum: @

* Entry from Computer History Museum: @

* Entry from www.1up.com: @

* "Spacewar: Fanatic Life and Symbolic Death Among the Computer Bums" (Rolling Stone, 1972): @

* "Space War! A Computer Game Today, Reality Tomorrow?" (Saga, 1972): @

* "The Origin of Spacewar" (Creative Computing, 1981): @

* "Seminal video game Spacewar lives again" (CNET.com, 2011): @

* "Spacewar!, the first 2d top-down shooter, turns 50" (Ars Technica, 2011): @

* "The first 'electronic' game ever made?" (from pongmuseum.com): @

* Video of "Spacewar!" in action: @

* Interview with Steve Russell, one of the game's creators: @

* "Understanding Video Games: The Essential Introduction" (book): @

* "Smartbomb: The Quest for Art, Entertainment and Big Bucks in the Videogame Revolution" (book): @

---