<s>
Bertie	B-Application
the	I-Application
Brain	I-Application
was	O
an	O
early	O
computer	O
game	O
,	O
and	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
first	O
games	O
developed	O
in	O
the	O
early	B-Application
history	I-Application
of	I-Application
video	I-Application
games	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
four	O
meter	O
(	O
13	O
foot	O
)	O
tall	O
computer	O
allowed	O
exhibition	O
attendees	O
to	O
play	O
a	O
game	O
of	O
tic-tac-toe	O
against	O
an	O
artificial	B-Application
intelligence	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Kates	O
built	O
the	O
game	O
to	O
showcase	O
his	O
additron	O
tube	O
,	O
a	O
miniature	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
vacuum	O
tube	O
,	O
though	O
the	O
transistor	B-Application
overtook	O
it	O
in	O
computer	O
development	O
shortly	O
thereafter	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bertie	B-Application
the	I-Application
Brain	I-Application
is	O
a	O
candidate	O
for	O
the	B-Application
first	I-Application
video	I-Application
game	I-Application
,	O
as	O
it	O
was	O
potentially	O
the	O
first	B-Application
computer	I-Application
game	I-Application
to	O
have	O
any	O
sort	O
of	O
visual	O
display	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
appeared	O
only	O
three	O
years	O
after	O
the	O
1947	O
invention	O
of	O
the	O
cathode-ray	B-Application
tube	I-Application
amusement	I-Application
device	I-Application
,	O
the	O
earliest	O
known	O
interactive	B-General_Concept
electronic	O
game	O
to	O
use	O
an	O
electronic	O
display	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bertie	B-Application
the	I-Application
Brain	I-Application
was	O
a	O
computer	O
game	O
of	O
tic-tac-toe	O
,	O
built	O
by	O
Dr.	O
Josef	O
Kates	O
for	O
the	O
1950	O
Canadian	O
National	O
Exhibition	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
there	O
,	O
he	O
helped	O
build	O
the	O
University	B-Device
of	I-Device
Toronto	I-Device
Electronic	I-Device
Computer	I-Device
(	O
UTEC	B-Device
)	O
,	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
first	O
working	O
computers	O
in	O
the	O
world	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
additron-based	O
computer	O
,	O
labeled	O
as	O
"	O
Bertie	B-Application
the	I-Application
Brain	I-Application
"	O
and	O
subtitled	O
"	O
The	O
Electronic	O
Wonder	O
by	O
Rogers	O
Majestic	O
"	O
,	O
was	O
a	O
success	O
at	O
the	O
two-week	O
exhibition	O
,	O
with	O
attendees	O
lining	O
up	O
to	O
play	O
it	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bertie	B-Application
the	I-Application
Brain	I-Application
was	O
a	O
game	O
of	O
tic-tac-toe	O
in	O
which	O
the	O
player	O
would	O
select	O
the	O
position	O
for	O
their	O
next	O
move	O
from	O
a	O
grid	O
of	O
nine	O
lit	O
buttons	O
on	O
a	O
raised	O
panel	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
the	O
time	O
Rogers	O
Majestic	O
pushed	O
Kates	O
to	O
develop	O
a	O
working	O
model	O
for	O
the	O
Exhibition	O
,	O
he	O
had	O
been	O
working	O
on	O
the	O
tubes	O
for	O
a	O
year	O
,	O
developing	O
several	O
revisions	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
University	O
of	O
Toronto	O
team	O
felt	O
that	O
the	O
development	O
was	O
too	O
slow	O
to	O
attempt	O
to	O
integrate	O
them	O
into	O
the	O
UTEC	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
then	O
,	O
research	O
and	O
use	O
of	O
vacuum	O
tubes	O
was	O
heavily	O
waning	O
in	O
the	O
face	O
of	O
the	O
rise	O
of	O
the	O
superior	O
transistor	B-Application
,	O
preventing	O
any	O
re-visitation	O
of	O
Bertie	O
or	O
similar	O
machines	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Kates	O
went	O
on	O
to	O
a	O
distinguished	O
career	O
in	O
Canadian	O
engineering	O
,	O
but	O
did	O
not	O
return	O
to	O
working	O
on	O
vacuum	O
tubes	O
or	O
computer	O
games.Bertie	O
was	O
created	O
only	O
three	O
years	O
after	O
the	O
1947	O
invention	O
of	O
the	O
cathode-ray	B-Application
tube	I-Application
amusement	I-Application
device	I-Application
,	O
the	O
earliest	O
known	O
interactive	B-General_Concept
electronic	O
game	O
,	O
and	O
while	O
non-visual	O
games	O
had	O
been	O
developed	O
for	O
research	O
computers	O
such	O
as	O
Alan	O
Turing	O
and	O
Dietrich	O
Prinz	O
's	O
chess	O
program	O
for	O
the	O
Ferranti	B-Device
Mark	I-Device
1	I-Device
at	O
the	O
University	O
of	O
Manchester	O
,	O
Bertie	O
was	O
the	O
first	O
computer-based	O
game	O
to	O
feature	O
a	O
visual	O
display	O
of	O
any	O
sort	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bertie	O
is	O
considered	O
under	O
some	O
definitions	O
in	O
contention	O
for	O
the	O
title	O
of	O
the	B-Application
first	I-Application
video	I-Application
game	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
definitions	O
vary	O
,	O
the	O
prior	O
cathode-ray	B-Application
tube	I-Application
amusement	I-Application
device	I-Application
was	O
a	O
purely	O
analog	O
electrical	O
game	O
,	O
and	O
while	O
Bertie	O
did	O
not	O
feature	O
an	O
electronic	O
screen	O
it	O
did	O
run	O
on	O
a	O
computer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Another	O
special-purpose	O
computer-based	O
game	O
,	O
Nimrod	B-Application
,	O
was	O
built	O
in	O
1951	O
,	O
while	O
the	O
software-based	O
tic-tac-toe	O
game	O
OXO''	O
and	O
a	O
draughts	O
program	O
by	O
Christopher	O
Strachey	O
were	O
in	O
1952	O
the	O
first	B-Application
computer	I-Application
games	I-Application
to	O
display	O
visuals	O
on	O
an	O
electronic	O
screen	O
rather	O
than	O
light	O
bulbs	O
.	O
</s>
