<s>
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
written	O
for	O
the	O
newly	O
installed	O
DEC	B-Device
PDP-1	I-Device
minicomputer	B-Architecture
at	O
the	O
Massachusetts	O
Institute	O
of	O
Technology	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
its	O
initial	O
creation	O
,	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
also	O
spread	O
to	O
many	O
of	O
the	O
few	O
dozen	O
installations	O
of	O
the	O
PDP-1	B-Device
computer	O
,	O
making	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
features	O
two	O
spaceships	O
,	O
"	O
the	O
needle	O
"	O
and	O
"	O
the	O
wedge	O
"	O
,	O
engaged	O
in	O
a	O
dogfight	B-Device
while	O
maneuvering	O
in	O
the	O
gravity	O
well	O
of	O
a	O
star	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
any	O
time	O
,	O
the	O
player	O
can	O
engage	O
a	O
hyperspace	B-Application
feature	O
to	O
move	O
to	O
a	O
new	O
and	O
random	O
location	O
on	O
the	O
screen	O
,	O
though	O
in	O
some	O
versions	O
each	O
use	O
has	O
an	O
increasing	O
chance	O
of	O
destroying	O
the	O
ship	O
instead	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
was	O
initially	O
controlled	O
with	O
switches	O
on	O
the	O
PDP-1	B-Device
,	O
though	O
Bob	O
Saunders	O
built	O
an	O
early	O
gamepad	B-Device
to	O
reduce	O
the	O
difficulty	O
and	O
awkwardness	O
of	O
controlling	O
the	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
is	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
most	O
important	O
and	O
influential	O
games	O
in	O
the	O
early	B-Application
history	I-Application
of	I-Application
video	I-Application
games	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
has	O
also	O
been	O
recreated	O
in	O
more	O
modern	O
programming	O
languages	O
for	O
PDP-1	B-Device
emulators	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
directly	O
inspired	O
many	O
other	O
electronic	O
games	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
first	O
commercial	O
arcade	O
video	O
games	O
,	O
Galaxy	B-Application
Game	I-Application
and	O
Computer	B-Application
Space	I-Application
(	O
1971	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
later	O
games	O
such	O
as	O
Asteroids	B-Application
(	O
1979	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2007	O
,	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
During	O
the	O
1950s	O
,	O
various	O
computer	O
games	O
were	O
created	O
in	O
the	O
context	O
of	O
academic	O
computer	O
and	O
programming	O
research	O
and	O
for	O
demonstrations	O
of	O
computing	O
power	O
,	O
especially	O
after	O
the	O
introduction	O
later	O
in	O
the	O
decade	O
of	O
smaller	O
and	O
faster	O
computers	O
on	O
which	O
programs	O
could	O
be	O
created	O
and	O
run	O
in	O
real	O
time	O
as	O
opposed	O
to	O
being	O
executed	O
on	B-General_Concept
a	I-General_Concept
schedule	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
few	O
programs	O
,	O
however	O
,	O
were	O
intended	O
both	O
to	O
showcase	O
the	O
power	O
of	O
the	O
computer	O
they	O
ran	O
on	O
and	O
as	O
entertainment	O
products	O
;	O
these	O
were	O
generally	O
created	O
by	O
undergraduate	O
and	O
graduate	O
students	O
and	O
university	O
employees	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
at	O
the	O
Massachusetts	O
Institute	O
of	O
Technology	O
(	O
MIT	O
)	O
,	O
where	O
staff	O
and	O
students	O
were	O
allowed	O
on	O
occasion	O
to	O
develop	O
programs	O
for	O
the	O
TX-0	B-Device
experimental	O
computer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
games	O
included	O
Tic-Tac-Toe	O
,	O
which	O
used	O
a	O
light	B-Device
pen	I-Device
to	O
play	O
a	O
simple	O
game	O
of	O
noughts	O
and	O
crosses	O
against	O
the	O
computer	O
,	O
and	O
Mouse	O
in	O
the	O
Maze	O
,	O
which	O
used	O
a	O
light	B-Device
pen	I-Device
to	O
set	O
up	O
a	O
maze	O
of	O
walls	O
for	O
a	O
virtual	O
mouse	O
to	O
traverse	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
September	O
1961	O
,	O
a	O
Digital	O
Equipment	O
Corporation	O
(	O
DEC	O
)	O
PDP-1	B-Device
minicomputer	B-Architecture
was	O
installed	O
in	O
the	O
"	O
kludge	B-Architecture
room	O
"	O
on	O
the	O
2nd	O
floor	O
of	O
Building	O
26	O
,	O
the	O
location	O
of	O
the	O
MIT	O
Electrical	O
Engineering	O
Department	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
PDP-1	B-Device
was	O
to	O
complement	O
the	O
older	O
TX-0	B-Device
,	O
and	O
like	O
it	O
had	O
a	O
punched	O
tape	O
reader	O
and	O
writer	O
,	O
and	O
additionally	O
accepted	O
input	O
from	O
a	O
panel	O
of	O
switches	O
and	O
could	O
output	O
to	O
a	O
cathode-ray	B-Device
tube	I-Device
display	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Three	O
of	O
them	O
—	O
Steve	O
Russell	O
,	O
then	O
an	O
employee	O
at	O
Harvard	O
University	O
and	O
a	O
former	O
research	O
assistant	O
at	O
MIT	O
;	O
Martin	O
Graetz	O
,	O
a	O
research	O
assistant	O
and	O
former	O
student	O
at	O
MIT	O
;	O
and	O
Wayne	O
Wiitanen	O
,	O
a	O
research	O
assistant	O
at	O
Harvard	O
and	O
former	O
employee	O
and	O
student	O
at	O
MIT	O
—	O
came	O
up	O
with	O
the	O
idea	O
for	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
"	O
We	O
had	O
this	O
brand	O
new	O
PDP-1	B-Device
"	O
,	O
Steve	O
Russell	O
told	O
Rolling	O
Stone	O
in	O
a	O
1972	O
interview	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
"	O
Somebody	O
Marvin	O
Minsky	O
had	O
built	O
some	O
little	O
pattern-generating	O
programs	O
which	O
made	O
interesting	O
patterns	O
like	O
a	O
kaleidoscope	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
gameplay	O
of	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
A	O
hyperspace	B-Application
feature	O
,	O
or	O
"	O
panic	O
button	O
"	O
,	O
can	O
be	O
used	O
as	O
a	O
last-ditch	O
means	O
to	O
evade	O
enemy	O
torpedoes	O
by	O
moving	O
the	O
player	O
's	O
ship	O
to	O
another	O
location	O
on	O
the	O
screen	O
after	O
it	O
disappears	O
for	O
a	O
few	O
seconds	O
,	O
but	O
the	O
reentry	O
from	O
hyperspace	B-Application
occurs	O
at	O
a	O
random	O
location	O
,	O
and	O
in	O
some	O
versions	O
there	O
is	O
an	O
increasing	O
probability	O
of	O
the	O
ship	O
exploding	O
with	O
each	O
use	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Player	O
controls	O
include	O
clockwise	O
and	O
counterclockwise	O
rotation	O
,	O
forward	O
thrust	O
,	O
firing	O
torpedoes	O
,	O
and	O
hyperspace	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Initially	O
,	O
these	O
were	O
controlled	O
using	O
the	O
front-panel	B-Device
test	O
switches	O
on	O
the	O
PDP-1	B-Device
minicomputer	B-Architecture
,	O
with	O
four	O
switches	O
for	O
each	O
player	O
,	O
but	O
these	O
proved	O
to	O
be	O
awkward	O
to	O
use	O
and	O
wore	O
out	O
quickly	O
under	O
normal	O
gameplay	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
causing	O
players	O
to	O
accidentally	O
flip	O
the	O
computer	O
's	O
control	O
and	O
power	O
switches	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
location	O
of	O
the	O
switches	O
also	O
left	O
one	O
player	O
off	O
to	O
one	O
side	O
of	O
the	O
CRT	B-Device
display	I-Device
due	O
to	O
the	O
limited	O
space	O
in	O
front	O
of	O
the	O
computer	O
,	O
which	O
left	O
them	O
at	O
a	O
disadvantage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
To	O
alleviate	O
these	O
problems	O
,	O
Saunders	O
created	O
a	O
detached	O
control	O
device	O
,	O
essentially	O
an	O
early	O
gamepad	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
gamepad	B-Device
had	O
a	O
switch	O
for	O
turning	O
left	O
or	O
right	O
,	O
another	O
for	O
forward	O
thrust	O
or	O
hyperspace	B-Application
,	O
and	O
a	O
torpedo	O
launch	O
button	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Russell	O
,	O
Graetz	O
and	O
Wiitanen	O
developed	O
the	O
basic	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
concept	O
in	O
the	O
summer	O
of	O
1961	O
,	O
in	O
anticipation	O
of	O
the	O
PDP-1	B-Device
being	O
installed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
That	O
sort	O
of	O
action	O
was	O
the	O
thing	O
that	O
suggested	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
the	O
first	O
few	O
months	O
after	O
its	O
installation	O
,	O
the	O
PDP-1	B-Device
programming	O
community	O
at	O
MIT	O
focused	O
on	O
simpler	O
programs	O
to	O
work	O
out	O
how	O
to	O
create	O
software	O
for	O
the	O
computer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
During	O
this	O
period	O
,	O
Russell	O
visited	O
his	O
old	O
friends	O
in	O
the	O
community	O
frequently	O
and	O
described	O
the	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
Russell	O
,	O
later	O
explaining	O
that	O
"	O
I	O
looked	O
around	O
and	O
I	O
did	O
n't	O
find	O
an	O
excuse	O
,	O
so	O
I	O
had	O
to	O
settle	O
down	O
and	O
do	O
some	O
figuring	O
"	O
,	O
started	O
writing	O
the	O
code	O
around	O
the	O
time	O
that	O
the	O
PDP-1	B-Device
'	O
s	O
display	O
was	O
installed	O
at	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
December	O
1961	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
written	O
in	O
the	O
PDP-1	B-Device
'	O
s	O
assembly	B-Language
language	I-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
programming	O
community	O
in	O
the	O
area	O
,	O
including	O
the	O
Hingham	O
Institute	O
and	O
the	O
TMRC	O
,	O
had	O
developed	O
what	O
was	O
later	O
termed	O
the	O
"	O
hacker	O
ethic	O
"	O
,	O
whereby	O
all	O
programs	O
were	O
freely	O
shared	O
and	O
modified	O
by	O
other	O
programmers	O
in	O
a	O
collaborative	O
environment	O
without	O
concern	O
for	O
ownership	O
or	O
copyright	O
,	O
which	O
led	O
to	O
a	O
group	O
effort	O
to	O
elaborate	O
on	O
Russell	O
's	O
initial	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
The	O
program	O
was	O
called	O
"	O
Expensive	B-Application
Planetarium	I-Application
"	O
—	O
referring	O
to	O
the	O
high	O
price	O
of	O
the	O
PDP-1	B-Device
computer	O
compared	O
to	O
an	O
analog	O
planetarium	O
,	O
as	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
series	O
of	O
"	O
expensive	O
"	O
programs	O
like	O
Piner	O
's	O
Expensive	B-Application
Typewriter	I-Application
—	O
and	O
was	O
quickly	O
incorporated	O
into	O
the	O
game	O
in	O
March	O
by	O
Russell	O
,	O
who	O
served	O
as	O
the	O
collator	O
of	O
the	O
primary	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
initial	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
also	O
did	O
not	O
include	O
the	O
central	O
star	O
gravity	O
well	O
or	O
the	O
hyperspace	B-Application
feature	O
;	O
they	O
were	O
written	O
by	O
MIT	O
graduate	O
student	O
and	O
TMRC	O
member	O
Dan	O
Edwards	O
and	O
Graetz	O
respectively	O
to	O
add	O
elements	O
of	O
a	O
strategy	O
to	O
what	O
initially	O
was	O
a	O
shooter	O
game	O
of	O
pure	O
reflexes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
initial	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
hyperspace	B-Application
function	O
was	O
limited	O
to	O
three	O
jumps	O
,	O
but	O
carried	O
no	O
risk	O
save	O
possibly	O
re-entering	O
the	O
game	O
in	O
a	O
dangerous	O
position	O
;	O
later	O
versions	O
removed	O
the	O
limit	O
but	O
added	O
the	O
increasing	O
risk	O
of	O
destroying	O
the	O
ship	O
instead	O
of	O
moving	O
it	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Additionally	O
,	O
in	O
March	O
1962	O
,	O
Saunders	O
created	O
gamepads	B-Device
for	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
to	O
counter	O
"	O
Space	B-Application
War	I-Application
Elbow	O
"	O
from	O
sitting	O
hunched	O
over	O
the	O
mainframe	B-Architecture
toggles	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
group	O
added	O
a	O
time	O
limit	O
,	O
the	O
hyperspace	B-Application
function	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
larger	O
,	O
second	O
screen	O
for	O
viewers	O
at	O
the	O
demonstration	O
,	O
and	O
in	O
May	O
Graetz	O
presented	O
a	O
paper	O
about	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
"	O
SPACEWAR	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
Real-Time	O
Capability	O
of	O
the	O
PDP-1	B-Device
"	O
,	O
at	O
the	O
first	O
meeting	O
of	O
the	O
Digital	O
Equipment	O
Computer	O
Users	O
 '	O
Society	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
demonstration	O
was	O
a	O
success	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
game	O
proved	O
very	O
popular	O
at	O
MIT	O
;	O
the	O
laboratory	O
that	O
hosted	O
the	O
PDP-1	B-Device
soon	O
banned	O
play	O
except	O
during	O
lunch	O
and	O
after	O
working	O
hours	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Beginning	O
in	O
mid-1962	O
and	O
continuing	O
over	O
the	O
next	O
few	O
years	O
,	O
members	O
of	O
the	O
PDP-1	B-Device
programming	O
community	O
at	O
MIT	O
,	O
including	O
Russell	O
and	O
the	O
other	O
Hingham	O
Institute	O
members	O
,	O
began	O
to	O
spread	O
out	O
to	O
other	O
schools	O
and	O
employers	O
such	O
as	O
Stanford	O
University	O
and	O
DEC	O
,	O
and	O
as	O
they	O
did	O
they	O
spread	O
the	O
game	O
to	O
other	O
universities	O
and	O
institutions	O
with	O
a	O
PDP-1	B-Device
computer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
a	O
result	O
,	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
was	O
perhaps	O
the	B-Application
first	I-Application
video	I-Application
game	I-Application
to	O
be	O
available	O
outside	O
a	O
single	O
research	O
institute	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Over	O
the	O
next	O
decade	O
,	O
programmers	O
at	O
these	O
other	O
institutions	O
began	O
coding	O
their	O
own	O
variants	O
,	O
including	O
features	O
such	O
as	O
allowing	O
more	O
ships	O
and	O
players	O
at	O
once	O
,	O
replacing	O
the	O
hyperspace	B-Application
feature	O
with	O
a	O
cloaking	O
device	O
,	O
space	O
mines	O
,	O
and	O
even	O
a	O
first-person	O
perspective	O
version	O
played	O
on	O
two	O
screens	O
that	O
simulates	O
each	O
pilot	O
's	O
view	O
out	O
of	O
the	O
cockpit	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
of	O
these	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
installations	O
also	O
replicated	O
Saunders	O
 '	O
gamepad	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
DEC	O
learned	O
about	O
the	O
game	O
soon	O
after	O
its	O
creation	O
,	O
and	O
gave	O
demonstrations	O
of	O
it	O
running	O
on	O
their	O
PDP-1	B-Device
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
publishing	O
a	O
brochure	O
about	O
the	O
game	O
and	O
the	O
computer	O
in	O
1963	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
a	O
second-hand	O
account	O
heard	O
by	O
Russell	O
while	O
working	O
at	O
DEC	O
,	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
was	O
reportedly	O
used	O
as	O
a	O
smoke	O
test	O
by	O
DEC	O
technicians	O
on	O
new	O
PDP-1	B-Device
systems	O
before	O
shipping	O
because	O
it	O
was	O
the	O
only	O
available	O
program	O
that	O
exercised	O
every	O
aspect	O
of	O
the	O
hardware	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
the	O
game	O
was	O
widespread	O
for	O
the	O
era	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
still	O
very	O
limited	O
in	O
its	O
direct	O
reach	O
:	O
while	O
less	O
expensive	O
than	O
most	O
mainframe	B-Architecture
computers	I-Architecture
,	O
the	O
PDP-1	B-Device
was	O
priced	O
at	O
and	O
only	O
53	O
were	O
ever	O
sold	O
,	O
most	O
without	O
a	O
monitor	O
and	O
many	O
of	O
the	O
remainder	O
to	O
secure	O
military	O
locations	O
or	O
research	O
labs	O
with	O
no	O
free	O
computer	O
time	O
,	O
which	O
prevented	O
the	O
original	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
Though	O
some	O
later	O
DEC	O
models	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
PDP-6	B-Device
,	O
came	O
with	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
pre-loaded	B-Application
,	O
the	O
audience	O
for	O
the	O
game	O
remained	O
very	O
limited	O
;	O
the	O
PDP-6	B-Device
,	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
sold	O
only	O
23	O
units	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
was	O
extremely	O
popular	O
in	O
the	O
small	O
programming	O
community	O
in	O
the	O
1960s	O
and	O
was	O
widely	O
recreated	O
on	O
other	O
minicomputer	B-Architecture
and	O
mainframe	B-Architecture
computers	I-Architecture
of	O
the	O
time	O
before	O
migrating	O
to	O
early	O
microcomputer	B-Architecture
systems	O
in	O
the	O
1970s	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Early	O
installations	O
included	O
the	O
PDP-1	B-Device
at	O
Bolt	O
,	O
Beranek	O
,	O
&	O
Newman	O
,	O
which	O
also	O
recreated	O
the	O
gamepads	B-Device
;	O
an	O
installation	O
by	O
Russell	O
on	O
a	O
PDP-1	B-Device
at	O
the	O
Artificial	O
Intelligence	O
Laboratory	O
of	O
Stanford	O
University	O
in	O
1963	O
;	O
and	O
the	O
University	O
of	O
Minnesota	O
,	O
where	O
MIT	O
graduate	O
Albert	O
Kuhfield	O
in	O
1967	O
–	O
68	O
recreated	O
the	O
game	O
for	O
the	O
CDC	B-Device
3100	I-Device
,	O
and	O
submitted	O
a	O
description	O
to	O
Analog	O
Science	O
Fiction	O
and	O
Fact	O
,	O
published	O
in	O
1971	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Stanford	O
installation	O
was	O
so	O
popular	O
that	O
in	O
1966	O
the	O
researchers	O
created	O
a	O
special	O
"	O
Spacewar	B-Application
mode	O
"	O
for	O
time-sharing	B-General_Concept
computer	O
resources	O
on	O
their	O
PDP-6	B-Device
so	O
that	O
games	O
could	O
be	O
played	O
on	O
it	O
while	O
research	O
programs	O
were	O
also	O
being	O
run	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Early	O
computer	O
scientist	O
Alan	O
Kay	O
noted	O
in	O
1972	O
that	O
"	O
the	O
game	O
of	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
blossoms	O
spontaneously	O
wherever	O
there	O
is	O
a	O
graphics	O
display	O
connected	O
to	O
a	O
computer	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
Graetz	O
recalled	O
in	O
1981	O
that	O
as	O
the	O
game	O
initially	O
spread	O
it	O
could	O
be	O
found	O
on	O
"	O
just	O
about	O
any	O
research	O
computer	O
that	O
had	O
a	O
programmable	O
CRT	B-Device
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
majority	O
of	O
this	O
spread	O
took	O
place	O
several	O
years	O
after	O
the	O
initial	O
development	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
;	O
while	O
there	O
are	O
early	O
anecdotes	O
of	O
players	O
and	O
game	O
variants	O
at	O
a	O
handful	O
of	O
locations	O
,	O
primarily	O
near	O
MIT	O
and	O
Stanford	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
only	O
after	O
1967	O
that	O
computers	O
hooked	O
up	O
to	O
monitors	O
or	O
terminals	O
capable	O
of	O
playing	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
around	O
this	O
time	O
that	O
the	O
majority	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
variants	O
were	O
created	O
for	O
various	O
computer	O
systems	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
later	O
PDP	O
systems	O
,	O
and	O
in	O
1972	O
the	O
game	O
was	O
well	O
known	O
enough	O
in	O
the	O
programming	O
community	O
that	O
Rolling	O
Stone	O
sponsored	O
the	O
"	O
Intergalactic	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
The	O
event	O
was	O
held	O
on	O
October	O
19	O
,	O
1972	O
,	O
at	O
the	O
Stanford	O
Artificial	O
Intelligence	O
Laboratory	O
using	O
a	O
variant	O
of	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
on	O
a	O
combined	O
PDP-6/PDP	O
-10	O
that	O
supported	O
five	O
players	O
,	O
and	O
was	O
the	O
first	O
ever	O
video	O
game	O
tournament	O
,	O
with	O
an	O
account	O
published	O
in	O
the	O
December	O
7	O
,	O
1972	O
issue	O
of	O
Rolling	O
Stone	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
early	O
1970s	O
,	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
While	O
playing	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
While	O
the	O
high	O
price	O
of	O
a	O
minicomputer	B-Architecture
prevented	O
such	O
a	O
game	O
from	O
being	O
feasible	O
then	O
,	O
in	O
1971	O
Tuck	O
and	O
Bill	O
Pitts	O
created	O
a	O
prototype	O
coin-operated	O
computer	O
game	O
,	O
Galaxy	B-Application
Game	I-Application
,	O
with	O
a	O
PDP-11	B-Device
,	O
though	O
they	O
never	O
produced	O
more	O
than	O
two	O
prototypes	O
exhibited	O
at	O
Stanford	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Around	O
the	O
same	O
time	O
,	O
a	O
second	O
prototype	O
coin-operated	O
game	O
based	O
on	O
Spacewar	O
!,	O
Computer	B-Application
Space	I-Application
,	O
was	O
developed	O
by	O
Nolan	O
Bushnell	O
and	O
Ted	O
Dabney	O
,	O
which	O
would	O
become	O
the	O
first	O
commercially	O
sold	O
arcade	O
video	O
game	O
and	O
the	O
first	O
widely	O
available	O
video	O
game	O
of	O
any	O
kind	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Though	O
Tuck	O
felt	O
that	O
Computer	B-Application
Space	I-Application
was	O
a	O
poor	O
imitation	O
of	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
and	O
his	O
Galaxy	B-Application
Game	I-Application
a	O
superior	O
adaptation	O
,	O
many	O
players	O
believed	O
both	O
arcade	O
games	O
to	O
be	O
upgraded	O
variants	O
of	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Byte	O
magazine	O
published	O
an	O
assembly	B-Language
language	I-Language
version	O
of	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
in	O
1977	O
that	O
ran	O
on	O
the	O
Altair	B-Architecture
8800	I-Architecture
and	O
other	O
Intel	O
8080-based	O
microcomputers	B-Architecture
using	O
an	O
oscilloscope	O
as	O
the	O
graphical	O
display	O
and	O
a	O
lookup	B-Data_Structure
table	I-Data_Structure
to	O
approximate	O
the	O
calculations	O
for	O
orbits	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
a	O
three-dimensional	O
variant	O
in	O
1979	O
written	O
in	O
Tiny	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
emulated	B-Application
version	O
of	O
the	O
original	O
game	O
,	O
made	O
publicly	O
available	O
by	O
Martin	O
Graetz	O
and	O
running	O
in	O
a	O
JavaScript	B-Language
PDP-1	B-Device
emulator	B-Application
,	O
was	O
made	O
available	O
to	O
play	O
on	O
the	O
internet	O
in	O
2012	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Analogue	B-Device
Pocket	I-Device
handheld	O
console	O
added	O
support	O
for	O
running	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
on	O
an	O
emulated	B-Application
PDP-1	B-Device
in	O
2022	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
only	O
working	O
PDP-1s	B-Device
that	O
are	O
known	O
to	O
exist	O
are	O
kept	O
in	O
the	O
Computer	O
History	O
Museum	O
in	O
Mountain	O
View	O
,	O
California	O
,	O
where	O
demonstrations	O
of	O
the	O
machine	O
are	O
held	O
,	O
which	O
include	O
playing	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
addition	O
to	O
Galaxy	B-Application
Game	I-Application
and	O
Computer	B-Application
Space	I-Application
,	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
These	O
include	O
Orbitwar	O
(	O
1974	O
,	O
PLATO	B-Operating_System
network	I-Operating_System
computers	O
)	O
,	O
Space	B-Application
Wars	I-Application
(	O
1977	O
,	O
arcade	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
Space	B-Application
War	I-Application
(	O
1978	O
,	O
Atari	B-General_Concept
2600	I-General_Concept
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Additionally	O
,	O
in	O
the	O
arcade	O
game	O
Asteroids	B-Application
(	O
1979	O
)	O
,	O
designer	O
Ed	O
Logg	O
used	O
elements	O
from	O
Spacewar	O
!,	O
namely	O
the	O
hyperspace	B-Application
button	O
and	O
the	O
shape	O
of	O
the	O
player	O
's	O
ship	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Products	O
as	O
late	O
as	O
the	O
1990	O
computer	O
game	O
Star	B-Application
Control	I-Application
drew	O
direct	O
inspiration	O
from	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
March	O
12	O
,	O
2007	O
,	O
The	O
New	O
York	O
Times	O
reported	O
that	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
Also	O
in	O
2018	O
,	O
the	O
Academy	O
of	O
Interactive	O
Arts	O
&	O
Sciences	O
awarded	O
the	O
Pioneer	O
Award	O
,	O
given	O
"	O
for	O
individuals	O
whose	O
career	O
spanning	O
work	O
has	O
helped	O
shape	O
and	O
define	O
the	O
interactive	O
entertainment	O
industry	O
"	O
,	O
to	O
the	O
surviving	O
contributors	O
to	O
Spacewar	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
