A Summary of Video Game History on July 19th
This Day In History…
1988
Nintendo releases a port of the 1982 arcade classic Donkey Kong Junior for the Famicom Disk System in Japan.
1990
Sunsoft releases the scrolling fighting game Batman for the Sega Genesis. The game is based on the 1989 film of the same name staring Michael Keaton as the popular DC Comics character.
1991
Squaresoft releases the role-playing game (RPG) Final Fantasy IV in Japan, the first Final Fantasy game for the Super Famicom. It is the first installment in the Final Fantasy franchise to releases for the Super Famicom. The game was released in November as Final Fantasy II in North America.
1995
Prima Lifestyles publishes the mystery thriller The 7th Guest: A Novel by Matthew J. Costello and Craig Shaw Gardner as a hardcover. (ISBN-13: 978-0761500865) The novel is based on the award-winning video game, The 7th Guest which was released in April 1992. The novel includes scenes that developers had originally planned to include in the game but omitted, as well as an expanded storyline. Length: 224 pages
1996
Enix releases Star Ocean for the Super Famicom in Japan. It is the first game that was developed by tri-Ace.
1997
The first annual JagFest convention celebrating the Atari Jaguar video game console is held in Rosemont, Illinois from nine in the morning to nearly midnight. At the event, working demonstrations of 4Play’s BattleSphere are debuted and Visual Dimensions 3D announces plans to develop new games for Jaguar and the handheld Atari Lynx.
2001
In Japan, Sony releases the PS2 Hard Disk Drive for the PlayStation 2 video game console. Price: US$150 external, US$145 internal
Namco releases Klonoa: Empire of Dreams for the Game Boy Advance in Japan.
Square releases the role-playing game Final Fantasy X for the PlayStation 2 in Japan. It is the tenth installment in the Final Fantasy video game series. It is the first Final Fantasy game to use voice acting, and it is also the first game in the series to feature fully three dimensional environments rather than two dimension pre-rendered backdrops. The game reportedly cost an unheard-of US$35 million to develop. CERO: B (Ages 12 and up)
2002
Capcom releases Super Ghouls ’n Ghosts for the Game Boy Advance in Japan.
Codemasters releases the stealth game Prisoner of War for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in Europe. In the game, players are cast in the role of a P.O.W. who must escape from a World War II German prison camp.
Midway Games releases the hack and slash arcade game Gauntlet Dark Legacy for the GameCube in Europe.
Nintendo releases Super Mario Sunshine for the GameCube in Japan. It is the first original traditional Mario platform game since Super Mario 64, six years earlier.
The single-player demo of Battlefield 1942 is released.
2003
The Nintendo game Super Mario Sunshine achieves Player’s Choice status, having sold over one million copies.
2004
In Munich, Germany the local district court orders all versions of the psychological horror video game Manhunt seized throughout the nation for violating Section 131 of the Strafgesetzbuch (criminal code) for disseminating graphic representations of violence. The seizure is only the second of its time, the first being a nationwide seizure of the versus fighting game Mortal Kombat 2 in 1995.
2005
DreamCatcher releases Secret of the Old Clock for the personal computer. It is the twelfth installment of the Nancy Drew game series, and it is based on the plots of the first four books in the book series. The release commemorates the 75th anniversary of the Nancy Drew book series.
Majesco releases the vertical scrolling shooter Nanostray for the Nintendo DS in the US.
2006
The Halo Graphic Novel is published by Marvel Comics and Bungie Studios. (ISBN 0-7851-2372-5) The novel, based on the best-selling first-person shooter (FPS) Halo: Combat Evolved, contains four short stories tangential to the game’s plots. Its sales will exceed all expectations and, shortly after its publication, Length: 128 pages
Microsoft releases the side-scrolling platform game Cloning Clyde for the Xbox 360’s Xbox Live Arcade. Price: 800 Microsoft Points ($10 USD)
