Patentmania: The Golden Age of Electronic Games

The first era of computerized fun was crude, clunky...and unforgettable.

By  |  Monday, December 29, 2008 at 5:23 am

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Atari Joystick Patent

Video Game Control Unit

Filed June 24th, 1980

The Atari joystick is the Washington Monument of game controllers: simple, stately, and, dare I say it, moving. (My thumb feels a little sore just looking at this drawing.) If the Nintendo Wiimote now reigns as the greatest game controller of all time, this one may still be number two. It’s now available in a USB version for PCs.

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