Gaming Gaming .Net

The last two decades of game history have been marked by separate markets for games on video game consoles, home computers and handhelds.

In 1989, Nintendo released the Game Boy, the first popular handheld console. Included with the system was Tetris, which became a popular puzzle game. Several rival handhelds also made their debut around that time, including the Sega Game Gear and Atari Lynx gaming gaming. While some of the other systems remained in production until the mid-90s, the Game Boy remained at the top spot in sales throughout its lifespan gaming gaming.

The North American market was dominated by the Sega Genesis early on after its debut in 1989, with the Nintendo Super NES proving a strong, roughly equal rival in 1991. The NEC 16 was the first 16-bit system to be marketed in the region, but did not achieve a large following, partly due to a limited library of English games and effective marketing from Sega. In Japan, the PC Engine's 1987 success against the Famicom and CD drive peripheral allowed it to fend off the Mega Drive in 1988, which never really caught on to the same degree as outside Japan gaming gaming. The PC Engine eventually lost out to the Super Famicom, but retained enough of a user base to support new games well into the late 1990s. CD-ROM drives were first seen in this generation, as add-ons for the PC Engine in 1988 and the Megadrive in 1991. Basic 3D graphics entered the mainstream with flat-shaded polygons enabled by additional processors in game cartridges like Virtua Racing.