Nintendo Entertainment System
Third-generation console that revitalized the American video game industry.
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) was a home video game console built and sold by Nintendo. It first appeared in Japan on July 15, 1983, under the name Famicom. In the United States, it was tested in select markets starting October 18, 1985, before a full national release on September 27, 1986. Throughout the 1980s, the console reached Europe, Australia, and parts of Asia. It was Nintendo’s first programmable home system, following the fixed-game Color TV-Game line, and its main rival in the third generation of consoles was Sega’s Master System.
Masayuki Uemura engineered the 8-bit Famicom after Nintendo’s president, Hiroshi Yamauchi, asked for a cheap, simple console that could play arcade games from cartridges. The hardware drew from Nintendo’s own arcade game *Donkey Kong* (1981), and the controller design came from the portable Game & Watch devices. For Western markets, Lance Barr and Don James reshaped it into the NES, making it look like a video cassette recorder to help it sell in stores. Nintendo also released add-ons like the Zapper light gun for shooting games and R.O.B., a toy robot. In Japan, the Famicom Disk System let users play games on floppy disks, but Nintendo eventually reduced support for it due to hardware limits.
The NES launched right after the 1983 video game crash. In Japan and North America, it quickly took over the market, giving Nintendo a near-monopoly on home consoles. Unlike Atari, the previous leader, Nintendo encouraged third-party developers like Capcom, Hudson Soft, Konami, Namco, Enix, and Square to make games. Its strict licensing rules—requiring platform exclusivity and capping releases at five games per year—led to antitrust accusations in the United States, ending in a 1991 settlement with the Federal Trade Commission. Nintendo sold 61.91 million consoles. While it dominated in Japan and North America, the NES struggled in Europe against the Master System and home computers like the Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum.
Nintendo released the Super Nintendo Entertainment System on November 21, 1990, but kept supporting the NES into the 16-bit era. It discontinued the NES on August 14, 1995, and the Famicom on September 25, 2003. The NES is seen as one of the most influential consoles ever.
Quick Facts
- Aka
- KOR · Hyundai Comboy · IND · Samurai Electronic TV Game System
- Developer
- Nintendo R&D2
- Manufacturer
- Nintendo
- Generation
- Third
- Discontinued
- NA/EU/AU · 1995-08-14 · BRA/KOR/TW · Early/Mid 2003 · JP · 2003-09-25
- Units Sold
- 61.91 million
- Media
- Nintendo Entertainment System Game Pak
- Cpu
- Ricoh 2A03 @ 1.79 MHz · Ricoh 2A07 @ 1.66 MHzThe 2A03 is in NTSC consoles, and the 2A07 is in PAL consoles. Both CPUs are based on the MOS Technology 6502; see technical specifications section.
- Controllers
- 2 controller portsThe original Famicom has two hardwired game controllers and a single port for additional input devices. See game controllers section.
- Top Game
- Pack-in: Super Mario Bros. (40 million) / Standalone: Super Mario Bros. 3 (18 million) (list)
- Predecessor
- Color TV-Game
- Successor
- Super Nintendo Entertainment System
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The NES was designed by engineer Masayuki Uemura after Nintendo's president Hiroshi Yamauchi called for a simple, cheap console that could run arcade games from cartridges. Its hardware was based on that of Nintendo's arcade game Donkey Kong (1981) and its controller design was reused from Nintendo's portable Game & Watch hardware. For Western markets, Lance Barr and Don James redesigned it as the NES to resemble a video cassette recorder. To aid its acceptance in stores, Nintendo released add-ons such as the Zapper, a light gun for shooting games, and R.O.B., a toy robot. In Japan, Nintendo released the Famicom Disk System add-on to distribute games on floppy disks, although it gradually reduced support for the peripheral due to hardware constraints.
Nintendo released the NES in the aftermath of the video game crash of 1983. In Japan and North America, it quickly dominated and gave Nintendo a near-monopoly on the home console market. Unlike the previous market leader, Atari, Nintendo sought the support of third-party developers, such as Capcom, Hudson Soft, Konami, Namco, Enix, and Square. Its restrictive licensing terms, which included platform exclusivity and a five-game-per-year limit, led to accusations of antitrust violations in the US, culminating in a 1991 settlement with the Federal Trade Commission. Nintendo sold 61.91 million consoles; though dominant in Japan and North America, the NES performed worse in Europe, where it faced competition from the Master System and home computers such as the Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum.
Nintendo released a successor, the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, on November 21, 1990, but continued to support the NES into the 16-bit era. It discontinued the NES on August 14, 1995 and the Famicom on September 25, 2003.
Reader's Guide
The NES is regarded as one of the most influential consoles, as it helped revitalize the American gaming industry following the 1983 crash and pioneered the now-standard business model of licensing third-party developers to produce and distribute games. Several NES games, including Super Mario Bros. (1985), The Legend of Zelda (1986), Dragon Quest (1986), and Final Fantasy (1987), became major franchises. The console's restrictive licensing terms, which included platform exclusivity and a five-game-per-year limit, led to accusations of antitrust violations in the US, culminating in a 1991 settlement with the Federal Trade Commission. Nintendo sold 61.91 million consoles; though dominant in Japan and North America, the NES performed worse in Europe, where it faced competition from the Master System and home computers such as the Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum. The NES was discontinued on August 14, 1995 and the Famicom on September 25, 2003.
Did You Know?
- The Famicom's name was proposed by Masayuki Uemura's wife.
- The NES was redesigned for Western markets to resemble a video cassette recorder.
- Nintendo released the Zapper light gun and R.O.B. toy robot as add-ons for the NES.
- The NES helped revitalize the American gaming industry after the 1983 crash.
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