RETRO DELIGHTS ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM
© 1972–1994
PRESS START
The Golden Age
A journey through the moments that shaped retro gaming.
SCROLL TO BEGIN →SCROLL TO BEGIN ↓
Pong
Two paddles, one ball, and the birth of an industry. Atari's Pong didn't invent video games, but it made the world pay attention. Bars and arcades would never be the same again.
Space Invaders
Taito's marching aliens caused a coin shortage in Japan. Space Invaders turned arcades from novelty to obsession. The first game that made you feel like you were fighting for survival.
Pac-Man
Toru Iwatani looked at a pizza with a slice missing and saw a character. Pac-Man brought women into arcades, spawned a merchandise empire, and proved games could have personality.
Donkey Kong
A carpenter, a gorilla, and a pile of barrels. Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto created the first platform game and introduced the world to a character called Jumpman — later renamed Mario.
ZX Spectrum
Sir Clive Sinclair put a computer in every bedroom in Britain for under £200. A generation of kids learned to code, and the British games industry was born in bedsits and bedrooms across the country.
Super Mario Bros
After the great video game crash of 1983, the industry was on life support. Then Nintendo released the NES with Super Mario Bros and single-handedly saved gaming. World 1-1 is the most famous level ever designed.
Game Boy
Gunpei Yokoi's grey brick with a green screen outsold everything. It wasn't the most powerful handheld — it was the most indestructible. Bundled with Tetris, it turned commutes and car journeys into gaming sessions.
Street Fighter II
Capcom turned fighting into an art form. Street Fighter II didn't just fill arcades — it created a culture. Hadoukens, quarter-circle motions, and the eternal question: Ken or Ryu?
Sonic the Hedgehog
Sega needed a mascot to take on Mario. They created a blue hedgehog with attitude and speed. The Mega Drive vs SNES war defined a generation. You were either Sega or Nintendo. There was no middle ground.
PlayStation
Sony entered gaming and changed everything. The PlayStation made gaming cool for adults. CDs replaced cartridges. 3D replaced 2D. The arcade era was ending, but the golden age left a mark that nothing could erase.
Where Did Your Story Begin?
Every gamer remembers their first. Pick the one that started it all for you.
MY GAMING STORY STARTED WITH
retrodelights.co.uk/timeline