Leonard Herman of Rolenta Press (www.rolentapress.com)
Magnavox Odyssey
Manufacturer: Magnavox
Released: May, 1972
Price at launch: $100
This is where it all began. Game guru Ralph Baer's invention for Magnavox brought video gaming out of the arcades and into the living room. As the first home video game console, the Odyssey had no audio output and could only display black and white images. But the system came with translucent TV screen overlays to simulate full-color graphics in games like tennis and hockey. The Odyssey's sales were less than impressive: Magnavox had sold about 350,000 units by 1975.