Ten Sports Video Games that Changed the Digital Playing Field

No game did more to define sports video games than Atari’s table tennis-themed arcade game Pong. Its universally intuitive gameplay—bounce a pixelated ball back and forth using a digital paddle—introduced millions of people to video games. Its simple instructions to “avoid missing ball for high score” ignited a craze for tennis and ping pong-style video games for years to come.

Nintendo’s Excitebike was a new kind of home console sports game developed by Shigeru Myamoto. The side-scrolling motocross racer challenged players to control an off-road motorcycle and spin their wheels on preprogrammed tracks. But the game’s real innovation was its design mode, which permitted players with no computer programming knowledge to create their own courses filled with bumps, jumps, rough patches, and other hazards.

Lead designers Scott Orr and Rich Hilleman worked closely with legendary football personality John Madden to create the 1990 revamp of John Madden Football, an arcade-style action game that balanced dramatic individual confrontations between on-field players with a robust system of player skill ratings such as speed, agility, and strength. This recipe launched the most popular football game franchise ever.

NBA Jam set the arcade world on fire. Published by Midway, the four-player game’s mixture of realistic graphics, over-the-top play-by-play commentary such as “Boomshakalaka!”, and body contorting slam dunks made it an immediate hit. Earning more than $1 billion in quarters in the first year of its release, it remains the best-selling arcade sports game ever.

Electronic Arts’ FIFA International Soccer wasn’t the first soccer video game, but it was the first to secure an official license from soccer’s (football outside the United States) international governing body. The game proved an instant hit. Its much-anticipated annual updates, including an online multiplayer mode, attracted a worldwide fanbase clamoring to play as their favorite national team.

Activision’s Tony Hawk Pro Skater revolutionized skateboarding video games. Controlling one of ten professional skateboarders, players could perform jumping, grinding, flipping, and grabbing tricks on open-ended courses while punk rock songs like the Dead Kennedys’ “Police Truck” blared in the background. Players who landed several tricks in a row could execute Hawk’s mind-blowingly difficult 900-degree aerial spin.

Nintendo redefined sports video games with Wii Sports. Using the Wii’s innovative Wii-mote, people of all ages could play tennis, bowling, baseball, boxing, and golf with arm gestures that mimicked simple, natural movements. The game’s mass appeal and word-of-mouth popularity spawned a string of virtual bowling leagues—including in nursing homes and senior centers—and helped Nintendo sell more than 100 million units of its console.