Gaming consoles

Presented byPiyush Malhotra6th SEMESTER ITRoll No: 0747013108

INTRODUCTION What is a “Gaming console”??

A gaming console is a form of interactive multimedia used for entertainment.

It is one of the best form of digital entertainment media available. Gaming consoles were initially designed for the sole purpose of playing electronic games.

It provides an interactive and an entertaining computer environment through an electronic device that produces a video display signal which can be used with a display device.

Contd…

Gaming consoles have rapidly evolved since its inception incorporating all the latest advancements in technology namely:

Memory

Processing capabilities

Graphics

Sound

Components of a gaming console User control interface

CPU

RAM

Software kernel

Storage medium for games

Video output

Audio output

Power supply

HISTORY

The first home gaming console ever made was the Magnavox Odyssey invented by Magnavox in 1972.

The core consisted of 4 dozen diodes and transistors

Limited capabilities, only simple graphics could be produced.

No memory capabilities

ATARI PONG First ever arcade game created in 1975, inspired by the

Odyssey and kick started the first generation of video game consoles.

Simulated table tennis game

Connected to a black and white TV locked in a 4 feet long wooden cabinet

All the wires of the console were soldered into the boards of the cabinet.

Technology based on the transistor-transistor logic where several p-n-p transistors were connected in the forward biased mode.

ATARI PONG

ATARI PONG Screen

The Atari 2600 was the second generation gaming console invented by Atari Inc in 1977.

First console to have a microprocessor in its core circuitry, the MOS 6502

Through this console, the graphics chip, Stella, was introduced.

Memory storage of 128 bytes (RAM)

Atari 2600 The games for ATARI 2600 consisted of

software which was encoded on to the ROM, which in turn were housed in plastic cartridges.

Each cartridge had a maximum capacity of 4 kilobytes,

It was the third generation video game console introduced in 1985 by Nintendo

Revolution in the gaming industry

Introduced two very important concepts to the video game system industry

Use of gamepad controller instead of a joystick

Creating authentic reproduction of arcade video games in terms of graphics

Nintendo entertainment system (NES)

Nintendo entertainment system (NES)

Salient FeaturesTop loading cartridge slot was replaced with a front-loading mechanism

CPU consisted of a 8-bit microprocessor

2 Kb on onboard work RAM

Game cartridges contained expanded RAM (up to 16 Kb) to increase memory for efficient game execution.

Nintendo entertainment system (NES)

Salient Features

Separate 2 Kb of Video RAM in a separate processing unit known as the Picture Processing Unit (PPU)

First console to support 5 audio channels, with volume control of 16 levels

Fourth Generation video game console launched by Nintendo in 1991.

It marked a new era in which technology expanded from 8-bit microprocessors to 16-bit microprocessors

Introduced the concept of parallel processing in video game consoles.

Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES)

Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES)

First video game console to have a Direct Memory Access (DMA) unit.

Allowed hardware subsystems to access the system memory without being dependent on the CPU (128 Kb of onboard RAM).

DMA facility allowed PPU to directly access system memory in addition to the 64 Kb VRAM allowing enhanced graphical and video capability.

Fifth Generation Consoles More commonly known as the 32-bit era or

the 3D era.

There were two popular fifth generation consoles

Sega Saturn

Sony PlayStation

Introduced the concept of storing video games in a double speed CD ROM

Using CD ROM drives allowed a high data transfer rate and allowed more storage capacity for each game

It was capable of executing audio CDs, video CDs, photo CDs, and electronic books

Cache memory was introduced in the video game console industry through the Sega Saturn.

Two 256 Kb RAM for 3D graphics just to display effects of polygon rendering, background layers as well as other graphical processes

Sega Saturn

Sony playstation The first ever gaming console developed by

Sony Computer Entertainment in 1994.

Initiated a series of video game consoles which now span over three generations.

PlayStation was the first of those consoles.

CPU configurations were similar to the Sega Saturn with minor differences.

Sony playstation The main memory consisted of a 2 MB RAM

Had a separate graphics processing unit which handles 2D graphics and 3D graphic separately.

First console which had the capability of playing Full Motion Videos (FMV).

Automatic detection and booting of games which were stored in CD ROMs.

Sony playstation Introduced a new innovation of a separate

memory card for storing in-game data, with a maximum capacity of 128 Kb.

Sony playstation

Sixth generation consoles This generation saw a shift towards using DVD

ROMs for game media.

Games were longer and more visually appealing.

Online multiplayer gaming was supported by network adapters which were provided by these consoles to connect to a broadband internet connection.

Two main consoles:

PlayStation 2

XBOX

An enhanced version of the PlayStation which was launched in 2000

Backward compatible with all PlayStation games, controllers, memory cards etc.

An in built CD as well as a DVD player

64 bit microprocessor with 32 MB RAM with an external 8 MB memory card

Separate graphics and audio processing units with 4 MB and 2 MB RAM respectively

PlayStation 2

Microsoft XBOX Microsoft’s first ever gaming console

released in 2001

CPU boasted of an Intel Pentium III processor

Memory of 64 MB RAM

Graphics unit built by NVIDIA

Hard drive consisting of 8-10 GB of space

Microsoft XBOX

Seventh generation consoles Current generation of video game consoles

Include the support of new disc format like the Blu-ray disc and HD DVD

Motion sensing technology and wireless controllers are also new innovations introduced in the seventh generation consoles

Three main consoles:

PlayStation 3

XBOX 360

Nintendo Wii

Seventh generation consoles

These consoles are state of the art in terms of CPU processing and memory and are in accordance with the latest technology that we have today

The consoles include support for:

USB and Bluetooth

Wi-fi facilities

Dolby Digital Sound + NVIDIA Graphics

Hard drive capacity in excess of 250 GB

Seventh generation consoles

conclusionTechnological advancements from the first generation to the seventh generation consoles can certainly be appreciated

Gaming consoles have helped the industry understand the basic requirements of 3D and multimedia applications.

Gaming is indeed heading in the direction of becoming a mainstream form of entertainment.