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The Video Game Newsroom Time Machine is a weekly retro gaming podcast in which we travel back in time to see what was making headlines 40, 30, and 20 years ago in the arcade, video game, and computer gaming business and interview industry veterans. 

We try to put those events into historical context to understand how the industry of today came to be. 

It's fun and educational! (in case you need to justify listening to it to a significant other)

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Apr 10, 2019

A computer in every home
Atari and Nintendo sue each other
and
Nintendo gets its panties in a bunch over emulation

These stories and many more on this month's episode of the Video Game Newsroom time Machine

We look back at the biggest stories in and around the video game industry in March of 1979, 1989, 1999.
As always, we'll mostly be using magazine cover dates for the 20 and 30 year jumps, while relying on newspaper articles and historical documents for the 40 year jump, as there weren't many dedicated gaming publications on the market yet.

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Show Notes:
1979
A computer in every home
Newsweek, US edition, April 2, 1979

Privacy laws start popping up
Starting to Protect Privacy, New York Times April 10, 1979 https://www.nytimes.com/1979/04/10/archives/starting-to-protect-privacy.html

Stopping Compuer Chomping of Privacy, New York Times April 28, 1979 https://www.nytimes.com/1979/04/28/archives/stopping-computer-chomping-of-privacy.html

Pinball in the News
On the Light Side: Pinball Wizardry, The Associated Press, April 10, 1979

Pinball: Nassau's Big Zero, New York Times, April 8, 1979 https://www.nytimes.com/1979/04/08/archives/long-island-weekly-pinball-nassaus-big-zero.html

Williams' Crazy Story Part 1
http://podcast.theycreateworlds.com/e/williams-crazy-story-pt-1/

Carl Sagan to host show about space and science
Dr. Carl Sagan to Be Host of PBS Science Series, NYT, April 18, 1979 https://www.nytimes.com/1979/04/18/archives/dr-carl-sagan-to-be-host-of-pbs-science-series-interplanetary.html

1989
CES in Vegas shows the dominance of the NES
CVG 90 https://archive.org/details/Computer_Video_Games_Issue_090_1989-04_EMAP_Publishing_GB

Atari and Nintendo start suing each other over lock out chips and unfair practices
Compute 107 https://archive.org/details/1989-04-compute-magazine
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CIC_(Nintendo)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultra_Games


Domark cuts deal with Tengen
The games machine 17 https://archive.org/details/thegamesmachine-17
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Square_Enix_Europe#Domark
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6JC-HCNcio
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntEz4o5eq7k

Atari ST support in the industry eroded through piracy.
Letter from the CEO of Spectrum Holobyte
CGW58 https://archive.org/details/Computer_Gaming_World_Issue_58/page/n3

Dynamix signs on to Mediagenic's affiliated label program
CGW58 https://archive.org/details/Computer_Gaming_World_Issue_58/page/n9
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tdps1r38004
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usme3xqyBBg


Mirrorsoft launch Defender of the Crown on CD with limited 200 unit print run
The games machine 17 https://archive.org/details/TheGamesMachineIssue17Apr89/page/n11
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJrJvhrV7Mo&t=321s

Scott Orr leaves Gamestar
VG&CE 3 https://archive.org/details/Video_Games_Computer_Entertainment_Issue_03_April_1989
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scott_Orr
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIo5yTScaDg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8EbPghLpK6c
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZR7hiRPjwY

1999
Microsoft pushes Windows CE for Dreamcast development.
Next Generation 52 https://archive.org/details/NextGeneration52Apr1999/page/n13
https://segaretro.org/Windows_CE

Agora Interactive launch their G.A.T.E. arcade system to integrate satellite networking into arcades
Next Generation 52 https://archive.org/details/NextGeneration52Apr1999/page/n15
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Tee_Golf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultimate_Mortal_Kombat_3#Ultimate_Mortal_Kombat_3_Wave_Net

The first classic gaming expo is announced
Next Generation 52 https://archive.org/details/NextGeneration52Apr1999/page/n17

NeoGeo Pocket has been released, sold 37,000 units, and now is dead. Long live NeoGeo Pocket Color.
Next Generation 52 https://archive.org/details/NextGeneration52Apr1999/page/n19

Havas closes Sierra's Oakhurst office
Micromania 51 https://archive.org/details/MicromanaTerceraEpocaSpanishIssue51
https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/1999/03/01/story1.html

Emulation hits the N64
PC Player 1999 04 https://archive.org/details/PC-Player-German-Magazine-1999-04/page/n32
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UltraHLE


Recommended Links:
They Create Worlds: https://tcwpodcast.podbean.com/
Digital Antiquarian: https://www.filfre.net/
The Arcade Blogger: https://arcadeblogger.com/