How The Nintendo NES Game Console Changed the World

Yes, I am part of the generation that grew up with the original Nintendo gaming system … and sometimes I even feature it in my keynote talks. This year is the 40th anniversary of the console and my fellow geeks over at Engadget have put together an illuminating history of exactly why this system was so formative on the world of gaming for generations to come.

To start, it was the first console that introduced the D-pad instead of using a joystick … a design choice that has been copied by almost every gaming system since. Their early choice to create a licensed ecosystem for third party games ensured that the games that were allowed for the Nintendo all met a certain quality standard. They also enabled exclusive game releases, allowed you to save your progress within a game and had the first recognizable gaming mascots like Super Mario.

Of course, the gaming system is a nostalgic delight for those of us who grew up playing the game. But the NES also shaped the future of how we play video games more than any other system. So, it's a part of history too.