How Old Is Your Game Console?
Find out the age of your retro console, see which generation it belongs to, and get fun milestone badges.
Retro Gaming Generations
1st Generation (1972-1977): The Magnavox Odyssey and Pong-era machines. Simple analog circuits, no microprocessors, and games hardwired into the hardware. These pioneered the concept of interactive home entertainment.
2nd Generation (1976-1992): The Atari 2600 era. Cartridge-based games, early microprocessors, and the first real game library system. Also saw the "video game crash" of 1983 in North America.
3rd Generation (1983-2003): The 8-bit era. The NES revived the industry after the crash, and the Sega Master System brought competition. This generation established many gaming conventions still used today.
4th Generation (1987-2004): The 16-bit era. SNES vs Sega Genesis was one of gaming's greatest rivalries. Richer graphics, CD-ROM add-ons, and the first hints of 3D gaming emerged here.
5th Generation (1993-2006): The 32/64-bit era and the leap to 3D. PlayStation, N64, and Saturn defined a revolution in game design with polygonal graphics, CD audio, and analog controls.
6th Generation (1998-2013): PS2, Dreamcast, GameCube, and original Xbox. DVD-based games, online connectivity (Dreamcast pioneered this), and photorealistic aspirations marked this era.