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Mattel Auto Race (1976) (upload.wikimedia.org)

It was like holding the future in your little 10 year old hands.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mattel_Auto_Race

Mattel Electronics Auto Race was released in 1976 by Mattel Electronics as the first handheld electronic game to use only solid-state electronics; it has no mechanical elements except the controls and on/off switch. Using hardware designed for calculators and powered by a nine-volt battery, the cars are represented by red LEDs on a playfield which covers only a small portion of the case. The audio consists of beeps. George J. Klose based the game on 1970s racing arcade video games and designed the hardware, with some hardware features added by Mark Lesser who also wrote the 512 bytes of program code.

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[-] ApollosArrow@lemmy.world 2 points 1 hour ago

I didn’t even know these existded.

[-] Sergio@slrpnk.net 21 points 7 hours ago

No, wait, I also had the Tomy Digital Derby Auto Raceway. It's funny bc the only visible "digital" part of it was the light that lit up when you crashed, the rest of it is all mechanical. It was pretty fun tho, and looked cool.

[-] Anticorp@lemmy.world 5 points 6 hours ago

I was just thinking of this one when I saw the post. Everyone who was a kid back then either had this, or knew someone who had it.

[-] perishthethought@lemm.ee 5 points 7 hours ago

Ohhhh, actual pictures of cars! So much better!!
😀

[-] Sergio@slrpnk.net 12 points 7 hours ago

Tandy 3-in-1 SportsArena was what I got. Wasn't that great TBH. Killer idea, though.

[-] perishthethought@lemm.ee 7 points 7 hours ago* (last edited 7 hours ago)

I don't remember this one but it looks fun and having those extra overlays would be cool.

From that video: "You are the brighter dot". Lol, yes!

Yah, the creative things they came up with, using very primitive electronics was amazing. Even looking back at them now I appreciate their designs.

[-] perishthethought@lemm.ee 13 points 8 hours ago

I had the Electronic Football game too. That one was more fun.

[-] nokturne213@sopuli.xyz 7 points 7 hours ago

I had a newer version, it was black and had a “screen”. The play area was much larger and all of the controls were on the bottom. Fun game.

[-] propter_hog@hexbear.net 4 points 7 hours ago

Holy shit I had this game, forgot all about it until now

this post was submitted on 24 Nov 2024
111 points (99.1% liked)

Cassette Futurism

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Welcome to Cassette Futurism Lemmy and Mbin Community.

A place to share and discuss Cassette Futurism: media where the technology closely matches the computers and technology of the 70s and 80s.

Whether it's bright colors and geometric shapes, the tendency towards stark plainness, or the the lack of powerful computers and cell phones, Cassette Futurism includes: Cassettes, ROM chips, CRT displays, computers reminiscent of microcomputers like the Commodore 64, freestanding hi-fi systems, small LCD displays, and other analog technologies.

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