10 Video Games Popular Franchises Stole From
4. Pong Stole From Table Tennis
The 1977 game, Pong, is arguably the most influential game of all time. It was the first game released on a Nintendo console, the Colour TV.
It is directly responsible for turning the tech-company, Atari, into a force to be reckoned with. Pong proved video games weren't just a novelty; it proved games had the potential to make millions of dollars. Not bad for a game that consists of two sticks knocking a square back and forth, is it?
But the most interesting thing about Pong is that it is a total ripoff of Table Tennis. Table Tennis was created by Ralph Baer, who also invented the first game console, The Magnavox Odyssey.
After Baer spent over two decades trying to make video games a reality and dedicated six years of his life making Table Tennis, Atari president, Nolan Bushnell, took the game, tweaked it, and released it as Pong that same year.
Since the concept of video games was virtually non-existent, the law could do little to stop Atari and so, Bushnell only received a minor fine for stealing Baer's life's work.