Second To Third (1976-1983)
The third generation is a little more recognisable as it sees Nintendo and Sega start a rivalry and the birth of many game franchises that are still going strong today. This generation kicked off with Sega's SG-1000 in 1983. Although it didn't sell well, Sega made up for that with the Master System. This was also the generation of the Nintendo Entertainment System and the Atari 7800. The new power was evident with higher screen resolutions, 32 colours and more than one gaming screen, allowing for the sort of scrolling seen in the Mario and Megaman series. There were some important hardware developments too, the D-pad first showed up and accessories such as light-guns and plastic robots were introduced. These were big steps that saw the home game console take off in the mainstream. This was the generation that witnessed the launch of many iconic series': Metroid, Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy and Metal Gear.