History of video games/Platforms/Sportronic Electronic TV Sport
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History
[edit | edit source]Background
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Bob Kerridge, son of the Christchurch New Zealand theater tycoon Sir. Robert James Carridge, would found two two media companies involved in the production of the Sportstronic.[1][2] The first was the parent Spectrum Group of Companies, which was founded in 1966.[2] The second was a division of the former in Sportronic Television Ltd, founded in either 1977,[2] or the 30th of August, 1976.[3]
Development
[edit | edit source]The Spectrum Group of Companies was located at 82 Symonds Street in Auckland New Zealand at the time of manufacturing.[1]
Actual manufacturing of the console was done in New Zealand by Osborne Professional Electronics Ltd.[1]
Marketing
[edit | edit source]Sportronic
The games people play.
Introducing the Third TV Channel.—Marketing for the Sportronic console, Sportronic Poster[4]
Marketing materials for the Sportronic featured a nuclear family, with a mother and father watching their daughter and son playing the console.[4] This marketing material is fairly egalitarian, which was common in 1970's game marketing materials.[6]
Shoot your TV!—Marketing for the Sportronic console and light gun, Sportronic Poster[5]
Interestingly, advertising for the light gun shows gameplay for a pong like game.[5]
Launch
[edit | edit source]The console is said to have been released in 1977.[7] The Sportronic 6 console with light gun included retailed for $135.20 New Zealand Dollars.[8]
Legacy
[edit | edit source]Sportronic TV Ltd was removed from government listings in September of 2002.[9]
Technology
[edit | edit source]The Sportronic was a dedicated console with all of it's games built in to the system.[10]
The Sportronic was able to keep an on screen score.[4]
The "Sportronic Phaser Gun"[8] light gun for the Sportronic was fairly aggressively styled for the time, featuring a look similar to a submachine gun.[5]
Similar to other consoles of the era, the Sportronic was battery powered.[8]
There were at least two models of the Sportronic with different trims, the Sportronic 4 without rifle games, and the Sportronic 6 with rifle games.[9]
Games
[edit | edit source]Games were built in and could be selected with a dial on top of the console. Games were all themed around sports, as the name implies.
The built in games were as follows:
Gallery
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References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ a b c "Games console". 11 October 2017. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
- ↑ a b c "Kerridge, Bob, 1938-". Kerridge, Bob, 1938- | Items | National Library of New Zealand | National Library of New Zealand. 1 January 1938. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
- ↑ "SPORTRONIC TELEVISION LTD - New Zealand Company". newzealand-company.com. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
- ↑ a b c d "Obscure Pixels". web.archive.org. 4 June 2003. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
- ↑ a b c d "Wayback Machine". web.archive.org. 12 June 2003. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
- ↑ Hess, Amanda (4 December 2013). "A History of Sexist Video Game Marketing" (in en). Slate Magazine. https://slate.com/human-interest/2013/12/female-gamers-and-masculine-marketers-polygon-s-history-of-the-sexist-selling-of-video-games.html.
- ↑ "TV Sport for Dedicated console (1977)". MobyGames. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
- ↑ a b c "Obscure Pixels". web.archive.org. 21 February 2004. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
- ↑ a b Brown, Russell (September 22nd, 2003). "Sportronic in Beige • Hard News • Public Address" (in en). publicaddress.net. https://publicaddress.net/hardnews/sportronic-in-beige/.
- ↑ "Forward To The Past – Engaging With New Zealand’s Early Computer Games – Gauge". https://ngataonga.org.nz/blog/nz-history/nz-early-computer-games/.
- ↑ a b c d e f "Games console". 11 October 2017. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
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