User:Namcokid47/Computer Othello

Computer Othello (コンピューターオセロ) is the first video arcade game created by Nintendo, and was published in Japan in June 1978. It is an adaptation of the board game reversi, also known as othello in Japan. As in the original game, two players take turns placing differently-shaped pieces on a grid-based board. The objective is for a player to have more of their pieces on the board than their opponent until the board is completely filled with pieces. Computer Othello was developed by Nintendo's Research & Development 1 (R&D1) division, led by company designer Gunpei Yokoi. Nintendo had previously developed electro-mechanical shooting gallery games for arcades, but chose to enter the video game industry after the 1973 oil crisis in Japan placed a burden on its toy manufacturing, and the release of Taito's Space Invaders (1978). A home version was released in 1980 for the Computer TV Game dedicated console.

Development
Nintendo Co., Ltd. had primarily been a producer of toys and playing cards for the Japanese market. The 1973 oil crisis, which increased the cost of manufacturing toys, placed a damper on the company that forced it to diversify itself into other industries. Nintendo had previously developed the Laser Clay Shooting System for bowling alleys, which was a commercial success in its debut year. It was followed by similar light gun games at a smaller scale, such as Wild Gunman (1975) and Test Driver (1977). Nintendo also created the Color TV-Game line of dedicated consoles, which sold over one million units each. The phenomenal success of Taito's Space Invaders in 1978 triggered a nationwide resurgence in interest for video games, which was the impetus for Nintendo's decision to enter the industry.

Computer Othello was designed by Nintendo's recently-established Research & Development 1 (R&D1) development division, created through the split of its product manufacturing department. Gunpei Yokoi, Nintendo's respected electronics engineer, was assigned as its general manager.