| The_Liquid_Laser said: #2 Donkey Kong - It's the first platformer that uses a jump button. However, it's also the first game with a coherent story. You see Donkey Kong carry Pauline up the skyscraper in the opening cutscene, an by the end of the 2nd stage Mario makes him fall down and saves Pauline. |
- (Microsoft) Adventure? 1976, Apple II version 1979: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Adventure
- Zork? 1977, Apple II version 1980
- Voodoo Castle? Apple II version 1980
- The Count? Apple II version 1980
- Mystery House? Apple II version 1980
- The Wizard and the Princess? Apple II version + Atari 8-bit version 1980
- Ghost Town? 1980, Apple II version + Atari 8-bit version early 1981
| The_Liquid_Laser said: #1 The Legend of Zelda - This is the game that killed the arcades. It took several years, but this is the game that made it happen. The gameplay of Zelda 1 was not possible in either an arcade or a home computer at the time. You needed to be able to save your progress, which was something arcade games couldn't do. And the game was too twitchy for any home computer in the mid 80's. It's the first action RPG, taking Ultima 1 gameplay, but then making it an action game. It also took the item ideas from Adventure and then took them so much further too. The game has tons of secrets. It's the first open-world action game. The game overworld feels huge compared to any action game that came before, and it has 9 dungeons. |
No, Zelda 1 was NOT the "first action RPG": https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Action_role-playing_game
No, Zelda 1 was NOT the "first open-world action game":
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercenary_(video_game)
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydlide
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elite_(video_game)
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_world
And why was the gameplay of Zelda 1 "not possible" on any home computer of the mid '80s? "Too twitchy"... yeah, right! The NES hardware did nothing, a Commodore 64 couldn't do and in the mid '80s even Atari ST and Amigas already launched.
Donkey Kong, Super Mario Bros. and The Legend of Zelda have more than enough game elements and accolades to praise them... you don't have to add false facts to praise them even more!
Is it really so hard to write "one of the first open-world action games" instead of "the first open-world action game"?
Last edited by Conina - on 21 April 2026
