Galaxy Game
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The Galaxy Game is the earliest known coin-operated computer game. It was installed at the Tresidder Union at Stanford University in September, 1971, two months before the release of Computer Space, the first coin-operated "video" game.[1] Only one unit was ever built, though the game later included several consoles.
The game was programmed by Bill Pitts and Hugh Tuck. Like Computer Space, it was a version of the existing Spacewar!, which had previously been played on the PDP-1. The coin-operated game console incorporated a Digital PDP-11/20 with vector displays. The hardware cost around $20,000, and a game cost 10 cents or three games for 25 cents. In June 1972 the hardware was improved to allow the processor to power four to eight consoles. The game remained popular on campus, with wait times for players as much as one hour, until it was removed in May 1979.
The unit was restored in 1997 and now resides in the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California.