ABSTRACT
The 1980s saw the simultaneous development of video arcade games, home video game consoles and PC games. Assisted by the powerful Atari phenomenon and the Pac-Man fever sweeping the world, video games started to penetrate pop culture and gain mainstream acceptance. Against this background, competitive gaming entered its golden age. This chapter explores the gaming tournaments and events organised by video arcade and home console manufactures, distributors, operators, TV stations and the newly emerging competitive gaming organisations in the 1980s and explains how playing for high scores became the most popular form of gaming competition.
