Truco and clones: the beginnings of Argentinian computer gaming
5 days ago
- #Computing History
- #Argentina
- #Video Games
- The article discusses the early history of computing and video gaming in Argentina, starting with the introduction of the Ferranti Mercury computer named 'Clementina' in 1961.
- Political upheavals, such as the 1966 coup, disrupted the development of computing in Argentina, leading to the exile of key figures like Manuel Sadosky.
- The 1970s saw a mix of protectionist policies and trade liberalization, impacting domestic electronics and computing industries.
- By the early 1980s, Argentina's computing market was dominated by clones of foreign computers, with notable models including the TK83, Czerweny clones, Drean Commodore, and the Talent DPC-200.
- The mid-1980s marked a cultural explosion in computing, with the launch of several computer magazines and the introduction of computers in schools.
- Piracy was rampant in Argentina's gaming market, with most games being unofficial copies of foreign titles, hindering the development of a domestic game industry.
- The first recognized Argentinian commercial game was 'Truco', a card game developed by Enrique and Ariel Arbiser, initially for the TRS-80 and later adapted for the TI-99/4A and DOS.