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In 1976, the video game industry recovered from the 1974 crash and experienced substantial growth, with arcade video games largely displacing electro-mechanical games (EM games) in the United States,[1] though EM games remained bigger in Japan. The year saw the release of new arcade video games such as Sega's Road Race and Heavyweight Champ.

The year's highest-grossing electronic game was Nintendo's electro‑mechanical (EM) arcade medal game EVR Race, despite only releasing in Japan. The year's highest-grossing video game worldwide was Taito's arcade racing title Speed Race, released as Wheels in North America, while the best-selling home system was the Coleco Telstar console.

Financial performance[]

The following table lists the annual sales and revenue generated by the electronic games industry this year, including video games and electro‑mechanical games. See sections below for breakdown of revenue estimates.

Industry Products Market Unit sales Annual revenue (est.) Ref
Nominal Inflation
Electronic games United States 4,414,000+ $668,300,000 $3,600,000,000
Japan 40,000+ $653,000,000 $3,500,000,000
Arcade Arcade games Worldwide 54,000+ $1,087,300,000 $5,800,000,000
Arcade Arcade games Japan $650,000,000 $3,500,000,000 [2]
United States 54,000+ $437,300,000 $2,300,000,000 [3][4]
Arcade Electro‑mechanical games Worldwide $572,300,000 $3,100,000,000
Arcade Electro‑mechanical games Japan $500,000,000 $2,700,000,000 [5]
United States $72,300,000 $360,000,000 [6][4]
Video games Worldwide 4,854,000+ $874,000,000 $4,700,000,000
Arcade Arcade video games United States 54,000 $460,000,000 $2,500,000,000 [4][7]
Japan $170,000,000 $910,000,000 [5]
Worldwide 54,000+ $630,000,000 $3,400,000,000
Console Video game consoles United States 4,050,000 $225,000,000 $1,200,000,000 [4]
Worldwide 4,490,000 $238,000,000 $1,300,000,000
Dedicated consoles United States 3,950,000 $125,000,000 $670,000,000 [4]
Canada 400,000 $10,000,000 $54,000,000 [8]
Japan 40,000 $3,000,000 $16,000,000 [9][10]
Worldwide 4,390,000 $138,000,000 $740,000,000
Cartridge consoles United States 100,000 $9,000,000 $48,000,000 [4]
Video game cartridges United States 310,000 $6,000,000 $32,000,000 [7][11]
Console games United States 4,360,000 $231,000,000 $1,200,000,000
Worldwide 4,800,000 $244,000,000 $1,300,000,000
Video games United States 4,414,000 $691,000,000 $3,700,000,000
Japan 40,000+ $173,000,000 $900,000,000
Electronic games Worldwide 4,854,000+ $1,331,300,000 $7,100,000,000

Highest-grossing games[]

The following titles were the highest-grossing electronic games worldwide in 1976, including both video games (VG) and electro-mechanical games (EM games) across arcades and homes. See sections below for breakdown of revenue estimates.

Rank Title Company Worldwide revenue (est.) Genre Type Platform
Nominal Inflation
1 EVR Race Nintendo $100,000,000 $540,000,000 Medal EM Arcade
2 F-1 [n 1] Namco $83,000,000 $440,000,000 Racing
3 Speed Race (Wheels) Taito $78,000,000 $420,000,000 Racing VG
4 Sea Wolf Midway $63,000,000 $230,000,000 Shooter
5 Breakout Atari $48,000,000 $260,000,000 Block
6 Western Gun Taito $53,000,000 $280,000,000 Shooter
7 Ball Park (Tornado Baseball) Taito $40,000,000 $210,000,000 Sports VG
Wizard Bally $40,000,000 $160,000,000 Pinball EM
9 Black Jack Sega $31,000,000 $170,000,000 Medal EM
10 Heavyweight Champ Sega $30,000,000 $160,000,000 Boxing VG
11 Indy 800 Atari $30,000,000 $160,000,000 Racing
12 Harness Race Sega $25,000,000 $130,000,000 Medal EM
13 Mogura Taiji (Whac-A-Mole) TOGO $23,000,000 $120,000,000 Mole
14 APF TV Fun Model 401 APF $18,000,000 $96,000,000 Pong VG Console
APF TV Fun Model 402 APF $18,000,000 $96,000,000 Action
16 Hockey Fairchild $17,000,000 $91,000,000 Pong VG Channel F
Tennis
18 Group Skill Diga Sega $16,000,000 $86,000,000 Crane EM Arcade
EVR Basketball Nintendo $16,000,000 $86,000,000 Medal
20 Coleco Telstar Coleco $15,000,000 $80,000,000 Pong VG Console
Indy 4 Atari $15,000,000 $80,000,000 Racing VG Arcade

Highest-grossing arcade games[]

The following titles were the highest-grossing arcade games worldwide in 1976, including both video games and electro-mechanical games. See sections below for breakdown of revenue estimates.

Rank Title Company Worldwide revenue (est.) Genre Type Generation
Nominal Inflation
1 EVR Race Nintendo $100,000,000 $540,000,000 Medal Electro-mechanical
2 F-1 Namco $83,000,000 $440,000,000 Racing
3 Speed Race (Wheels) Taito $78,000,000 $420,000,000 Racing Video Discrete
4 Sea Wolf Midway $63,000,000 $230,000,000 Shooter Video 8-bit
5 Breakout Atari $48,000,000 $260,000,000 Block Video Discrete
6 Western Gun Taito $53,000,000 $280,000,000 Shooter Video 8-bit
7 Ball Park (Tornado Baseball) Taito $40,000,000 $210,000,000 Sports Video 8-bit
Wizard Bally $40,000,000 $160,000,000 Pinball Electro-mechanical
9 Black Jack Sega $31,000,000 $170,000,000 Medal Electro-mechanical
10 Heavyweight Champ Sega $30,000,000 $160,000,000 Boxing Video Discrete
11 Indy 800 Atari $30,000,000 $160,000,000 Racing
12 Harness Race Sega $25,000,000 $130,000,000 Medal Electro-mechanical
13 Mogura Taiji (Whac-A-Mole) TOGO $23,000,000 $120,000,000 Mole
14 Group Skill Diga Sega $16,000,000 $86,000,000 Crane
EVR Basketball Nintendo $16,000,000 $86,000,000 Medal
16 Indy 4 Atari $15,000,000 $80,000,000 Racing Video Discrete
17 BiPlane Fun Games $15,000,000 $80,000,000 Shooter
18 Captain Fantastic Bally $15,000,000 $80,000,000 Pinball Electro-mechanical
19 Daytona 500 (Super Road 7) Taito $15,000,000 $80,000,000 Racing Electro-mechanical
20 Demolition Derby Chicago Coin $15,000,000 $80,000,000 Racing VG Discrete

Japan[]

In Japan, the top three largest arcade companies were Sega, then Taito, and then Namco.[13] Game Machine magazine published the first annual arcade game earnings chart for 1976 in their February 1977 issue, listing both video games (VG) and electro-mechanical games (EM games). The following titles were the highest-grossing arcade games of 1976.[14][15]

Rank Title Company Points[14] Gross revenue (est.) Genre Type
Nominal[n 2] Inflation
1 EVR Race Nintendo 86 $100,000,000 $540,000,000 Medal EM
2 F-1 Namco 64 $83,000,000 $440,000,000 Racing
3 Ball Park Taito 34 $40,000,000 $210,000,000 Sports VG
4 Speed Race DX Taito 26 $34,000,000 $180,000,000 Racing
5 Black Jack Sega 24 $31,000,000 $170,000,000 Medal EM
6 Heavyweight Champ Sega 20 $30,000,000 $160,000,000 Boxing VG
7 Harness Race Sega 19 $25,000,000 $130,000,000 Medal EM
8 Mogura Taiji TOGO 18 $23,000,000 $120,000,000 Whac-A-Mole
9 Breakout Namco 14 $18,000,000 $96,000,000 Block kuzushi VG
10 Group Skill Diga Sega 12 $16,000,000 $86,000,000 Crane EM
EVR Basketball Nintendo 12 $16,000,000 $86,000,000 Medal
12 Sky Hawk Nintendo 11 $14,000,000 $75,000,000 FPS
13 Sea Wolf Taito 10 $13,000,000 $70,000,000 Shooter VG
14 Mini Laser Clay Nintendo 6 $8,000,000 $43,000,000 FPS EM
Wild Gunman Nintendo 6 $8,000,000 $43,000,000
Big & Small Universal 6 $8,000,000 $43,000,000 Medal
17 The Great Racer F-1 Esco 5 $6,500,000 $35,000,000 Medal EM
LeMans Namco 5 $6,500,000 $35,000,000 Racing VG
19 Zero Fighter Kamikaze Fuji Shogi 4 $5,200,000 $28,000,000 Shooter VG
400 Miles Taito 4 $5,200,000 $28,000,000 Racing EM
Super Star Universal 4 $5,200,000 $28,000,000 Medal
22 Speed Race Twin Taito 3 $4,000,000 $21,000,000 Racing VG
Sparkling Corner Sega 3 $4,000,000 $21,000,000
VTR Race[n 3] Fuji[n 4] 3 $4,000,000 $21,000,000 Medal EM
25 Indy 800 Namco 2 $3,000,000 $16,000,000 Racing VG
Night Driver Namco 2 $3,000,000 $16,000,000
Rock'n Bark Sega 2 $3,000,000 $16,000,000 FPS
Western Gun Taito 2 $3,000,000 $16,000,000 Shooter
Galaxy Falls[n 5] Taito 2 $3,000,000 $16,000,000 Medal EM
Uchū Capsule 6[n 6] Fuji 2 $3,000,000 $16,000,000
31 Attack Taito 1 $1,300,000 $7,000,000 FPS VG
Pong-Tron Sega 1 $1,300,000 $7,000,000 Sports
Road Race Sega 1 $1,300,000 $7,000,000 Racing
Sprint 2 Namco 1 $1,300,000 $7,000,000
Faro Sega 1 $1,300,000 $7,000,000 Medal EM
TV 21 Jatre 1 $1,300,000 $7,000,000
Arcade market 516 $650,000,000[2] $3,500,000,000
Electro‑mechanical 385 $500,000,000 $2,700,000,000 EM
Video games 131 $170,000,000 $910,000,000 VG

United States[]

In the United States, the following titles were the year's highest-grossing arcade games, including both video games (VG) and electro-mechanical games (EM games).[16][17][18]

Rank Title[16][7] Company Release Cabinet sales[17] Gross revenue (est.)[19] Genre Type
Annual Cume Gross Ref
1 Sea Wolf Midway 1976-04[20] 10,000 10,000[21] $50,000,000 [22] Shooter VG
2 Gun Fight Taito 1975-10[23] 600[24] 8,600[25] $50,000,000 [26][27]
3 Wizard Bally 1975-05[28] 10,005[29] $40,000,000 Pinball EM
4 Wheels Taito 1975-03[20] 212[16] 10,212 $40,000,000 [30][27] Racing VG
5 Indy 800 Atari 1975-04[31] 237[16] 437 $30,000,000
6 Breakout Atari 1976-04[31] 9,100[16] 10,000[32] $30,000,000 [31] Block
7 Indy 4 Atari 1975-05[31] $15,000,000 Racing
8 BiPlane Fun Games 1975-12 $15,000,000 Shooter
9 Captain Fantastic Bally 1976-06[33] $15,000,000 Pinball EM
10 Daytona 500 Taito 1976-05[34] $15,000,000 Racing
11 Demolition Derby Exidy 1975-12[35] 2,700 3,100 $15,000,000 [36][27] Racing VG
12 Trivia Ramtek 1975-11[37] 1,000 1,100 $10,000,000 [38] Quiz
13 Bombs Away Meadows 1975-01[39] $10,000,000 Shooter
Death Race Exidy 1976-04[40] $10,000,000 Racing
15 Flim-Flam Meadows 1974-03[41] 200 11,200 $10,000,000 [42] Pong
16 Bullet Mark Sega 1975-11[43] 200 210 $10,000,000 FPS
17 Avenger Electra 1975-11[40] 200 1,200 $10,000,000 [44][27] Shooter
18 Video Action URL 1975-01[45] 3,000[46] $7,000,000 Pong

Home market[]

Best-selling home systems[]

Rank System Company Sales Gross revenue Type Generation Ref
Nominal Inflation
1 Coleco Telstar Coleco 300,000 $15,000,000 $80,000,000 Console First [47]
2 TV Fun Model 401 APF 200,000 $18,000,000 $96,000,000
TV Fun Model 402 APF 200,000 $18,000,000 $96,000,000
4 Fairchild Channel F Fairchild 100,000 $9,000,000 $48,000,000 Console Second [4]
5 Electrotennis Epoch 40,000 $3,000,000 $16,000,000 Console First [47]
6 Name Of The Game Allied 16,000 $1,100,000 $5,900,000
7 Altair 8800 MITS 6,000 $2,400,000 $13,000,000 Computer 8-bit [48]
Annual sales 4,136,000 $243,000,000 $1,300,000,000 [4][49]
Consoles 4,090,000 $225,000,000 $1,100,000,000 [4][9]
Computers 46,000 $18,000,000 $100,000,000 [48][50]

Best-selling home video games[]

Rank Title Company Sales Gross revenue Platform Ref
Nominal Inflation
1 Coleco Telstar Coleco 300,000 $15,000,000 $80,000,000 Dedicated console [47]
2 APF TV Fun Model 401 APF 200,000 $18,000,000 $96,000,000
APF TV Fun Model 402 APF 200,000 $18,000,000 $96,000,000
4 Hockey Fairchild 100,000 $9,000,000 $48,000,000 Fairchild Channel F [4]
Tennis Fairchild 100,000
6 TV Tennis Electrotennis Epoch 40,000 $3,000,000 $16,000,000 Dedicated console [47]
7 Name Of The Game Allied 16,000 $1,100,000 $5,900,000

Notes[]

  1. Released in June 1976.[12]
  2. 516 points[14] equivalent to ¥191.5 billion[2] = ¥370 million ($1.3 million) per point (est.)
  3. VTR レース VTR Rēsu
  4. 富士電子工業 Fuji Denshi Kōgyō
  5. ギャラクシーフォールス Gyarakushī Fōrusu
  6. 宇宙カプセル6 Uchū Kapuseru 6

References[]

  1. The Coin-Op Amusement Industry Year-By-Year: 1978
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 情報メディア白書 [Information Media White Paper]. Dentsu Institute. 2010. p. 293. https://books.google.com/books?id=fSFNAQAAIAAJ. "産業興行収入市場規模営業収入営業収入全体ビデオゲームアーケードゲーム中短波 FM (Box office revenue, Market size, Operating revenue, Total operating revenue, Video games, Arcade games, Medium and shortwave FM) ... 1971 793 430 17 1,010 2,893 12,649 1972 770 482 1,100 3,333 14,828 1973 927 580 235 24 1,187 4,018 17,344 1974 1,171 628 46 1,258 4,442 19,171 1975 1,308 683 52 1,314 4,856 21,555 1976 1,457 790 65 1,915 5,809 25,714 1977 1,524 892 83 2,091 6,512 34,784 1978 1,605 1,006 97 2,141 7,362 37,058 1979 1,582 1,164 115 2,191 8,326 39,255 1980 1,659 1,263 131 2,714 8,687 41,008 1981 1,633 1,347 143 2,816 9,284 42,625 1982 1,695 2,780 4,500 1,391 180 2,877 9,967 44,611 1983 1,863 3,860 4,570 1,450 237 2,926 10,713 46,915"
  3. See United States section
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  5. 5.0 5.1 See Japan section
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  10. Home Electronic Games & Computers. 1979. p. 45. https://books.google.com/books?id=KnREAAAAIAAJ. "Japan
    *Home video games retail sales
    mil units
    1977   1.1
    1978   1.5
    Japan
    *Home video games sales
    mil US$
    1976   2.1
    1977   12.8
    1978   28.4"
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  24. 1975
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External links[]

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