HT Games
Impossible to answer without defining "game." Categories have different firsts:
| Category | Earliest Evidence | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Dice / Chance | ~5000 BCE | Astragali (knucklebones) — Mesopotamia, Egypt |
| Board Game | ~3500 BCE | Senet (Egypt), Royal Game of Ur (Mesopotamia) |
| Card Game | 9th Century CE | Money-suited cards (Tang Dynasty, China) |
| Video Game | 1958 | Tennis for Two (oscilloscope, Brookhaven Lab) |
| Commercial Video Game | 1971/1972 | Computer Space / Pong |
| Tabletop RPG | 1974 | Dungeons & Dragons |
| CCG/TCG | 1993 | Magic: The Gathering |
Better Question: "What's the oldest known board game?" → Senet or Royal Game of Ur (~3500 BCE).