What Was the First Video Game Ever Made?

Depends on definition. Leading contenders:

• “Tennis for Two” (1958) — William Higinbotham, Brookhaven National Lab. Oscilloscope display, analog computer, 2‑player tennis. **First interactive electronic game with visual feedback.**
• “OXO” / Noughts and Crosses (1952) — Alexander S. Douglas, Cambridge EDSAC. **First graphical game on a screen** (CRT), but static tic‑tac‑toe.
• “Spacewar!” (1962) — Steve Russell et al., MIT PDP‑1. **First digital computer game designed for play**, two ships, gravity star. Spread to universities—direct ancestor of arcade games.
• “Twinkle Twinkle” (1951) — Douglas, EDSAC. Light‑pattern demo—arguably first “computer game” shown publicly.

Consensus

**Tennis for Two (1958)** is most cited as the **first true video game**—real‑time, interactive, physics‑based, display‑output. Spacewar! birthed the industry. OXO proved graphical output.