The seventh prototype device was known as the Brown Box. The name came from the wood-grain shelf paper that Bill Harrison used to make the prototype unit look a little better. The unit has seven games:
- Ping Pong:
A player on either side of the screen hits the ball back at the other player. A central vertical line on the screen represents the net. An English control is used to determine the ball's vertical rise or fall after it leaves a paddle. It is that control and the game's speed control that makes the Brown Box' ping-pong into a challenging game.
- Handball:
With a wall on the left side of the screen, players alternate hitting the ball back at the wall or try to take the ball away from the opponent.
- Hockey/Football/Soccer:
Ping pong with no net graphic but with a colorful screen overlay.
- Target Shooting:
Used with the light gun attachment to shoot at stationary or moving targets on the screen.
- Checkers:
Used with a screen overlay.
- Putting:
Used with the golf ball joystick controller & a real golf putter. The player uses the golf club to putt the ball controller sitting on the floor. The action of the putter hitting the ball results in the ball on the screen rolling across the putting green towards the hole.
- Volleyball:
Ping pong with a sideways perspective.
Sanders Associates (now BAE) was a defense contractor, and had no real idea of what to do with Ralph’s invention. Decisions about how to proceed were left in the hands of Ralph and Lou Etlinger, the company's Director of Patents. They decided to license the technology to a company willing to do the manufacturing, distribution and support of the game. Ideally, the most logical licensees were TV manufacturers. Back in that era, virtually all TV sales was done through dealer showrooms since there was no such thing as big-box electronics stores like “Best Buy” at that time. The Brown Box was shown to TV set manufacturers like GE, RCA, Warwick, Philco, Emerson, Motorola and many others. RCA was the only company that started the process to license the technology, but discussions fell apart after several months. Fortunately, one of the people involved in these discussions, Bill Enders, took a job at Magnavox and got that company interested in the concept of TV games.
Ralph Baer (L) talks about a future exhibit of his inventions at the Smithsonian Museum with ACAM President Gary Vincent (C) and ACAM Vice President Mike Stulir (R) on August 16th, 2014
Ralph, Lou Etlinger and Bill Harrison went to a Magnavox facility in Ft. Wayne, IN and demonstrated the unit to a room full of Magnavox management and engineering folks. While the reaction in the room seemed underwhelming, Magnavox executive Gerry Martin was impressed. Eighteen months of discussions and legal wrangling occurred before a preliminary agreement between Sanders Associates & Magnavox was signed in early 1971. Magnavox initially wanted to call Ralph’s invention by the name “Skill-O-Vision,” but by the time manufacturing had begun in 1972, the name “Odyssey” was used.
Ralph Baer visits ACAM in 2007
When the Odyssey was released in August of 1972, some additional games were created. Even more games were available as add-on packages. Initially, there was some confusion as the marketing materials and TV ads implied (but did not directly state) that the Odyssey would only work with Magnavox TV sets. It has long been thought that fact may have hurt overall sales. Yet, the game did sell over 350,000 units, and was responsible for launching the video game console industry.