1990
In 1990, the home computer market was dominated by IBM PC compatibles. Commodore 64 and Amiga models were also popular.
The Nintendo Entertainment System still dominated the video game console market in most regions, but other 8-bit consoles were popular in other regions. The Sega Master System continued to dominate the market in Brazil.
16-bit consoles were also starting to take hold. The Sega Genesis, which was released the previous year, was popular, while Nintendo released the Super Famicom this year in Japan.
Arcade games remained popular. To regulate the market, a law in Japan was passed that required that all arcade cabinets had to be shipped with a working game so that purchasers could plug it in and immediately test whether the cabinet was functional.
Thus, companies created simple games with cheap hardware that could be included and then disposed of by the purchaser. Sega created Dottori-kun as the game that was included with its Astro City arcade candy cabinets.
The following computer-related events occurred in 1990:
- Application software released in 1990
- Arcade games released in 1990
- Arcade hardware released in 1990
- Companies and organizations closed in 1990
- Companies and organizations formed in 1990
- Computers and consoles released in 1990
- Computer and video game conventions in 1990
- Computer and video game peripherals released in 1990
- Operating systems released in 1990
- Video games released in 1990
