After the industry was flooded with a market full of Pong clones during the first generation, the industry began to move away from repackaging the same game over and over again, and towards releasing multi-cartridge based systems thanks to the advent of the ROM cartridge. This new ROM technology not only provided an easier way to distribute multiple games for the same system, but also allowed for higher quality graphics and memory, ushering in the second generation of video game systems.

The first ROM-based console system, created by Jerry Lawson and released by the Fairchild Camera and Instrument Corporation.

Atari's most historic system.

An oddly designed hybrid console that came with five pre-installed games as a dedicated console and also accepted cartridge games. Its flaw was in the controllers. Instead of a joystick or directional pads, it used two keyboard controllers with ten numbered buttons that were physically built into the console's body.