The Best Year in Gaming: 1980 vs. 1990

Welcome back to our Best Year in Gaming March Madness bracket competition! Yesterday we looked at 1976 vs. 2003 and well, we knew how that one was going to go. 2003 is stacked, and 1976 is probably the worst year for gaming in the last 50 - and that's even after you consider that video games nearly died in 1983.

Result: 2003 beats 1976

Today we have a much closer competition, looking at two turn-of-the-decade years. This time we're looking at 1980 vs. 1990.

VS.

1990 is a strong year, with the debut of the Super Famicom in Japan, but it's still a bit of a transition year for games, giving us the gap between the end of the 8-bit era and the start of the 16-bit era... though you'd be less inclined to realize that living outside Japan, where it'd take some of these consoles another year to hit and some of the best titles of 1989 were still waiting for a global release.

1980 is also pretty strong, however, with a number of all-time classic games in the mix such as Pac-Man, Missile Command, and Defender, as well as a number of great board games to consider. 1980 could be poised for an upset just on the strength of its historic achievements.

If you’re interested in voting on the outcome, head over to our Patreon and join our Discord server to vote. Otherwise, check back tomorrow for the winner and the next matchup in the Southeast Conference.

This article is part of a larger series on the best year in gaming. For more years, click this link. Have any questions or feedback? Drop us a note in the comments below or email us at contact@goonhammer.com.