Football (Mattel)

Handheld game published 47 years ago:

Football (c) 1977 Mattel Electronics.

An American football game for two players. The player has six buttons at his or her disposal, three to control the movement of the current player (forward, and to either side of the field), a status, score and kick button. The game plays in hot-seat and the player who is on offense currently plays while the computer defends. The game lasts 10 minutes, but the clock is paused between quarters.

- TECHNICAL -

Model 2024

- TRIVIA -

Football was released in June of 1977 as the second game released by Mattel (Auto Race was the first) and sold through Sears. After less than 100,000 were made, Sears (using a computer model based on initial sales figures) determined that the games would not be big sellers, and most of the production for Football and Auto Race was stopped. Within 6 months, it became obvious to Sears that their prediction was wrong, and production was started up again and reached previously unknown levels! (Reaching as many as 500,000 units a week by mid-February, 1978).

- STAFF -

Invented by: George Klose, Richard Chang