1990 in video gaming

Notable events of 1990 in computer and video games. See also history of computer and video games.

Events

Notable releases

• February 12 – Nintendo releases the Super Mario Bros. 3 video game in North America. It sells 17.28 million copies, making it the bestselling, standalone video game of all time.
• November 21 – Nintendo releases Super Mario World in Japan as a launch titles for the Super Famicom (released for the SNES in North America in August 1991). It introduced the Yoshi character.
• Nintendo of America introduces Squaresoft's Final Fantasy video game series to North America.
• Sega releases the R-360 arcade game, featuring the first 3D – 360° gameplay.
• Origin releases the first Wing Commander game. It pioneers cinematic storytelling in computer games and eventually led to a movie, TV show, and a series of books.
• Sid Meier's Railroad Tycoon, the first of the "Tycoon" games, is released by MicroProse.
• December 14 – Commander Keen is released as shareware. John Carmack's smooth-scrolling graphics engine helps it become the first major platformer on a PC.
• Capcom releases Mega Man III for NES, introducing the characters Rush and Proto Man, Mega Man's slide, and Capcom's character cameos.

Hardware

• Camerica releases the Game Genie adapter in Canada (In the USA, it was released by Galoob)
• NEC releases the TurboExpress handheld console
• Nintendo releases the Super Famicom 16-bit console in Japan
• SNK releases the Neo Geo Advanced Entertainment System (AES) home console
• October 6 – Sega Game Gear released in Japan, launched in North America in 1991 and Europe and Australia in 1992
• Sega's Megadrive released in Europe

Business

• Nintendo v. Color Dreams lawsuit: Nintendo sues Color Dreams over unlicensed production of Nintendo video games
• THQ Inc.: Toy Head-Quarters merges with Trinity Acquisition Corporation
• New companies: Eidos Interactive, Team17 Software Limited, Natsume Inc.