Commodore 64

1982

MOS Technology 6581

The MOS Technology 6581/8580 SID (Sound Interface Device) was the first dedicated sound chip to be included in a home video game system. Developed by Robert Yannes, it provided essentially a full (albeit basic) synthesizer to the Commodore 64. It had three voices, and each voice could be a sawtooth, square, triangle, or noise channel. Each channel was also dynamically assignable, being able to swap signals mid-song. This technique was used in later games to give the impression of more than just three channels. It contained analog filtering capabilities, and was characterized by its 'crunchy' sound.

Paperboy

Midway Games, 1985

Although the Commodore only had three active voices, Paperboy shows how developers could dynamically assign instruments during the song to create the illusion of more instruments.

Paperboy cover art.

Commando cover art.

Commando

Data East, 1985

An early Commodore release, Commando took the theme from the original game and updated it with the new hardware.

Myth

System 3, 1989

A later release, Myth is an example that uses filtering techniques that were learned as developers became more familiar with the new hardware capabilities.'

Myth cover art.