Pong or PONG

[rolenta]

I just recently completed an article about early ball & paddle games for a new book that Mark J. Wolf will be publishing next year. This led to an argument between the two of us because he's fixed on calling the game PONG, while I refer to it as Pong. My reasoning is that it is not an acronym and there should be no reason for the caps. Just because it appears on the marquee as PONG, that's no reason to refer to it. After all when we refer to Missile Command, we don't call it MISSILE COMMAND.

Mark asked Nolan Bushnell and Bushnell simply responded "PONG". However I found a 1996 article that Bushnell wrote (http://www.atarimuseum.com/articles/...computers.html) and in several places he refers to the game as 'Pong'. I asked Ted Dabney, Marty Goldberg, and Curt Vendel. Curt didn't have an answer one way or another but Marty sent me loads of fliers which referred to it as PONG. Marty also explained that the name has fallen into the public domain so PONG refers to the actual game while Pong refers to the generic. My argument is that the fliers show the name in all caps because it was a new game and Atari natually wanted people to notice it. Wikipedia, which Marty told me he was involved in a discussion with concerning this subject, refers to it as "Pong (marketed as PONG)". I sent Marty a copy of the instruction manual for the 2600's Video Olympics, which refers to it as Pong.

Finally, Ted Dabney wrote to me: "As I recall, all of the PONG brochures have it spelt with all caps. I have always written it as "Pong" but I think "PONG" is probably the proper way. I personally like "Pong" and will stay with it. After all, Pong is a name not an acronym. I'm with you on this one."

So my question to all of you: which way do you prefer?

[nimbus2]

I prefer BONG!

[ugly_monster]

I say PONG, probably just because that's how I've always seen it. But I see your point about FROGGER and ASTEROIDS, anything else just looks silly.

I think PONG has earned all caps, even if it isn't an acronym.

[Aussie2B]

Having read your post, I'd go with PONG. As an editor, I go with however the creator/company tells me something should be written, whether it makes sense or not. Although there's something to be said for aesthetics. If you're going to be mentioning the game frequently, it would start to look bad if "PONG" is all over the place.

[k8track]

I believe PONG actually stands for "Paddle Oscillating Neurodynamic Game".

[WelcomeToTheNextLevel]

I'm going with the precedent set by other games. I'm going to say it's Pong, because so many other games spell out their titles in all caps and it would not look aesthetically presentable to spell them that way in normal writing. Just like Missile Command is not "MISSILE COMMAND" and Pac-Man is not "PAC-MAN"

[killersquirel]

Leonard, you are correct. It's pong. Mike has spoken!

[Tommittaja]

Leonard, you are correct. It's pong. Mike has spoken!

NO! it has to be PONG!
sometimes even with the exclamation mark ^^

[Flack]

Even if it is PONG, it would be annoying to read anything of any length with it spelled that way.

[atrionfo]

I just recently completed an article about early ball & paddle games for a new book that Mark J. Wolf will be publishing next year.

Which book is that?

I refer to it as Pong. My reasoning is that it is not an acronym and there should be no reason for the caps. Just because it appears on the marquee as PONG, that's no reason to refer to it.

I've wondered quite a few times why the game is referred to as PONG. Over the years there has never been any consistent way that it is written. Have you asked Chris Federico what he thinks about this? If he doesn't have the answer, then he will have plenty of friendly advice and he LOVES to answer grammar questions like this.

Adam

[rolenta]

Which book is that?

Before the Crash: Early Video Game History

[ugly_monster]

Didn't Pong/PONG come out as it's own console and not just a game? I seem to remember playing a Pong/PONG game that wasn't on an Atari system. If that's the case then it can't be compared to Missle Command.

[rolenta]

Which book is that?
Have you asked Chris Federico what he thinks about this? If he doesn't have the answer, then he will have plenty of friendly advice and he LOVES to answer grammar questions like this.

Thanks for suggesting Chris. Here's his response:

"Hi, Leonard -- I agree with you completely. It should be Pong. It's not an acronym, and was only spelled in all caps for advertisements, because it was more attention-grabbing that way. The fact that some people have been capitalizing every letter is due to a widely spread misunderstanding, and nothing more."

[tpugmire]

I'm honestly not sure how I feel about this. At first, I thought "Duh, it's Pong" But if the creator says otherwise, then I suppose that is it...

[rolenta]

Didn't Pong/PONG come out as it's own console and not just a game? I seem to remember playing a Pong/PONG game that wasn't on an Atari system. If that's the case then it can't be compared to Missle Command.

You're right. So let's look at Touch Me. It was an arcade game that said "touch me" on the Marquee. It was a hand-held that said "TOUCH ME". And the trademark registration says "TOUCH ME". And yet the flier for it says "Touch Me".

Am I supposed to write "touch me" when I refer to the arcade game and "TOUCH ME" when I refer to the handheld? I think I'll stick with "Touch Me" across the board.

[shakesula21]

If it is that difficult for you to research what the game is actually called, I would say that it truly doesn't matter. There may not even be a definitive way of printing it. However, even if there is, no one will be reading your book and thinking, "This guy doesn't even know what the game is called!"

[WelcomeToTheNextLevel]

Didn't Pong/PONG come out as it's own console and not just a game? I seem to remember playing a Pong/PONG game that wasn't on an Atari system. If that's the case then it can't be compared to Missle Command.

It's a "dedicated console", a console dedicated to playing a single game, in this case, Pong. So, therefore, it's a game and a console at the same time, in a way. Either way, only the first letter of each word is capitalized. The NES says "NINTENDO ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM" on its cartridge door, but we never call it that. It's NES or Nintendo Entertainment System, or colloquially, just plain "Nintendo."

[Aussie2B]

The NES says "NINTENDO ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM" on its cartridge door, but we never call it that. It's NES or Nintendo Entertainment System, or colloquially, just plain "Nintendo."

Yes, but there is a huge amount of official documentation (Nintendo Power alone) that mentions the system, writing it out as "NES" and "Nintendo Entertainment System". It's clear from those materials that the writing on the system is just an all-caps font. Obviously it's not quite as clear with Pong/PONG.

[WelcomeToTheNextLevel]

I think that it's Pong because the only thing going for PONG is that the creator refers to it as that, and even he calls it "Pong" interchangeably.