Mattel Electronics Auto Race

Mattel Electronics Auto Race, the first in a series of Mattel Electronics games, is believed to be the first handheld game to be entirely digital. The company pioneered the handheld computer game category with the release of Mattel Auto Race in 1976. However, due to the much more successful Mattel Electronic Football, dating back to 1977, it is sometimes overlooked. The visual representation was provided by red LED lights, while the audio consisted of simple beeps. George Klose, a product development engineer at Mattel, came up with the idea of repurposing simple computer hardware to create a portable electronic game that uses individual display segments as ""blips"" that ""move"" on the display.

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The game appeared in two different packaging variants. The older original box was significantly larger than the second smaller version. While the larger version of the handheld game was packaged in a Styrofoam tray, the smaller version was packaged in plastic bubble wrap. Some of them also featured an A/C adapter port to power the game.

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Mattel Auto Race sales exceeded expectations. At first, Mattel, best known for its dolls, model cars, and other toys in the 1970s, was skeptical about electronics-based games, especially at what was then considered an expensive retail price of US$ 24.99, which in today's money equates to approximately US$ 130. However, the success of Mattel Auto Race convinced Mattel to continue developing Mattel Football, which was often sold out and in short supply. This led to the creation of a new Mattel Electronics division in 1978, which was highly profitable for a time.