Time to play the game - A collaborative TL

"Not another collaborative TL!", I hear you moan. But this one should be a bit different. This one should focus on the video game industry for now, but if this timeline causes enough butterflies, then we might include other industries like the consumer electronics or computer industries. Anyway, here's the POD:

August 1st, 1976 - Nolan Bushnell decides to take a multi-million dollar loan, in order to finance his proposed home console based on the "Stella" prototype, and to keep his company independent.

August 9th, 1976 - Fairchild releases its "Fairchild Video Entertainment System (VES)" for a retail price of 169,95$. The VES receives decent receptions by buyers and pundits, and thus sells reasonably well. Until the end of 1976, Fairchild has already sold 200,000 VESs.

February 1st, 1978 - The Atari Stella is finally released at a price of 249,99$. The release was originally planned for October 1977, but difficulties in development and production delayed its release. The Stella is also priced higher than the VES, because Atari has to pay back a multi-million dollar loan. While the Stella is deemed superior to the VES by the press, its sales are rather slow. By the end of 1978, Atari has only sold 650,000 units, while Fairchild has already sold well over 1 million consoles.
 
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