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Tabla de contenidos
A bit of context
Since I became interested in the history of video games at the age of 12, I have always been fascinated by their earliest origins.
Due to my extreme curiosity, it didn’t take me long to discover that one of the earliest and most interesting links to video games came from my own country Spain. It was an obscure and unknown console called Overkal.
Image courtesy of Pong Picture Page
An extremely difficult to find and highly coveted Spanish Magnavox Odyssey clone, from an unknown manufacturer and date, believed to date back to 1973, which would possibly make it the first console designed and manufactured outside of the United States and the second console in history. However, there was no doubt that it was the first pirate console in history.
The chances of finding information about the Overkal for many were, to say the least, quite remote.
One of the early internet clues about the Overkal comes from David Winter, a collector and enthusiast of documenting prehistoric consoles, who dedicated a page to it on his website Pong-Story in the early 2000s.
Click on the image to access the page.
David used to acquire rare Pong consoles through second-hand boards and contacting individuals. In this case, he acquired an Overkal from a user on a Spanish forum, who documented on the forum that he had obtained a Spanish clone of the Magnavox Odyssey at the Rastro de Madrid. David paid 400 euros for the Overkal, which caught the attention of all forum users.
By that time, David Winter was collaborating with Ralph Baer (inventor of the Brown Box, i.e., the prototype that became the Magnavox Odyssey), making some videos related to the Odyssey, as well as contributions to his Pong-Story page. Baer had the opportunity to see the Overkal, and this was his opinion:
Still, this is an interesting unit obviously designed by someone who knew what they were doing, a pirated design with switches replacing the jumper connections made by the normal Odyssey p.c. cards.
I like the idea. If he had put in more switches, he could have played not only all of the Odyssey games but some new ones… but that clearly wasn’t the objective, which was to make something that would sell… altogether: Clever, but a freak!
Ralph H. Baer
The first person to seriously document the Overkal was Marçal Mora Cantallops, an Industrial Engineer and computer game writer, owner of the website RetroMaquinitas.com, who published this interesting article with photographs of a console owned by a person who contacted him in 2013.
Overkal article on RetroMaquinitas.com published in 2013. Click on the image to access the page.
In RetroGamer (Spanish edition of the retro videogame devoted magazine) issue number 17, from October 2016, Marçal published a research article on the console, providing two important pieces of information, the first being that its manufacturer was Inter Electrónica, and the other that it was launched in the spring of 1974. Without a doubt, they were very revealing pieces of information, although they certainly left you wanting to know more…
Courtesy of Axel Springer Spain
On my part, I’ve been trying to gather information and a few interesting facts about the Overkal for about eight years, always with the idea of putting it together one day. But I never followed through, I’d say mostly because I lost interest in video games at the time.
However, around June 2023, one night while lying in bed unable to sleep due to the heat and mosquitoes, an idea came to me that seemed far-fetched: to document the origins of video games in Spain, including, of course, the history of the Overkal, which had been a personal goal for years.
So, I set out to investigate for months, trying to uncover everything I could about this console, to see just how far I could go.
After about nine months of contacting people, conducting interviews, digging through archives and magazines, and organizing the information I had collected over the years… This is the result of that research. Whether it’s a lot or a little, this is at least part of the story of the Overkal and some of its creators.
Origins
To talk about the Overkal, I believe it is essential to understand the history and philosophy of its manufacturer, Inter Electrónica, the story of how its founder José Gómez Serrano managed to create from humble beginnings, a giant fundamental in the development of radio and television in Spain between the 1940s and 1970s.
José Gómez Serrano Portrait made by the Diario de Barcelona in 1966
José María Gomez Serrano was born in 1898 in Jerez del Marquesado, a town located in Granada.
In 1919, he moved to Barcelona to work in the looms of Can Batiló, owned by Gamón and Gómez. It was there where he began his interest in electronics, while working in the looms he entertained himself by making galena radio receivers.
Can Batiló textile factory.Example of a galena radio from the 1910s
He associated himself with Mr. Rigau (of Argentine origin), founding in 1929 the small company manufacturing and repairing radio receivers Rigom (acronym of Rigau and Gómez) – National Manufacturing of Radio Sets, Amplifiers, and Accessories, with headquarters at 94 Muntaner Street. Rigau disappeared during the Spanish Civil War. According to José María, he was never executed because he was practically the only one in Barcelona who manufactured and repaired radio sets for unions and committees.
RIGOM’s ads appeared in La Vanguardia de Barcelona between 1934 and 1937.
Immediately after the Civil War in 1940, Gómez Serrano, along with several partners, founded Iberia Radio, S.A., located at 112-118 Pujadas Street in Pueblo Nuevo (Barcelona). Later, he made his brother Baldomero Gómez Serrano a partner in the company, enrolling him in an industrial school to receive training in electronics. Iberia Radio achieved success by marketing its first radio models.
Around 1946, due to conflicts of interest with his brother Baldomero, he decided to leave Iberia. Baldomero Gómez Serrano took over as director and led Iberia Radio for almost 30 years, until the company’s controversial disappearance in 1975 due to the crisis facing the company, mostly due to numerous labor disputes.
Remains of the Iberia Radio factory after the fire (1971)
A story that could be an article in itself. It all began with the destruction of the factory due to a suspicious fire in November 1971, which tragically claimed the lives of three firefighters. Surprisingly, this was the ninth fire since 1962. The factory’s closure and the non-payment of workers’ wages led to a severe labor crisis at Iberia, which was further worsened when it was revealed that, behind the scenes, Iberia had been constructing a new factory in Cervera (Lleida), intending to hire local workers at lower wages.
Baldomero Gómez Serrano was accused of various crimes, including fraudulent management, and was imprisoned in 1976.
The History of Inter Electrónica
After leaving Iberia Radio, José Gómez Serrano moved to the United States for a while to work for Philco, with whom he had already established relations while he was director of Iberia. He gained new knowledge and insights into the future of radio, as well as being aware of a revolutionary new technology that would arrive in Spain in the coming years, television.
Some time later, he returned to Barcelona and, along with several partners, founded the company Internacional Radio Televisión, S.A. on December 15, 1948. The company’s headquarters were located at 227 Rosellón Street in Barcelona, with the factory situated at 312 Travesera de las Corts. A portion of the company’s initial workforce consisted of neighbors from his hometown, Jerez de Marquesado, who had moved to Barcelona. José María made sure that his fellow townspeople received training in electronics.
Inter Electrónica logo (1948 – 1963)
During the 1950s, the company gained enormous presence in the Spanish market by introducing numerous models of radio receivers.
Due to a lack of expertise in manufacturing their own television receiver model, José Gómez Serrano traveled to Italy to the offices of Magnadyne Radio. He gave them permission to use their patents. Thus, Inter introduced its first television model in 1958, the TV-214, based on a Magnadyne television.
As a result, Inter Electrónica had a relationship with the Italian radio and television manufacturer Magnadyne. This provided the technological basis for Inter’s development, based on Italian patents for its television receivers.
Thanks to the growing demand for television, continuous innovation, the introduction of new products, and an extensive distribution network, Inter gained significant presence across Spain during the 1960s and experienced rapid, monumental growth. Inter became one of the most important national brand in consumer electronics field in Spain. For many Spanish households in the 1960s, their first television was an Inter.
Various 1960s Inter TV advertisement from magazines and newspapers
To ensure technical service coverage in Spain’s major cities, the subsidiary Inter Servicio, S.A. was established in 1963, with authorized workshops spread across the country. Gómez Serrano himself would often visit these workshops during his road trips throughout Spain.
Inter dismantled the old factory and built a massive factory and office complex at the same location on Travesera de las Corts. The new facility was inaugurated on June 27, 1966, with the attendance of the then-Minister of Industry, Gregorio López Bravo.
July 4, 1966 (“Pueblo” newspaper) Courtesy of Biblioteca de Prensa Histórica (Ministerio de Cultura y Deporte)
The management of Inter Electrónica’s Divisions was in the hands of José Gómez Serrano’s two sons. Pascual Gómez Aparicio held the position of General Director of the company and the factory, while Rafael was the Commercial and Distribution Director.
Inter Electrónica logo (1965 – 1978)Inter Electrónica factory, located at Travessera de las Corts Street (circa 1973)Aerial photograph of the Inter factory. Barcelona orthophoto from 1974.
Inter consisted of three companies:
INTER ELECTRÓNICA, S.A. (factory, headquartered at 312 Travessera de las Corts, corner of Ecuador Street. Managed by Pascual Gómez Aparicio)
INTERNACIONAL RADIO TELEVISIÓN, S.A. (commercial firm and distribution, headquartered at 227 Rosellón Street. Managed by Rafael Gómez Aparicio)
INTER SERVICIO, S.A. (technical service workshops, headquartered at 21-25 Capitán Arenas Street. Managed by Antonio Ibáñez Fernández, a close friend of Gómez Aparicio family)
Television assembly line at the Inter factory.
José Gómez Serrano held the title of Honorary President of the company. Due to his long life dedicated to the electronics industry, he was awarded the Silver Medal for Labor Merit (“Medalla de Plata al Mérito en el Trabajo”) in July 1966.
“Diario de Barcelona” newspaper (July 17, 1966) Courtesy of Historical Archive of the City of Barcelona
The Origin of the Overkal
Felipe Mor Pérez (1935–2023) was a radio and television technician who served as head of research and development for Inter Electrónica during the 1960s and 1970s. Felipe held several industrial designs and patents in his name, focused on components and elements applicable to television devices. These can be accessed through the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office. His designs were instrumental to Inter Electrónica’s radio and television products.
As a result of his professional relationship with Pascual Gómez Aparicio, he authored several books on schematics and technical service for Ediciones Técnicas Rede.
The publishing house, owned by Pascual Gómez Aparicio, was best known for the long-running publication Revista Española de Electrónica (“Spanish Electronics Magazine”). This monthly magazine, first published in 1958, became a key reference in Spain’s electronics press.
Our story begins on September 22, 1972, when Felipe Mor registered the trademark “Odyssey” as an electronic toy at the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office.
Developed by Ralph Baer, Bill Harrison, and their team at Sanders Associates during the 1960s, an agreement was reached with Magnavox in 1971 to commercialize the idea. The Odyssey was introduced in the United States in September 1972 through authorized brand stores.
1972 Magnavox Odyssey TV advertisementPromotional brochure for the launch of the Magnavox Odyssey in September 1972
This early registration suggests that Felipe Mor, or someone at Inter Electrónica, had a close contact with the Odyssey system from its very inception. Considering the registration date coincides with the system’s launch month, it is possible they encountered the console during one of the public demonstrations held between April and May 1972, or at the Consumer Electronics Show in Chicago in June of that year or maybe they had contacts at Magnavox. However, in the absence of references or evidence, the origins of this first contact remain unknown.
Advertising for the Magnavox Odyssey featured in newspapers during the fall of 1972Mecánica Popular (Spanish edition of Popular Mechanics) – December 1972
In the absence of documentation or testimonies, it cannot be confirmed whether Inter Electrónica and Magnavox were negotiating a potential licensing agreement or if the trademark was registered specifically to hinder possible competition, as previously suggested.
What is undeniable is that the registration serves as clear and definitive evidence that Inter Electrónica had begun exploring the idea of a video game console as early as September 1972. Considering this fact, Inter Electrónica, along with Atari, were the first two companies to draw inspiration from the Magnavox Odyssey.
Magnavox Odyssey in the 1973 Magnavox catalogMention of the Magnavox Odyssey in the article “Juguetes del año” (Toys of the Year). Possibly the earliest mention of a video game in print media in Spain (“Pueblo” Newspaper, January 6, 1973) Courtesy of the Historical Press Library (Ministry of Culture and Sports)
At some point between the end of 1972 and the first half of 1973, it is believed that Inter Electrónica made the decision to manufacture its own console based on the Odyssey. The job of design of the system was commissioned to Santiago Arcocha Noguera, a close friend of Gómez Aparicio family.
Santiago Arcocha Noguera Photo courtesy of his son
Santiago Arcocha Noguera was born in Barcelona in 1924. His family was involved in the hospitality sector in the city. In the 1940s, while he was a student, he developed an interest in radio and electronics, a hobby he shared with Rafael Gómez Aparicio, a classmate who became a close friend of his and his family for many years.
He began by helping his mother with the family apartment business in Barcelona. Contrary to what one might expect, his main profession was not in electronics but in the paramedical field; he was an ambulance driver. Later in life, he worked as a nurse.
According to his son, Santiago was a very restless and curious person who liked to stay up-to-date with the latest technological advancements and new business opportunities.
Due to his family connections and interest in new ventures, he regularly traveled to America, especially Argentina, which was his wife’s home country.
It was likely between late 1972 and the first half of 1973 that Inter Electrónica tasked Santiago Arcocha Noguera with designing an improved videogame console based on the Magnavox Odyssey.
It is clear that Santiago Arcocha was intrigued by this new form of entertainment as a business opportunity and wanted to bring it to Spain.
In any case, they managed to acquire a Magnavox Odyssey. One might think that they had huge difficulties considering that connecting an American console to a European television, especially in 1973, would have been nearly impossible before the advent of signal converters.
However, the Magnavox Odyssey has adjusting spots for the vertical and horizontal synchronization of the image, so Santiago had no difficulty tuning it to work with an European television. The Odyssey’s antenna cable (noted for its weird connector that went to a box for connecting to a TV via 300 ohm connector) could be easily adapted, as it was a coaxial cable, or he could have dispensed with it and directly soldered an antenna cable to the board.
Magnavox Odyssey circuitry The first daughter-board on the bottom row, at the far left, is for vertical image synchronization, and the fourth board from the left (right in the middle and below the RF modulator) is for horizontal image synchronization. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
Santiago studied the Odyssey technology and made small modifications to the console. These changes included implementing selectable games via “a programming unit” (i.e., through switches) and having the controllers permanently connected to the console. However, the connector for the rifle was removed (possibly because they did not acquire the Odyssey Shooting Gallery), as well as the circuit board for ball collision with a net, since there was no handball game.
This design, titled “Dispositivo electrónico para la modulación y gobierno del haz en un tubo de rayos catódicos” (Electronic Device for Modulating and Controlling the Beam in a Cathode Ray Tube) (ES4144191A), was patented under the name of Santiago Arcocha Noguera on May 7, 1973, in Madrid.
Patent for “Electronic Device for Modulation and Control of the Beam in a Cathode Ray Tube” (May 7, 1973). Click here to view the full document. Courtesy of the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office.
The upcoming console was named “Overkal,” as a tribute to a radio receiver model introduced by Inter in 1951.
Overkal advertisement in the 1951-52 Inter Catalog.
The name “Overkal” was registered as a trademark by Inter on July 31, 1973, under the number ES0722234, categorized as an “electronic toy.”
As an interesting side note, on February 12, 1974, electronic engineer Mario Verneda Galobart filed a patent for the Magnavox Odyssey (literally) under the name “Juego electrónico para aparatos de televisión” (Electronic Game for Television Sets) (ES200406U).
However, Santiago Arcocha’s patent agent filed a claim with the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office on November 15, 1975, as it was a very similar design. The claim was accepted, rendering Mario Galobart’s patent invalid. It’s ironic to think that the “improved” copy of a design would take precedence over the original console design.
Documents in which A.L. Herrán de las Pozas claimed Mario Verneda’s patent in favor of Santiago Arcocha’s patent. Courtesy of the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office.
Development and Demonstration of the Overkal
The intriguing part of this situation is how and why a reputable company in Spain like Inter Electrónica decided to greenlight and manufacture this device, knowing it was a literal copy of a Magnavox product. This was an unlicensed copy, something that later companies like Zanussi or Epoch had to pay for to produce their own consoles. It’s possible that the financial aspect didn’t concern them, and they chose to take the risk. These are decisions we may never fully understand.
In any case, the Overkal was developed during the second half of 1973 by Santiago Arcocha Noguera himself, with likely involvement from Felipe Mor Pérez and the Inter Electrónica Factory Laboratory.
Santiago Arcocha registered the industrial designs for the console’s casing and controls in his name on December 4, 1973 (I0078920 and I0078921, respectively). This registration suggests that the console was likely completed by late November or early December 1973.
Registry of the industrial models of the Overkal in the (BOPI) Official Bulletin of Industrial Property on January 12, 1974 (Volume 3 – page 72), indicating registration in the name of Santiago Arcocha Noguera on December 4, 1973. Courtesy of the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office.
The instruction manual must have been prepared during December 1973. The booklet was submitted on December 27 of that year to the Barcelona Legal Deposit Office with the number B-54487-73, in the name of Inter Electrónica.
Cover of the instruction manual for the “Overkal” (1973). Click here to view it in full.Certificate of legal deposit requested by Marçal Mora for the research conducted for the article on the history of the Overkal for Retro Gamer in October 2016. Courtesy of Marçal Mora (RetroMaquinitas.com)
With everything nearly ready, one would expect that the production of the Overkal would begin in January 1974. However, during that month, Inter Electrónica experienced numerous disputes and confrontations with factory staff due to salary disagreements.
The workers had been promised a raise to the minimum wage due to the increased cost of living caused by the high inflation of the time. This wage had remained unchanged since the last Collective Agreement, dated 1971.
However, the factory management did not update the salaries as promised a few months earlier. Most of the staff went on strike, bringing factory operations to a halt. Not long after, labor confrontations escalated, leading to the arrest of several employees by the police.
In addition to damage to factory equipment, estimated at 30,000 pesetas, Inter misrepresented the situation, claiming in the press that a group of employees had thrown objects out of the windows onto the street, including television parts. On January 13, employment and wages for the 310 out of 346 employees were suspended for one week.
Diario de Barcelona (January 13, 1974)
Despite attempts at reconciliation, labor disputes continued to persist. Eventually, the 310 affected employees returned to work on January 22, but production lines remained stalled, and the company threatened to impose additional penalties.
Diario de Barcelona (January 22, 1974)Diario de Barcelona (January 23, 1974)
Factory activity resumed on February 1, albeit gradually and amid some controversy. There is no doubt that the Overkal was seriously affected by this dispute, causing delays in its production and subsequent release to February, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves..
“Agencia Popular Informativa – API” Bulletin (January 31, 1974) Documents courtesy of the Historical Archive of the City of Barcelona
At Inter Electrónica, it was customary to demonstrate new brand products to employees shortly before their commercial release to gather initial impressions. The Overkal was no exception in this regard, being shown to Inter employees, including a witness I interviewed who was a workshop chief from Córdoba and inspector for the Western Andalusia region (at Inter Servicio, workshop inspectors were assigned to specific areas across Spain).
In February 1974, not much time after the incident at the factory, he traveled to Barcelona with several workshop chiefs to the SIT (Servicio De Información Técnica), which was an Inter-owned facility located on Travesera de las Corts, near the factory.
The building housed an academy for training and educating inspectors and workshop chiefs from all Inter’s technical service points in Spain, enabling them to stay informed and involved in potential future repairs of new products introduced by Inter, meaning to acquire a deeper technical knowledge of the devices. On this occasion, they were there to receive training on the TVC-366 television model.
Inter TVC-366 (1974)
Based on the British Thorn-Ferguson 3500 chassis and adapted for the Spanish market for PAL signals, this receiver marked Inter Electrónica’s entry into the biggest technological sensation of the time: color television.
TVE had just begun producing color programs in 1974, but it wasn’t until the mid to late 1970s that most national TV manufacturers began to introduce and heavily promote color TV models.
In its early years, from 1974-1975, there were only about 50,000 color receivers in Spain, with most being imported from other European countries or produced using existing foreign chassis or technology, as was the case with Telefunken Ibérica, Lavis or Inter. The TVC-366 is likely one of the first color television receivers built in Spain.
During one of their visits to the academy, they witnessed a demonstration of a 14-inch black-and-white television and a strange white device “shaped like a hat” with controllers, displaying two players and a ball moving from one end of the screen to the other. Additionally, there were a series of transparencies that could be attached to the screen. They had never seen anything like it before.
This sparked extreme curiosity, and they asked what all this was about. The response from the academy manager was:
This is something we have ‘in trial.’ We’re not sure if it’s going to be commercialized, but we believe so. At the moment, there are very few units that will be distributed in Barcelona.
But when the time comes, don’t worry, we’ll call you for a training course that I have prepared, and I think you’ll find it very interesting.
However, this was the first and last contact this witness had with the Overkal. They never heard about the device again, nor was the promised training course ever held. To my surprise, fifty years later, this witness still vividly remembered that one single encounter.
It is clear from this that Inter did not take the console seriously or provide any support from the beginning, as they did not even train their own technical staff about the console.
This witness provided an interesting detail related to the previous statement: Inter usually distributed their new products first to their regular establishments and dealers in Barcelona to gather impressions and data for production and sales forecasts for the rest of Spain.
It is assumed that the Overkal was intended to be marketed soon after, placing its launch date not much later than that meeting, i.e., in February, or at the latest, March 1974.
Another important detail, and one of the biggest mysteries surrounding the Overkal today, is the absence of any mention of the manufacturer on the box, instructions, warranty brochure, or even on the console itself. Despite all the time I have spent trying to speak with former Inter employees and researching on my own, I have never discovered the reason why. However, I suspect several possible causes, listed from most to least likely:
It could have been a measure to avoid potential legal repercussions with Magnavox/Sanders Associates. The base of the Odyssey casing has Sanders Associates’ original patent numbers etched into it, so they might have known they were essentially “pirating” the design and removing any mention of Inter was a good idea.
They might not have wanted Inter’s name associated with the somewhat frivolous idea of selling a “toy” for television play.
Or it could be a combination of some or all of these reasons, or none. We may never know the exact reason.
What is clear is that the absence of any mention of the manufacturer was not a coincidence but a deliberate decision, to the extent that the company’s technical support division (Inter Servicio, S.A.) is mentioned with the initials I.S.S.A in the console’s warranty brochure, as shown below.
Release of the Overkal
Strange “prototype” box of the Overkal without the illustrations of the overlays. Courtesy of Jesús Alboran70
The Overkal was commercially launched initially in Barcelona in February 1974, at a price believed to be around 9,000 pesetas.
The earliest known acquisition date comes from a unit purchased at El Corte Inglés (Spanish department stores) in July 1974 from the wedding list of Tatiana Delgado’s parents, a video game programmer. El Corte Inglés was a regular distributor of Inter Electrónica products at that time.
Photos courtesy of Tatiana Delgado
Contacting her, she kindly mentioned that her parents were residents in Madrid at that time, so it is very likely that the distribution of the Overkal outside of Barcelona occurred not much later, simply as an initial punctual distribution.
However, the first mention of the Overkal in the written press was not found until November 24, 1974, in a Christmas offer advertisement from Almacenes Capitol (department store from Barcelona) published in La Vanguardia newspaper. The console appears again in another Almacenes Capitol advertisement on December 1, 1974.
I consulted all issues from 1973 to 1974 of the publication “Revista Española de Electrónica,” directed by Pascual Gómez Aparicio (director of the Inter factory as mentioned earlier), and there are no mentions of the Overkal.
And what I have been able to ascertain, it is also absent in gift and toy magazines and catalogs, as well as in fairs and conventions in the sector in Spain between 1974, 75, and 76.
However, at the beginning of 2024, I managed to locate a mention of the Overkal in El Corte Inglés’ toy catalog from 1975. Contrary to what one might expect, the catalog is for Christmas 1974, meaning the year indicated refers to the year of the Three Kings (Epiphany). The list of stores in Spain does not include El Corte Inglés in Vigo, which was inaugurated in September 1975. Additionally, the number of “Depósito Legal” is dated 1974. To the best of our knowledge, the Overkal does not appear in the 1976 toy catalog, or as i should i say, Christmas 1975 catalog.
“Overkal” in the El Corte Inglés “Juguetes’ 75” Toy Catalog(Christmas 1974) Courtesy of Raffotek
Promodisa (Promodis, S.A.)
“Overkal : The Third Channel On Your TV” (In Spain we only had 2 TV Channels until the 80s!!)“For the first time, also available in Spain!” “Promodisa offers Overkal for entertainment and fun for the whole family”Promodisa’s promotional brochure for “Overkal” (1975) Courtesy of Adrián Morcillo.
In 2015, user Adrián Morcillo tweeted about acquiring a promotional brochure for the Overkal, in which it was mentioned that it was sold by mail by the company Promodisa, at the full price of 9400 pesetas (with a 10% discount, meaning the full price was 10450 pesetas), or at the price of 2490 pesetas with 8 monthly payments of 995 pesetas, both cases adding 150 pesetas for shipping costs.
Marçal Mora, in his research for Retro Gamer, reported that Promodisa was a company dedicated to selling products by mail. It was founded on November 19, 1973, as a subsidiary of the Barcelona-based publishing house Seix Barral. Promodisa was one of the distributors of the Overkal.
Mail-order book collection (1974)News of Promodisa’s Commencement of Activities (El Adelantado Newspaper, January 22, 1975) Courtesy of the Biblioteca de Prensa Histórica (Ministerio de Cultura y Deporte)
From what I was able to gather from speaking with Santiago Arcocha’s son (inventor of the Overkal), he mentioned that his family had a relationship with Verón Editores , and apparently also with Editorial Juventud, as he mentioned receiving several Tintin comics as a gift when he was a child due to the friendship with the editorial director (The Adventures of Tintin were published in Spain by Juventud), but they have no relationship (at least as far as we know) with the Seix Barral publishing house, so the idea that the Overkal was sold by Promodisa could have come from Inter, who knows.
The date and legal deposit number found on this brochure (bottom-right corner of the last page) suggest that the Overkal was first sold by Promodisa around mid-1975, pending a request to the National Library of Catalonia for the date of presentation of the legal deposit number. It’s interesting how this detail was not considered before.
The existence of other brochure with an order form, unpublished until the publication of this article, shows that Promodisa was selling the Overkal in late 1975 and early 1976, judging also by the legal deposit numbers (the brochure’s is from late 1975 and the order form is from early 1976).
Promodisa’s promotional brochure for “Overkal” (1975). Courtesy of Adrián Morcillo.Envelope and order note from Promodisa to order the Overkal (1976). Courtesy of Adrián Morcillo
Considering all the aforementioned, it is evident that the Overkal had a relatively long commercial life for an “experiment,” but considering certain aspects, it is not too difficult to understand how this happened…
The “Success” of the Overkal
In 2017, I found an Overkal for sale on Wallapop (Spanish selling and buying second-hand app). I usually ask sellers of these consoles when and where they acquired them. Luckily, the seller was the original owner of the console and kindly shared his memory with me:
The console was purchased on the eve of Reyes Magos Day in 1977 at midnight, as stores used to close very late on that date. I went to dinner with my parents, and as we left a bar, we saw the “toy” in the shop window of an appliance store. Both my father and I liked it, so he bought it as a gift for Reyes. It wasn’t planned to buy it; my father simply took a liking to it and purchased it on the spot.
Estratur was a rather large neighborhood appliance store where they sold refrigerators, stoves, televisions, etc. I don’t know why the console was in the shop window, as it was an item that frankly didn’t fit there.
It was purchased at Estratur on Paseo de Fabra i Puig. They also had another smaller store on Rubén Darío Street; both were in the Sant Andreu neighborhood.
Sant Andreu was not a neighborhood of high economic power; on the contrary, it was a working-class neighborhood. Factories like Pegaso (next to Estratur), La Maquinista, Fabra i Coats were located in this neighborhood.
I don’t know where they sold it, as we were unaware of the existence of this device; we discovered it by chance.
He also shared this invoice with me, dated January 6, 1977, at a price of 6000 pesetas, approximately a third less than the original sale price in 1974.
He also sent me this warranty postcard, never seen before.
On the other hand, the consoles that I have found for sale in second-hand boards almost always showed discounts. Such is the case with this Overkal from Marçal Mora, with various El Corte Inglés stickers on the box, the result of going through several markdowns. As well as another console with the price handwritten, indicating it was a clearance.
Photos courtesy of Marçal Mora (RetroMaquinitas.com)
If that weren’t enough, there were stores that began discounting the console just a year after its launch, likely trying to get rid of their stock.
For example, an advertisement for sales in the appliance store chain VER appeared in the Madrid newspaper “Pueblo” on July 7 and 14, 1975, where the Overkal was offered for just 6,950 pesetas. This is notable considering that around 8 months earlier, it was being sold for 9,000 pesetas at Almacenes Capitol in Barcelona. There’s no doubt that the console wasn’t selling well.
Overkal in a discount advertisement from Electrodomésticos VER (Diario “Pueblo”, July 14, 1975) Courtesy of Biblioteca de Prensa Histórica (Ministerio de Cultura y Deporte)
Considering all this, it is clear that Overkal sales were slow and sporadic. Units collected dust on shelves, and most were sold through clearance and discounts, and very slowly.
But how is it possible that the Overkal, a supposedly “revolutionary” machine for its time and even sold at El Corte Inglés (the largest and most known department store in Spain), could be so rare and unknown?
The answer lies in the fact that for a “toy” or family entertainment, it was extremely expensive. The minimum wage in Spain in 1974 was about a third of the console’s price, roughly 3,000 pesetas.
Despite being relatively widely distributed through El Corte Inglés and other major department stores and appliance shops, the console received no significant promotion or presence in catalogs, magazines, electronics fairs, and toy conventions. This is unusual, especially considering that Inter Electrónica was, as mentioned earlier, a huge consumer electronics company.
Moreover, the concept of connecting devices to a television or using the TV for gaming was quite novel at the time. Many were hesitant to embrace the idea, despite the fact that by 1975, 79% of Spanish households had a television receiver.
Based on what has been discussed, it is evident that Inter Electrónica had little interest in the Overkal. Whether due to legal, commercial, or other reasons, we can only speculate. The exact details of what happened 50 years ago will likely remain unknown.
It seems surprising, but despite not achieving much success in Spain, Overkal was a console that was highly influential in the development of the first successful console in Argentina, or at least indirectly.
Between late 1974 and early 1975, technician Mario Luis Díaz, owner of Laboratorio Electrónico Hiroshima, a local business he opened in 1966 in the La Plata neighborhood of Buenos Aires, dedicated to the sale and repair of appliances, radios, and TVs, began designing the Videojuel console, also a Magnavox Odyssey clone.
Cover of the instruction manual for the “Videojuel” (1975). Click here to view it full.Mario Luis Díaz alongside his creation, the Videojuel. Photograph courtesy of Martín Arrúa.
He worked on it in his shop from 8:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m., and it was by no means an easy task. It’s worth considering not only the technology available in Argentina at the time and the lack of resources Díaz had, but also all the complications he faced.
He encountered problems with some unions, which, for various reasons, hindered the development of the Videojuel. There were also other anecdotal incidents, like the time the police arrested him for having a rifle in his hands. However, it wasn’t a real rifle; it was a plastic one that Mario had designed for one of the console’s games. Luckily, a friend of his who was a policeman managed to get him out of jail. It’s worth noting that Argentina in 1975 was in a turbulent socio-political situation.
Mario’s idea with the console wasn’t just to create a device for children to entertain themselves with, but one with which they could have fun while learning. This intention is reflected in the introductory text of the instruction manual.
Additionally, this console took inspiration from some elements of the Overkal, to the point where some texts and illustrations in the Videojuel instructions are taken almost verbatim from the Overkal manual. The transparent overlay for the “Fútbol” game, which was an exclusive game designed for the Overkal not found in the Odyssey, was also copied by the Videojuel.
Controller Modules (Overkal)Controller Modules (Videojuel)Installation of the OverkalInstallation of the Videojuel“Fútbol” overlay of the Overkal. Courtesy of Marçal Mora (RetroMaquinitas.com)“Fútbol” overlay of the Videojuel. Courtesy of Compuclasico.com
This suggests that Mario Luis Díaz, in addition to the Odyssey, had contact with the Overkal. However, when I had the opportunity to interview him, he told me he was not familiar with that console. Considering that almost 50 years have passed, it’s understandable that he may not remember. Although it’s very clear that they must have also been aware of the Overkal based on the evidence I’ve just presented.
The console’s casing, instruction manual, letters, and overlays were designed in a photographic studio that Mario himself owned.
The Videojuel was showcased at an exhibition periodically held at the Albert Thomas industrial school in the La Plata neighborhood to showcase new technological products. It had a display with 14 consoles for playing. The Videojuel captured the interest and attention of both children and adults. Those present were amazed by the rifle and the color provided by the overlays.
Videojuel display at the Albert Thomas Industrial School
This caused huge crowds to visit his shop shortly afterward, requiring him to set up two televisions with two consoles on a counter so that four people could play.
At the insistence of his friends, he decided to register the Videojuel with the Argentine Model and Design Registry on October 21, 1975.
However, since one of the agents at the Registry was an employee of the Argentine radio and television firm Panoramic, he took notice of its design. Influenced by the Videojuel, they designed a console with a briefcase-shaped casing in which the controllers and power transformer were stored, but which did not have overlays or accessories. It had a game selector using buttons, which is similar to the Overkal. This design (which was also a Magnavox Odyssey clone) called “Dispositivo de entretenimiento y destreza conectable a receptores de televisión” (Entertainment and Skill Device Connectable to Television Receivers) had been filed on August 6, 1976.
Telematch de Panoramic’s registry at the National Institute of Industrial Property of Argentina
Shortly after, Telematch de Panoramic console was being marketed, becoming a resounding success in Argentina, selling several thousand units.
Advertisement for Telematch de Panoramic in the children’s magazine “Anteojito,” December 1976
Due to the overwhelming competition, distributor network, and the advantage of a company the size of Panoramic, combined with Mario Díaz’s economic problems, he was forced to stop commercializing his console. Only 150 units of the Videojuel were produced.
Frustrated by this, he decided to take Panoramic to court. In Mario’s words, he sought recognition for being the first in Argentina to create a video game console, and therefore to prioritize its registration and invalidate the one presented by Panoramic. However, since it was an invention model, those at Panoramic argued that since it wasn’t a patent, their registration didn’t constitute any infringement. Mario didn’t want any financial compensation, but he wanted justice for the work he had done. However, he ended up withdrawing the lawsuit due to the death of his lawyer.
Mario Luis Díaz went to live in Brazil for a while. He tried to convince the executives of Sharp’s Brazilian subsidiary to commercialize his invention; however, he was unsuccessful.
Meanwhile in Spain…
The first appearance of video games in Spain happened in the amusement field, through the introduction of Sega, S.A.’s Ping-Pong, a Pong clone from Atari introduced in the spring of 1973. It was based on the Alca Ping-Pong. Sega, S.A. was founded in Spain in March 1968 with capital of Sega Enterprises.
Segasa / Sega, S.A. Logo (1968 – 1974)
Soon after, as a result of the frenzy for this game, various Spanish arcade manufacturers jumped on the bandwagon, such as Centromatic, Euromatic, Petaco, and Famaresa, manufacturing and even importing Pong machines. The price of these types of machines was considerably higher in Spain than regular electromechanical and pinball game machines, due to the use of PCB electronic boards (usually imported, which were aggravated by import duties) and black-and-white televisions.
Images courtesy of Recreativas.org
Known at that time as “ping-pong,” it caused a sensation due to its novelty, simplicity of gameplay, and its placement in public and highly frequented places such as bars and shops (something that in Spain is never lacking). It marked the first encounter with video games for many people. However, “ping-pong” was only a fad that lasted until 1975 when most manufacturers in the amusement business abandoned the production of this type of machines.
Segasa (which was renamed to Sonic in 1976 to avoid legal issues with Sega) was practically the only company that bet on the so-called “video machines” sector, manufacturing licensed machines from Atari, Midway, Williams, and Taito.
Segasa catalog from 1974-75. Courtesy of Recreativas.org
The “video machines” experienced a rebirth in 1979 with the arrival of Space Invaders and Galaxian, with many Spanish companies in the arcade sector joining the video machine trend. Unlike before, this wasn’t just a passing trend but something that was going to stay. This undoubtedly marked the beginning of the so-called “golden age” of arcades, which took place between the late 1970s and the mid-1980s.
IRECSA’s Space Invaders, licensed from Midway Image courtesy of Recreativas.org
Introduction of Video Game Consoles in Spain
The next attempt in Spain to manufacture a video game console came from the Valencian company Togisa, S.A., which released the Teletenis Multijuegos in 1976.
Unfortunately, due to ignorance and lack of awareness, this console is often classified as a “second-rate” console, specifically a late 1970s Pong-type console. However, it is actually a device predating this era and quite interesting. The system used TTL chip technology and employed cartridges, with a catalog of 8 games.
Images courtesy of Retro Ordenadores Orty
Its most notable feature is that the console had a telescopic antenna, allowing it to be tuned into a television from the console’s tuning control, making it a wireless console. Alongside the Japanese Epoch Electrotennis, it was one of the few consoles to feature this technology, although the Epoch device required an external device for tuning, whereas the Teletenis Multijuegos had it built-in.
The device was designed by engineer Luis Beut Torres, based on the design of the German Interton Video 2000 and the Philips Video Spiel consoles. Not many units were manufactured.
Teletenis Multijuegos patent. Courtesy of the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office.
Home gaming in Spain achieved its first significant success in 1977 with the introduction and commercialization of consoles based on the AY-3-8500 chip from General Instruments (Pong In A Chip), which integrated variants of the “Pong” game.
Due to the simplicity and low construction cost enabled by the use of this chip, many entrepreneurs began manufacturing their own video game consoles. This created intense competition, leading to price wars and a diversity of options, making these devices affordable and widely distributed, entering many households from Spain.
Images courtesy of David Jorge, Alfonso Sanz Utrilla, and Raffotek.
Spanish national companies such as Togisa, Alreac, Master Electronics, Iedosa, and Bianchi, some of which had prior backgrounds in electronics or the toy industry, joined the “fad” that would last for several years. Foreign companies, like the German Interton, also ventured into the Spanish console market. Additionally, there was a growing influx of imported consoles from the East, from brands like Conic, Soundic, Temco, Regina, and others.
Image courtesy of Alfonso Sanz de Utrilla
However, the future of the video game sector, sooner or later, would be consoles based on microprocessor with interchangeable ROM cartridges. The first console to use cartridges in history was the Fairchild Channel F, introduced in the US by Fairchild Semiconductor in November 1976.
In Europe, it was marketed by the electronic company Saba as Videoplay in 1977.
To our knowledge, it never had an official release in Spain, although there is mention of it in this article from Mercatronic in December 1977, dedicated to video games.
Mercatronic – December 1977. Courtesy of David Hofmann
Between 1978 and 1982, consoles with cartridges based on the Audiosonic 1292 Advanced Programmable Video System were introduced. In Spain, systems such as the Interton VC 4000, Video Play and Tele Computer by Aureac, the TRQ H-21, and the Palson Tele Computer appeared.
Images courtesy of Alfonso Sanz de Utrilla
But the big revolution in all of this, as is well known, was created by Atari with its legendary Video Computer System or VCS (later renamed Atari 2600) launched in the United States in 1977.
While it had been timidly introduced in the European market and sold relatively well in the United States, it wasn’t until 1980, with the release of the Space Invaders adaptation, that the Atari 2600 began to have significant success.
In Spain, it was initially sold in 1979 in bazars and department stores through imports. The Atari 2600 was officially launched in Spain in 1980, distributed by the Malaga-based company Audelec, S.A. (Audio-Electrónica, S.A.)
Despite slow initial sales due to its high price of 25,000 pesetas, demand multiplied by 5 during the Christmas of 1980, selling the around 5,000 units they had in stock. By 1981, Atari-Audelec had established itself as a leader in the emerging video game industry in Spain. They created a new paradigm.
However, I’m holding back some information here for an article I’m writing about Atari, Inc. in Spain, which I’ll be publishing soon…
What happened to Inter? And the inventor of the Overkal?
In the mid-1970s, Inter began negotiations with the German company Grundig for a merger, allowing Grundig to establish itself in Spain.
The agreement with Grundig was finalized in 1978, and the brand merged to become “Inter-Grundig.”
On August 30, 1978, José Gómez Serrano, the founder and guiding force behind the company, tragically passed away along with his wife in a car accident. This was a deeply sorrowful event for his family and the company.
The Inter brand would eventually disappear, becoming only Grundig, although the company continued to be called “Inter-Grundig, S.A.”
Around the 1980s, the Travessera de las Corts factory was renamed Fabricante Europeo de Televisores, S.A. (FETESA), manufacturing televisions for other brands.
In 1992, the company, now known as Grundig España, closed its factory due to the trend of many established electronics brands in Spain to relocate their factory operations. The building was demolished, and in its place, a residential block was constructed in 1996, with a mechanical workshop on the commercial ground floor.
The Gómez Aparicio family left the electronics industry to focus on the hospitality sector, becoming the owners of the Gallery Hotel in Barcelona, located on Rosellón Street, very close to Inter’s former offices. Pascual passed away in 2014.
On the other hand, the inventor of the Overkal, Santiago Arcocha, continued his work in the healthcare sector until his retirement in the early 1980s. He focused on his hospitality business located on the road between Cardedeu and Cànoves i Samalús, the rural hotel Can Manteuet, which he managed with his son. Santiago passed away in May 2007 at the age of 83.
Can Mateuet Hotel
Conclusions
Without a doubt, this research has taught me many things, but the most important lesson is that you should never underestimate the potential for discovering new information, no matter how much time has passed.
It’s logical to think that, because there has never been a real and dedicated interest in the origins of video games in Spain, there are many pieces of information I had to investigate and uncover on my own.
It took many years to identify who the inventor of the Overkal was, but better late than never. It’s somewhat disheartening to think that Santiago Arcocha Noguera is no longer alive to see that his “creation” is, 50 years later, a subject of interest and fascination.
Nevertheless, this is just another example of how much history has been lost due to the undervaluing of the history of video games and the electronics industry outside of the United States and Japan.
Some might argue, well, he didn’t actually invent anything; he copied the Magnavox Odyssey to sell it here. It’s interesting because if you look at the history of computing and video games (and technology in general), many significant milestones in the industry have come from “entrepreneurs” who imitated a great idea and improved upon it.
For instance, Atari drew inspiration from the Ping-Pong game on the Magnavox Odyssey to create Pong, which became the first major success in the video game industry. They didn’t invent video games, of course, but they did make them popular and secured a significant place in video game history.
In this sense, while Santiago Arcocha is not Ralph Baer (the inventor of the first video game console), nor Nolan Bushnell (the founder of Atari), nor Al Alcorn (the creator of Pong), I believe that his creation and his name deserve a place in video game history. Perhaps not for the significance of popularizing or inventing something, but for being the first person to envision a video game console outside the United States.
It is also clear that my tribute goes to Inter Electrónica, and to all those who were involved in the development of radio and television in Spain. And of course, to Ralph Baer, the father of the first video game console.
Although there are elements of this story that will remain lost forever, I never lose hope of finding more, and I will continue to try, as long as my motivation for this work and my free time allow me.
This article is still unfinished, and it will never be complete, so it’s not surprising that it will receive sporadic updates. Whether it’s little or a lot of information, it should always be appreciated.
If you’ve made it this far, thank you for reading. If you would like to support me, please share this article. I would be very happy to see my work spread.
Special Thanks
I want to thank all the people who have been able to help me in this research in some way. I cannot mention everyone, but I want to thank:
José María Gómez Torres
Santiago Arcocha Noguera, Jr.
Pascual Gómez Casals
Adrián Morcillo
David Hoffman
Marçal Mora
Tatiana Delgado
Martín Arrúa
Sly DC
Mario Luis Díaz
Raffotek
Inter and Grundig España former employees,
Without you, without your contributions, this would never have been possible.
MARTIN F. MARTORELL
References
Info and photos taken from:
“Overkal” of Marçal Mora (retromaquinitas.com)
“I.S.S.A Overkal” of David Winter (pong-story.com)
“Inter S.A. Barcelona” of El blog de Moebius (moebius-bcn.com)
Oficina Española de Patentes y Marcas (OEPM) (oepm.es)
Having read this I thought it was really enlightening.
I appreciate you taking the time and energy to put
this short article together. I once again find myself spending a significant amount of time both reading and commenting.
But so what, it was still worth it!
Great, thorough research! Thanks so much for making it available to English speakers. I saw the talk you gave and it’s great to know you were able to find even more information. This certainly taught me a lot about the Spanish electronics industry!
Having read this I thought it was really enlightening.
I appreciate you taking the time and energy to put
this short article together. I once again find myself spending a significant amount of time both reading and commenting.
But so what, it was still worth it!
Great, thorough research! Thanks so much for making it available to English speakers. I saw the talk you gave and it’s great to know you were able to find even more information. This certainly taught me a lot about the Spanish electronics industry!