Home video game console generations

It has been suggested that this article be merged into History of video game consoles. (Discuss) Proposed since November 2023.

In the video game industry, the market for home video game consoles has frequently been segmented into generations, grouping consoles that are considered to have shared in a competitive marketspace. Since the first home consoles in 1972, there have been nine defined home console generations.

A new console generation typically has occurred approximately every five years, in keeping pace with Moore's law for technology, though more recent generations have had extended periods due to the use of console revisions rather than completely new designs. Not all home consoles are defined as part of these generations; only those considered to be significant competitive consoles are classed into generations, and systems such as microconsoles are often omitted from these generations.