It was created by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney , who would both later found Atari . Created by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney , who would both later found Atari , it is generally accepted that it was the world 's first commercially sold coin-operated video game -- and indeed , the first commercially sold video game of any kind , predating the Magnavox Odyssey 's release by six months , and Atari 's Pong by one year .