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Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5.5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
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content/history/exidy-announces-its-sorcerer.md
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Exidy, Incorporated, was founded in 1974 by **H.R. Kaufman** at Sunnyvale, California, and became a leading manufacturer of arcade type video games.\
Their first release was TV Pinball, followed by Mouse Trap or Boulder Dash which became worldwide hits when licensed to Coleco.
While developing the Sorcerer hardware, Exidy designers closely examined all-in-one competitor systems released a few months earlier, the Commodore PET and Tandy TRS-80. The Sorcerer was thus a combination of best features they offered plus an innovative idea, the software ROM cartridge called **ROM PAC**, making the Sorcerer the first Home Computer to support ROM cartridge use, even if these ROM PAC's were enclosed into 8-track audio housings!
While developing the Sorcerer hardware, Exidy designers closely examined all-in-one competitor systems released a few months earlier, the [Commodore PET](/museum/commodore-pet-2001/) and [Tandy TRS-80](/museum/tandy-radio-shack-trs-80-model-i/). The Sorcerer was thus a combination of best features they offered plus an innovative idea, the software ROM cartridge called **ROM PAC**, making the Sorcerer the first Home Computer to support ROM cartridge use, even if these ROM PAC's were enclosed into 8-track audio housings!
In spite of marketing and production problems, first sales occurred in the USA about 5 months after the machine was announced. The Sorcerer was then introduced in Europe and in Australia by **Dick Smith Electronics** making it the first personal computer available in this country.
In Holland, **Compudata** produced the Sorcerer under licence for several years, and sold a lot of them to educational market with several hardware and software improvements: CP/M operating system, S-100 bus support allowing various mass storage systems - including hard discs - to be connected.
Despite obvious qualities, the Sorcerer - and the Sorcerer II launched in 1980 - never met a real success. Exidy ceased production and closed its doors in 1982, but the CompuData version was still produced in Europe until 1984.
Despite obvious qualities, the Sorcerer - and the [Sorcerer II](/museum/exidy-sorcerer/) launched in 1980 - never met a real success. Exidy ceased production and closed its doors in 1982, but the CompuData version was still produced in Europe until 1984.
![](/media/history/images/timeline_0478_sorcerer_1.jpg)