There was no DIY market on 8 and 16 bit home computers with fixed hardware, yet bedroom coding (aka indies) not only did thrive, they were the genesis of many AAA publishers, and to this day those restrictions keep the Demoscene alive and recognised as World culture heritage.

PC was largely ignored for gaming, until finally EGA/VGA card, alongside AdLib/Soundblaster, became widespread in enough households to warrant development costs.