The World Video Game Hall of Fame is a museum exhibit located at The Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester, New York. It was established in 2015 to recognize electronic games of all types—arcade, console, computer, handheld, and mobile—that have enjoyed popularity over a sustained period and have exerted influence on the video game industry or on popular culture and society in general.
History
The World Video Game Hall of Fame was established in 2015 by The Strong National Museum of Play, a museum in Rochester, New York. The museum had been collecting video games for many years, and the Hall of Fame was seen as a way to recognize the most important and influential games of all time.
The Hall of Fame is overseen by a committee of experts from the video game industry, academia, and the media. Each year, the committee considers hundreds of nominations for induction into the Hall of Fame. To be eligible for induction, a game must have been released at least 30 years ago and must have had a significant impact on the video game industry or on popular culture.
Entries
The World Video Game Hall of Fame has inducted 64 games as of 2023. The following are some of the most notable entries:
- Pac-Man (1980): One of the most popular and influential arcade games of all time, Pac-Man helped to popularize the maze game genre and is considered to be one of the greatest video games ever made.
- Tetris (1984): Another popular and influential arcade game, Tetris is a puzzle game that has been enjoyed by millions of players around the world.
- Super Mario Bros. (1985): A groundbreaking platform game, Super Mario Bros. helped to popularize the home console market and is considered to be one of the greatest video games ever made.
- The Legend of Zelda (1986): An action-adventure game that helped to popularize the open-world genre, The Legend of Zelda is considered to be one of the greatest video games ever made.
- Grand Theft Auto IIIÂ (2001): A groundbreaking open-world action-adventure game, Grand Theft Auto III helped to popularize the 3D open-world genre and is considered to be one of the greatest video games ever made.
Reasons for induction
The games that are inducted into the World Video Game Hall of Fame are chosen for a variety of reasons. Some games are inducted because they were highly popular and influential, while others are inducted because they were groundbreaking or innovative. Some games are inducted because they had a significant impact on popular culture, while others are inducted because they were simply well-made and enjoyable games.
No matter what the reason, all of the games in the World Video Game Hall of Fame are important pieces of video game history. They represent the best that the video game industry has to offer, and they have helped to shape the way that we play games today.
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