The Strong National Museum of Play has announced the five games inducted into this year’s World Video Game Hall of Fame: Asteroids, Myst, Residential evil, UltimateAnd SimCity. These five games beat other classics, such as Neopets, MetroidAnd Tony Hawk’s professional skaterto earn a place in the 10th class of the World Video Game Hall of Fame.
Last year, Barbie fashion designer, Computer room, the last of us, And Wii Sports made it into the World Video Game Hall of Fame. The Class of 2024 will join these titles as part of the Strong Museum’s World Video Game Hall of Fame rotunda, which is part of the ESL Digital Worlds exhibit. A group called the International Selection Advisory Committee, which according to the Strong Museum is made up of “journalists and scholars familiar with the history of video games and their role in society,” will vote on which games will be introduced. The public had also voted, and the top three matches voted for by the public were added to one ballot.
These five games have influenced different parts of the video game industry Asteroids making its mark as Atari’s best-selling coin-operated arcade game; Myst in presenting its iconic, imaginative world; SimCity by defining the city building simulation genre; Ultimate setting the tone for fantasy role-playing games; And Residential evil putting survival horror on the map. Here’s how the Strong Museum described the games and their impact on the industry:
About Asteroids: Released in 1979, Atari’s Asteroids offered players challenging gameplay, beautiful graphics and intense sound effects in an action-packed space environment. The game quickly replaced the popular Space invaders in many arcades and sold over 70,000 arcade units, becoming Atari’s best-selling coin-operated game. The home version of the game, made available on the Atari 2600, took the game’s popularity to new heights and brought it into millions of living rooms.
Jeremy Saucier, assistant vice president for interpretation and electronic games, said: “Through endless variations and remakes across dozens of arcade, home, handheld and mobile platforms, Asteroids have created a simple, yet challenging game about blowing up bricks in one of the most played and influential video games of all time.”
About Myst: Published by Broderbund in 1993, Myst welcomed players to an enchanting world full of mysterious puzzles and terrifying vistas. The game took advantage of early CD-ROM technology, which offered high storage capacity but slow loading times. However, the discs suited the slow, contemplative style of the game well and provided a level of player immersion never before experienced in computer games. Myst became the best-selling computer game in the 1990s, selling more than six million copies.
Kristy Hisert, collections manager, says: “There are few other games that can match it Myst‘s ability to open imaginative worlds. It was a work of artistic genius that captured the imagination of a generation of computer game players, and its influence can be seen in many of today’s open world games.”
About Residential evil: While not the first horror video game, Residential evil (or Biological hazard as it was known in Japan) was the first game to popularize the ‘survival horror’ genre. Created by game director Shinji Mikami and released by Capcom in 1996. Residential evil spawned a billion-dollar media franchise while helping demonstrate that video games could provide mature entertainment for older teens and adults. As of 2022, films based on the Resident Evil franchise have collectively grossed more than $1.2 billion.
Lindsey Kurano, video game curator, says: “Residential evilIts combination of cheesy B-movie dialogue, riveting gameplay, and hair-raising tension made it a favorite of gamers looking for more mature video games, and it helped create one of gaming’s most enduring franchises.
About Sim City: Published by Maxis in 1989, SimCity helped expand the audience for video games by offering a city building simulator that appealed to both adults and children. Based on real-life principles of city design, players could build their own city and respond to ever-changing problems. The game generated numerous sequels and offshoots, such as the 2016 World Video Game Hall of Fame inductee The Sims – and influenced the development of many city building simulation games and even real-time strategy games Command and rule And Age of empires.
Aryol Prater, research specialist on black gaming and culture, says: “Simulations are among the oldest forms of video games, but few have had the popularity, influence or staying power of SimCity. At a time when many people thought of video games in terms of arcade shooters or console platformers, SimCity appealed to players who wanted intellectually stimulating fun on their newly purchased personal computers.
About Ultimate: Ultima: The First Age of Darkness helped define the computer role-playing game genre. Designed by Richard Garriott and released in 1981, Ultimate combined role-playing mechanics, a huge fictional world and fantasy and science fiction themes. Ultimate‘s innovative gameplay laid the foundation for one of the most enduring and influential gaming franchises of all time (with eight sequels). Many top game designers credit it as the inspiration for their later role-playing games, such as Dragon quest And Final fantasy.
Says Andrew Borman, director of digital sustainability: “Ultimate helped define the genre of computer role-playing games. While it may not be a household name, the game and the series it spawned are legendary among role-playing game fans and game developers around the world.