The World Video Game Hall of Fame is an international hall of fame for video games. The hall's administration is overseen by The Strong's International Center for the History of Electronic Games, and is located at The Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester, New York, United States. The museum began the International Center for the History of Electronic Games in 2009, announced the formation of the hall of fame in February 2015, and opened it on June 4, 2015. It is located in a dedicated part of the "ESL Digital Worlds: High Score" exhibit at the National Museum of Play; prior to an expansion of the museum in 2023 it was located in the museum's "eGameRevolution" exhibit. The Strong has also run the National Toy Hall of Fame since 2002.
The Strong National Museum of Play at night | |
| Formation | June 4, 2015 |
|---|---|
| Purpose | To highlight the video games that have made an impact on the world |
| Location |
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Parent organization | The Strong |
| Website | www |
Video games become eligible for the World Video Game Hall of Fame by meeting four criteria:
- Icon Status – is widely recognized and remembered
- Longevity – is more than a passing fad and has enjoyed popularity over time
- Geographical Reach – meets the above criteria across international boundaries
- Influence – has exerted significant influence on the design and development of other games, on other forms of entertainment, or on popular culture and society in general
Initial nominations are made each year by a staff committee at The Strong, which takes into account the four criteria, with influence considered the most important. Members of the public can submit games for consideration by the committee as well. The nominees are then voted on by a panel of around 30 "scholars and journalists from around the world", with each panel member ranking their top three choices. A public poll is also included, with the results counting as equivalent to a member of the panel. Afterwards, the staff committee reviews the votes and makes the final selection. While generally there is a clear difference in vote counts for the highest-scoring games, if there are multiple games with similar vote counts near the cutoff point, the committee decides by emphasizing a variety of game types or platforms in any given induction year. Video games that have not been inducted may be nominated in multiple years. The set of final nominees is typically announced each year in March, and the inductees in May. In its first two years of operation, the hall named six inductees from fifteen finalists; since then, it has named four or five inductees each year from a set of twelve.
In the eleven years that the hall of fame has been open, 49 games have been inducted out of 85 nominated. Many of those games have been nominated multiple times. In some cases, the hall may list the first game in a series of similar titles as a proxy for the entire series, such as with The Oregon Trail series or the FIFA International Soccer/FIFA series. Nintendo has been the developer of the most games inducted with seven, out of a total of eleven nominations of eight games. Atari has had three games inducted out of six nominations of those three games, and Blizzard Entertainment, Capcom, id Software, and Maxis have had two games inducted. Seven other developers have had more than one game nominated. Minecraft has had the most nominations of any game at four and was then inducted, while FIFA International Soccer, Angry Birds, Guitar Hero, and NBA 2K are tied for the most nominations without being inducted at three. The earliest game to be nominated is Spacewar! from 1962, while the latest is The Last of Us from 2013, both of which have been inducted.
Inductees and finalists
| 1962 | Spacewar! |
|---|---|
| 1963 | |
| 1964 | |
| 1965 | |
| 1966 | |
| 1967 | |
| 1968 | |
| 1969 | |
| 1970 | |
| 1971 | Computer Space |
| The Oregon Trail | |
| 1972 | Pong |
| 1973 | |
| 1974 | |
| 1975 | |
| 1976 | Colossal Cave Adventure |
| 1977 | |
| 1978 | Space Invaders |
| 1979 | Asteroids |
| 1980 | Pac-Man |
| 1981 | Centipede |
| Defender | |
| Donkey Kong | |
| Ultima | |
| 1982 | Microsoft Flight Simulator |
| Ms. Pac-Man | |
| 1983 | |
| 1984 | King's Quest |
| 1985 | Super Mario Bros. |
| Tetris | |
| Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego? | |
| 1986 | The Legend of Zelda |
| 1987 | |
| 1988 | |
| 1989 | SimCity |
| 1990 | John Madden Football |
| Solitaire | |
| 1991 | Sid Meier's Civilization |
| Sonic the Hedgehog | |
| Street Fighter II | |
| 1992 | Mortal Kombat |
| Super Mario Kart | |
| 1993 | Doom |
| Myst | |
| 1994 | |
| 1995 | |
| 1996 | Barbie Fashion Designer |
| Pokémon Red and Green | |
| Quake | |
| Resident Evil | |
| Tamagotchi | |
| Tomb Raider | |
| 1997 | Final Fantasy VII |
| GoldenEye 007 | |
| 1998 | Dance Dance Revolution |
| The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time | |
| StarCraft | |
| 1999 | |
| 2000 | The Sims |
| 2001 | Animal Crossing |
| Bejeweled | |
| Grand Theft Auto III | |
| Halo: Combat Evolved | |
| 2002 | |
| 2003 | |
| 2004 | World of Warcraft |
| 2005 | |
| 2006 | Wii Sports |
| 2007 | |
| 2008 | |
| 2009 | |
| 2010 | |
| 2011 | Minecraft |
| 2012 | |
| 2013 | The Last of Us |
* Inductees
** Finalists that were inducted in a later year
Other finalists
| Year | Game | Developer | Year released | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Doom* | id Software | 1993 | |
| Pac-Man* | Namco | 1980 | ||
| Pong* | Atari | 1972 | ||
| Super Mario Bros.* | Nintendo | 1985 | ||
| Tetris* | Alexey Pajitnov | 1985 | ||
| World of Warcraft* | Blizzard Entertainment | 2004 | ||
| Angry Birds | Rovio Entertainment | 2009 | ||
| FIFA International Soccer | EA Canada | 1993 | ||
| The Legend of Zelda** | Nintendo | 1986 | ||
| Minecraft** | Mojang Studios | 2011 | ||
| The Oregon Trail** | Don Rawitsch, Bill Heinemann, and Paul Dillenberger | 1971 | ||
| Pokémon Red and Green** | Game Freak | 1996 | ||
| The Sims** | Maxis | 2000 | ||
| Sonic the Hedgehog** | Sonic Team | 1991 | ||
| Space Invaders** | Taito | 1978 | ||
| 2016 | Grand Theft Auto III* | DMA Design | 2001 | |
| The Legend of Zelda* | Nintendo | 1986 | ||
| The Oregon Trail* | Don Rawitsch, Bill Heinemann, and Paul Dillenberger | 1971 | ||
| The Sims* | Maxis | 2000 | ||
| Sonic the Hedgehog* | Sonic Team | 1991 | ||
| Space Invaders* | Taito | 1978 | ||
| Elite | David Braben, Ian Bell | 1984 | ||
| Final Fantasy | Square | 1987 | ||
| John Madden Football** | Park Place Productions | 1990 | ||
| Minecraft** | Mojang Studios | 2011 | ||
| Nürburgring | Reiner Foerst | 1976 | ||
| Pokémon Red and Green** | Game Freak | 1996 | ||
| Sid Meier's Civilization** | MicroProse | 1991 | ||
| Street Fighter II** | Capcom | 1991 | ||
| Tomb Raider** | Core Design | 1996 | ||
| 2017 | Donkey Kong* | Nintendo | 1981 | |
| Halo: Combat Evolved* | Bungie | 2001 | ||
| Pokémon Red and Green* | Game Freak | 1996 | ||
| Street Fighter II* | Capcom | 1991 | ||
| Final Fantasy VII** | Square | 1997 | ||
| Solitaire** | Wes Cherry (Microsoft) | 1990 | ||
| Mortal Kombat** | Midway Games | 1992 | ||
| Myst** | Cyan | 1993 | ||
| Portal | Valve Corporation | 2007 | ||
| Resident Evil** | Capcom | 1996 | ||
| Tomb Raider** | Core Design | 1996 | ||
| Wii Sports** | Nintendo | 2006 | ||
| 2018 | Final Fantasy VII* | Square | 1997 | |
| John Madden Football* | Park Place Productions | 1990 | ||
| Spacewar!* | Steve Russell and others | 1962 | ||
| Tomb Raider* | Core Design | 1996 | ||
| Asteroids** | Atari | 1979 | ||
| Call of Duty | Infinity Ward | 2003 | ||
| Dance Dance Revolution** | Konami | 1998 | ||
| Half-Life | Valve Corporation | 1998 | ||
| King's Quest** | Sierra On-Line | 1984 | ||
| Metroid | Nintendo | 1986 | ||
| Minecraft** | Mojang Studios | 2011 | ||
| Ms. Pac-Man** | General Computer Corporation | 1982 | ||
| 2019 | Colossal Cave Adventure* | William Crowther, Don Woods | 1976 | |
| Solitaire* | Wes Cherry (Microsoft) | 1990 | ||
| Mortal Kombat* | Midway Games | 1992 | ||
| Super Mario Kart* | Nintendo | 1992 | ||
| Candy Crush Saga | King | 2012 | ||
| Centipede** | Atari | 1981 | ||
| Dance Dance Revolution** | Konami | 1998 | ||
| Half-Life | Valve Corporation | 1998 | ||
| Myst** | Cyan | 1993 | ||
| NBA 2K | Visual Concepts | 1999 | ||
| Sid Meier's Civilization** | MicroProse | 1991 | ||
| Super Smash Bros. Melee | HAL Laboratory | 2001 | ||
| 2020 | Bejeweled* | PopCap Games | 2001 | |
| Centipede* | Atari | 1981 | ||
| King's Quest* | Sierra On-Line | 1984 | ||
| Minecraft* | Mojang Studios | 2011 | ||
| Frogger | Konami | 1981 | ||
| GoldenEye 007** | Rare | 1997 | ||
| Guitar Hero | Harmonix | 2005 | ||
| NBA Jam | Midway Games | 1993 | ||
| Nokia Snake | Nokia | 1997 | ||
| Super Smash Bros. Melee | HAL Laboratory | 2001 | ||
| Uncharted 2: Among Thieves | Naughty Dog | 2009 | ||
| Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?** | Broderbund | 1985 | ||
| 2021 | Animal Crossing* | Nintendo | 2001 | |
| Microsoft Flight Simulator* | Sublogic | 1982 | ||
| StarCraft* | Blizzard Entertainment | 1998 | ||
| Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?* | Broderbund | 1985 | ||
| Call of Duty | Infinity Ward | 2003 | ||
| FarmVille | Zynga | 2009 | ||
| FIFA International Soccer | EA Canada | 1993 | ||
| Guitar Hero | Harmonix | 2005 | ||
| Mattel Football | Mattel | 1977 | ||
| Pole Position | Namco | 1982 | ||
| Portal | Valve Corporation | 2007 | ||
| Tron | Bally Midway | 1982 | ||
| 2022 | Dance Dance Revolution* | Konami | 1998 | |
| The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time* | Nintendo | 1998 | ||
| Ms. Pac-Man* | General Computer Corporation | 1982 | ||
| Sid Meier's Civilization* | MicroProse | 1991 | ||
| Assassin's Creed | Ubisoft Montreal | 2007 | ||
| Candy Crush Saga | King | 2012 | ||
| Minesweeper | Curt Johnson (Microsoft) | 1990 | ||
| NBA Jam | Midway Games | 1993 | ||
| PaRappa the Rapper | NanaOn-Sha | 1996 | ||
| Resident Evil** | Capcom | 1996 | ||
| Rogue | A.I. Design | 1980 | ||
| Words with Friends | Zynga | 2009 | ||
| 2023 | Barbie Fashion Designer* | Digital Domain | 1996 | |
| Computer Space* | Syzygy Engineering | 1971 | ||
| The Last of Us* | Naughty Dog | 2013 | ||
| Wii Sports* | Nintendo | 2006 | ||
| Age of Empires | Ensemble Studios | 1997 | ||
| Angry Birds | Rovio Entertainment | 2009 | ||
| Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare | Infinity Ward | 2007 | ||
| FIFA International Soccer | EA Canada | 1993 | ||
| GoldenEye 007** | Rare | 1997 | ||
| NBA 2K | Visual Concepts | 1999 | ||
| Quake** | id Software | 1996 | ||
| Wizardry | Sir-Tech | 1981 | ||
| 2024 | Asteroids* | Atari | 1979 | |
| Myst* | Cyan | 1993 | ||
| Resident Evil* | Capcom | 1996 | ||
| SimCity* | Maxis | 1989 | ||
| Ultima* | Richard Garriott, Origin Systems | 1981 | ||
| Elite | David Braben, Ian Bell | 1984 | ||
| Guitar Hero | Harmonix | 2005 | ||
| Metroid | Nintendo | 1986 | ||
| Neopets | Adam Powell, Donna Powell | 1999 | ||
| Tokimeki Memorial | Konami | 1994 | ||
| Tony Hawk's Pro Skater | Neversoft | 1999 | ||
| You Don't Know Jack | Jellyvision | 1995 | ||
| 2025 | Defender* | Williams Electronics | 1981 | |
| GoldenEye 007* | Rare | 1997 | ||
| Quake* | id Software | 1996 | ||
| Tamagotchi* | Bandai | 1996 | ||
| Age of Empires | Ensemble Studios | 1997 | ||
| Angry Birds | Rovio Entertainment | 2009 | ||
| Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare | Infinity Ward | 2007 | ||
| Frogger | Konami | 1981 | ||
| Golden Tee Golf | Incredible Technologies | 1989 | ||
| Harvest Moon | Amccus | 1996 | ||
| Mattel Football | Mattel | 1977 | ||
| NBA 2K | Visual Concepts | 1999 |
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