National Toy Hall of Fame announces World Video Game Hall of Fame

The museum that houses the National Toy Hall of Fame has announced the creation of the World Video Game Hall of Fame to recognise the impact that games such as Pong and Grand Theft Auto have had on culture and society.

Video games, 1970s style – Former England footballer Steve Heighway plays on an early Videomaster games console. SSPL / Getty Images

The museum that houses America's National Toy Hall of Fame has announced the creation of the World Video Game Hall of Fame to recognise the impact that games ranging from Pong, one of the first, to Grand Theft Auto have had on culture and society.

“Electronic games have changed how people play, learn and connect with each other, including across boundaries of culture and geography,” says G Rollie Adams, the president and chief executive of The Strong museum in Rochester, New York, which will host the hall of fame.

National Toy Hall of Fame will provide the model for the video game version, which will feature arcade, console, computer, hand-held and mobile games.

The public will be able to nominate a game for inclusion and an internal advisory committee will choose the finalists. An annual class of inductees will be chosen by an international selection committee of journalists, scholars and other video-game experts based on four criteria: icon-status, longevity, geographical reach and the influence it has had on the design of other games, entertainment, popular culture and society in general.

Nominations for the inaugural class are being accepted until the end of next month.

“It’s a great move, I’m personally delighted to see it,” says Don Daglow, who designed his first video game while a college student in 1971, adding that the field has been evolving ever since.

Utopia, his 1981 game for Intellivision, was the first simulation game. He also worked on World Series Baseball for Intellivision, which was the first to incorporate multiple camera angles. But he didn't want to speculate whether any of his work would make the World Video Game Hall of Fame.

“We’re trying to deliver fun and, at our very best, we’re trying to do what a really good movie or television programme or cook does,” says Daglow.

The Strong collects and preserves video games and artefacts through its International Center for the History of Electronic Games. Its collection includes more than 55,000 video games and related artefacts, along with personal papers and corporate records that document the history of video games.

“These unparalleled resources uniquely qualify The Strong to create a World Video Game Hall of Fame that identifies and celebrates the most important games of all time,” says the centre’s director, Jon-Paul Dyson.

• For more information, visit www.worldvideogamehalloffame.org