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Hall of Famers
Since 2015, Rochester, New York's Strong National Museum of Play has inducted games into its own World Video Game Hall of Fame. The list currently includes some of the best and most beloved titles of all time, including many of the obvious ones--like Super Mario Bros., Pac-Man, Pong, and The Sims--as well as some you might have overlooked like Barbie Fashion Designer and Colossal Cave Adventure.
We're rounding up all 40 of the games that the museum has inducted into its World Video Game Hall of Fame since inductions began in 2015.
The latest list of nominees for 2024 includes Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, Ultima, Guitar Hero, Asteroids, SimCity, and more. The inductees for this year will be announced during a ceremony in May, and we'll add them here once they are announced.
But what does it take to make it into the World Video Game Hall of Fame? The Strong Museum says its inductees have "enjoyed popularity over a sustained period" and have exerted their influence on the video game industry or on popular culture and society in general. The winners are voted on by a panel of experts from the video game field.
The World Video Game Hall of Fame inductees are on display at The Strong Museum.
image credit: Strong Museum
Tetris
- Release date: 1985
- Developer: Alexey Pajitnov
- Platform: PC
- Inducted in 2015
Easily one of the most recognizable games ever, Tetris was developed by Alexey Pajitnov and first released in 1985. The game involves slotting differently shaped pieces into a grid. It's remarkably simple to understand and endlessly replayable. It's not surprising, then, that Tetris is by far the best-selling video game of all time.
Doom
- Release date: 1993
- Developer: id Software
- Platform: PC
- Inducted in 2015
1993's Doom was a pioneer in the FPS space and helped launch the careers of John Carmack and John Romero.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Pac-Man
- Release date: 1980
- Developer: Namco
- Platform: Arcade
- Inducted in 2015
Who hasn't heard of Pac-Man? An impossibly popular and recognizable game, Pac-Man involves a yellow chomper eating little ghosts on a grid.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Pong
- Release date: 1972
- Developer: Atari
- Platform: Arcade
- Inducted in 2015
One of the earliest games ever, Pong involves bouncing a ball back and forth. It may sound dull by today's standards, but at the time it was mind blowing.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Super Mario Bros.
- Release date: 1985
- Developer: Nintendo
- Platform: NES
- Inducted in 2015
Nintendo's Super Mario Bros. obviously is deserving of a place in the World Video Game Hall of Fame. 1985's first entry was the one that started it all, establishing many of the norms of the platformer genre that continue to this day.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
World of Warcraft
- Release date: 2004
- Developer: Blizzard
- Platform: PC
- Inducted in 2015
One of the first mainstream MMOs, Blizzard's World of Warcraft first released in 2004 on PC and has remained popular and lucrative for Blizzard to this day.
GTA 3
- Release date: 2001
- Platform: PS2
- Developer: Rockstar
- Inducted in 2016
GTA 3 was a big moment for the crime series, as it took the franchise into the 3D era. Few could have predicted just how much of a success the series would go on to become, not to mention the way in which it popularized open-world action games.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
The Legend of Zelda
- Release date: 1986
- Platform: Family Computer Disk System/NES
- Developer: Nintendo
- Inducted in 2016
Nintendo's iconic RPG series dates back to the '80s, with the first installment arriving in 1986 before coming to the West in 1987. The RPG introduced the world to Link, Zelda, and Ganon, all of whom have remained mainstays in the series for nearly 30 years.
image credit: Strong Museum
The Oregon Trail
- Release date: 1971
- Platform: PC
- Developer: Don Rawitsch, Bill Heinemann, and Paul Dillenberger
- Inducted in 2016
The first installment of The Oregon Trail was an educational text-based game, and the series would go on to spawn numerous sequels and many eager trips to the school library.
image credit: The Strong Museum YouTube
The Sims
- Release date: 2000
- Platform: PC
- Developer: Maxis
- Inducted in 2016
EA's The Sims series, designed by Will Wright and a team at Maxis, debuted in 2000 and is now one of EA's biggest hits. Players control a home of people and are tasked with keeping them healthy and thriving, and it turned out to be tons of fun and highly influential.
image credit: The Strong Museum YouTube
Sonic the Hedgehog
- Release date: 1991
- Platform: Sega Genesis
- Developer: Sega
- Inducted in 2016
Sonic the Hedgehog is one of the most recognizable brands in gaming today, and the blue blur first started collecting rings and running very fast in 1991. Sonic is also remembered for being the catalyst for the original "console wars," and, for a time, made people question Nintendo's dominance. Sonic was an essential brand for Sega that helped the company thrive.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Space Invaders
- Release date: 1978
- Platform: Arcade
- Developer: Taito
- Inducted in 2016
An iconic arcade game from Taito and Atari, Space Invaders sees players blasting oncoming alien enemies before they eat you up. Like other arcade games of the time, it was easy to understand but challenging enough to swallow all your quarters.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Donkey Kong
- Release date: 1981
- Platform: Arcade
- Developer: Nintendo
- Inducted in 2016
1981's Donkey Kong not only introduced the world to a chest-beating gorilla who is not a donkey at all, but it also featured Mario in his first mainstream gaming appearance in this iconic arcade game. Donkey Kong is also partially responsible for the arcade boom.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Halo: Combat Evolved
- Release date: 2001
- Platform: Xbox
- Developer: Bungie
- Inducted in 2017
FPS games on consoles are all the rage today, but that wasn't always the case. Following the success of games like GoldenEye, a little team called Bungie brought Halo: Combat Evolved to the original Xbox as a launch title in 2001, and the rest is history.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Pokemon Red and Green
- Release date: 1996
- Platform: Game Boy
- Developer: Game Freak
- Inducted in 2017
The very first Pokemon games, Red and Green, debuted in 1996 and few could have imagined the monster-catching game from Japan would become the sensation and commercial juggernaut it is today. Beyond the games, the Pokemon series has expanded into film and TV, and a mountain of merchandise.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Street Fighter II
- Release date: 1991
- Platform: Arcade
- Developer: Capcom
- Inducted in 2017
Released in 1991, Street Fighter II helped propel arcade fighting games to new heights and set the stage for many more to come, like Mortal Kombat in 1992, Virtua Fighter in 1993, Tekken in 1994, and Super Smash Bros. in 1999.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Final Fantasy VII
- Release date: 1997
- Platform: PlayStation
- Developer: Square Enix
- Inducted in 2018
Regarded as one of the best RPGs of all time, Final Fantasy VII first came on the scene in 1997 and influenced games forever. Despite being just one entry in a long-running franchise, it's seen numerous spin-offs, an animated movie, and is in the process of being remade into a trilogy of games, the first two of which--Final Fantasy VII Remake and Rebirth--have both received much critical acclaim.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
John Madden Football
- Release date: 1990
- Platform: Sega Genesis
- Developer: Park Place Productions
- Inducted in 2018
EA's first Madden game, 1988's John Madden Football for Apple II didn't launch the franchise into the stratosphere of success it's known for today, and many might have wondered if the series would continue. It did, and 1990's John Madden Football helped properly launch the franchise that continues to be a top-seller to this day.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Spacewar
- Release date: 1962
- Platform: PDP-1
- Developer: Steve Russell
- Inducted in 2018
Designed during the space race between the US and the Soviet Union, Spacewar was created by Steve Russell at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on a DEC PDP-1 computer. It was revolutionary at the time and helped lay the groundwork for pretty much every game to come.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Tomb Raider
- Release date: 1996
- Platform: PC, PlayStation, Sega Saturn
- Developer: Core Design
- Inducted in 2018
Core Design's 1996 action-adventure game Tomb Raider introduced the world to Lara Croft with a game involving puzzle-solving and platforming. It was inspired by Raisers of the Lost Ark and the game Prince of Persia but is best known as an early example of a female protagonist-led action game.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Colossal Cave Adventure
- Release date: 1976
- Platform: PDP-10
- Developer: William Crowther, Don Woods
- Inducted in 2019
The text-based adventure game Colossal Cave Adventure had players typing prompts into the command console on a PDP-10 to see how their adventure might play out. William Crowther made the game to help connect with his daughter, and it was expanded upon in 1977 by Don Woods. Also of note, Crowther made the game working at Bolt, Beranek, and Newman, a company that created ARPANET, the predecessor to the internet.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Microsoft Solitaire
- Release date: 1990
- Platform: PC
- Developer: Wes Cherry
- Inducted in 2019
The solitaire card game had been popular for hundreds of years, but in 1990, Wes Cherry programmed it for PC as a pack-in title for Windows 3.0. Needlessly to say, Microsoft Solitaire is iconic and has enjoyed a long life with many updates and new installments over the years. It was one of the first computer games that regular adults played, and they played it a lot.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Mortal Kombat
- Release date: 1992
- Platform: Arcade
- Developer: Midway
- Inducted in 2019
Few games are more iconic and influential than 1992's Mortal Kombat, which debuted in arcades and has since spread to console, TV, and the big screens in the decades that followed. The game was known for its violence that prompted political action and was one of the key games that led to the formation of the ESRB.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Super Mario Kart
- Release date: 1992
- Platform: SNES
- Developer: Nintendo
- Inducted in 2019
1992's Super Mario Kart for the SNES was the very first Mario Kart game, and while its roster of characters, tracks, and items might seem paltry by today's standards, it was monumental at the time. The Mario Kart franchise has only grown in popularity over the years, with countless imitators also popping up over the last three-plus decades.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Bejeweled
- Release date: 2001
- Platform: PC
- Developer: PopCap
- Inducted in 2020
The web-based Flash game Bejeweled came onto the scene in 2001 and pioneered the "match-three" puzzle genre that is now extremely popular on mobile devices.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Centipede
- Release date: 1981
- Platform: Arcade
- Developer: Atari
- Inducted in 2020
Ed Logg and Dona Bailey created Centipedia in 1981 for arcade machines. Players have a simple goal: shoot a cannon at a centipede that's zig-zagging around. A sequel, Millipede, came out in 1982 and was successful as well.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
King's Quest
- Release date: 1984
- Platform: PC
- Developer: Sierra
- Inducted in 2020
An early adventure game, King's Quest debuted in 1984 and had players taking on the role of a knight who must save a kingdom and ultimately become the king. It was notable in part for its more interactive levels than other games of the time.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Minecraft
- Release date: 2011
- Platform: PC
- Developer: Mojang
- Inducted in 2020
An open-ended sandbox game created by Marks "Notch" Persson, Minecraft was officially released in 2011 (following a more limited release years earlier) and became a quick success. Minecraft was also one of the first examples of the "early access" release mode that is now very prominent in gaming. The game allows players to do pretty much anything they want, and this open endedness is part of the appeal. Microsoft bought the franchise and developer Mojang in 2014 for $2.5 billion.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Animal Crossing
- Release date: 2000
- Platform: GameCube
- Developer: Nintendo
- Inducted in 2021
Nintendo's Animal Cross series enjoyed breakout success with 2020's Animal Cross: New Horizons, but the game that started it all (in the West at least; a Japan-only version launched earlier) was 2000's Animal Crossing for GameCube. You're a villager living on an island with anthropomorphic animals, and it's very cozy and zen.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Microsoft Flight Simulator
- Release date: 1982
- Platform: IBM PC
- Developer: Sublogic
- Inducted in 2021
In the first Microsoft Flight Simulator game, designed by developer Sublogic, players control a Cessna 182 and can fly across places like Los Angeles, NYC, Chicago, and Seattle. The game was hugely successful and paved the way for sequels leading up to the 2020 installment that allowed players to fly across the entire globe.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
StarCraft
- Release date: 1998
- Platform: PC
- Developer: Blizzard
- Inducted in 2021
Blizzard's real-time strategy game StarCraft series debuted in 1998. It wasn't the company's first RTS game, following the Warcraft series, but it advanced the formula by thrusting the action into the future where Terrans and Zergs are battling for supremacy. It's considered by many to be the standard by which RTS games are judged, and its multiplayer support became massively popular, particularly in South Korea, where it stood out as an esport. In addition to its PC release, StarCraft was ported to Nintendo 64 in 2000.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?
- Release date: 1985
- Platform: Apple II
- Developer: Broderbund
- Inducted in 2021
An educational title from Broderbund, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego had players utilizing an almanac to find her enemies scattered around the world. Its future installments leaned further into the education game space, and many millennials probably have strong recollections of this game from their youth.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Dance Dance Revolution
- Release date: 1998
- Platform: Arcade
- Developer: Bemani
- Inducted in 2022
Bemani and Konami's dance game Dance Dance Revolution debuted in Japanese arcades in 1998 and became a quick sensation. Players dance on a pressure-controlled mat and need to match their movements to prompts on the screen. The game remains popular in arcades but also has home releases featuring mats players lay down in their living rooms.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
- Release date: 1997
- Platform: Nintendo 64
- Developer: Nintendo
- Inducted in 2022
The first 3D Zelda game, Ocarina of Time is regarded by many to be the best Zelda game ever for its gameplay, story, and music. This game brought Link's adventure to literally a new dimension, and the series has only grown in popularity and prominence since.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Ms. Pac-Man
- Release date: 1982
- Platform: Arcade
- Developer: General Computer Corporation
- Inducted in 2022
The second Pac-Man game in the World Video Game Hall of Fame, Ms. Pac-Man is a sequel to 1980's Pac-Man for arcade. Players control Pac-Man's wife and must eat the dots and ghosts in their way. This sequel introduced more complexity to elements like the behavior of the ghosts, as well as the level design.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Sid Meier's Civilization
- Release date: 1991
- Platform: PC
- Developer: Sid Meier and Bruce Shelley at MicroProse
- Inducted in 2022
Sid Meier's Civilization series debuted in 1991 and the 4X turn-based strategy game was a quick success. Sid Meier and Bruce Shelley designed the game, which involves leading a human civilization through the ages, at MicroProse.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Barbie Fasion Designer
- Release date: 1996
- Platform: PC
- Developer: Digital Domain
- Inducted in 2023
Barbie had a big year in 2023! The Margot Robbie movie dominated the box office and the 1996 game Barbie Fashion Designer was inducted into the World Video Game Hall of Fame. In the game, players can design outfits and dress their dolls up--and then use those in real-life via a printer function. The game is remembered for being one of the first extremely successful games marketed directly toward young girls, as the industry of the time largely focused on men and boys.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
Computer Space
- Release date: 1971
- Platform: Arcade
- Developer: Nolan Bushnell, Ted Dabney
- Inducted in 2023
Before there was even much of a video game industry, Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney created Computer Space, a futuristic-looking fiberglass arcade cabinet that had players guiding a spaceship against enemy saucers. Players got points for every enemy hit, and if the player had a higher score than the enemy saucers after 99 seconds, they got a free game.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
The Last of Us
- Release date: 2013
- Platform: PS4
- Developer: Naughty Dog
- Inducted in 2023
Naughty Dog's post-apocalyptic The Last of Us series debuted in 2013 with a game regarded by many to be a masterpiece and an instant classic. Written and directed by Neil Druckmann, The Last of Us follows the story of Joel and Ellie trying to survive in an inhospitable world. The game was praised for its story, and in particular is remembered for its gripping opening sequence.
Wii Sports
- Release date: 2006
- Platform: Wii
- Developer: Nintendo
- Inducted in 2023
A pack-in game for the Wii in 2006, Wii Sports was the first introduction for many to the Wii's revolutionary motion controls. Players could swing their hand to replicate a tennis racket, thrust their hand forward to roll a bowling ball down an alley, or swing the Wii Remote like a golf club to smash a drive or putt the ball into the hole. The controls felt like magic and no doubt helped to catapult the Wii to its massive success.
image credit: Strong Museum YouTube
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