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.
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. For the 2026 nominees, a poll of attendees of the Game Developers Conference was also included. 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 12 years that the hall of fame has been open, 53 games have been inducted out of 92 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, Konami, id Software, and Maxis have had two games inducted. Seven other developers have had more than one game nominated. Minecraft, FIFA International Soccer, and Angry Birds are tied for the most nominations at four, all of which were then inducted. Frogger, 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
* Inductees
** Finalists that were inducted in a later year
Other finalists
+ YearGameDeveloperYear released 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 ** Nintendo 1986 Minecraft** Mojang Studios 2011 ** Don Rawitsch, Bill Heinemann, and Paul Dillenberger 1971 Pokémon Red and Green** Game Freak 1996 ** Maxis 2000 Sonic the Hedgehog** Sonic Team 1991 Space Invaders** Taito 1978 2016 Grand Theft Auto III* DMA Design 2001 * Nintendo 1986 * Don Rawitsch, Bill Heinemann, and Paul Dillenberger 1971 * 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 * 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 2023Barbie Fashion Designer* Digital Domain 1996Computer Space* Syzygy Engineering 1971* Naughty Dog 2013Wii 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 2026 Angry Birds* Rovio Entertainment 2009 Dragon Quest* Chunsoft 1986 FIFA International Soccer* EA Canada 1993 Silent Hill* Konami 1999 Frogger Konami 1981 Galaga Namco 1981 League of Legends Riot Games 2009 Mega Man Capcom 1987 PaRappa the Rapper NanaOn-Sha 1996 RuneScape Jagex 2001 The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Bethesda Game Studios 2011 Tokimeki Memorial Konami 1994
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