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Playing video games can be many things: entertaining, collaborative, emotional, or even a learning experience. Using video games for education is nothing new, but in recent years developers have seen how interactive media can help create an understanding of those around us. According to Professor Paul Fletcher at the University of Cambridge, “Video games can be powerful tools because they are absorbing and immersive. They require active participation, and they allow players to explore new and uncertain worlds.” The topic […]

Continue Reading about Senua’s Journey: The Portrayal of Mental Illness in Video Games Published on:
October 7, 2022

One Prototype to rule them all, One Prototype to backup and save.
Long before Peter Jackson brought The Lord of the Rings to life on the big screen, others tried their hands at adapting the J.R.R. Tolkien fantasy classic. With the 1978 animated film directed by Ralph Bakshi just a few years prior, Parker Brothers began advertising a video game adaptation in 1982.
Scheduled for a winter 1983 release, The Lord of the Rings: Journey to Rivendell for Atari 2600 home consoles […]

Continue Reading about Game Saves: The Lord of the Rings Atari 2600 Published on:
September 30, 2022

By Adam Nedeff, Researcher for the National Archives of Game Show History
October 2022 marks the 60th anniversary of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. For the next 30 years after its debut in 1962, Carson became a nightly habit for millions of Americans, who were treated to his monologue as a record of the day’s events, sketch comedy featuring “The Mighty Carson Art Players,” Johnny’s lively chit-chat with announcer/sidekick Ed McMahon, the musical interludes of Doc Severinsen and his […]

Continue Reading about Johnny Carson: From Game Show Regular to Late-Night Icon Published on:
September 27, 2022

Imagine it’s another hot summer day in 1973. However, you and your friends are planning to attend a party in the New York City borough of the Bronx. After a long subway ride and getting lost, you make it to the party just in time to hear Clive Campbell, better known by his chosen name DJ Kool Herc, start his set. He is playing the music you came to hear. However, when it gets to your favorite part of the […]

Continue Reading about The Tables Have Turned: Playing the Technics Direct Drive Player System Drive SL-1200 Published on:
September 16, 2022

I was a math kid, one who enjoyed solving simple problems of multiplication and division, arithmetic and subtraction. For many years my favorite toy was DataMan, a calculator themed as a space hero that was created in the late 1970s by Texas Instruments, the same company that introduced not only the portable calculator but also such electronic toys as the Little Professor and Speak n Spell. Still, none of these simple calculations captured my fancy the way prime numbers did.
I […]

Continue Reading about Playing with Primes Published on:
September 2, 2022

By Adam Nedeff, Researcher for the National Archives of Game Show History
In 1972, longtime NBC executive Bud Grant jumped to CBS for a position as vice president of daytime programming. In his new role, Grant inherited a stagnant morning schedule of reruns from prime time. He thought game shows could spruce up a wilting lineup and bring an element of fun. Grant tried one game show in the summer of 1972 as a signal flare of sorts—an odd game called […]

Continue Reading about 50 Years Ago: CBS Brought Play to Mornings Published on:
August 22, 2022

When I get asked about my favorite video game, most people expect me to say Horizon Zero Dawn or BioShock Infinite based on my cosplays and the games I most frequently mention. My answer, however, is Myst. “That point and click puzzle game from the 90s?!” is the usual perplexed response. So let me explain why this game has remained a favorite for me and why it was such an important game.
Myst came out in 1993, and by 1995 it […]

Continue Reading about That Point and Click Puzzle Game from the 90s: Myst Published on:
August 19, 2022

“Where there are kids, there is play.” Iona Opie
“The setting of boundaries is always a political act.” Edward J. Blakely and Mary Gail Snyder
“We begin with the child when he is three years old. As soon as he begins to think he gets a little flag put in his hand.”  Dr Robert LEY, leader of Nazi Labor Front.
As an urban game designer, and an immigrant to the US, I find it particularly interesting to understand the relationship between cultures and […]

Continue Reading about The Battle over Street Play in New York City (1910-1930) Published on:
August 11, 2022

When the film adaptation of Kevin Kwan’s hit book Crazy Rich Asians came out in 2018, I knew I’d have to watch it on the big screen. (A charming romantic comedy starring several of my favorite actors in beautiful Singapore? Yes, please!) Of course, I loved the movie, and—no spoilers—I was totally awestruck by the third act’s mahjong scene. The airy, bright mahjong parlor where the film’s protagonist, Rachel, meets her boyfriend’s imposing mother is peaceful and quiet, with only […]

Continue Reading about Chow, Pong, and Kong: Mahjong! Published on:
August 4, 2022