Blog

The Strong’s board game collection is unique in all the world. Unlike specialized collectors, the museum thinks broadly about what it acquires, striving to represent both ancient and modern examples, simple games and complex ones, and extremely typical editions and rare versions for the varieties of play they represent, as well as the cultures that inspired them. So I was delighted earlier this year when Don Lyon of Binghamton, New York, offered the museum the opportunity to select from his […]

Continue Reading about Rare! Weird! Collectible! A Great Donation of Board Games Published on:
January 6, 2017

The Strong launched the International Center for the History of Electronic Games (ICHEG) in 2009 because we believed video games were too popular, too creative, and too influential for their history to be lost. Since then, many key industry leaders have aided our preservation efforts by donating to The Strong personal materials that document their careers and contributions to the industry. I’m pleased that Brian Fargo, a long-time leader in game design, is the latest to do so and that […]

Continue Reading about Preserving Video Game History with the Brian Fargo Papers, 1983-2012 Published on:
December 14, 2016

Having grown up with dogs, cats, a rabbit, and the occasional fish or two, naturally I consider myself an animal lover. Like many folks who fall into this category, my love of creatures is not limited to domestic varieties, but extends well beyond to animals of sea, sky, and land, particularly exotic animals such as giraffes and elephants. When I planned my outdoor wedding, I mused how fabulous it would be to have a giraffe meandering about the large, wooded […]

Continue Reading about From Tall to Small: The Lure of Exotic Animals Published on:
December 13, 2016

Unless you have been out of touch for several days—say, locked in an epic game of Dungeons & Dragons—you have probably heard that Little People, the tiny figures that accompany Fisher-Price play sets, played a big role in the induction announcement of The Strong’s National Toy Hall of Fame on November 10. Little People, along with the game Dungeons & Dragons and the swing, took their place of honor among 59 previously inducted toys.
First introduced in 1959 as the removable […]

Continue Reading about Little People Go Big: The National Toy Hall of Fame Announces its Newest Inductee Published on:
December 1, 2016

On November 10, The Strong announced that the swing had been inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame, along with Fisher-Price Little People figures and the game Dungeons & Dragons. Though the play figures and the role-playing game surely fit the hall’s criteria for iconic toys, the swing seems so suited to hall of fame status that its 2016 induction falls into the “it’s high time” category.
Ancient historians neglected to record when the first swing was made. Maybe the […]

Continue Reading about The National Toy Hall of Fame Is in Full Swing Published on:
November 18, 2016

In the 1970s, a group of gaming friends added the concept of role-playing to the previously straightforward play of war games. Gamers Gary Gygax and his associate Jeff Perrin published instructions for Chainmail, a medieval war game, in 1971. This game differed from all other published war games by including a fantasy supplement based in part on the increased cultural interest in the works of fantasy authors such as J.R.R. Tolkien and Robert E. Howard, author of the Conan series. […]

Continue Reading about Dungeons & Dragons: Innovative Role-playing Game Merits Hall of Fame Induction Published on:
November 11, 2016

Chances are if you mention Play-Doh, your listener will know exactly to what you mean. Not only does the name elicit a mental image of the product in a small yellow can with a colorful lid, but it also evokes sensory memories: bold and vibrant colors; soft, pliable textures; an unmistakable aromatic scent; the soft “pop” sound of the can being opened; and yes, even taste—the distinct salty flavor that almost every child has certainly sampled at one time or […]

Continue Reading about The History of Play-Doh: Good, Clean Fun! Published on:
November 3, 2016

In October 2015, I was awarded a Research Fellowship from The Strong. I had access to the library, the archives, the museum itself, and the seemingly endless rows of shelves full of playthings of the past. Both my 14-year-old self and my current 30-something researcher self were in a happy place. My job is to study video games and teach about them—not a bad gig at all, I must admit—and I have been interested in the history and theory of […]

Continue Reading about A History of Film-to-Game Adaptations: Why I Play, Study, and (Sometimes) Like Bad Games Published on:
October 24, 2016

It is impossible to tell the story of educational computing without acknowledging the tremendous importance of Minnesota Educational Computing Corporation (MECC), the first organization to provide widespread access to games and other computer software for educational purposes. The Strong is proud to acquire and preserve the Minnesota Educational Computing Corporation Collection, 1968–2011. 

Continue Reading about MECC, The Company that Launched Educational Gaming Published on:
October 20, 2016