ROCHESTER, NY—The Strong National Museum of Play will unveil a new exhibit—Japanese Indie Gaming—on Friday, February 27. The opening will be attended by members of the Japanese indie game community, who will hold a special panel discussion in the museum’s theater just beforehand.
Guests will learn about Japan’s long history of independent game development, dating back to the 1970s. They can try their hand at the innovative MotionRec indie game and discover how these original games have inspired many other products, including novels, manga, anime, and film.
“This Japanese Indie Game exhibit is so important in telling an often-untold aspect of gaming history. While indie games have had their spotlight the last 15 or so years here in the West, Japan has had a history of independently published games since the 1970s, predating the conception of the buzzword itself. This culture of creating games in small groups, and sharing with friends, has occurred for decades both in personal events and in the online sphere,” says Lindsey Kurano, curator of electronic games. “
The exhibit features unique artifacts and traces the evolution of Japan’s independent game scene through four eras.
The Japanese Indie Games exhibit is powered by support from Ritsumeikan Center for Game Studies and the ars●bit project.
