Video games have become a significant form of contemporary culture, evolving from simple pixelated games to immersive virtual worlds. To gamers, is clear that they hold cultural, artistic, and historical value, providing insights into the evolution of technology, storytelling, and the culture of the early 21st century.
However, the preservation of video games (or lack thereof) has emerged as a critical concern in recent years. So let’s take a moment to explore why we need to preserve digital games, and the action needed to ensure the longevity and accessibility of video game history.
The Origin of Video Games
Video games have come a long way since their humble beginnings. The history of video games can be traced back to the 1940s and 1950s when scientists and engineers started experimenting with electronic devices capable of displaying interactive graphics—which, for a long time, were mainly words and numbers. However, it was in the 1970s and 1980s that video games gained mainstream popularity with the rise of arcade machines and home gaming consoles like the Atari 2600 and Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). We all know a bunch of games from this era; Pong, Tetris and Pac-Man are just three of the most well remembered today!
Games from The Early Decades are Disappearing
As technology continues to advance rapidly, games from the early decades of the industry face the risk of being lost forever. Physical copies of games are susceptible to degradation, damage, or loss, especially as time passes. This is because many early games were distributed on magnetic media, such as floppy disks or cassette tapes, which degrades over time—meaning eventually the media stored on these disks becomes unreadable.
This brings us to another significant challenge in preserving video games: the issue of technological obsolescence. As hardware and software evolve, older gaming systems, consoles, and formats become obsolete (and thus unusable). The games developed for these platforms require specific hardware or software configurations to run, making it increasingly difficult to access and play them as technology progresses. Additionally, the hardware itself may break down, making it impossible to experience games on their original platforms.
Ultimately, they become unusable meaning that if games (and their compatible devices) are not properly preserved, they may be lost forever.
What is Games Preservation?
Games preservation refers to the dedicated efforts to safeguard against these issues. Thus hoping to maintain video games for future generations. It involves documenting, archiving, and conserving the hardware and software components of games to ensure their longevity and accessibility. Games preservation aims to capture the cultural, historical, and artistic significance of video games, allowing future generations to study, appreciate, and experience these interactive works of art.
Who is Responsible for Games Preservation?
Various institutions, organizations, and communities are actively engaged in games preservation efforts. These include:
Libraries and Archives:
Preserving both physical and digital parts of gaming culture, libraries and archives play a crucial role in preserving video games. They collect, catalogue, and store games, ensuring they are accessible for research, education, and historical preservation purposes. Such institutions also work in the long-term, ensuring that such materials will be preserved for decades to come.
Museums:
When dedicated to the history of technology or gaming, museums often have exhibits and collections that showcase video games and their cultural impact. These museums play an important role in preserving and exhibiting rare and significant games.
Non-Profit Organizations:
Non-profit organizations such as the Video Game History Foundation and the Internet Archive’s Software Library are actively involved in video game preservation. They work to document, archive, and provide access to a wide range of games, ensuring their preservation and availability to the public.
Gaming Communities:
Impassioned communities also play a significant role in preserving video games. Enthusiasts and collectors often take it upon themselves to preserve and share their personal collections, ensuring that games are not forgotten or lost over time. Online communities and forums provide platforms for discussions, sharing resources, and collaborating on preservation projects.
The Time is Now – So What Can You Do to Help?
Preserving video games is not just the responsibility of a few institutions or organizations—it is a collective effort that requires the participation and support of the gaming community as a whole. Here are some ways you can contribute to video game preservation:
Advocate for legal and ethical preservation:
Stay informed about legal and ethical issues surrounding video game preservation, such as copyright laws and licensing agreements. Advocate for fair use policies and exemptions that allow for the preservation and archival of video games for historical and educational purposes.
Document and share your knowledge:
If you have expertise or insights into specific games, platforms, or gaming history, consider documenting and sharing that knowledge with others. Write articles, create videos, or participate in online discussions to contribute to the collective understanding and preservation of video games.
Support preservation initiatives:
Contribute to non-profit organizations and initiatives that focus on video game preservation. Your financial support can help fund research, digitization efforts, and the creation of preservation tools and resources.
Preserve your own games:
If you are a game developer, take steps to preserve your own game collection by properly storing physical copies, making digital backups, or contributing them to community-driven preservation projects. You can thank us when you’re famous!
By actively participating in video game preservation, we can ensure that the rich history, cultural impact, and artistic achievements of video games are preserved for future generations. Together, we can safeguard the diverse and immersive world of video games, allowing it to be appreciated, studied, and enjoyed by gamers and enthusiasts for years to come. After all, we would never want cultural touchstones like RuneScape, Call of Duty or Minecraft going missing. And while that might sound impossible today, it is the efforts of preservation which ensure that these games will be available for people to learn from for decades—if not centuries—to come. Speaking of which, if you’re looking for some extra Mincraft currency or just want to help to support one of the main Minecraft communities you can always purchase Minecraft Hypixel coins.
Let’s make this a collective effort to protect and celebrate the incredible legacy of video games! By valuing and preserving our gaming heritage, we can keep the magic and nostalgia alive while inspiring future generations of game developers, artists, and storytellers.