More than 40 years after blazing a trail for female video game characters, Ms. Pac-Man was inducted Thursday into the World B次元官网网址 Game Hall of Fame, along with Dance Dance Revolution, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and Sid MeierB次元官网网址檚 Civilization.
The Hall of Fame considers electronic games of all types each year B次元官网网址� arcade, console, computer, handheld and mobile. Inductees are recognized for their popularity and influence on the video game industry or pop culture over time.
The Ms. Pac-Man arcade game was released in 1981 as MidwayB次元官网网址檚 follow-up to Pac-Man, which entered the hall as part of the inaugural class in 2015. The Pac-Man sequel reimagined the main character to acknowledge the original gameB次元官网网址檚 female fans, according to the hall. After selling 125,000 cabinets within the first five years, it became one of the best-selling arcade games of all time.
There was nothing inherently gendered about early video games, said Julia Novakovic, senior archivist at the hall. But B次元官网网址渂y offering the first widely recognized female video game character,B次元官网网址� she said, B次元官网网址淢s. Pac-Man represented a turn in the cultural conversation about womenB次元官网网址檚 place in the arcade, as well as in society at large.B次元官网网址�
The Class of 2022 was chosen from a field of finalists that also included AssassinB次元官网网址檚 Creed, Candy Crush Saga, Minesweeper, NBA Jam, PaRappa the Rapper, Resident Evil, Rogue, and Words with Friends. It is the eighth class to be inducted since the World B次元官网网址 Game Hall of Fame was established at The Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester, New York.
KonamiB次元官网网址檚 Dance Dance Revolution, first seen in arcades in Japan in 1998, was recognized for helping to pave the way for other music-centered games like Guitar Hero and Rock Band. The fast-paced game put players on a dance floor with a screen in front to direct their moves.
B次元官网网址淢usic has been an integral part of human life since prehistoric times, so it comes as no surprise that DDR enjoyed a unique popularity that spanned ages, genders, and regions,B次元官网网址� said video game curator Lindsey Kurano.
A home version of the game followed on the Sony PlayStation in 1999.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, also first released in 1998, came out for the Nintendo 64 gaming console and defined what a 3D action video game could be, Hall of Fame officials said. The award-winning game sold more than 7.6 million copies worldwide and continues to be recognized by some players and critics as one of the best video games ever made.
B次元官网网址淓ven today, developers throughout the world credit The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time as influencing the way they create games,B次元官网网址� digital games curator Andrew Borman said. B次元官网网址淭he gameB次元官网网址檚 sprawling 3D world, fluid combat, complex puzzles and time-shifting story combined to inspire a wonder in players that they have never forgotten.B次元官网网址�
Sid MeierB次元官网网址檚 Civilization, released in 1991, was recognized as an influential simulation and strategy game. The game, which invited players to develop their own empires, launched a series of successor games, including the most recent Civilization: Beyond Earth and Civilization VI.
B次元官网网址淭he addictive nature of the game, which creator Sid Meier himself called the `one more turnB次元官网网址� quality, and its nearly unlimited choices that prevented repetitive gameplay, earned Civilization recognition from Computer Gaming World as the best video game of all time in 1996,B次元官网网址� said Jon-Paul Dyson, director of The StrongB次元官网网址檚 International Center for the History of Electronic games. B次元官网网址淎ltogether B次元官网网址� and given the extraordinarily long periods of play the game afforded B次元官网网址� players have engaged with the Civilization series for more than a billion hours.B次元官网网址�
Anyone can nominate a game for the World B次元官网网址 Game Hall of Fame. Final selections are made on the advice of journalists, scholars and others with knowledge of the history of video games and their role in society.
