Microsoft Solitaire was officially inducted into the 2019 class of The Strong’s Video Game Hall of Fame. Also inducted in the same class are Mortal Kombat, Super Mario Kart, and Colossal Cave Adventure.
These four games were selected from a field of 12 finalists which included Candy Crush Saga, Centipede, Dance Dance Revolution, Half-Life, Myst, NBA 2K, Sid Meier’s Civilization, and Super Smash Bros. Melee.
The World Video Game Hall of Fame is organized by The Strong Museum and was established back in 2015 with the goal of recognizing all types of electronic games. These are games, according to The Strong, “that enjoyed popularity over a sustained period and have exerted influence on the video game industry or on popular culture and society in general.”
Looking at this year’s four inductees, it is clear that they span across decades, gaming platforms, and even countries of origin. For The Strong, they were chosen since these four games “have significantly affected the video game industry, popular culture, and society.”
In a press release, The Strong provided a background on the four inductees:
Mortal Kombat
Mortal Kombat 11 has recently been released, but the version being inducted is the original from 1992. The violence in the game grabbed the attention of many people, which resulted in Congressional hearings. In fact, this game was responsible for the creation of the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) in 1994.
According to Digital Games Curator Andrew Borman, putting aside the controversial content, the game offered “compelling gameplay, iconic characters, and many sequels have kept players coming back again and again.”
Microsoft Solitaire has been inducted into the World Video Game Hall of Fame https://t.co/d4Esl1tVDd pic.twitter.com/UKd6wjJv0p
— PC Gamer (@pcgamer) May 4, 2019
Microsoft Solitaire
The game is based on an old card game and made its debut on the Windows 3.0 platform in 1990. Since its release, it has been played in at least 200 markets worldwide and even localized in 65 languages. The popularity of Solitaire showed that there was a market for games that appeal to people of all ages and types. The Assistant Vice-President for Electronic Games and Interpretation said that the game “helped pave the way for the growth of the casual gaming market that remains so popular today.”
Super Mario Kart
Super Mario Kart from Nintendo gained its appeal mainly for combining the excitement offered from racing games with the iconic characters of the Super Mario Bros. franchise. It has since sold at least a million copies and even resulted in a number of new titles released across different platforms. Archivist Julia Novakovic shared that Super Mario Kart served “as a social game that appealed to players of all skill levels, especially with its engaging multi-player settings.” The way that Super Mario Kart managed to get together family, friends, and gaming fans of all ages to have fun is the main reason why this is the longest-running racing series.
Colossal Cave Adventure
Colossal Cave Adventure is a text-based game launched in 1976. The game had players type various written commands. Even without any graphics, Colossal Cave Adventure still offered a realm that players could explore, solve puzzles, and find treasures. It would serve as the inspiration for both Adventureland and Zork. Jon-Paul Dyson, director of The Strong’s International Center for the History of Electronic Games, related that the best games are the ones that “fire the imagination.” He added that for players “who first typed a command like ‘get lamp’ into Colossal Cave Adventure could see the power of electronic games to create magical worlds of the imagination.”
