There usually isn’t a theme associated with the World Video Game Hall of Fame‘s annual induction ceremony, but a desire to explore new destinations seems to be at the core of each of this year’s selections. We’ll probably never know if this is just a coincidence or a reaction to last year’s pandemic-related lockdowns, but it’s certainly something to think about it.
On that note, fresh off the success of last year’s Animal Crossing: New Horizons, the first member of the Class of 2021 is Nintendo’s Animal Crossing, a game where players move to a new town and meet a wide variety of colorful characters as they build their home. Likewise, the 2020 launch of the newest edition of Microsoft Flight Simulator probably helped the original 1982 release succeed in its bid for Hall of Fame immortality.
The Class of 2021 also includes Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, an “edutainment” classic where players follow the clues and chase a master thief across the globe. And finally, Blizzard’s StarCraft was inducted this year after it sent players hurtling across the galaxy for an RTS space opera that also rewrote the rules for esports.
Historians and curators from the World Video Game Hall of Fame shared their own thoughts about what made each of these games special in a short video, which can be found after the break.
“The freedom of play in Animal Crossing gave the game wider gender and age appeal than many other video game titles of its time,” said Research Historian Racquel Gonzales. “The low stakes of Animal Crossing also allowed people to play at their own leisure without penalty. These elements may help explain why its latest installment proved such a huge hit during the COVID-19 pandemic, when everyone was searching for a little neighborly sociability.”
“It’s hard to overestimate what a groundbreaking program Microsoft Flight Simulator was when it debuted in 1982,” said Jeremy Saucier, the Assistant Vice President for Interpretation and Electronic Games. “For the first time, amateur and professional aviators could navigate the skies… without ever leaving home. And the joy of flight is universal, which is perhaps why Microsoft Flight Simulator has continued to captivate gamers for decades.”
“StarCraft added a new twist to the strategy game formula while leading a revolution in multiplayer gaming,” said Digital Games Curator Andrew Borman. “It’s regarded as one of the best real-time strategy games of all time and significantly impacted many of the real-time strategy games that have followed in the past two decades.”
“Between the still-growing video game franchise (including a Google Earth tie-in) and the game’s recent run as a show on Netflix, Carmen Sandiego is as recognizable a character as ever,” said Archivist Julia Novakovic. “Is she an evil villain or a misunderstood genius? You’ll have to track her across the globe to find out!”
While these four games are now full members of the World Video Game Hall of Fame, eight other titles from this year’s shortlist will have to hope for another nomination next year: Zynga’s FarmVille, Activision’s Call of Duty, EA Sports’s FIFA International Soccer, Harmonix’s Guitar Hero, Mattel Football, Namco’s Pole Position, Valve’s Portal, and Midway’s Tron.
Thankfully, the Hall of Fame has already opened the Nominate A Game page on their official website for the Class of 2022.