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Exploring Gaming History at Game Developers Conference
SAN FRANCISCO—Trade shows like the Game Developers Conference and the (dearly departed) E3 are a great chance to see what’s coming down the pike for the game industry. They are also an excellent opportunity to celebrate the history of gaming, as evidenced by numerous on-site photo galleries in previous years.
The Video Game History Foundation (VGHF) showcased a unique history display at this year’s Game Developers Conference. Unlike past history-focused booths that simply displayed random collectibles, VGHF took a more curated approach. Mini-exhibits focused on specific topics like women in gaming, oddities of gaming music, and an entire case dedicated to a little-known entry in a famous edutainment series.
One central case highlighted the idea that various ephemera, such as design docs, photos, pre-release prototypes, newsletters, and promotional items, are all integral parts of video game history. The organization encourages developers, journalists, and fans to preserve even seemingly insignificant items as they might become valuable historic relics in the future.
As the Game Developers Conference draws to a close, enjoy this gallery featuring some of the unique historical specimens on display at this year’s show.
Unique Displays at VGHF Booth
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Only the most dedicated “Carmen” fans—or North Dakotan educators of a certain age—are likely to have this one in their collections.
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These “pretty cool stickers” came from a “Carmen Day” kit the producer Broderbund sent to school to encourage themed edutainment activities that went beyond the screen.
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As a nearby placard laments: “When female human characters were depicted in early video games, they often fell into stereotypical roles”—nature-loving girls or sexualized adults being chief among them.
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Despite the lack of diverse female representation in early games, early game ads were often equal-opportunity affairs.
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Don’t be fooled by the wide variety of headshots on these boxes—you needed to invest in “Alter Ego: Female Version” to get the full suite of personas.
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We’re struggling to think of any other video games that came packaged with a harmonica.
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A standard Game Boy Camera hooked up to USB-C output via a customized board. VGHF used the setup to trade customized postcards for donations.
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“EXTREME CLOSE-UP IS EXTREMELY SIGNIFICANT.”
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Be the coolest beachgoer in all of Zebes with these promotional sunglasses
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A ’90s photo of the Maxis team, including a downright baby-faced Will Wright.
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VGHF’s Phil Salvador told me that this cow was one of the top results when you searched for “’90s mousepad” on eBay.
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The brief heyday of music-based CD-ROM “multimedia” experiences is rightly forgotten by most consumers, and rightly remembered by organizations like VGHF.
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Ever wonder what specific pantone swatch to use for that perfect “Joker jacket purple”? Wonder no longer!
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