List of video games in the Museum of Modern Art
Updated: 11/6/2025, 1:20:21 AM Wikipedia source
A number of video games were selected by the Museum of Modern Art, located in New York City, as part of its permanent collection. These games were chosen by the Museum of Modern Art in order to showcase design elements within them. Fourteen initial games were announced in November 2012, with plans to expand the collection to up to forty games over time, as the museum is able to acquire the display rights for them. Six more games were added to the collection in June 2013, as well as a game console. Curated by Paola Antonelli, the collection was included in the exhibition Applied Design in the Philip Johnson Architecture and Design Galleries. In these galleries, around a hundred objects that represent contemporary design were displayed. Most games in the collection are playable on some level and all are displayed in a manner to minimize the influence of nostalgia.
Tables
mw- Collection · Collection
| Title | Developer | Platform | Year | Notes | Wave | Sources |
| Another World | Delphine Software International | Various | 1991 | 1 | ||
| Asteroids | Atari | Arcade | 1979 | 2 | ||
| Canabalt | Adam Saltsman | Mobile | 2009 | 1 | ||
| Dwarf Fortress | Tarn Adams | PC | 2006 | Each time a new version of Dwarf Fortress is made available, MoMA instantly downloads and archives the version in its secure servers. The complex game is available to visitors as a "cinematic trailer". | 1 | |
| Eve Online | CCP Games | PC | 2003 | The massively multiplayer online video game is installed as a "day in the universe" of the game. Additionally, MoMA offers data of the virtual economy that has developed within Eve Online since its release in 2003 via a video presentation. | 1 | |
| Flow | Thatgamecompany | PlayStation | 2006 | 1 | ||
| Katamari Damacy | Namco | PlayStation 2 | 2004 | Originally part of MoMA's "Century of the Child: Growing by Design" exhibit. | 1 | |
| Magnavox Odyssey | Ralph Baer | 1972 | First generation home video game console | 2 | ||
| Minecraft | Mojang | PC | 2011 | 2 | ||
| Myst | Cyan Worlds | Various | 1993 | Available only as a video demonstration | 1 | |
| Never Alone | E-Line Media | Various | 2015 | Video Games and Other Interactive Design Sep 10, 2022–Jul 16, 2023 | ||
| Pac-Man | Namco | Arcade | 1980 | 1 | ||
| Passage | Jason Rohrer | PC | 2008 | 1 | ||
| Pong | Atari | Various | 1972 | 2 | ||
| Portal | Valve | Various | 2007 | 1 | ||
| SimCity 2000 | Maxis | Various | 1994 | Due to the game's complexity, a visual demo is prepared, and screenshots of the game are displayed on a floor-to-ceiling, multi-column mural. | 1 | |
| The Sims | Maxis | Various | 2000 | Available only as a video demonstration | 1 | |
| Snake | Nokia | Various | 1997 | 4 | ||
| Space Invaders | Taito | Arcade | 1978 | 2 | ||
| Street Fighter II | Capcom | Arcade | 1991 | MoMA's copy is Hyper Street Fighter II | 3 | |
| Tempest | Atari | Arcade | 1981 | 2 | ||
| Tetris | Alexey Pajitnov | Various | 1985 | MoMA's copy of Tetris runs on an Apple computer mimicking the specific Soviet-era computer it was designed for in 1985. | 1 | |
| Vib-Ribbon | NanaOn-Sha | PlayStation | 1999 | 1 | ||
| Yars' Revenge | Atari | Atari 2600 | 1982 | 2 |
References
- Antonelli, Paolahttps://www.ted.com/talks/paola_antonelli_why_i_brought_pac_man_to_moma?language=en
- PC Magazinehttps://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2416148,00.asp
- "Inside MoMA's Classic Video Games Exhibit"http://mashable.com/2013/03/01/moma-video-games-exhibit-pics/#_
- The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/jonathanjonesblog/2012/nov/30/moma-video-games-art
- Tetrishttps://www.wired.com/2013/05/moma-video-games/
- VentureBeathttps://venturebeat.com/2012/07/30/katamari-damacy-is-arty-enough-for-the-new-york-museum-of-modern-art/
- "MoMA Exhibit to Feature 'Pac-Man' and 13 Other Video Game Classics"http://mashable.com/2013/02/27/moma-video-games-exhibit/
- "The Museum of Modern Art embraces all aspects of digital culture and design"https://web.archive.org/web/20150911060510/http://www.pri.org/stories/2014-12-15/museum-modern-art-embraces-all-aspects-digital-culture-and-design
- Polygonhttp://www.polygon.com/2013/6/28/4475548/moma-adds-magnavox-odyssey-and-six-classics-to-game-design-exhibit
- "MoMA Acquires 14 Video Games for Architecture and Design Collection"https://web.archive.org/web/20150908154347/http://press.moma.org/2012/12/moma-acquires-14-video-games-for-architecture-and-design-collection/
- "Video Games: 14 in the Collection, for Starters"http://www.moma.org/explore/inside_out/2012/11/29/video-games-14-in-the-collection-for-starters/
- "Video Games: Seven More Building Blocks in MoMA's Collection"http://www.moma.org/explore/inside_out/2013/06/28/video-games-seven-more-building-blocks-in-momas-collection
- Polygonhttps://web.archive.org/web/20151019142348/http://www.polygon.com/2014/8/6/5973295/dwarf-fortress-is-changing-how-moma-preserves-art
- VentureBeathttps://venturebeat.com/2015/05/12/eve-online-exhibit-to-become-a-permanent-fixture-at-new-yorks-museum-of-modern-art/
- The New York Timeshttps://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/04/arts/video-games/a-museums-games-are-not-on-pedestals.html
- "Taneli Armanto. Snake. 1997"https://www.moma.org/collection/works/196072
- "Yoshiki Okamoto, Akira Yasuda. Hyper Street Fighter II: The Anniversary Edition. 1991 (this edition 2003)"https://www.moma.org/collection/works/174208