Game On (exhibition)

Game On is the first major international touring exhibition to explore the history and culture of computer games. The exhibition was first shown at the Barbican Centre in 2002 and has since been toured by Barbican International Enterprises to over 20 countries worldwide. It has been seen by over 2 million people across the globe.

Focusing on key game developments from the early sixties to the present day, Game On explores gaming’s fascinating past and infinitely innovative future. From the PDP–1 in 1960 to contemporary industry releases, the exhibition examines the creative and scientific advances that have revolutionised the games we play.

Game On reveals the design processes behind four of the most significant games of recent times: Tomb Raider, Grand Theft Auto, Pokémon and The Sims, following these games all the way from their initial concept to the final product design.

With over 150 playable games including Donkey Kong, Pong and Rock Band- as well as the top ten most influential consoles – the exhibition is a truly interactive experience. Games and consoles are constantly updated to ensure the exhibition is always reflective of current movements and trends.

Game On aims to highlight the wider, global framework of gaming, exploring the influence of manga and anime on computer games, as well as the films that have been influenced by, and continue to influence computer games. The exhibition further delves into the worlds of online gaming, music compositions for games, as well as the latest game technologies.^[1]

Showings

• Barbican Art Gallery, London (May 2002 to September 2002)
• The Royal Museum at the National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh (October 2002 to February 2003)
• Tilburg Art Foundation, Netherlands (May 2003 to August 2003)
• Helsinki City Art Museum, Finland (September 2003 to December 2003)
• A European Capital of Culture event in Lille, France (May 2004 to August 2004)
• Eretz Israel Museum in Israel (September 2004 to January 2005)^[2]
• The Tech Museum of Innovation, San Jose (September 2005 to January 2006)^[2]
• Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago (March 2005 to September 2005), ( February 2006 to April 2006)^[2]
• Pacific Science Center, Seattle (May 2006 to August 2006)^[2]
• Science Museum, London (October 2006 to February 2007)^[2]
• Cyberport, Hong Kong (July 2007 to October 2007)
• Australian Centre for the Moving Image, Melbourne (March 2008 to July 2008)^[2]
• State Library of Queensland, Brisbane (November 2008 to February 2009)
• National Science and Technology Museum, Kaohsiung, Taiwan (18 July to 31 October 2009)
• The Cellars of Cureghem, Brussels (December 2009 to April 2010)
• Ambassador Theatre, Dublin ( 20 September 2010 to 30 January 2011)^[3]
• Galerías Monterrey, Monterrey, Mexico (30 April to 30 June 2011)
• Museu da Imagem e do Som (MIS), São Paulo, Brazil (10 November 2011 to 8 January 2012)
• CCBB, Brasília (26 January to 26 February 2012)
• Museum of Popular Art, Lisbon, Portugal (16 March to 30 June 2012)
• Costanera Center, Santiago Chile (27 March 2013 to 15 May 2013)
• Tecnopolis, Buenos Aires, Argentina (12 July 2013 to 3 November 2013)
• Montreal Science Centre, Montreal, Canada (15 April 2015 to 13 September 2015)
• National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation, Tokyo, Japan (2 March 2016 to 30 May 2016)^[4]

Game On 2.0

In 2010, the original show Game On was re-curated by Barbican International Enterprises and the exhibition Game On 2.0 was produced. Game On 2.0 has been exhibited at:

• Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery, Launceston, Tasmania (3 July to 3 October 2010)^[5]
• Technopolis, Athens, Greece (16 December 2010 to 16 March 2011)
• Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, Portland, Oregon (2 July to 18 September 2011)
• Kinokino centre for Art and Film, Sandnes, Norway (25 February to 9 June 2012)
• VAM Design Center, Budapest, Hungary (19 October 2012 to 8 January 2013)
• Ontario Science Centre, Toronto, Canada (9 March to 2 September 2013)
• Swedish National Museum of Science and Technology, Stockholm, Sweden (25 October 2013 to 28 September 2014)^[6]
• Life Science Centre, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK (23 May 2015 to 3 January 2016)^[7]

Games that have been exhibited

See also

• The Art of Video Games - A similar exhibition at the Smithsonian Museum that explores the artistic aspects of video games.
• Game Masters (exhibition) - A similar exhibition at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image that explores key designers of the video game medium.
• List of video games in the Museum of Modern Art - a list of video games in a similar, but smaller exhibition of the Museum of Modern Art.

References

Further reading

• King, L. ed., Game on: The History and Culture of Videogames (London, Laurence King: 2002).

[This collection was published in association with the Game On exhibition]