Intro
Location: G:\Press\LT Photos\Video Games\ 6985225363_38158000ec_c.jpg
EMBED: Smithsonian American Art Museum
Alt: People standing in front of video kiosks (Smithsonian American Art Museum)
The Art of Video Games: 40 Years
The Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM) explores how video games evolved into an artistic medium during the 40 years since the arcade video game Pac-Man jumped to the home video console. Kiosks allow visitors to experience how technology advanced over the years.
Credit: Smithsonian American Art Museum
Photo 1
Location: G:\Press\LT Photos\Video Games\StarStrike.tif
EMBED: Intellivision Productions Inc.
Alt: Video game screen shot (Hal Finney, Brett Stutz, programmers, Mattel Intellivision, 1981, Intellivision Productions Inc.)
Star Strike
Inspired by the special effects of the first Star Wars film (1977), Star Strike players defend the Earth against enemy spaceships and bomb an alien war machine. Speed and 3D enhance the action.
Credits: Hal Finney, Brett Stutz, programmers, Mattel Intellivision, 1981, Intellivision Productions Inc.
Photo 2
Location: G:\Press\LT Photos\Video Games\MarbleMadness.tif
EMBED: SEGA Master System
Alt: Video game screen shot (Mark Cerny, Steve Lamb, SEGA Master System, 1992)
Marble Madness
Inspired by artist M.C. Escher, game designer Mark Cerny was 18 when he developed the arcade video game Marble Madness. He utilized the trackball to control a marble through complex obstacle courses and enemy attacks. It was first published by Atari in 1984.
Credits: Mark Cerny, Steve Lamb, SEGA Master System, 1992
Photo 3
Location: G:\Press\LT Photos\Video Games \supermariobrothers3.tif
EMBED: Nintendo of America Inc.
Alt: Video game screen shot (Super Mario Brothers 3, Shigeru Miyamoto, Takashi Tezuka, Hiroshi Yamauchi, directors; Satoru Iwata, executive producer; Koji Kondo, composer, Nintendo Entertainment System, 1990, Nintendo of America Inc.)
Super Mario Brothers
The third version of this popular game pitted Mario against adversaries in the Mushroom World. Its music was advanced for the technology, amplifying the journey of discovery and the elements of surprise.
Credits: Super Mario Brothers 3, Shigeru Miyamoto, Takashi Tezuka, Hiroshi Yamauchi, directors; Satoru Iwata, executive producer; Koji Kondo, composer, Nintendo Entertainment System, 1990, Nintendo of America Inc.
Photo 4
Location: G:\Press\LT Photos\Video Games\TombRaider.tif
EMBED: SQUARE ENIX CO. LTD.
Alt: Video game screen shot (Jeremy H. Smith, executive producer; Toby Gard, Heather Gibson, Neal Boyd, graphic artists; Jason Gosling, Paul Douglas, Gavin Rummery, programmers, SEGA Saturn, 1996, © 1996 SQUARE ENIX CO. LTD. All Rights Reserved)
Tomb Raider
Adventurer-archeologist Lara Croft was the first female protagonist in a best-selling video game franchise. Successive versions incorporate increasingly complex music and technical elements, making Croft’s international exploits even more compelling than the original, depicted here.
Credits: Jeremy H. Smith, executive producer; Toby Gard, Heather Gibson, Neal Boyd, graphic artists; Jason Gosling, Paul Douglas, Gavin Rummery, programmers, SEGA Saturn, 1996, © 1996 SQUARE ENIX CO. LTD. All Rights Reserved
Photo 5
Location: G:\Press\LT Photos\Video Games\Einhander_1.TIF
EMBED: SQUARE ENIX CO. LTD.
Alt: Video game screen shot (Tetsuo Mizuno, Tomoyuki Takechi, Shinji Hashimoto, executive producers; Yusuke Hirata, producer; Tatsuo Fujii, director; Yuji Asano, lead design, PlayStation, 1998, © 1997, 1998 SQUARE ENIX CO. LTD. All Rights Reserved)
Einhänder
The first 3-D shooter game offered vibrant graphics, fact action and a techno soundtrack, an immersive experience for the player. The designers stretched the capacity of the medium by layering 3-D characters over 2-D backdrops.
Credits: Tetsuo Mizuno, Tomoyuki Takechi, Shinji Hashimoto, executive producers; Yusuke Hirata, producer; Tatsuo Fujii, director; Yuji Asano, lead design, PlayStation, 1998, © 1997, 1998 SQUARE ENIX CO. LTD. All Rights Reserved
Photo 6
Location: G:\Press\LT Photos\Video Games\Bioshock.tif
EMBED: 2K Games Inc./Take-Two Interactive Software Inc.
Alt: Video game screen shot (Ken Levine, creative director and executive producer; Paul Hellquist, lead designer; Dean Tate, senior designer and artist; Scott Sinclair, art director, Microsoft XBox 360, 2007, image courtesy of 2K Games Inc. and Take-Two Interactive Software Inc.)
Bioshock
A powerful story propels players into a dystopian city inspired by philosopher Ayn Rand and Art Deco architecture. In a reversal of Rand’s ethical characters, Ken Levine created a world free of ethics or rules where game decisions affect the outcome.
Credits: Ken Levine, creative director and executive producer; Paul Hellquist, lead designer; Dean Tate, senior designer and artist; Scott Sinclair, art director, Microsoft XBox 360, 2007, image courtesy of 2K Games Inc. and Take-Two Interactive Software Inc.
Photo 7
Location: G:\Press\LT Photos\Video Games\Flower.tif
EMBED: Sony Computer Entertainment America LLC
Alt: Video game screen shot (Jenova Chen, creative director; John Edwards, lead engineer. Developed by thatgamecompany LLC, Playstation 3, 2009, Sony Computer Entertainment America LLC)
Flower
“Games have so much freedom. You can go anywhere you want,” says creator Jenova Chen. Flower strives to offer a carefree experience to the player, providing intimate visual contact with the landscape.
Credits: Jenova Chen, creative director; John Edwards, lead engineer. Developed by thatgamecompany LLC, Playstation 3, 2009, Sony Computer Entertainment America LLC
Photo 8
Location: G:\Press\LT Photos\Video Games\MassEffect2.tif
EMBED: © 2010 Electronic Arts Inc.
Alt: Video game screen shot (Casey Hudson, director; Mac Walters, Drew Karpyshyn, writers; Casey Hudson, producer, Microsoft XBox 360, 2010, © 2010 Electronic Arts Inc. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners.)
Mass Effect
Forty years of technology and art allow today’s artists to create realistic visual interactions tailored to the player with detailed, sophisticated environments, characters and light and color effects. Mass Effect is a vivid example.
Credits: Casey Hudson, director; Mac Walters, Drew Karpyshyn, writers; Casey Hudson, producer, Microsoft XBox 360, 2010, © 2010 Electronic Arts Inc. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Photo 9
Location: G:\Press\LT Photos\Video Games\ 6836590012_cd020c286c_c.jpg
EMBED: Smithsonian American Art Museum
Alt: Bank of video screens (Smithsonian American Art Museum)
Significant Developments
Exhibition video panels such as this depicting the development of game mechanics — technologies that allow more expansive interactivity within a game — trace the evolution of games from the earliest efforts to recent, complex games.
Credit: Smithsonian American Art Museum
Photo 10
Location: G:\Press\LT Photos\Video Games\ kiosk6989730733_aaa1372fff_c.jpg
EMBED: Smithsonian American Art Museum
Alt: Boy standing in front of video kiosk (Smithsonian American Art Museum)
History Lesson for a 21st-Century Gamer
A young visitor to the Art of Video Games exhibition watches an early adventure video game, Pitfall (1982), at an interactive kiosk. Pitfall is noteworthy for creating fluid animation of the human form on the video console for the first time.
Credit: Smithsonian American Art Museum