Iowa: Video Game Capital of the World

August 6, 2011 may seem like a long ways away, but there is no time like the present to start compiling your lists of faves for induction into the Video Game Hall of Fame…the ceremony for which takes place on the aforementioned date.

The International Video Game Hall of Fame, in Ottumwa Iowa, is looking for public input as it compiles a list of nominees for each of its five categories. Each year, up to eighteen entities are inducted. This year, there is room for the following:

Gamers: Up to eight gamers, such as record holders, tournament leaders and other leaders in the competitive areas of the field, can be placed in the hall.

Industry Designers: There is room for as many as three individuals who have contributed to the industry in any number of fields, such as technology, music, graphic design and many, many more.

Contributions to the Industry: This award goes to individuals, groups of individuals, companies or organizations who have become known for milestones and flagship moments that have inspired gaming. It pans many genre and can include TV and film, inventors, business leaders and others who have inspired the world of gaming. There is room for three inductees in this category.

Games: Quite self explanatory, the field of games had room for three inductees. Historical games that have been crucial to the advancement of the pastime are selected.

Lifetime Achievement Award: The most coveted of all the awards, with only one being issued, the Lifetime Achievement Award is given to a single major contributor to field of video gaming.

This year, the IVGHoF took nominations from the public, which ended March 15, 2011 to help create a master list of possible nominees. Those ballots are currently being tallied and weighed for vote. There are thirty people from the industry involved in the selection process.

Check out the website for more information, and take a sneak peek back at 2010 to see what goodies were found in the virgin class. The founder of Atari made it, as did the creator of Donkey Kong. Stay tuned to see who will make the list this year, but don’t expect another enormous gala like last year. IVGHoF is considering cancelling or postponing Big Bang 2011 due to lack of funding. If they make it work, however, look for gaming tournaments and legendary games gaming stations.

Tags: Atari 2600, Donkey Kong

This entry was posted on Saturday, June 11th, 2011 at 08:00 and is filed under Retrogamer Events. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.