The Strong National Museum of Play has revealed the 12 finalists for the World Video Game Hall of Fame’s 2025 inductions. The inductees for the Rochester, New York-based museum will be announced on May 8.
Each game has a blurb that describes the impact that it made on the industry. For example, Frogger transcended its arcade origins and integrated into everyday culture, such as TV and music. The finalists aren’t limited to strictly digital games either. Gaming electronic devices like Mattel Football and Tamagotchi are included too. Mattel Football was the first blockbuster handheld game that introduced players to portable gaming, eventually paving way for the Nintendo Game Boy and mobile devices.
Not every finalist will make it into the Hall of Fame this year, but those that are passed over are still eligible to be added in subsequent years. For example, Age of Empires, GoldenEye 007, NBA 2K, Angry Birds, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, and Quake were finalists in 2023, but weren’t inducted. However, they’re now back as nominees this year.
2025’s newcomers include Defender, Golden Tee Golf, Harvest Moon, and Tamagotchi. Last year’s inductees were Asteroids, Myst, Resident Evil, SimCity, and Ultima. You can also check out the current inductees so far.
Age of Empires
Age of Empires was developed by Ensemble Studios and released in 1997.
Angry Birds
Angry Birds was developed by Rovio and released in 2009.
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare was developed by Activision and released in 2007.
Defender
Defender was developed by Williams Electronics and released in 1981.
Frogger
Frogger was developed by Konami and released in 1981.
GoldenEye 007
GoldenEye 007 was developed by Rare and released in 1997.
Golden Tee
Golden Tee was developed by Incredible Technologies and released in 1989.
Harvest Moon
Harvest Moon was developed by Amccus and released in 1996.
Mattel Football
Mattel Football was developed by Mattel and released in 1977.
NBA 2K
NBA 2K was developed by Visual Concepts and was released in 1999.
Quake
Quake was developed by Id Software and released in 1996.
Tamagotchi
Tamagotchi was developed by Bandai and released in 1996.