2025 Inductees into the World Video Game Hall of Fame: Quake and GoldenEye

I remember, sitting in my basement, joystick in hand—Defender was lighting up our lives in ways I can’t quite describe. Fast forward to the now, and bam! It’s officially in the World Video Game Hall of Fame. Crazy, right? Thursday’s shoutout from the Strong National Museum of Play made it official. Not just Defender though—GoldenEye 007, Quake, and those little plastic egg creatures, Tamagotchi, all made the cut. I mean, Tamagotchi? Who didn’t abandon one of those on accident?

Thing is, they climbed from a long list, right? So many games, like remnants of the wild gaming past—Age of Empires, Angry Birds (flinging those furious little things), Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (the hours lost there), Frogger, Golden Tee, Harvest Moon, Mattel Football (vintage joy!), and NBA 2K. I almost feel guilty for picking favorites.

Let’s think about why these four stood out. They’re like that band everyone knows, influential in so many little moments of gaming life. The museum folks say they’ve judged on some yardsticks: icon vibes, how long they’ve been cool, who’s playing them globally, and—this one’s a kicker—real influence. Remember Quake? From the same crew that made Doom (that legend got tagged in 2015 already).

Okay—here’s the personal bit, because why not. Defender took me back, GoldenEye 007 made my cousins frenemies during holidays, Quake—absolute chaos online, and Tamagotchis taught us about responsibility. Sort of.

Since 2015-ish, the hall has added about 49 games. Last year, they invited some fantastic titles, Asteroids (space nostalgia), Myst (those puzzles, man), Resident Evil (spooky stuff), Ultima, and SimCity (design dreams). These choices are like going back in time, a high-score chart of gaming memories.

Anyway, I’m rambling—games do that.