One Manhattan Square
Rochester, NY 14607 USA
+1 585-263-2700

Latest News

 

ICHEG Staff (L to R)
Jon-Paul C. Dyson and Eric Wheeler

 

Expansive research library supports ICHEG at the Strong

 

 

 

 

 

About the International Center for the History of Electronic Games™

The International Center for the History of Electronic Games (ICHEG) collects, studies, and interprets electronic games and related materials and the ways in which electronic games are changing how people play, learn, and connect with each other, including across boundaries of culture and geography.

Situated at Strong National Museum of Play^®

Home to the world’s most comprehensive collection of artifacts of play, Strong National Museum of Play is the only museum anywhere devoted solely to play and the ways in which it encourages learning, creativity, and discovery and illuminates cultural history. Electronic games are a profoundly influential form of play, affecting not only how people play, but also how they learn and how they live. Therefore, the museum established ICHEG to help ensure that electronic games and related materials are collected, preserved, and interpreted for both present and future generations.

The ICHEG collections

ICHEG defines electronic games broadly to include video games, computer games, console games, arcade games, handheld games, and toys that combine digital and traditional play. At more than 20,000 items and growing, the ICHEG collection is the largest and most comprehensive public collection of electronic games and game-related historical materials in the United States and one of the largest in the world. It is also the only one anywhere that is linked directly with a world-class collection of more than 100,000 board and role-playing games, toys, and other artifacts of play that have inspired and informed the creation and development of electronic games. ICHEG is additionally supported by a research library of more than 100,000 volumes, including vintage comics and children’s books and the largest collection of toy catalogs in the United States.

The collection includes:

• Games
• Game platforms
• Packaging and advertising
• Publications
• Electronic-game-inspired consumer products
• Personal and business papers of key figures in the electronic-game industry
• Literary and popular inspirations of electronic-game imagery and content
• Electronic-game antecedents
• Associated artifacts and documents that represent or illustrate the impact of electronic games on people’s lives

For additional information see Frequently Asked Questions and view Strong’s online collections catalog.

Interpretative activities

ICHEG develops exhibits and undertakes other activities to interpret the historical and cultural significance of electronic games to ensure that present and future generations can explore that history, understand how it began and evolved, and appreciate the impact that electronic games have on society. In fall 2010, museum guests will be able to explore even more about the history and future of electronic games and their impact on people’s lives in eGameRevolution, an expansive, artifact-rich exhibit where guests can play classic video games, the latest console games, and everything in between.

CHEGheads Blog

In a weekly blog, the CHEGheads—three experts from the International Center for the History of Electronic Games and their frequent special guests—spotlight key and unusual artifacts from the vast ICHEG collection and offer insightful commentary about the past, present, and future of electronic games.

Publications

The International Center for the History of Electronic Games supports the publication of articles and book reviews about electronic games in the American Journal of Play, an interdisciplinary scholarly quarterly of Strong National Museum of Play.