ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WKBW) — Attention video game fans!
In AM Buffalo's "Nerd Alert" segment for the month of June 2023 - Emily Lampa & Nick Waligorski take their kids (and you) behind the scenes of The Strong Museum of Play in Rochester - where construction is wrapping up and the finishing touches are going in - for the ESL Digital Worlds Experience!
According to Jon-Paul Dyson, the Director of the International Center for the History of Electronic Games at The Strong Museum of Play, the culmination of all this hard work proves, "video games come to life here at The Strong."
Dyson is also the VP for Exhibits at the museum and was kind enough to take the Waligorski Family on a private behind the scenes, hard-hat, tour of the expansion project a few weeks ago.
"This is a chance to celebrate video games, " Dyson told Nick and Emily, "what amazing works of art they are...how much fun they are...how important they've been historically...with this collection that is unique in the world."
He also admits, it's now crunch time to make sure everything is ready for their grand reopening.
“June 30th is coming really fast," he said with a laugh, " but we're so excited because we have an amazing team, an experienced team. We've been doing these exhibits, interactive exhibits for a long time...though these exhibits have stretched us like never before."
This brand new space at The Strong is approximately 24,000 square feet of video game history, presented to visitors in a fun way, which of course, is very on-brand for the Museum of Play.
The fun starts outside with a new outdoor play space called the Hasbro Game Park.
In the atrium of the new space there will be giant statues and an equally massive 20-foot Donkey Kong arcade game, that will be playable.
Dyson tells us this will be the largest Donkey Kong Arcade game in the world and that The Strong worked closely with Nintendo to get everything exactly right. He adds that the game will run off an original board made for the arcade game.
The entire ESL Digital World's Experience will be an opportunity to show off what The Strong has boasted for years...they have the world's largest video game collection.
“Games," said Dyson of this collection, "one of the reasons we collect them is they reveal things about culture, about how we perceive the world."
Part of the new expansion is the Level Up exhibit. Once complete, it will take visitors into the video game experience like never before.
“We have an amazing team here," said Dyson as he walked through the exhibit, "people who are just creative. They're not only create and idea generators, they also figure out how to do it in real life, too."
In the interactive Level Up exhibit, you get a wristband that tracks your personal experience. You create a character and as you move through the space you play and earn achievements.
Dyson assures visitors that you don't have to be an experienced gamer to have a great time here, "They're fun experiences even if you don't know which end of a controller is which. there's still experiences that will be fun, whether you're young, whether you're old, whether you're an experienced gamer, whether you're just a newbie.
"This is something that we keep in mind when we're creating exhibits," he added. "People are coming from all different backgrounds, and most importantly, the vast majority of our guests are coming in groups. They're coming together. You want to have a social experience.
In the High Score exhibit, not only is the history of video games laid out in a extensive interactive timeline, but they're spotlighting diversity in gaming, and there is now a physical home for the World Video Game Hall of Fame.
"These are game that have lasted because they are influential. They have longevity. They're icons, or they have geographical reach." explained Dyson. "They're played around the world."
The Strong started collecting video games in 2006, and in 2015 they established the World Video Game Hall of Fame, partnering with an international advisory committee, as well as including fans in the vote, to decide which games will be inducted each year.
Check Out The World Video Game Hall of Fame Inductees of 2023 and past years.
“The new exhibits will be open on June 30th, but every weekend they'll be different activities," Dyson said of new programing coming to The Strong. "We not only create permanent exhibits and temporary exhibits, we also do one time programs and special weekend activities or week-long events."
If you're thinking, there's just too much to see in one visit, the folks at The Strong have considered that, too.
As part of a neighborhood team-up on this big debut, a brand new hotel is going up next door to the museum, so you can plan extended stays in the area.
And when you finally decide to hit pause on your visit, until next time, don't forget to exit through the gift shop! That's new, too. It's called the Playhouse and we're told there will be plenty of video game themed fun to take home with you.
