China's largest professional video game museum officially opened to the public in Shanghai on Friday, vividly presenting the history of the industry.
Covering an area of 2,000 square meters in Shanghai's downtown Xuhui district, the Video Game Museum of CADPA (China Audio-Video and Digital Publishing Association) collects more than 5,000 pieces of game-related exhibits such as game consoles, personal computers, game software, game books and periodicals.
The exhibits are on display across four major sections, which respectively introduce the early situation of electronic games, the blossoming of console games, the development of computer games, and the chronicle of Chinese video games.
The retro decoration and setting bring visitors some nostalgic feeling of childhood summers playing games with friends.
"I feel like I'd been traveling back to my childhood, being in a 'time tunnel,'" said Shen Yang, a visitor.
One of the highlights at the museum is the world's first commercial home video game console Magnavox Odyssey that was released in the United States in September 1972 and overseas the following year.
The Odyssey consists of a white, black, and brown box that connects to a television set, with two rectangular controllers attached by wires.
"This is the first home video game console that was produced in 1972. Players need to put these transparent overlays on the family television and then connect the console to the television to play it," said Weng Xin, the curator of the museum.
The museum also features 20 interactive areas where visitors can not only enjoy classic video games on early arcade machines, home consoles, and handheld devices, but also play recent hits such as the newly released "Black Myth: Wukong" with state-of-the-art equipment.
"We hope to restore the history of games through physical objects, so that visitors can see the inseparable relationship between games and technology, culture and history in the development process. The game industry benefits from the nourishment of history and culture, and at the same time pushes forward technological progress," said Zhou Wei, manager of the museum.
China’s largest video game museum opens to public
