Arcade Icons Pong, Pac-Man, Super Mario Bros. & Tetris Celebrate Hall of Fame Induction
A tapestry of blinking dots and heroic leaps unfurls across our collective memory, turning pixels into poetry. The World Video Game Hall of Fame at The Strong museum in Rochester has bestowed eternal laurels on four icons: Pong, Pac-Man, Super Mario Bros. and Tetris. Announced on April 22, 2021, the induction ceremony paid homage to games that reshaped our imaginations and rewrote the rules of play.
In a gesture as grand as a symphonic overture, Pong’s minimalist paddle-and-ball ballet—born in 1972—reclaimed its crown as gaming’s primordial heartbeat. According to IGN, museum director Chris Melissinos lauded Pong’s “simple perfection” and its role in catapulting arcades into cultural coliseums. Not far behind, Pac-Man’s chomping heroism from 1980 drew cheers for pioneering game design and unforgettably catchy sound effects, as highlighted by People Magazine’s retrospective.
Super Mario Bros. leapt onto center stage next, evoking a world where plumbers become legends. Since its 1985 release, Mario’s pixel-perfect jumps have inspired countless tributes, fan art and even academic studies on narrative in early gaming. PC Gamer notes that Mario’s Hall of Fame nod underscores Nintendo’s enduring legacy and the timeless appeal of exploration. Then Tetris, the Russian masterpiece of 1984, brought its falling-block poetry to the ceremony, remembered for its hypnotic challenge and nearly universal reach across consoles and cultures. The Verge observed that Tetris’s induction marks a triumph of design elegance over time.
Each nominee was vetted by the International Center for the History of Electronic Games, evaluated on icon status, longevity, and influence. This year’s slate, drawn from a shortlist of 15 crowd-nominated classics, prompted both cheers and playful grumbles online—some fans still await Sonic the Hedgehog or Street Fighter II. Yet the quartet selected embodies the magic of interactive storytelling in its purest form.
As flashing screens and tiny chiptunes echoed through the halls, attendees and livestream viewers alike marveled at how these 8-bit and vector marvels shaped careers, communities and entire industries. From college dorm rooms to packed arcades, they’ve been the lullaby of lonely nights and the spark of lifelong passions.
And so, the symphony of bleeps and bloops continues to echo through history, each roster addition a new movement in gaming’s grand opus. A bittersweet ending, or merely the beginning?
Sources: Celebrity Storm and People Magazine, IGN, PC Gamer, The Verge
Attribution: Creative Commons Licensed
