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Animal Crossing Makes 2021 Video Game Hall of Fame
posted on by Adriana Hazra
The Strong — the self-described "national museum of play" in Rochester, New York — announced the 2021 inductees to its Video Game Hall of Fame on Thursday. The inductees include: Animal Crossing (2001), Microsoft Flight Simulator (1982), StarCraft (1998), and Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? (1985).
The larger field of 12 finalists also included: Call of Duty, FarmVille, FIFA International Soccer, Guitar Hero, Mattel Football, Pole Position, Portal, and Tron.
The Strong nominated 12 candidates in 2020, out of which the inductees included Bejeweled, Centipede, King's Quest, and Minecraft.
The public can vote on any one of the candidates, with the public collectively acting as one member of the voting committee.
The Strong launched the World Video Game Hall of Fame in 2015. The hall's inaugural class of games are Pong (1972), Pac-Man (1980), Tetris (1984), Super Mario Bros. (1985), Doom (1993), and World of Warcraft (2004).
In 2016, The Strong inducted The Legend of Zelda (1986), Sonic the Hedgehog (1991), Space Invaders (1978), Grand Theft Auto III (2001), The Oregon Trail (1971), and The Sims (2000).
In 2017, the inductees included: Donkey Kong (1981), Halo: Combat Evolved (2001), Pokémon Red and Green (1996), and Street Fighter II (1991).
In 2018, the inductees included: Spacewar! (1962), John Madden Football (1990), Tomb Raider (1996), and Final Fantasy VII (1997).
In 2019, the inductees included: Colossal Cave Adventure (1976) Microsoft Windows Solitaire (1990), Mortal Kombat (1992), and Super Mario Kart (1992).
The museum describes the selection process:
Anyone may nominate a game to the World Video Game Hall of Fame. Final selections are made on the advice of journalists, scholars, and other individuals familiar with the history of video games and their role in society.
The museum's International Center for the History of Electronic Games is hosting a permanent display of the Hall of Fame honorees in its eGameRevolution exhibit. The museum also houses the Brian Sutton-Smith Library and Archives of Play, the National Toy Hall of Fame, the Woodbury School, and the American Journal of Play.
The Animal Crossing: New Horizons game is the latest entry in the Animal Crossing video game franchise and the first game in the series for the Nintendo Switch. The game was originally slated to ship in 2019, but was delayed to March 20, 2020. The game sold 1.88 million copies in Japan in its first three days, the highest ever number of first-week copies sold for a Switch game in Japan. As of March 31, the game has sold 32.63 million copies worldwide.
Viz Media will release the Animal Crossing: New Horizons-Deserted Island Diary (Atsumare Doubutsu no Mori: Mujintо̄ no Diary) manga in English.
Sources: The Strong's website and Twitter account via Crunchyroll
