Computerspielemuseum in Berlin

A while ago I came across the advert of the Video Games Museum (Computerspiele Museum) in Berlin. While video games were definitely seen as child's play during my childhood, they gradually gained the recognition of an art form. To honor the milestones of gaming history and to introduce visitors to the long (and partly unknown to many) history of video games hard- and software, the Video Games Museum was founded in Berlin. Initially founded as an organization, the collection is on display in its current location on the Frankfurter Allee (near subway station Weberwiese) since the end of the 90s. This weekend, I finally had the opportunity to pay the museum a visit.

Entrance to every video game nerd's lair

One section displays the milestones of video game history. I knew most of them, though not all. Via an old school joystick, one can navigate through the game milestones and a short demo is played on the top screen including a short text introduction.

While most of the exhibitions depicted more modern forms of video games (70s - today), the Computerspielemuseum is not limited to them as the history of computer games goes back way further. Arguably the first "computer" in history, or so the people thought, was The Turk. Supposedly a chess computer that fascinated the people back in the 18th century, the "computer" was in fact a human that hided inside the voluminous body of the fake machine.

Another exhibit I found interesting was the Pain Station, a huge machine on which's surface two people could play the classic Pong against each other. The catch is that after every match, pain is inflicted to the in form of heat or electric shocks delivered to the hand resting on a special device. The player who gives in to removes his hand first looses.

While I was there, two brave gamer tried out the pain station. Watch them play here:

 

Last but not least, while most of the exhibitions are permanent, a small corner of the museum displayed video game artwork as part of a special exhibition.

A visit is definitely recommended. Even though the museum itself is quite small, it is well done and I believe not so many of its kind exist.