Ep. 72: Happy 5th Birthday!

Ep. 72: Happy 5th Birthday!

Author: Video Game History Foundation February 23, 2022 Duration: 1:16:29

Join us in our celebration of the Video Game History Foundation’s 5th birthday! Let’s take a ride through history as we retrace the long road to how the VGHF came together, what we’ve been up to for these last 5 years, and where we’re going next. Thank you to everyone that has contributed to our dream; we hope we have made, and will continue to make, you proud. Everything we’ve done has only been possible because we’ve had the support of those around us, near and far, and we’re eternally grateful. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you!

Video Game History Foundation

Podcast Twitter: @gamehistoryhour

Email: podcast@gamehistory.org

Twitter: @GameHistoryOrg

Website: gamehistory.org

Support us on Patreon: /gamehistoryorg


Ever wonder how the stories behind your favorite games actually get uncovered? Video Game History Hour pulls back the curtain on that process, hosted by Frank Cifaldi from the Video Game History Foundation. Instead of dry lectures, each episode feels like you’re overhearing a fascinating conversation between experts. Frank invites game developers, historians, and storytellers to share their discoveries and the real, often messy work of preservation. You’ll hear about the frustrating dead-ends that make researchers want to bang their heads against the wall, followed by those incredible breakthroughs when a forgotten piece of history suddenly clicks into place. This podcast is built on the genuine thrill of sharing a find, capturing the human side of digging through old code, tracking down obscure prototypes, or interviewing pivotal developers whose contributions have been overlooked. It’s a casual, engaging dive into the layers of an industry often focused only on the future, reminding us that every game has a past worth saving. Tune in for a refreshingly authentic look at the passion and persistence required to keep video game history alive, one surprising story at a time.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Video Game History Hour
Podcast Episodes
Ep. 117: Nintendo Knitting Machine [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:29:15
Historian Racheil Weil returns to the show to discuss the Nintendo Knitting Machine, a never released knitting machine toy powered by the NES. In this episode: Sega Master System smack talk; flier breakdown; just…why?; d…
Ep. 116: The First CD-ROM Game [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 45:35
VGHF librarian Phil Salvador chats with longtime contributor to video game archaeology Misty De Méo, author of CD-ROM Journal: a blog exploring multimedia games and software. We discuss her recent article A Chronology of…
Ep. 115 - Travis Brown [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:13:39
Travis Brown, our very own director of technology, gets technical as we talk about his role with VGHF and how he got started in preservation. In this episode: The Varsity vs The Vortex, scanning 14k pieces of optical med…
Ep. 114: The Strong’s Expansion [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:57:53
We share the details of our recent field trip to The Strong Museum of Play to celebrate their newest video game focused expansion. In this travel log episode: travel woes; Wegmans toilet paper; Transformers’ shrieks at a…
Bonus Episode: Game Availability Study [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:11:27
Brandon Butler, Director of Information Policy at the University of Virginia Library and Law and Policy Advisor at the Software Preservation Network, joins us to talk about a major new study published jointly by the Vide…
Ep. 113: Bally Professional Arcade [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:00:24
Author and historian Kevin Bunch returns to the familiar guest chair to educate us all on a somewhat obscure 1970’s consolputer from his recent video, The History of the Bally (and Astrocade) Professional Arcade: Archive…
Ep. 112: Getting Personal with Frank Cifaldi [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:16:58
Frank gets a bit reflective and shares how he got where he is today; not just the video game stuff, but the life stuff, too. In this episode: a youth in Las Vegas, underage drinking and overage smoking, dropping out of s…
Ep. 111: The World of Nintendo Book [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:18
Historian and game developer Andy Cunningham shares his fantastic new book The World of Nintendo Book, Volume One: A World of Wonders, a visual history of Nintendo merchandising. This first in a series goes deep into the…
Ep. 110: Minesweeper [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:04:45
Kyle Orland, author of the new Boss Fight Books’ Minesweeper, joins the show to talk about one of the most prolific 90’s games by the same name. In this episode: the Minesweeper generation, how Bill Gates got addicted to…
Ep. 109: Video Game Logos [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 50:03
Writer, journalist, and ‘several’ time returning guest Jack Yarwood shares his research on two video game logos with stylized R’s, which were subsequently made to be physical objects, as recently published in his article…