Archiving and Video Games: Thoughts on Preservation

The topic of video game archiving has become a recent piece for discussion due to unfortunate events surrounding PT and the attempts to remove it from existence.  With many games moving to a digital-only platform or having servers running integral parts of an experience, it is only understandable that people would discuss how such items are being kept in archive for the purpose of maintaining this medium’s history.  Being someone who has worked in the museum space for the last couple years as well as academic research during my uni education, this is naturally a subject I feel strongly about.  We can travel to the Louvre to see the Mona Lisa alongside an array of sculptures and other art pieces, but where can we go to experience the original Pong?  Places like the National Video Game Arcade in Nottingham are working towards this but we’re still in our relative infancy. 

What I would like to talk about today is my experience within the museum world to give a rough assessment of the process of archiving and the unique factors that video games have.  I would treat this as an overview and encourage readers to look more into the subject as there are people who have been involved in this area for a lot longer than me.  As well as this, I do work in a relativity small archive (around 30,000 items) so larger organisations will have different practices. 

With all that out of the way, let’s talk about archiving:

Process

An object is brought to the museum for the purpose of donation.  This could be from lots of different people such as members of the public, local business, local council, etc.  A conversation is brought up about its relevance to local history to which if it feels suitable a formal contract is signed setting out a number of pointers: a) the object is to be kept on site for the purpose of the museum (information, education, entertainment) b) the object may feature within a collection that maybe shared with another museum c) the owner can reserve the right to access of the object if necessary.  Once this has been done, the object is then reviewed by an archivist who looks to identify, mark and tag the object while adding a physical and electronic data mark into the museum’s archive.  This is also known as ‘Accessioning’.  Once the object has been accessioned, the object is then stored in a suitable location depending on things such as material (metals and cloths being such items that need particular environments) where it is kept until it is requested again. 

Usage

Items within the museum can be used in a number of different ways such as:
*Internal exhibitions on a particular subject
*External exhibitions where another organisation would like to use a selection of items for their exhibition.  This can be done as either individual items to improve an already existing exhibition or as a whole collection much like a ‘tour’
*Information requests where a person (or persons) request to view an object for the purpose of information.  Examples of this can be researchers reviewing accounts of an event, architects looking over building plans or an enthusiast piecing together a story. 

Much like the initial accessioning, this process requires that the object is cared for and that all forms of data (physical / electronic) are updated to reflect its current state. 

Accessibility

Getting back to the point of video games, accessibility is of course an issue that surrounds a wide array of items kept in museums.  Having a piece of history on an old format that requires an old system for it to work naturally has its issues when it comes to accessing it.  I have recently been working with VHS and Betamax tapes in which half the struggle is finding ways to play it properly.  There are of course ways to convert these items to CD / digital formats, but having access to those means can sometimes be tricky.  Now consider a piece of digital media with an internal server to run some of the processes and you can quickly see how accessibility in this state may only be possible in a fairly rare occasion.  The thing is thou, it would potentially take a lot of work and be accessible to a couple sites in the world, but then we into the subject of ‘legal accessibility’.

When I say ‘legal’ I don’t mean the question of whether it is legal to do such a thing, but the subject of going through the above processes with an organisation like Konami (the holders of PT).  With my initial example, the holder is aware that said item in the hands of the museum becomes the ownership of a) the museum and b) the town in which it resides (in my case).  This object is not for profit, but for the subject of historical preservation, knowledge and explanation for as long as it resides within the museum.  When you have an organisation that has attempted to remove all accounts of this title from history, presenting it for archiving for the purpose of accessibility and knowledge naturally conflicts with their approach. 

There is also the subject of cost.  Many museums are run by charities and funded thanks to the work of project investors such as the Heritage Lottery Fund (in the UK at least) so for an archive to have the funds to go to Konami and ‘purchase’ the ability to archive PT for the accessibility of future generations seems like a difficult situation. 

In an age where nothing truly dies due to the internet, we are dealing with a genuine issue surrounding the preservation of video game history for generations to come.  The question of “will I be able to play PT in 50 years” is an important one as other forms of media like audio recordings, film, art and the likes have found their place in the museums throughout our world.  Personally, I don’t feel it’s a subject of potential, but time as video games continue to become a significant piece of culture and gain a word on the international stage of preservation.  If I was to suggest something, it would be the creation of video game archiving board that look to preserve our history much like the RIBA or National Trust for Architecture or Horticulture; finding ways to keep the skills alive and relevant for years to come. 

If you are interested in this subject, I would recommend having a look at the Nottingham game arcade or the recent video game Hall of Fame as they discuss relativity recent developments and hold a great deal more experience than I do.  Regardless, I hope you found this interesting.

End note: visit your local museum! They’re great and you might just find out something about your past while you’re there = )