Gaming History Club

8 years before PONG, Mabel Addis was writing and designing games. As the first video game writer, and first female game designer, she helped invent the strategy and edutainment genres with The Sumerian Game. This episode tells the story of a gaming history hero often overlooked. Please like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday.Sources:NY Times ArticleGame Developers Conference Awards 2023A Critical Hit! - The Most Important Video Game You've Never Heard OfWe welcome you to get in touch with us!Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty

Video game magazines were more important than you might think! Before the internet was around they were the gatekeepers to all things video game related. Find out how magazines and gaming journalism got started.Please like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday.Sources:Play Meter #1 December 1974VIDEO - Arcade Alley 1979Electronic Games #1 Winter 1981Interview with Bill KunkelInterview with Arnie KatzWe welcome you to get in touch with us!Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty

It's time for our annual recap of just exactly what happened in 2025. Spoiler alert: still no GTA VI. Joining us as usual is our special guest Brad and we discuss some of the most noteworthy things that happened in gaming.Please like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday.We welcome you to get in touch with us!Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty

Achievements changed why and how we play games. But before Xbox arrived with Gamerscore, players were already being rewarded! just in very different ways.Please like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday. Sources:Activision Iron-on patchesGamerscore PatentWe welcome you to get in touch with us! Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty

Welcome to Gamergate: a scandal that mixed ethics, harassment, conspiracy theories, and online shouting in equal measure.Please like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday. Sources:Britannica – Gamergate CampaignWired – Inside Gamergate Chat LogsNPR / Rep. Katherine Clark – How Gamergate Became a Template for Malicious Action OnlineFactually – Gamergate Controversy ExplainedData & Society – Media Manipulation and Disinformation OnlineDigital Studies Journal – Doxxing as an Online TacticLawPop – From Unknown Subculture to Political MainstreamarXiv – Tactical Reframing of Online Disinformation Campaigns Against the Istanbul ConventionWashington Post – Disinformation campaign targeting Roy Moore’s Senate bid may have violated lawNortheastern University – How Gaming Culture Played a Role in Jan 6 and QAnonInstitute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD) – Total remigration: Anti-migrant narratives targeting the UKKotaku – Alyssa Mercante, Sweet Baby Inc. Doesn’t Do What Some Gamers Think It DoesIGN – Developers Speak Out Against Harassment of Sweet Baby Inc.GameDeveloper.com – Sweet Baby Inc. Harassment Campaign Echoes GamergateData & Society – Weaponised Participation: From Gamergate to the Alt-RightWe welcome you to get in touch with us! Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty

Text adventures and interactive fiction might look primitive today, yet they changed gaming forever. Through imagination and clever code, these games laid the groundwork for everything from RPG dialogue trees to open-world exploration. Join us as we celebrate the witty, weird, and world-shaping legacy of interactive fiction.Please like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday. Sources:Consider the Consequences!ELIZAColossal Cave AdventureGet Lamp: The Text Adventure DocumentaryWe welcome you to get in touch with us! Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty

Why did Football Manager get banned in China? Why did Pokémon cause a moral panic? And why does a “game” called Ethnic Cleansing even exist?Please like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday. Sources:PokemonEthnic CleansingFootball Manager 2005Tropico 5Liyla and The Shadows of WarWe welcome you to get in touch with us! Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty

This episode contains a 10-second extract of the song 'Lavender Town' created by Junichi Masuda for the Pokemon Red & Green GameBoy games and is sole property of Nintendo, which is in no way affiliated with Gaming History Club. In this haunting Game Lore special we investigate one of gaming’s darkest legends. Did the chilling theme of this small town in Pokémon Red and Green really drive children to madness? Or was it just an internet-born myth that spiralled out of control?Along the way, we also revisit a very real incident known as “Pokémon Shock” when an episode of Electric Soldier Porygon sent hundreds of Japanese viewers into seizures.Please like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday. Sources:Everything you need to know about Pokemon's creepy Lavender Town Syndrome myth - RetrowareSounds only kids can hearDennō Senshi Porygon WikipediaWe welcome you to get in touch with us! Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty

Warning: This episode deals with death and drug referencesVideo Game Addiction, or as the WHO calls it: Gaming Disorder, is a complex issue that has led to tragic deaths. We take a look at what causes video game addiction, the mechanics hacking our brain to dopamine addiction and who is to blame.Please like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday. Sources:Video Game Addiction: Past, Present and Future - Current Psychiatric ReviewTheory of Flow - Mihaly Robert CsikszentmihalyiWHO - Gaming DisorderWe welcome you to get in touch with us! Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom DochertyIf you're concerned for yourself or a loved one about possible video game addiction and related problems, talk to your healthcare provider or a mental health professional.

What began as a strange little experiment in the late ’90s quickly became one of survival horror’s great pioneers. Team Silent — a ragtag group of outcasts — rewrote the rules with fog-choked streets, monsters born from trauma, and a mood that still lingers decades later. And with Silent Hill F releasing just a day after this episode drops, the question hangs in the fog: can Silent Hill still deliver the mystery and terror that once defined the genre?Please like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday. Sources:Team SilentWe welcome you to get in touch with us! Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty

We explore how propaganda, ideology, and assumptions sneak their way into games. Sometimes loudly, and sometimes in ways you’d never expect.Please like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday. Sources:Can Video Games be used for Propaganda?Mindkaleidoscope Top 10 Games that deal with political issuesWe welcome you to get in touch with us! Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty

In the world of bootleg games, anything goes. Mario can spin-dash like Sonic, Ryu can throw hadoukens at Gundams, and copyright lawyers everywhere cry themselves to sleep. These strange and broken creations twisted gaming’s icons into something both illegal and unforgettable.Please like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday. Sources:Bootleg Games FandomAVGN - Crazy BusAVGN - Hong Kong 97We welcome you to get in touch with us! Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty

For some bootleg consoles are nothing but a con, but they broke barriers and spread gaming worldwide.Please like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday. Sources:Bootleg Games FandomWe welcome you to get in touch with us! Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty

Remember the first time you spent an hour adjusting cheekbones in a game, only to put a helmet on five minutes later? Same. In this episode, we journey through the history of character customisationPlease like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday. We welcome you to get in touch with us! Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty

We’re cracking open boxes of cereal and dusting off some hidden gems—those weird, wild, and sometimes wonderful games that came free in your morning meal. Please like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday. Sources: Moby Games - Games bundled with cereal boxesHow Doom was licensed and reskinned to create Chex QuestWe welcome you to get in touch with us! Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty

In our very first Gaming History Heroes spotlight, we honour Jerry Lawson—the brilliant yet long overlooked mind behind the game cartridge revolution. Jerry helped shape how we play, design, and distribute video games. From pioneering the interchangeable cartridge system to laying the groundwork for essential features like the pause button, his innovations transformed home gaming forever. Please like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday. Sources: Jerry Lawson: The Engineer Who Changed the GameJerry Lawson Forever Changed the Video Game IndustryInterview with Vintage Computing and GamingWe welcome you to get in touch with us! Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty

In our 50th episode we journey back thousands of years to uncover the world’s oldest uncovered games. from Egypt’s mysterious Senet, to Mesopotamia’s Royal Game of Ur, China’s still-thriving Go, and the newly reimagined game of Shahr-i Sokhta. Please like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday. Sources: Mancala - Savannah African Art MuseumBritish Museum - Royal Game of UrResearchers uncover how Shahr-i Sokhta was playedWe welcome you to get in touch with us! Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty

We explore how video games have become unlikely allies in the fight for the planet. From early titles like SimEarth in the 1990s that gently raised awareness of ecological systems, to later games that echo the urgency and resistance of modern environmental activism.Please like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday. Sources: Play SimEarth - The Living Planet on Internet ArchivePrimo Natura: 11 Environmental and Conservation GamesWe welcome you to get in touch with us! Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty

What began as a game about a bodyguard for a prince evolved into a genre-defining series, steeped in the mythos of the real-life Order of Assassins and inspired by Vladimir Bartol’s novel Alamut. Join us as we explore how Ubisoft’s ambitious leap of faith turned parkour, historical fiction, and stealth into the DNA of a franchise that blurred the lines between fact and fantasyPlease like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday. Sources: Polygon: Assassin's Creed - An Oral HistoryGate of AlamutWe welcome you to get in touch with us! Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty

No, we don't mean "Yoo this game is so sick" we are talking about a surprisingly overlooked genre: Medical Video Games! This genre has a lot to offer: from realism to laughs, and we even find some real obscure games that have little to no information online. Please like, subscribe, and we look forward to seeing you when new episodes are released every second Wednesday. Sources: Microbe - The Anatomical Adventure - Play on Archive.orgThe Socratic System 1964 - National Library of MedicineWe welcome you to get in touch with us! Visit us on: GamingHistory.ClubFacebookInstagramTheme tune created by Tom Docherty