Games are one of the most significant cultural forms of modern society yet their story is poorly documented in Australia and New Zealand, according to Flinders University Screen and Media Associate Professor Melanie Swalwell.<\/p>\n
Associate Professor Swalwell and her research team, together with colleagues from the Australian Centre for the Moving Image, the New Zealand Film Archive and the Berlin Computerspiele Museum, have now launched a project to document and preserve locally-made computer games of the 1980s.<\/p>\n
Funded by the Australian Research Council, the Popular Memory Archive (PMA) aims to explore the story of the production and reception of local games, interviewing game creators but also collecting resources and memories from the public who played their way through the history of 1980s computer games.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe game culture in the 1980s was highly participatory, hands-on and often characterised by a do-it-yourself ethic which is why we are aspiring to create a history of games as they have been used and experienced,\u201d Associate Professor Swalwell said.<\/p>\n
The material will then be collated and added to the Play it Again database \u2013 an online portal of playable Australasian computer games, developed by the team as a method for documenting and preserving these historic digital artefacts.<\/p>\n
Dr Swalwell said the database would provide vital insights into Australia and New Zealand\u2019s early gaming history.<\/p>\n
\u201cUntil recently, digital software in any form wasn\u2019t regarded as something that should be saved,\u201d Associate Professor Swalwell said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a consequence we have very little information about computer games, despite the prominent cultural function they have in today\u2019s society,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Flinders PhD candidate Helen Stuckey, who helped design the PMA, said there was no official public record of historic computer games.<\/p>\n
\u201cKnowledge about the history of games is overwhelmingly held by private collectors and fans, with ephemera and other primary sources located among the general public,\u201d Ms Stuckey said.<\/p>\n
\u201cMuch of the existing work on the preservation of early games has been be done by passionate and well organised online fan communities,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe PMA in part looks at what institutions can learn from the practices of these groups.\u201d<\/p>\n
Featuring a curated selection of games, Dr Swalwell said the PMA will also host monthly panel discussions with invited guests, including Australia and New Zealand game designers of the 1980s, on a range of topics such as gaming pioneers, collectors and copyright.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to hear what people did with early computers and games, what games they wrote, what these games mean and meant to them, what records they have, and what difference their involvement with games made.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is hoped these contributors will offer not only their experiences but also artefacts in need of preservation, including images, videos and documentation about programmers, designers and publishers, so that we can have a central, publicly-compiled repository of gaming history.\u201d<\/p>\n
During the 18-month project users will be able to submit comments, images, videos and other files to the site.<\/p>\n
Visit the website for more information or follow the progress on Twitter @AgainPlay or at facebook.com\/playitagainproject.<\/p>\n
– Emily Charrison<\/p>\n
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