Game On Exhibition Review

Posted Monday, June 30, 2008 at 9:47 pm by Jason Cartwright |

Game On is an exhibition that features a largely playable representation of the history of gaming. All the classics were there – the Commodore 64, through the Dreamcast, GameCube through to the current-gen consoles.

Unfortunately the above image (taken outside) was the only photo we were able to snap at the Game On Exhibition as for some strange reason cameras were not allowed inside. Not sure if they’re worried about people skipping on the exhibition because they’ve seen photos online, but one of the biggest draw cards is supposed to be the fact you can get hands on with the games themselves. Something clearly not achievable by looking at a picture.

There was much more of a family vibe there than I had anticipated, I had imagined a lot more stereotypical geeks trying to re-live their arcade-wasted childhoods.

Overall it was worth seeing, although I would be much more comfortable if the price was only $5 entry and photos to remember the occasion were permitted. Something the organisers should keep in mind, shall the exhibition ever return. I’m probably not really the target audience for this type of thing, as my passion is strongly fixated on the latest and greatest, rather than games of yester-year that both look and play terribly. Also should the urge return to play the old games, I always have ROMs online or Xbox Live Marketplace or the PlayStation Store for previous titles. I also think Game On would benefit from organising the consoles (PC’s dramatically under represented), in order from oldest to newest to help people appreciate the development progression.

Run by the Australian Centre for the Moving Image, the exhibition is located near Melbourne’s Federation Square and costs $15 or $10 if your a concession holder, a family pass (2 Adults, 2 Children) is also available for $44. It’s been going since March 6 and ends soon, on July 13 so if you’d like to check it out, you’d best be quick.

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