Video Game Museum
| Web address | VGMuseum.com |
|---|---|
| Commercial? | No |
| Type of site | Video Gaming |
| Registration | None |
| Owner | Garrett Dockery |
| Created by | Garrett Dockery |
| Launched | August 20, 1999 |
| Alexa rank |
 424,152 (February 2014)[1] |
Video Game Museum, (known mostly as VGMuseum or VGM) is a video game database with an extensive collection of screenshots from title screens, general gameplay and game endings. It also features a collection of scans of video game covers, boxes, as well as current and old video game print advertisements. The information attempts to cover the entire range of video games, from the beginnings of video games to the present day. It is the most comprehensive collection of screenshots on the Internet and is cited heavily throughout the online video game community, particularly as a source of screenshots of games that aren't easy to find on the market, including by such sites as MTV,[2] 1UP,[3] IGN,[4][5] Joystiq,[6][7] Gamesradar [8]
Other smaller sections include: sprite rips, game reviews, video game magazine cover scans, system information, game music and game artwork. The website also has a forum for people to share their common interest of all things gaming.
History
Started by Garrett "Mek" Dockery on August 20, 1999, out of his need to have screenshots for as many games as possible, the site was originally called Gamepics.
On December 12, 1999, the first game scans were added to the site and they became so popular that by January 14, 2000, the sub-site Gamescans was online, followed quickly by merging of these two sites into the Video Game Museum, launching officially on January 26, 2000. In the following months and years after the merge, more sections such as Game Endings, Game Ads and Game Reviews were added, various redesigns were applied to the site, several staff members joined and left building the VGMuseum as it is today.
The site is updated and maintained by staff members Rey and Oli with Mek serving as the webmaster.
Website Designs
The VGMuseum (and Gamepics before it) tries to set itself apart from conventional website designs by applying its own unique look, a mix of refreshing pastel colors and video game sprites that adorn the website on every page.
Pre Designs
- August 1999 - January 2000: The final Gamepics design before merging into the VGMuseum - Gamepics
- January 14, 2000 - January 26 2000: The short-lived Gamescans site before merging into the VGMuseum - Gamescans
Post Designs
- January 2000 - September 2000: First design after Gamepics and Gamescans merged into the VGMuseum - VGM 1.2
- September 2000 - August 2001: The second design was completed on August 25 and it stands as one the best designs yet - VGM 2.1
- August 2001 - Current: The current design was completed August 2001 and it has been in use ever since - VGM 3.1
Sections
The Video Game Museum is home to various main sections and some smaller ones, just like the wings a real museum has.
Primary
- Gamepics: Quantity-wise, the Gamepics section is the largest part of the site, containing title screens and gameplay screenshots for over 10,000 console and portable games.
- Game Endings: The most popular part of the site with over 3000 game ending pages complete with last boss, full ending and credits for each game listed (with some endings stretching over 200 images).
- Game Scans: This is the third largest section of the site, with scans of the game disks/cartridges, instruction manuals and front/back art covers of video game boxes.
- Game Ads: The ad section presents magazine cover scans and a look at the promotional ads featured in various magazines across the years for multiple game systems.
Secondary
- Game Systems: Screenshots and technical information about the actual game console and portable systems.
- Game Reviews: Small section with game reviews for multiple systems.
- Game Music: Features game music for various games.
- Game Art: Art galleries made by contributors.
- Sprite Rips: Various sprite rips for multiple games.
- Downloads: Winamp Skins and wallpapers for download.
- Links: Links to other interesting video game related websites.