The National Videogame Arcade, located in the heart of Nottingham city centre, is the UK’s first centre devoted to videogames. Born out of GameCity, the annual gaming festival that takes place each year in Nottingham, the NVA opened its doors in 2015 as a permanent shrine to videogames.
As you’d expect, the Arcade is packed full of fun and playable exhibitions. The first exhibit, Mission Control, allows visitors to customise a game as they play it. Remix the soundtrack, draw your own alien, do it all as you play and watch the changes take place in front of your eyes. Another popular interactive exhibit inside the NVA is Room Racers, a mixed reality racing game. In the game, you can race virtual cars around a track on the museum floor, but what makes this game special is that players can pick up real objects and place them on the track, creating their own racing track out of physical items.
One of the NVA's newest exhibits is The Hall of Inputs, an exploration into the ever-evolving ways in which gamers control their videogames. From the old-school keyboard to controlling games with your breath, discover the different methods that can be used to play.
An unmissable exhibit for any retro-gaming buffs out there is A History of Videogames in 100 Objects, a fascinating display that is sure to evoke nostalgia for your gaming days of the past.
When you’ve explored all the arcade, play brand new titles on platforms such as the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Wii U as well as classic games from vintage consoles. And it just wouldn’t be an arcade without some good old-fashioned clasics like Space Invaders and Tetris.
The National Videogame Arcade is a great day out for anyone interested in gaming and the history behind it.
For full details visit:http://gamecity.org/