Video Game History Hour

This two-part episode features both a post mortem of PRGE 2026 (Portland Retro Gaming Expo) and a recording of our panel chat with Gail Tilden, formerly of Nintendo of America (NOA), about launching Pokémon in the U.S.

Part One: Guests Steve Lin, founding board member, and Chris Kohler, Editorial Director of Digital Eclipse, noticed a quieter sales year filled with prized collections, a surge in card sellers, very few standard consoles for sale, and a fully booked kitten cuddle tent. 

Part Two: Gail Tilden, formerly at Nintendo Power and NOA, broke down the massive undertaking of localizing the franchise, managing the fallout from Japan's infamous Porygon anime episode, and turning a simple Game Boy title into a multi-billion-dollar cultural phenomenon. Gail and Frank discuss where retro gaming is heading and how a pocket-sized phenomenon conquered America.

You can listen to the Video Game History Hour every other Wednesday on Patreon (one day early at the $5 tier and above), on Spotify, or on our website.

See more from Chris Kohler:

Bluesky: @kohler.bsky.social

Website: www.chriskohler.biz

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Chris-Kohler/e/B001IOFJPI%3F

See more from Steve Lin:

Bluesky: @stevelin.bsky.social

Video Game History Foundation:

Email: [email protected]

Website: gamehistory.org

Support us on Patreon: /gamehistoryorg

We’re joined by Colin Williamson as we introduce his newly launched photography collection in our digital archive. Colin’s former work in games journalism while living in Japan afforded him a front row seat to the launch of the Sega Dreamcast, PlayStation 2, rise of Pokémania, and more. This treasure trove of photographs documents the Japanese gaming scene from 1999 to 2005 at events like Tokyo Game Show, the JAMMA Show, and Nintendo Space World. We peek behind the industry curtain as Colin shares what it was like interviewing legends like Hideo Kojima, dealing with corporate PR handlers, and forming real friendships with developers. Finally, we cap off the episode with a pseudo digital-archaeology quest tracking down missing footage of a 2005 Electroplankton exhibition.

*This episode has a follow-up bonus episode available to our paid tier Patreon members.

You can listen to the Video Game History Hour every other Wednesday on Patreon (one day early at the $5 tier and above), on Spotify, or on our website.

See more from Colin Williamson:

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/colinwilliamson.bsky.social

Video Game History Foundation:

Email: [email protected]

Website: gamehistory.org

Support us on Patreon: /gamehistoryorg

It’s time for another quarterly update seeing as how we’re now well into October. In this episode, we share some of our latest accomplishments: hitting a milestone of over 5,000 magazines digitized, completing our donor-data cleanup, new project-specific giving initiatives, major technical upgrades to our Japanese-language OCR and large image galleries (which helped power the successful launch of our E3 historical collection), active community research for the first EULA, and so much more!

You can listen to the Video Game History Hour every other Wednesday on Patreon (one day early at the $5 tier and above), on Spotify, or on our website.

Video Game History Foundation:

Email: [email protected]

Website: gamehistory.org

Support us on Patreon: /gamehistoryorg

Phil Salvador is joined by Dr. Colin Post and Marisa Marzilli from University of North Carolina at Greensboro to discuss their upcoming Digital Games in Libraries (DGIL) National Virtual Forum, a conversation for the cultural preservation of digital-only indie video games to be held October 29-30. In this episode they introduce the DGIL initiative and its origin, discuss collection models, and ideate on future phases and resources for these efforts. 

You can listen to the Video Game History Hour every other Wednesday on Patreon (one day early at the $5 tier and above), on Spotify, or on our website.

See more from Digital Games in Libraries:

Website: https://soe.uncg.edu/rdi/dgil/

Substack: https://digitalgamesinlibraries.substack.com/

Video Game History Foundation:

Email: [email protected]

Website: gamehistory.org

Support us on Patreon: /gamehistoryorg

Phil Salvador interviews Amy Thomas, legal expert and author of Copyright, Contract, and Video Games: Terms of Play, about the evolving landscape of digital rights and ownership in gaming. In this episode, Amy discusses her journey from studying Microsoft's Xbox One EULA in 2013; the complexities of EULAs, user rights, and the impact of digital ownership on game preservation; her research on possibly the earliest EULA, found in 1985 for Pitfall II; and the challenges of digital preservation, including implications of Sony's recent decision to discontinue physical PlayStation discs.

Mentioned in the show: 

Tandy Software License: https://colorcomputerarchive.com/repo/Documents/Manuals/Games/Pitfall%20II%20(Tandy).pdf

Moria License: https://free-moria.sourceforge.net/moria-non-free-license.txt

You can listen to the Video Game History Hour every other Wednesday on Patreon (one day early at the $5 tier and above), on Spotify, or on our website.

See more from Amy Thomas:

LinkedIn: /amy-thomas

The Centre for Regulation of the Creative Economy, University of Glasgow: create.ac.uk

Upcoming speaking engagement: Playable Heritage: Creating a Collaborative Framework for Collecting Video Game Culture

Video Game History Foundation:

Email: [email protected]

Website: gamehistory.org

Support us on Patreon: /gamehistoryorg

Library Director Phil Salvador is joined by guests Heather Fryling and Daniel Greenberg to discuss Roberta Vaughn’s Retro Adventures, a nonprofit organization that creates traveling, living exhibits focused on the history of adventure games and entertainment. The RVRA, founded to honor the legacy of adventure games collector and enthusiast Roberta Vaughn, travels to conventions like Portland Retro Game Expo and PAX West to share their curated exhibits, original interviews, and special guest appearances. 

You can listen to the Video Game History Hour every other Wednesday on Patreon (one day early at the $5 tier and above), on Spotify, or on our website.

Mentioned in the Show:

Al Lowe’s wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Lowe

Classic Gamers Guild: https://www.facebook.com/ClassicGamersGuild/

See more from Heather Fryling:

Website: rvretro.org

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Roberta-Vaughans-Retro-Adventures/61580535638673/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-fryling-4336a0168

Email: [email protected]

See more from Daniel Greenberg:

Bluesky: @winterion.com

Email: info (at) winterion.com

Help Daniel plant trees: patreon.com/winterion

IONGAMING Live: twitch.tv/winterion

IONGAMING Back Episodes: youtube.com/winteriongamestudios

GMU Game Design: game.gmu.edu

Video Game History Foundation:

Email: [email protected]

Website: gamehistory.org

Support us on Patreon: /gamehistoryorg

Our library director Phil Salvador sits down for another What’s Your Deal? episode with Blizzard’s senior digital archivist, Leah Williams, to discuss her critical work of preserving their modern video game history. In this episode:

• Leah’s unconventional path to digital games preservation

• Managing art, UI, and visual FX

• Collaborating with engineers and metadata experts

• Why discoverability matters for legacy assets

• Building vital relationships across game studios

• Navigating AI tagging and digital preservation challenges

Mentioned in the show:

YouTube 35th year anniversary 35’ table Blizzard: The Next Chapter

You can listen to the Video Game History Hour every other Wednesday on Patreon (one day early at the $5 tier and above), on Spotify, or on our website.

See more from Leah Williams:

LinkedIn: /leah-williams 

Video Game History Foundation:

Email: [email protected]

Website: gamehistory.org

Support us on Patreon: /gamehistoryorg

Our library director Phil Salvador sits down for another What’s Your Deal? episode with Blizzard’s senior digital archivist, Leah Williams, to discuss her critical work of preserving their modern video game history. In this episode:

• Leah’s unconventional path to digital games preservation

• Managing art, UI, and visual FX

• Collaborating with engineers and metadata experts

• Why discoverability matters for legacy assets

• Building vital relationships across game studios

• Navigating AI tagging and digital preservation challenges

Mentioned in the show:

YouTube 35th year anniversary 35’ table Blizzard: The Next Chapter

You can listen to the Video Game History Hour every other Wednesday on Patreon (one day early at the $5 tier and above), on Spotify, or on our website.

See more from Leah Williams:

LinkedIn: /leah-williams 

Video Game History Foundation:

Email: [email protected]

Website: gamehistory.org

Support us on Patreon: /gamehistoryorg

Phil Salvador hosts a special episode of the Video Game History Hour featuring Carolyn Rauch and Doug Lowenstein to discuss the origins and evolution of the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3).

As the former senior vice president of the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), Carolyn managed E3 for roughly two decades. Doug, the ESA's founder and former president, joins her to recount the organization’s 1994 founding. Together, they explain how the industry responded to the video game violence panic along with its legislative threats and how poor placement at the annual CES tradeshow led to the creation of E3.

We discuss the massive challenges of organizing the inaugural 1995 expo, including the critical task of securing industry giants like Nintendo and Sega; E3's eventual shift toward a consumer-focused format; its massive economic impact on Los Angeles; and the unexpected legal challenges surrounding the iconic E3 logo.

You can listen to the Video Game History Hour every other Wednesday on Patreon (one day early at the $5 tier and above), on Spotify, or on our website.

Video Game History Foundation:

Email: [email protected]

Website: gamehistory.org

Support us on Patreon: /gamehistoryorg

This year’s first update starts off with the huge announcement of our newest team member, Meera Swanson, as Development Director. Meera shares some of her background as well as her vision for the rest of this year as she establishes this new department. Phil overviews all the new collections we launched this year including additions to the GamePro CD collection, speaker audio cassettes from the 2nd ever Computer Game Developers’ Conference, and Neopets The Official Magazine. Robin reviews the podcast so far this year and what’s resonated both with her and others. 

You can listen to the Video Game History Hour every other Wednesday on Patreon (one day early at the $5 tier and above), on Spotify, or on our website.

Video Game History Foundation:

Email: [email protected]

Website: gamehistory.org

Support us on Patreon: /gamehistoryorg