The Videogame History Museum is Finally Open

[Nz17]

A landmark day is before us. After 30+ years of collecting, finding an outlet in our home-grown Classic Gaming Expo Museum and eventually industry-wide traveling "Videogame History Museum", the doors open on our permanent home in Frisco, TX today: The National Videogame Museum. Co-Founders and friends John Hardie and Sean Kelly and I will experience the public consuming what has been consuming our lives for the past many, many years. But you know what? I'm not at all scared. Nervous, excited, maybe a little manic, but definitely not fearful.

I believe this is because I watched the place as it was built. Every wall, every drop of paint, every fixture, and as every piece of our collection found its way into a cozy spot. I watched artists pour their hearts into their work and I know that the love they put into it is going to be prominent to all. I experienced the frustration of every technical issue and the thrill of their corresponding solutions with John and Sean and a score of passionate partners who simply refused to let any of this vision fail. And I've had the fortune of living day to day in this museum as it came to life, again watching as the occasional UPS or pizza delivery person or city employee stood stunned at what was inside. And many of those reactions were LONG before the product you'll see today. So I have no fear that everyone who attends will thoroughly enjoy what we've built.

Our wives have been fabulous through all of this. My wife Elizabeth Nardella Santulli took a leap of faith that truly tested our relationship: leave your family and your home and move to a state 1800 miles away to start a business neither of us have any experience with. And yet, here we are. She's getting ready for another day of work right now, but THIS day starts a whole new chapter in this adventure. A whole new look at this leap of faith.

Family and friends who I miss and love, you'll be seeing more of me soon! Now let's get this museum open.

So now that it is open at last in The Colony, Texas, who here is going to go?

[Steve W]

It's over in Frisco, not The Colony. Frisco is much higher class. My brother used to live up in The Colony, and it never seemed as nice as Frisco.

I want to go but don't know exactly when I'll get around to it. My work schedule has been jostled around by a new boss who doesn't know how to write one. It's not all that far, probably a half hour or so (depending on traffic) and I'm familiar with the area, I just need to have an afternoon off before the schools let out so I don't have to deal with screaming children.

There a Console Game Exchange store in Stonebriar Centre that's pretty nice and will probably have a good upswing in sales from being close by, and there's also a nice Movie Trading Company store outside the mall that used to be much better before the retro gaming boom saw its shelves thinned out. And that Barnes & Noble store in Stonebriar Centre seems to be the only location that regularly stocks Retro Gamer Magazine, the other locations are spotty at best. It probably has something to do with having a classic gaming store in the mall and being across from a Dave & Buster's location.

[dgdgagdae]

There a Console Game Exchange store in Stonebriar Centre that's pretty nice and will probably have a good upswing in sales from being close by, and there's also a nice Movie Trading Company store outside the mall that used to be much better before the retro gaming boom saw its shelves thinned out. And that Barnes & Noble store in Stonebriar Centre seems to be the only location that regularly stocks Retro Gamer Magazine, the other locations are spotty at best. It probably has something to do with having a classic gaming store in the mall and being across from a Dave & Buster's location.

CGX has been gone for awhile. All three locations in the Metroplex are closed.

[Aussie2B]

So did Joe close or sell the store in Jersey?

[Nz17]

It's over in Frisco, not The Colony.

Sorry. Joe's Facebook post mentioned The Colony so I thought that's where it was when I posted the info. Indeed, Joe lives in The Colony, but the museum is in Frisco. And Frisco is not San Francisco, but that's irrelevant.

So did Joe close or sell the store in Jersey?

From my outsider's understanding, Joe still owns the store, the store is still running, he still has ultimate say over things over there, but someone else manages the place. It is very similar to the situation with this DP Web site we have here. Joe still owns the site, the site is still running, he still has ultimate say over things over here, but I manage the place.

I would like to know when he is going to finally issue a Kickstarter update to the 356 of us who pitched in the $50,266 years ago to fund his dream. It would be nice to get kept more in the loop, especially as we ponied up thousands of dollars 5 years ago to make it happen, and while we have to continue to wait for our tickets and have to find out our news about the museum through Facebook posts and the occasional newspaper or radio reports, Jim and Jane Public can just saunter up to the building, plunk down $15 per person, and get to attend now. Sorry for ranting, but after the completion of the fundraising, Joe didn't issue any updates through Kickstarter for 1 year, and now he's gone 4 years without issuing another, saying people should just look to other avenues for the information. Most Kickstarter backers prefer to get their updates through Kickstarter, especially as you can get notified in so many ways via that site's communication methods. I know he "has plans" and I know he is "busy," but yeesh, shouldn't those who paid first get to know these things first and get to attend the museum first? Yes, that $50K wasn't all of the funds which were required for the museum, but they were a huge chunk of it and the basis for being able to get the rest amassed.

I guess we'll see what happens next.

[lendelin]

Is there a website about/from the videogame museum?

I'll certainly will visit the museum when I'm in Texas!

[Nz17]

http://www.vghmuseum.org/ is the official Web site, but don't expect to read very much information that's actually up-to-date there... nor on its Twitter account... nor on its Facebook account. The latest info is from months ago in 2015 and it is mostly inconsequential.

[badinsults]

http://www.vghmuseum.org/ is the official Web site, but don't expect to read very much information that's actually up-to-date there... nor on its Twitter account... nor on its Facebook account. The latest info is from months ago in 2015 and it is mostly inconsequential.

Yeah dude, they changed the name to "National Videogame Museum" a while ago. They have an active twitter account.

https://twitter.com/nvmusa

[Nz17]

Actually dudes, the museum is in two parts. Both parts are alive and valid, dudes. So I'm going to just go right ahead and keep on posting.

http://www.nvmusa.org/ is the National Videogame Museum. It deals with the present and future of video games.

http://www.vghmuseum.org/ is the Videogame History Museum which deals with the past of video games. It is housed inside the National Videogame Museum.

They are two parts ran by the same group of people.

Q.E.D.

[Steve W]

CGX has been gone for awhile. All three locations in the Metroplex are closed.

Really? I was in that one just a few months ago it seems like. And I went to the Denton location something like a month ago. Damn, that's such a shame. I liked those stores. Although their annoying refusal to sell the boxes with the games has pissed me off before. Especially when it comes to something like a Japanese Mega Drive import game that I wanted. There's no chance in hell they'll ever get another loose copy of that cartridge in, if I'm paying $19.99 then let me have the whole thing.

Huh, according to the Stonebriar Centre CGX's Facebook page, they're still going. Somebody just traded in an Atari 7800 a few days ago, in fact.

I know their other locations have come and gone. The Irving Mall store, the Midway Mall location up in Sherman, Valley View Mall, and Crossroads Mall over in Greenville. When shopping malls are dying off left and right, and you only rent space in malls, it can be a rough road. Gotta find a location that'll stick.

[Greg2600]

The store in Clifton, NJ, remains open and doing great. I still attend the NAVA get togethers every month (just about). We do a podcast from the store every couple months or sooner. (http://dpvideogames.com/webcasts)

I've followed the museum progress on Twitter and Facebook without any issue. Honestly, after I get my rewards on KS or IGG, any future communication to me is just spam! Anyway, the goal is for the museum to be self-sustaining. To answer the initial question, I'll be there in June!