ICHEG Online Collections

The International Center for the History of Electronic Games^® (ICHEG) at The Strong defines electronic games broadly to include video games, computer games, console games, arcade games, handheld games, and toys that combine digital and traditional play. At more than 36,000 items and growing, the ICHEG collection is the largest and most comprehensive public collection of electronic games and game-related historical materials in the United States and one of the largest in the world. A sample of the ICHEG’s vast holdings is accessible through this online database.

The ICHEG collections are linked directly with the world-class collection of board and role-playing games, toys, and other artifacts of play found in The Strong’s National Museum of Play, as well the iconic toys in its National Toy Hall of Fame. ICHEG is additionally supported by The Strong’s Brian Sutton-Smith Library and Archives of Play, a research library of more than 130,000 volumes, including vintage comics and children’s books and the largest collection of toy catalogs in the United States.

For each object shown online there appears a documentary photograph and basic factual information including the maker, material, title, place of origin, and date. For many items, in-depth information may also be provided, such as historical context or specific significance. Learn more indicates that an object record includes further content beyond standard museum cataloging. Please note that many of the items shown online are not on public display.

Each month, the ICHEG adds artifacts to its collections and the online collections database expands to reflect those additions. To make exploring recent acquisitions easy, objects in online collections categories are organized so that the latest additions appear on the first results page.

Questions or suggestions about the content or functionality of the Online Collections should be directed to collections@thestrong.org.