An idea that began as a Venture project in the Centre for Digital Media's (CDM) Master of Digital Media (MDM) program has evolved into a public exhibition at the Museum of Vancouver.
Opening on July 9, Press Start: A Vancouver Game History Pop-Up invites visitors to explore Vancouver's role in the global video game industry through interactive experiences that reveal the people, creativity, and collaboration behind game development. The exhibition was created by MDM alumnus Ryan Dunnison, Executive Director of the Canadian Video Game Museum (CVGM), and has continued to grow through contributions from multiple MDM student cohorts who helped design and refine its interactive experiences.
For Ryan, the exhibition was inspired by a simple question: How do you help people understand the work behind the games they play? Rather than simply showcasing finished games, he wanted to create an experience that brings the game development process to life and highlights the many disciplines involved in creating a game.
"I wanted to find a way to teach games through games," says Ryan. "Film uses documentaries to show how movies are made. I wanted to create an experience where people could learn about game development by interacting with it."
Visitors can explore vintage video game systems, playable arcade cabinets, game demos, retro gaming hardware with made-in-Vancouver connections, and interactive glimpses into the game development process. Press Start will spotlight, celebrate, and document the people, stories, and games that make up Vancouver’s evolving video game landscape.
"Canada is one of the top countries in the world for game development, yet we're the only major game development country without a permanent video game museum," Ryan says.
As Press Start opens this summer, it marks an important milestone for an idea that originated at CDM and demonstrates how projects developed through the MDM experience can continue to evolve long after graduation through collaboration between alumni, students, and industry.