Line #21 Main/MuseumGame


1	[[quoteright:349:[[VideoGame/PacMan https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pacman_museum_plus.png]]]]
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3	There's an increasing trend these days when it comes to longrunning series, or longlasting companies. At some point, a game will be made that is basically like an interactive museum of the company's own past.
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5	''VideoGame/SonicGenerations'', for example, contains levels themed entirely after locations from previous games in the ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' franchise. There's also a [[ConceptArtGallery gallery of concept art]], information on characters in the series, and the ability to earn music from the series.
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7	Even standalone games can do this. ''VideoGame/KinectDisneylandAdventures'' is an interactive game version of [[Ride/DisneyThemeParks Disneyland]], and in itself, is also filled with Disney characters and levels themed after different movies or rides.
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9	In order to qualify as this trope, a video game must be pretty much '''''about''''' paying tribute to or heavily referencing a franchise or company's past. A few throwaway jokes or references or a NostalgiaLevel do '''not''' count. Also, this is not about games which contain {{Embedded Precursor}}s.
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11	Bonus points if the game has some sort of readable information gallery about the franchise as a whole. To put it another way, picture a tour through a museum. Now picture a tour through a company's franchise. If the analogy fits, then it's this trope. If it's just referencing the past, it isn't.
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13	See also: NostalgiaLevel, MegamixGame.
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15	Not to be confused with ''VideoGame/MuseumMadness''.
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17	!!Examples:
18	* ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'':
19	** ''VideoGame/SonicGenerations'', as mentioned above, is basically traveling through the past of ''Sonic'', with a lot of extras on the side.
20	** ''Sonic Mega Collection'' is yet another ''Sonic'' example. The game contains both a collection of Sonic games and a museum mode in which one can view old game manuals, character ConceptArt, and comic covers and watch a handful of videos, including one featuring a brief history of the Sonic series.
21	** Before this was ''VideoGame/SonicJam'', a Platform/SegaSaturn compilation that had an actual museum for Sonic to explore.
22	** ''Sonic Origins'', the most recent compilation game as of this writing, features a museum containing a SoundTest with music from all of Sonic's Genesis games, an image gallery, and a movie gallery containing both the game's animated cutscenes and ''WebAnimation/SonicManiaAdventures''. There's also a Story Mode, which combines ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog1'', ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogCD'', ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2'', and ''VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles'' into one long story, with new animated sequences linking them all together.
23	* The ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' series is all about referencing the past and present of Creator/{{Nintendo}}. Outside the gameplay itself, ever since [[VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosMelee the second entry]], the games have had several trophies, spirits, and other elements breaking down characters, items, locations, and more from across the various franchises represented. And starting with ''[[VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosBrawl Brawl]]''s release, third parties have joined in the fun. Even characters themselves can be a part of this, with VideoGame/PacMan in particular bring several nods to other Namco productions. In addition, ''Brawl'' contained playable demos of classic Nintendo games.
24	* ''VideoGame/KinectDisneylandAdventures'' is based on Ride/{{Disneyland}} itself, so it makes sense that it's filled with Disney characters. The ability to visit locations from movies in the form of minigame challenges is what pushes it into this territory.
25	* Before that, ''VideoGame/TheWaltDisneyWorldExplorer'' in TheNineties featured Ride/WaltDisneyWorld itself in narrated slideshows and had a few {{minigame}}s including a trivia quiz about the resort itself.
26	* The ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' series, to varying degrees. For example, the first and second main games in the series not only have you visiting different Disney movies and interacting with the characters, but there's even an information gallery with details about the characters (albeit their role in ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' rather than their own movies specifically), including details of when the character was first created, and occasionally trivia (e.g. "Doorknob was the only character in ''WesternAnimation/AliceInWonderland'' who wasn't in [[Literature/AlicesAdventuresInWonderland the original book]]").
27	* The ''VideoGame/GameAndWatchGallery'' series is made up of ports of old ''VideoGame/GameAndWatch'' games, along with modern remakes feature Mario characters instead of stick figures. True to its title, they also have Gallery and Museum sections about other ''Game & Watch'' titles.
28	* The ''VideoGame/NamcoMuseum'' series on the [=PlayStation=] took place in a literal museum, with exhibits showing facts and memorabilia for each game.
29	* The ''Sega Genesis Collection'' is a museum highlighting some of the most famous games from the Genesis era complete with informational cards. This includes ''VideoGame/EccoTheDolphin'', ''VideoGame/PhantasyStar'', and ''VideoGame/{{Sonic the Hedgehog\|1}}''. Some of the "rarer" games like ''VideoGame/{{Ristar}}'' must be unlocked by beating other, more commonly found games. The cards are literally museum-style information pages. This is done to give more information about the games as well as give a sense of the era they were made in, when they were made and what went into making them.
30	* The 2010 ''VideoGame/{{Splatterhouse}}'' is a softer museum example as beating this NintendoHard game earns the right to play the original 3 games, while also viewing extra art and information on them. It's basically a playable tour through the Splatterhouse franchise plus art and information. This is done as both a nostalgic reward for fans of the original series (especially as many wanted to play the uncensored game but never could) and to educate new players about the cool stuff that came before.
31	* ''VideoGame/NESRemix''. Take a tour of some of Creator/{{Nintendo}}'s earliest [[Platform/NintendoEntertainmentSystem NES]] games by playing their challenges and remixes!
32	* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyRecordKeeper'' is a mobile crossover game as part of the ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' series. The ExcusePlot even takes place in a museum, where the main character [[OriginalGeneration Tyro]] has to go into paintings representing each Final Fantasy world and go through simplified versions of each of their plots, recruiting from the huge roster of characters as he goes.
33	* ''VideoGame/{{Persona 5}}'''s UpdatedRerelease, ''Persona 5 Royal'', adds the "Thieves Den", an art gallery-esque bonus area where the player can trade [[GlobalCurrencyException Persona Medals]] for promotional and concept artwork, trailers and cutscenes, music from the game's soundtrack, and models of various Personas, enemies, and other plot-relevant things. Some of these are only viewable in a menu, but many of the purchases will line the walls of the Den or can be placed in certain areas as large art fixtures.
34	* ''[[{{VideoGame/Evoland}} Evoland]]'', a game about the evolution of ActionAdventure games and [[Main/RolePlayingGame [=RPGs=]]], feels like a guided tour of the history of and the tropes used in those two genres. Its sequel, which touches upon an even wider variety of genres, can be seen as one to video games in general.
35	* ''VideoGame/BioShockInfinite'''s first DLC expansion, a wave-based arena mode titled ''Clash in the Clouds'', had this as its framing device. Between each run, you would be taken to the Columbian Archeological Society. While the gift shop acted as your gameplay hub, a large set of double doors down the hall lead to the main exhibition floor. Here you could use the funds earned in the arenas to unlock concept art, the {{Retraux}}-inspired song covers, character models, and [[spoiler: two tears. One led to the Luteces' apartment, letting you collect new audio logs made by Rosaline, while the other pulled in a splicer from Rapture, as a sneak peek of the next expansion, ''Burial at Sea''.]]
36	* ''VideoGame/ArmoredCoreNexus'' included a second disc called "REVOLUTION" to celebrate the serie's 15th anniversary. Beside including a grabbag of remade missions from the Platform/PlayStation trilogy, players can unlock promotional artwork, concept art, and music from the previous titles.

Context Main / MuseumGame