What is Video Game Preservation?

Video game preservation refers to efforts to document, maintain, and provide continued access to video games and related historical materials. Common preservation activities include:

Copying data from physical cartridges and discs before the media degrades; Developing emulation software that allows older games to run on modern hardware; Recovering source code from development studios that have closed or ceased operations; Digitizing manuals, packaging, and print media such as gaming magazines; Researching and resolving intellectual property ownership, including cases where current rights holders are unaware they hold such rights; Documenting unreleased or canceled games.

Preservation efforts also intersect with legal and policy debates, including questions of consumer access to purchased games and the extent to which publishers can restrict or revoke access after a sale (for example, through server shutdowns or license revocation).

Video game preservation encompasses multiple components of a game beyond its playable code, including its development history, online infrastructure, source code, packaging and marketing art, and cultural context.