Angry Birds, Frogger And Others Are Finalists For The World Video Game Hall Of Fame

This year's finalists for the World Video Game Hall of Fame include trailblazers in esports, electronic pets and portable gaming, as well as the arcade favorite brought to life in a 1998 episode of "Seinfeld."

The Hall of Fame revealed the 12 finalists up for induction on Thursday and opened a week of public voting. The winners will be enshrined May 8 at the hall's new space inside The Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester.

The 2025 finalists are: Age of Empires, Angry Birds, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Defender, Frogger, Golden Eye, Golden Tee, Harvest Moon, Mattel Football, Quake, NBA 2K and Tamagotchi.

"This year's finalists span the decades and range from arcade classics to one of the most popular mobile games of all time," Jon-Paul C. Dyson, director of The Strong's International Center for the History of Electronic Games, said in a news release. "All of these games have enormously influenced pop culture or the game industry itself."

Released in 1977, Mattel Football was the first blockbuster handheld electronic game. It paved the way for systems like Nintendo's Game Boy and today's mobile devices, according to the hall. Three decades later, cellphones put another nominee into the hands of countless players. Rovio's 2009 Angry Birds was downloaded billions of times and launched movies and merchandise.