Museums in video games are real museums, if you really think about it. They’re spaces in which you’re free to look around and take in displays and exhibits, with information provided to help you understand what it is you’re looking at. The only distinction between a real museum and a virtual museum is the physical space, the act of walking through something real versus digital. Ultimately, both serve the same purpose.
It’s fascinating to think about. More often than not, a game museum might just be a level where you fight or explore, or a simple narrative experience – like Luigi’s Mansion 3 or the opening acts of both Uncharted 2 and 3. A few actually give you an intentionally visual experience, decorated with further information and descriptions to help contextualize the unfolding narrative. It could be based on reality or a way to extend the lore of the game in question, but information is information, regardless of whether it’s real or not.
Some in-game museums, like Stardew Valley, even let you pick where artifacts go, making it more personal.
To that end, here are a few highlighted museums that utilise this method of learning in different ways. You should definitely take the time to visit these places and experience them for yourself.
Starfield’s NASA Launch Tower
Deep-Rooted Space History
There are actually a few little museums to be found throughout Starfield. One in Akila City, rooted in the culture of the location’s history, and another in the UC’s MAST building in New Atlantis, which you’ll be required to visit if you’re aiming to become a member of the United Colonies, as it provides vital context to humanity’s history and why Earth had to be left behind years ago. However, there’s one more that goes above and beyond.
As part of the main story, you’ll have to visit the NASA Launch Tower in (what used to be) Florida. You’re here for a specific reason, of course, but upon entering, you’ll be greeted with a grand museum of science and technology once used by NASA, along with details on the various missions undertaken throughout history.
You can view ships, shuttles, rockets, rovers, spacesuits, along with a whole array of other equipment, all of which can be read about on the plaques for each display. You can also take the Mercury Spacesuit for yourself, but I don’t think anyone is going to notice if that goes missing.
As someone who loves space and the science behind it, this location is easily one of my favourite places in the entire game. Yes, you can explore a thousand different planets and discover fantastical mysteries of the universe, but there’s nothing quite like returning to one of the places it all began, to see how it began.
Outer Wilds’ Observatory
You’ll Be Learning More Than You Think
Entering the world of complete fiction now, we’re looking at the observatory in Outer Wilds. This is a location you’ll visit right at the start of the game to get the launch codes for your ship, and the likelihood is, you won’t have a reason to come back here for the remainder of the adventure.
With that in mind, this observatory houses a museum of strange and wonderful things from the game’s solar system. If you take the time to look around, you’ll find details about Outer Wilds Ventures’ history and the equipment it uses, which you’ll also use on your expedition.
Looking further, you’ll find a specimen of an angler fish, a gravity crystal with a prompt to try it out, and a space that houses a strange stone that seems to disappear and relocate whenever it’s not being observed. If you’ve played the game, you’ll know that each of these things is something you’ll be finding, using, and learning a lot more about over time.
This museum that you have to pass through is a tutorial – a haven of information that can give you some context for the game, as well as the beginnings of a few threads for mysteries you’ll be following for quite some time to come. Outer Wilds is a game that’s masterful in how it tells the story, no matter where you go or what you discover, and this is the first example of that through simple exhibits.
Animal Crossing’s Museum
The Classic Museum You Helped Build
Lastly, we have the museum that most of us have probably visited many times already, and one that we’ve built ourselves. The museum in Animal Crossing is a staple of the series, run by the lovely Blathers, as we contribute our findings as we play, be it fossils, fish, bugs, or even world-famous artwork. With each donation, Blathers will offer to tell you about the things you’re handing in, with some scientific facts or historical context.
Once donated, you’re able to peruse the different areas of the museum itself, which are all beautifully decorated and themed after what’s on display. Greenery and running water for the bugs, various tanks and aquariums for the fish, a fancy gallery for the artwork, and a classic display of prehistoric graphics to accompany the fossils on display in the basement.
The only real downside to this museum is that interacting with the displays will only tell you what the thing is and when it was donated, rather than reiterating the information from Blathers. However, if you happen to find another specimen and you’re curious, you can take it straight to Blathers and ask him to tell you about it, in which case he’ll repeat any information on a certain subject.
There are so many more excellent examples of museums in games, whether they be for lore, tutorials, or a glorious display, but the three mentioned here do a fantastic job with each approach. It shows how a digital museum can be just as useful as a real museum, and depending on the use case, they can serve various purposes for us as players, from necessity to pleasure.