The Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts & Design (AAGAD) is a peer based network of gaming industry professionals whose mission is to promote innovation and excellence in design and production of games and game related materials.
Introduction to the Hall of Fame.
Game design is a very old field, dating back to games such as Senet in ancient Egypt. What gaming means to everyone has evolved over the years. When the Hall of Fame first started in 1974, War Gaming was a very big part of the field. A few years later Role Playing Games came onto the scene. This was followed by an explosion in tabletop board gaming, then by Trading Card Games, Cooperative Games, Deck Builders, and many more categories as well as unique games that do not fit into any mold.
The Hall of Fame is intended to honor the contributions made by individuals over the years that have advanced the tabletop gaming field. The individuals included in the Hall have contributed over their careers to expanding the reach of gaming and created games that bring people together to enjoy the lifestyle of strategy, challenges, and fun. The Hall of Fame also honors specific games that showcase innovation and exceptional quality as well as endeavors that promote gaming such as publications and other media.
The Hall includes many industry legends, such as Dungeons and Dragons creators Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, Magic the Gathering creator Richard Garfield, and Reiner Knizia, one of the most prolific board and card game designers of all time. Not all of the inductees are well known, and gaming is not a field where there are a large number of household names among its elite. However, all of members of the Hall have helped elevate gaming to heights it had never achieved before. The contributions come from writers, artists, sculptors, publishers, and designers from many areas of tabletop gaming. Miniatures Gaming, Role Playing Games, Play-by-Mail Games, Board Games, Trading Card Games. Individuals from all of these areas are honored here.
The members of the Hall of Fame select new individuals and games for induction each year and the inductions take place at the Origins Game Convention in Columbus Ohio. While there are some exceptions, individuals are generally considered for induction after they have been in the field for 20 years, with work in any area of gaming or gaming related activities applying towards consideration. Products and media entries are considered after 10 years from the date of first publication or launch.
Below is a list of the current members of the Hall of Fame and the year they were inducted.
An asterisk indicates that sadly, the member has passed away.
Mike Elliott
AAGAD Hall of Fame Curator