Big Ant Games Lab at ACMI - photograph by Shannon McGrath
Free
Image credit: Gareth Sobey

ACMI presents

Games Lab Presented by Big Ant Studios

Exhibition

Play classic and modern games from local and international indie developers and AAA publishers in an arcade experience that puts consoles, creativity and gaming culture at your fingertips.

Presented by

When

Open daily

10am – 5pm

Tickets

This exhibit is FREE and unticketed.

Where

Gallery 1, Ground Floor
(inside The Story of the Moving Image exhibition)
ACMI, Fed Square

HOW TO GET THERE

Recently added: Light in games

In this showcase of six playable games, you can explore the range of ways independent game developers approach light and lighting in their work. From the quaint, risograph-inspired colour palette of Nuts or the nostalgic glow of The Gardens Between to the warm, analogue bloom of 70s-inspired space puzzle game Heavenly Bodies, light primes us emotionally for how to encounter these game worlds. Play commercial hits like the shadowplay-inspired indie classic Limbo and Seumas McNally Grand Prize-winning Umurangi Generation alongside self-published artistic games like Ian Maclarty’s perspective-bending The Catacombs of Solaris Revisited (pictured).

Still from The Catacombs of Solaris Revisited

Play retro games and learn more about iconic consoles

Coming soon: Playing house

Digital spaces are an increasing part of our domestic lives. How is this reflected in videogames? From April in Games Lab, we consider what it means to play house. The showcase includes six local games that explore the concept of home, from the tender domestic scenes of Witch Beam’s Unpacking and Kalonica’s Apartment, to chaotic-cult-building in Massive Monster’s 2022 smash-hit Cult of the Lamb.

Unpacking video game by Witchbeam

Stories & Ideas

Learn how we're preserving the past, present and future of videogames.

Screenshot from 'Samurai Warrior: The Battles of Usagi Yojimbo' (1988)

Play It Again

Learn how we're documenting, preserving and creating an accessible and playable history of Australasian videogames and videogame culture from the 1980s and 1990s.

Find out more
ACMI - Collections - Candice Cranmer

Time-based media preservation

Preservation of artworks in a museum of film, TV, videogames and digital art is a complex, technical and time-sensitive process.

Find out more
Blackmagic Design Media Preservation Lab - page

The Blackmagic Design Media Preservation Lab

Dedicated to preserving Australia’s analogue past while ensuring its digital present is accessible for generations to come.

Find out more

ACMI Aerial Shot - Phoebe Powell

Plan your visit

COVIDSafe visitor guidelines, information on accessibility, amenities, transport, dining options and more.

START PLANNING
Hero gnocchi - Jake Roden

Looking for dining options?

Our restaurant, cafe and bar in the heart of Fed Square features a seasonally driven menu developed by acclaimed Melbourne chef Karen Martini.

BOOK A TABLE & FIND OUT MORE
20 per cent off in the ACMI Shop

ACMI Shop

Melbourne's favourite shop dedicated to all things moving image. Every purchase supports your museum of screen culture.

SHOP ONLINE

Join our newsletter

Get updates on the latest news, exhibitions, programs, special offers and more.

You might also like