Where Vienna Talks About Games: SUBOTRON at the MuseumsQuartier
Updated: 1 hour ago
Not every place devoted to games is a display case. In the middle of Vienna's MuseumsQuartier, SUBOTRON has spent two decades treating video games as culture: something to play, to buy, and above all to talk about.
We wanted to feature it, because a project built on discourse and community is a lovely counterpoint to an archive like ours, which is built on the quiet preservation of objects.
A Game-Culture Platform in Vienna
SUBOTRON is a game-culture initiative at the MuseumsQuartier in Vienna, and part shop, part meeting point, part stage. Since 2004 it has run 'arcademy', a lecture series that brings key figures of European game studies together around scientific, artistic, pedagogical and socio-political questions, and one of the longest-running formats of its kind.
Alongside it, 'pro games' nurtures the local development scene with talks, panels and workshops, from live pitches to studio tours and Austrian post-mortems. SUBOTRON was also behind PLAY AUSTRIA, the first fair of the country's game scene, and it connects creatives across disciplines with a refreshing 'no box' attitude.
Discourse, and Objects to Match
The shop itself is more than a counter: hardware and software from the collection are there to be played and bought, next to fashion, literature, music and gadgets from around the world. It is the rare place where a rare cartridge and a serious lecture live under one roof.
Two Ways Into the Same Culture
That is where our interests meet. SUBOTRON approaches games as living culture, through talk, exchange and events; the Game Boy Museum approaches them through the preserved object, one device documented in complete, original condition. The conversation and the artefact belong together. If it leaves you curious about one machine in particular, you can follow the whole original Game Boy story in our complete DMG-01 guide.
Plan Your Visit
SUBOTRON sits at the MuseumsQuartier, Museumsplatz 1 in Vienna, and its programme of talks, events and shop offerings is at subotron.com. Drop in for a browse, and stay for whatever is on the stage that evening.
This is one of the places gathered in our guide to the video game museums worth visiting.
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