BAFTA TO HONOR PONG/ATARI HEAD NOLAN BUSHNELL
Though the Academy hasn’t yet announced its official lineup for this year’s BAFTA Game Awards, it has sent a release noting that ‘Pong pioneer’ Nolan Bushnell will be this year’s Fellowship award winner. The honor is “presented for outstanding achievement through a body of work,” and last year (its inaugural year for a games-related award) was presented to Spore/SimCity creator Will Wright.
Academy Chairman David Parfitt said Bushnell’s contribution “is nothing short of remarkable; he ushered in an era, the legacy of which is the vibrant, evolving industry we see before us today.”
Bushnell is, of course, the entrepreneur behind both Pong and Atari’s foray into home consoles, who now spends his time heading uWink, the touchscreen enhanced ‘social entertainment restaurant,’ as well as chairman of Austin’s GameWager, which lets players compete in online games for prizes.
The full list of nominees for this year’s BAFTAs will be released on February 10th.
British Academy Video Games Awards
Previously:
Miyamoto, Spore awarded Jim Henson Honors – Offworld
Wii Fit tops 2008 Japan Media Arts Festival games entrants – Offworld
Getting crafty with Foldskool and Cubecraft – Offworld
What Does Your Soul Look Like (Part 2600) – Offworld
See more posts about: atari, Offworld Originals, pong
