53 video game trivia questions, with answers
Seven rounds from the first arcade machines to today's games: arcade classics, consoles and handhelds, famous characters, best-sellers and records, game music, behind the games, and games today. Every answer links to its source.
53 questions · Video game trivia questions with answers · answers included
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Arcade classics
- 1
Atari's 1972 arcade hit Pong is a simple video version of which sport?
easy
Hint: Two paddles knock a ball back and forth.
AnswerTable tennis (ping-pong).
Pong was the first commercially successful video game and helped to establish the video game industry.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pong?oldid=1382484581
- 2
In 1972 the first Pong machine was tested at Andy Capp's Tavern, a local bar, and after a few days it stopped working. What was wrong with it?
medium
Hint: It was a problem of too much success.
AnswerIts coin box was overflowing with quarters.
Engineer Allan Alcorn, who built Pong as a training exercise, found the fault when he came to fix the machine.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pong?oldid=1382484581
- 3
The octopus-like aliens of the 1978 arcade game Space Invaders were inspired by which famous science fiction novel?
medium
Hint: A war between planets.
AnswerThe War of the Worlds.
Designer Tomohiro Nishikado modeled other aliens on squids and crabs.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Invaders?oldid=1383438025
- 4
In Namco's 1981 arcade game Galaga, what can a Boss Galaga do to your ship with its tractor beam?
medium
Hint: Win it back and you fly two ships at once.
AnswerCapture it.
If you rescue the captured ship with another ship, you get a "dual fighter" with extra firepower.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galaga?oldid=1383145417
- 5
Ms. Pac-Man (1982) started life as an add-on kit for the original Pac-Man made by General Computer Corporation. What was that kit called?
hard
Hint: A two-word name: a funny adjective and a first name.
AnswerCrazy Otto.
Rather than scrap it, the programmers showed the finished game to Midway, which used it as the basis for a Pac-Man sequel.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ms._Pac-Man?oldid=1382946163
- 6
In the 1981 arcade game Frogger, the frog first dodges traffic on a busy road. What must it cross next by hopping on logs, turtles and alligators?
easy
Hint: Watch out for the water.
AnswerA river.
The goal is to guide five frogs into the five "frog homes" at the top of the screen.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frogger?oldid=1383605089
- 7
Pac-Man is chased by four ghosts: Blinky, Pinky, Inky and which orange one?
easy
Hint: His name does not end in -y like the others.
AnswerClyde.
Each name hints at a strategy: Clyde switches between chasing Pac-Man and fleeing from him.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pac-Man?oldid=1383611738
- 8
Which level of the original Pac-Man arcade game cannot be completed, because a bug scrambles the screen?
hard
Hint: It is a power of two, just past 255.
AnswerLevel 256.
This "kill screen" is caused by an integer overflow, so a perfect game ends there at 3,333,360 points.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pac-Man?oldid=1383611738
Consoles and handhelds
- 9
The Magnavox Odyssey, released in 1972, was the first commercial home video game console. Its graphics were just dots, so what did players stick on the TV screen to add pictures?
medium
Hint: They were see-through and held on by static.
AnswerPlastic overlays.
The overlays clung to the TV by static, and the box also came with dice, poker chips, score sheets and playing cards.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnavox_Odyssey?oldid=1382239313
- 10
What do the letters DS stand for in Nintendo DS?
easy
Hint: Count the screens.
AnswerDual Screen.
The lower of its two screens is a touchscreen that works with a finger or the included stylus.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo_DS?oldid=1376058033
- 11
What are the Nintendo Switch's detachable controllers called?
easy
Hint: At launch one bundle had them in neon red and blue.
AnswerJoy-Con.
They can work as two halves of one controller or as two separate controllers, and the Switch itself can be docked to a TV or played as a handheld.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo_Switch?oldid=1381269427
- 12
Microsoft's Xbox got its name by shortening an earlier idea. What was the longer name?
medium
Hint: The console was dreamed up by engineers from Microsoft's DirectX team.
AnswerDirectX Box.
Microsoft put "Xbox" on a focus-test list to prove how unpopular it would be, but it turned out to be the favorite.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xbox_(console)?oldid=1383639481
- 13
Nintendo's 1995 Virtual Boy promised 3D games through an eyepiece. In what color were all of its images shown?
medium
Hint: The same color as a stop sign.
AnswerRed (on black).
Gunpei Yokoi chose red LEDs partly because they were the cheapest option.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtual_Boy?oldid=1382813052
- 14
Which console, released in Japan in 1998, was Sega's final home video game console?
medium
Hint: Its name joins something you do in your sleep and a word for throwing.
AnswerThe Dreamcast.
It was the first console with a built-in modem for internet access and online play.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dreamcast?oldid=1383604103
- 15
Wii Sports, packed in with the Wii console, includes tennis, baseball, bowling and golf. What is the fifth sport?
medium
Hint: You throw punches.
AnswerBoxing.
Players swing the Wii Remote like a racket, bat, club or bowling ball to mimic the real sport.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wii_Sports?oldid=1383326726
Famous characters
- 16
In The Legend of Zelda games, what is the name of the hero you play? (It is not Zelda.)
easy
Hint: A four-letter word for a connection.
AnswerLink.
Shigeru Miyamoto said the hero was meant to travel between the past and the future and be the link between them.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Link_(The_Legend_of_Zelda)?oldid=1383334111
- 17
In the original 1985 Super Mario Bros., what was Princess Peach called in the English version?
medium
Hint: Think mushrooms.
AnswerPrincess Toadstool.
The name "Peach" was first used in the West in the 1993 game Yoshi's Safari.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Peach?oldid=1383352057
- 18
Mario's dinosaur friend Yoshi first appeared in which 1990 game for the Super Nintendo?
medium
Hint: The team set the game in a "dinosaur land."
AnswerSuper Mario World.
Miyamoto had long wanted to give Mario a dinosaur to ride, but the idea only became possible on the more powerful Super NES.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoshi?oldid=1382914201
- 19
Which Nintendo character, who debuted on the Game Boy in 1992, was named partly in honor of an American lawyer who had defended Nintendo in court?
hard
Hint: The hero of Dream Land, famous for inhaling enemies.
AnswerKirby.
In that first Game Boy game the character looked white, because the Game Boy screen could only show shades of gray.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kirby_(character)?oldid=1383542906
- 20
Before she became Lara Croft, what was the first name given to the Tomb Raider heroine during design?
hard
Hint: Her first name lost one letter; her surname changed completely.
AnswerLaura Cruz.
Co-creator Paul Douglas changed it after looking through a baby names book.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lara_Croft?oldid=1382606797
- 21
According to designer Naoto Ohshima, Sonic's enemy Doctor Robotnik (later called Eggman) was based on which nursery rhyme character?
hard
Hint: Think of his later name.
AnswerHumpty Dumpty.
Robotnik was called Eggman in Japan and Robotnik elsewhere because of a dispute between Sega's American and Japanese teams.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonic_the_Hedgehog_(1991_video_game)?oldid=1381638800
- 22
Pikachu's name combines two Japanese sound words. "Pika" is a sparkling sound. What sound is "chu"?
medium
Hint: Pikachu is a yellow mouse.
AnswerThe squeak of a mouse.
Pikachu is an Electric-type Pokémon and the mascot of the Pokémon franchise.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pikachu?oldid=1381842349
- 23
In the NES game Duck Hunt, what does the hunting dog do when you miss the ducks?
easy
Hint: Its nickname gives it away.
AnswerIt laughs at you.
The dog has been called "the Laughing Dog," and MTV named it the greatest video game canine.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duck_Hunt?oldid=1383304331
- 24
In the 1991 game Sonic the Hedgehog, what gold objects does Sonic collect, earning an extra life for every 100?
easy
Hint: They are round, with a hole in the middle.
AnswerRings.
The rings also protect Sonic from a single enemy or hazard.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonic_the_Hedgehog_(1991_video_game)?oldid=1381638800
Best-sellers and records
- 25
Which Sony console, launched in 2000 with a built-in DVD drive, has sold more units than any other video game console?
easy
Hint: It came after the original PlayStation.
AnswerThe PlayStation 2.
It sold 160 million units, nearly triple the combined sales of its competing consoles of the same generation.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PlayStation_2?oldid=1383327580
- 26
As of December 2025, which console had shipped over 155 million units, making it the best-selling Nintendo console ever?
medium
Hint: It can be played docked to a TV or as a handheld.
AnswerThe Nintendo Switch.
Only the PlayStation 2 has sold more.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo_Switch?oldid=1381269427
- 27
Which 1991 Capcom arcade game holds the Guinness World Record as the first fighting game to use combos?
medium
Hint: Its fighters include Chun-Li, an Interpol officer.
AnswerStreet Fighter II.
Combos came about by accident, when skilled players found they could chain attacks with no time for the opponent to recover.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Street_Fighter_II?oldid=1381246766
- 28
Fortnite Battle Royale came out in 2017. Within a year, had it drawn more than 12 million, 50 million or 125 million players?
medium
Hint: It was earning hundreds of millions of dollars a month.
AnswerMore than 125 million.
Fortnite grew out of an internal game jam at Epic Games around 2011.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fortnite?oldid=1383461546
- 29
In 2009, Guinness World Records named which character the most recognizable video game character in the United States, known by 94% of people?
medium
Hint: A yellow circle with a big mouth.
AnswerPac-Man.
Mario came a close second, recognized by 93%.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pac-Man?oldid=1383611738
Game music and sound
- 30
The famous Tetris theme is an arrangement of which Russian folk song?
medium
Hint: The Tetris Company has required it in every version since 2002.
Answer"Korobeiniki."
The song is based on a poem by Nikolay Nekrasov, first printed in 1861.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korobeiniki?oldid=1381912950
- 31
Koji Kondo's Super Mario Bros. theme was the first piece of video game music added to which U.S. list of important sound recordings?
medium
Hint: Its name is three words long.
AnswerThe National Recording Registry.
Nintendo hired Kondo in 1984 as its first dedicated composer.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koji_Kondo?oldid=1383311596
- 32
The music for the 1991 game Sonic the Hedgehog was composed by Masato Nakamura, bassist of which J-pop band?
hard
Hint: The band name is a phrase about wishes.
AnswerDreams Come True.
Nakamura had only just started with the band, but he took the job because he liked the team's wish to outdo Nintendo.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonic_the_Hedgehog_(1991_video_game)?oldid=1381638800
- 33
For Minecraft's grass footsteps, sound designer C418 found that real recordings of grass did not work. What did he lightly touch instead?
hard
Hint: An old way to record movies at home.
AnswerVHS tape.
The creeper's fuse-like hiss also began as a placeholder matchstick sound that was kept because it worked so well.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minecraft?oldid=1383309668
- 34
Composer Martin O'Donnell wanted the music of Halo to give a feeling of ancient mystery. What style of singing did he use?
medium
Hint: Think of monks in a medieval church.
AnswerGregorian chant.
He sang the vocals himself with his composing partner Michael Salvatori and other singers.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halo:_Combat_Evolved?oldid=1383307669
- 35
In Animal Crossing: New Horizons, which popular musician plays a concert on your island once it reaches a three-star rating?
medium
Hint: His name starts with two initials.
AnswerK.K. Slider.
His concert marks the "end" of the game as the credits roll.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animal_Crossing:_New_Horizons?oldid=1379153324
- 36
In Space Invaders, what happens to the aliens and the music as you shoot more invaders?
easy
Hint: Fewer aliens, more panic.
AnswerThey speed up.
It began as a quirk: the processor drew the aliens faster when fewer were left, and designer Tomohiro Nishikado kept it as part of the game.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Invaders?oldid=1383438025
Behind the games
- 37
Ralph Baer, known as "the Father of Video Games," also helped design which 1978 electronic pattern-matching game made for Milton Bradley?
medium
Hint: It shares its name with a "Says" game.
AnswerSimon.
Baer also built the "Brown Box," the blueprint for the first home video game console, the Magnavox Odyssey.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_H._Baer?oldid=1382863882
- 38
Nolan Bushnell, who established Atari, also started which family restaurant chain, first opened in San Jose in 1977 as Pizza Time Theatre?
medium
Hint: Its mascot is a famous rat.
AnswerChuck E. Cheese.
It began as a way for Atari to have a place to put its arcade games.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nolan_Bushnell?oldid=1373384979
- 39
Unsold cartridges of Atari's 1982 game E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial were secretly buried in a landfill in which U.S. state?
medium
Hint: Trucks brought them from an Atari storehouse in El Paso, Texas.
AnswerNew Mexico (in Alamogordo).
Long thought to be an urban legend, the burial was confirmed when diggers found E.T. cartridges there in April 2014.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E.T._the_Extra-Terrestrial_(video_game)?oldid=1382338018
- 40
After the video game crash of 1983, stores were wary of video games, so Nintendo sold its NES as an "Entertainment System." What toy did it make to go with it?
hard
Hint: Its name is a three-letter boy's name.
AnswerA toy robot, R.O.B.
Nintendo also called the console a "control deck" and its cartridges "Game Paks."
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_game_crash_of_1983?oldid=1383074459
- 41
Which famous cheat code goes up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A?
medium
Hint: Named after the Japanese company behind Contra.
AnswerThe Konami Code.
It was first used in Gradius (1986), and gave 30 lives in Contra.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Konami_Code?oldid=1383548633
- 42
The Oregon Trail was first made in 1971 by student teachers in Minnesota. It had no graphics, so instead of on a screen, what did players read it on?
hard
Hint: A machine that typed out text on paper.
AnswerA teleprinter.
The programmers worked on the school's teleprinter in a room that had once been a janitor's closet.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Oregon_Trail_(1971_video_game)?oldid=1382905746
- 43
Nintendo's Gunpei Yokoi got the idea for the Game & Watch on a bullet train, watching a bored businessman press the buttons on what?
medium
Hint: A pocket machine for doing sums.
AnswerA pocket calculator.
Game & Watch also gave the world the D-pad, which won a Technology & Engineering Emmy Award in 2008.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_%26_Watch?oldid=1382438342
- 44
Before it became a launch game for the Xbox, Halo was unveiled in July 1999 as a game for Mac and Windows by which tech boss?
hard
Hint: He ran Apple.
AnswerSteve Jobs.
Microsoft bought the developer Bungie in 2000 so that Halo could launch with the Xbox.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halo:_Combat_Evolved?oldid=1383307669
- 45
What color was the cartridge of the original Legend of Zelda in North America?
medium
Hint: A die-cut hole in the box let you see it.
AnswerGold.
It was also one of the first games with an internal battery for saving your game.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Legend_of_Zelda_(video_game)?oldid=1383060100
- 46
Super Mario Bros. (1985) is set in the Mushroom Kingdom. What kind of stories inspired the idea of mushrooms that change your size?
hard
Hint: Old stories from the game makers' home country.
AnswerJapanese folktales.
In those tales, people wander into forests and eat magical mushrooms.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Mario_Bros.?oldid=1383645902
Games today
- 47
In Fortnite Battle Royale, up to how many players start each match?
easy
Hint: Three digits.
Answer100.
Fortnite came out in 2017, made by Epic Games.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fortnite?oldid=1383461546
- 48
What is the name of Roblox's virtual currency?
easy
Hint: It mixes the game's name with a slang word for dollars.
AnswerRobux.
Players build Roblox games themselves with a tool called Roblox Studio.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roblox?oldid=1379420136
- 49
The idea for Among Us came from which party game that Innersloth co-founder Marcus Bromander had played since he was a kid?
medium
Hint: One word, five letters.
AnswerMafia.
Among Us first came out in 2018, and its first map was a spaceship called The Skeld.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Among_Us?oldid=1383410210
- 50
In Animal Crossing: New Horizons, who sells you the getaway package that sends you to live on a deserted island?
easy
Hint: The same surname appears on the game's air miles.
AnswerTom Nook.
You can later use Nook Miles to buy tickets from Dodo Airlines and visit other islands.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animal_Crossing:_New_Horizons?oldid=1379153324
- 51
Which Mario Kart game introduced anti-gravity racing, letting karts drive on walls and ceilings?
medium
Hint: Its Deluxe version came to the Switch.
AnswerMario Kart 8.
The team also thought about having karts drill into the ground, but decided anti-gravity was more interesting.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mario_Kart_8?oldid=1382122578
- 52
Which company runs Steam, the PC game store that launched in September 2003?
medium
Hint: It also makes the Steam Deck handheld.
AnswerValve.
While building it, the company used the working names "Grid" and "Gazelle."
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steam_(service)?oldid=1383322256
- 53
Games Done Quick is a twice-yearly marathon of speedruns broadcast on Twitch. As of January 2022, roughly how much had it raised for charity since 2010?
hard
Hint: Between 30 and 40 million dollars.
AnswerOver $37 million.
It is the largest speedrunning marathon, held in the United States.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speedrunning?oldid=1380968912
Use this set at a game night
The rounds run from 1970s arcades to the games of today, so players of different ages each get a round they know. Make teams that mix ages, play one round at a time on a shared screen, or print the questions and keep the answer key apart. Tied at the end? Hold back the Games Done Quick question and ask it last: the closest number wins.
Timer and team scores
8 turns × 60 seconds = 8 minutes of play, plus instructions and breaks.
60
Pause whenever the group needs more time.
Team Lime's turn
Team Lime: 0
Team Violet: 0
Team Tangerine: 0
Team Sky: 0
Team Lemon: 0
Team Bubblegum: 0