Royal Mail’s first stamp issue of 2020 celebrates classic video games

Royal Mail’s first stamp issue of the new year spotlights the UK’s impact on video game history with twelve iconic titles. The new collection will set you back £14.25, and will be released on 21st January.

Elite, Dizzy, Populous, Lemmings, Micro Machines, Sensible Soccer, WipeOut, Worms and a Miniature Sheet celebrating four games from the ever-popular Tomb Raider franchise make up 2020s debut stamp presentation pack.

“The UK has been at the forefront of the video games industry for decades,” explained Philip Parker of Royal Mail. “In the 1980s and 90s young designers grappled with coding on the new microcomputers and set the template for the industry with iconic games. We celebrate some of their landmark creations on stamps.”

Dr Jo Twist, OBE, CEO of Ukie, added: “This collection celebrates a selection of the great British video games that have helped define both the national and global development scene over decades. Video games are a key part of our cultural footprint and we’re pleased to see their contribution recognised in such memorable style.”

Royal Mail has also detailed how they went about selecting the games for the set:

Elite (1984) was a pioneering space-trading game originally made for BBC Micro and Acorn Electron. Made by Cambridge based duo, David Braben and Ian Bell, the game is legendary and arguably changed the face of computer gaming. Using a tiny amount of memory, this was the first genuine 3D game where players navigated a spaceship through galaxies. It is regularly listed among the most important video games ever created.

Dizzy (1987) was devised and created by the Oliver twins and published by Codemasters. It went on to become one of the most successful British game franchises of the era. Originally created for the Amstrad CPC, it quickly converted to ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64 and other computers and consoles. The game’s main character is an adventuring egg that runs and tumbles around a fantasy world solving puzzles by collecting interesting objects.

Populous (1989) was the first civilisation building game and one of the most successful games for PC ever produced. A real-time strategy game, it has won numerous awards and has been voted among one of the most important games of all time. It was created by Bullfrog Productions.

Lemmings (1991) was created by Dundee based DMA, and was one of the best received games of the 1990s. The objective is to save lemmings, and apply abilities to individuals to aid their escape.

Micro Machines (1991) a ground-breaking race game developed by Codemasters, where players race miniature toy vehicles. Influential and immensely popular; the game is regarded as a classic.

Sensible Soccer (1992) is considered by many to be the father of digital football games, and still retains a following. It was listed as one of the 10 most important video games of all time by a committee of US games experts.

WipeOut (1995) was developed in Liverpool by Sony’s Psygnosis studio. WipeOut was a revolutionary futuristic racing game for the new PlayStation that became a cult hit. It featured original music by Orbital and The Chemical Brothers.

Worms (1995) was published by Team 17 and featured cartoon-style warfare between worms. The series went on to become an international success story, helping Wakefield-based, Team 17, to become a leading international games publisher.

Take a look at the collection below:

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Video Games Wipeout 1995 stamp 400�

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Video Games Micro Machines 1991 stamp 400�

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Video Games Lemmings 1991 stamp 400�

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Video Games Elite 1984 stamp 400�

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Video Games Dizzy 1987 stamp 400�

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Video Games Populous 1989 stamp 400�

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Video Games Sensible Soccer 1992 stamp 400�


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Video Games Worms 1995 stamp 400�


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Video Games MS Tomb Raider 2013 stamp 400�

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Video Games MS Tomb Raider Chronicles 2000 stamp 400�


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Video Games MS Adventures of Lara Croft 1998 stamp 400�

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Video Games MS Tomb Raider 1996 stamp 400�



Video Games Tomb Raider Minisheet

How could we resist these?! We are but human beings!

You can find further details on how to buy the Video Games Presentation Pack right here, if you fancy picking it up.

Wireframe #29 is out now

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