PC-based digital art 'Demoscene' registered as UNESCO intangible cultural heritage in Sweden

'Demo (megademo)' is a program that mainly used PCs in the 1970s and 1980s to render music and video in real time, and the culture that combines groups that create demos and demo parties where people show off their demos is called the demoscene . Demoscene, which has long been popular as a digital art subculture, has been registered as an intangible cultural heritage by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in Sweden.

Demoscenen - Levande kulturarv
https://levandekulturarv.se/forteckningen/element/demoscenen

The demoscene as a UNESCO heritage in Sweden | GOTO8O
https://www.goto80.com/the-demoscene-as-a-unesco-heritage-in-sweden

Demoscene now also recognized in Sweden as UNESCO cultural heritage - Demoscene - The Art of Coding
https://demoscene-the-art-of-coding.net/2025/03/31/demoscene-now-also-recognized-in-sweden-as-unesco-cultural-heritage/

Demos are a culture that has its roots in cracking games during the popularization of early PCs such as the Apple II, Commodore 64, and Amiga. Initially, the act of cracking software and signing it with your name became popular among young people, mainly in Northern Europe, and gradually they began to insert music and graphics instead of signatures, which developed into demos.

The following article provides a detailed explanation of demos and the demoscene, and you can also watch some famous demo works.

What is the digital art culture 'Demoscene'? - GIGAZINE

Swedish demo artist Goto80 wrote in his blog that 'the demoscene is arguably the oldest creative digital subculture,' and that many people have moved from being active in the demoscene to making games, making music, or developing software.

In 2020, the demoscene was registered as an Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO in Finland, where the demoscene is thriving.

Retro PC digital art culture 'Demoscene' that started with game cracking will be registered as an intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO - GIGAZINE

And in March 2025, Sweden, another Nordic country, will also register demoscene as an intangible cultural heritage of UNESCO. Sweden will be the sixth country to do so, after Finland, Germany, Poland, Switzerland and the Netherlands have already registered demoscene as an intangible cultural heritage.

'The demoscene has maintained its own values and traditions even through the technological and economic transitions of the world. Such consistency is very rare in the digital world,' said Goto80. 'The demoscene has a diversity that is hard to generalize. A Swedish coder with a high-paying programming job and a busy family life might think of the demoscene as a teenage escape. On the other hand, a free spirit from France who takes LSD, trades pirated games on message boards, and makes weird pixel art might think of the demoscene as a free culture that is free from the corporate and art world nonsense. The demoscene is very conservative and open at the same time, so there is room for both. That's probably one of the reasons why the demoscene should be considered an intangible cultural heritage.'