|
by Roger Jones, Executive Director OEDC
It was astounding. That is not a word I used very often, but it is the only one that accurately describes what happened in our City on Thursday, August 13th. It was on that day that the official Launch Event for the International Video Gaming Hall of Fame took place at the Bridge View Center.
As you probably know, the City of Ottumwa has proclaimed itself as the Video Gaming Capital of the World. On Thursday, the 13th our claim gained an immense amount of credibility. Lots of people say "why Ottumwa?" or "where's Ottumwa?" when they hear about our plans to build the International Video Gaming Hall of Fame. Yesterday, whoever was listening, and there were plenty who were, learned a lot. In 1982 the then mayor of Ottumwa, Jerry Parker, proclaimed the City as such, due largely to the presence in town of the Twin Galaxies video game parlor, run by the amazing, persistent, visionary Walter Day. I won't go through the whole history, as it has been well documented in the articles throughout the world. Suffice it to say that Twin Galaxies had become what Mr. Day likes to term the Dodge City of video gaming. It was here in Ottumwa that top players from throughout the world came to set official world records and to compete against one another much like the gunfighters of the old West had done In Dodge City. Along the way, Mr. Day had become recognized throughout the industry as the official scorekeeper who kept track of world records achieved on the many, many consoles that were in existence. Walter sometimes received up to fifty calls a day from individuals claiming to have achieved top scores in various games. There were instances where in one day records would be broken and then broken again and again by various individuals whose competitive spirit was running in overdrive. Ottumwa and video game competition were irretrievably connected. Since that time, Mr. Day has envisioned a time when our city would gain due recognition for that achievement. On Thursday, August 13th, that dream took a monster step toward its realization.
Anywhere between 3,200 and 3,500 individuals visited the BVC to attend the launch party where they were treated to live game competitions, "history walls" which featured reproductions of some of the many articles printed in media ranging from Life magazine to the Ottumwa Courier documenting the amazing things that happened in the early eighties. A Proclamation signed by Governor Culver and Lieutenant Governor Judge, along with a supporting letter , were read to the attendees. Many prominent political figures were present , including Congressman Dave Loebsack, who gave a speech encouraging the City's effort, State Representative Mary Gaskill, and Ottumwa Mayor Dale Uehling, to name a few. The event was honored by the presence of many notable figures in the international video gaming world, including Billy Mitchell, video gamer of the century, Tony Temple from Great Britain, one of Europe's top players, Triforce, a topflight gamer who had his name legally changed to reflect his current calling in life, and many others too numerous to mention. The event was topped off by clips from the recent documentary on the industry, Frag, which was shown at the Cannes Film Festival, and a montage of historical footage from 1983 focusing on an article which appeared in Life magazine and an episode of the television show "That's Incredible", which featured a live video game competition. Already the event is being reported in media outlets from Boston to the Times of India. Numerous top executives in the video game industry have taken notice and are talking about offering their support to our effort. Space limitations prevent me from talking more about this amazing event, but let me just say that the incredible future of Ottumwa was mirrored by what took place on August 13th at the Bridge View Center.
August 2009 - The Mecca of Video Gaming
May 2009 - New manufacturing prospects still in the works
12 2009 - Time to be Optimistic
02 2010 - Economic Future of Ottumwa is Bright
|
|
