GameRoom Magazine - International Video Game Hall of Fame

Hall of Fame on August 13, 2009. On that
day Ottumwa’s claim gained a considerable
boost, as over 3,000 excited fans showed up
for live game competitions and a chance to
read the “history walls,” which documented
the amazing things that happened in the
early ’80s.
Many notable figures in the international
video gaming world attended the event,
including Billy Mitchell, Tony Temple from
Great Britain, and Triforce, a topflight gamer
who had his name legally changed to reflect
his current calling in life. Topping off the
launch were clips from the recent documentary
on the industry, FRAG (shown at the
Cannes Film Festival), and a montage of
historical footage from 1983. Media outlets
from Boston to India covered the event.
Let the Games Continue!
What’s next? The first Big Bang Video Game
Festival at the Bridge View Center from
August 5-8. The event, supported by many
donations, will feature a 24-hour-a-day
plethora of game playing and competition,
bands performing in an outdoor beer garden,
inductions into the Hall of Fame, displays
of artifacts that have been donated to the
Hall of Fame Museum, and a chance to meet
some of the most famous video gamers in the
world.
“Gaming, it’s so huge, there’s so much
history, and it’s only going to continue to
develop,” sums up Terry McNitt of the Ottumwa
Chamber of Commerce. “Nobody’s
ever taken this sort of thing and run with it.”
Becoming the Video Game Capital of the
World is a formidable yet exciting undertaking
for the people of Ottumwa and Wapello
County. For a city recently plagued by unemployment,
Ottumwa now looks forward to a
growing tourism industry and the chance to
reacquire some long-deserved respect. GR
Article reprinted with permission of the Iowa Source
16 GameRoom August, 2010
The Big Bang is Ottumwa’s Annual Video Game Festival, co-created by the Citizens
of Ottumwa and the International Video Game Hall of Fame. TBB is a four-day
event held concurrently with the Grand Induction Ceremonies for the International
Video Game Hall of Fame & Museum (IVGHOF). As the birthplace of organized,
competitive video game playing, the title, “The Big Bang,” is derived from the fact that
“it all started in Ottumwa.” In the same way that the Universe began with a “Big Bang,”
organized video game playing started with a similar explosion in Ottumwa, Iowa nearly
thirty years ago.
Scheduled for August 5-8, 2010, the festival will feature lots of contests with more
than $13,000 in cash prizes, three straight nights of rock concerts (ten bands), a dealer
showroom, panel discussions, guest celebrities, a Cosplay costume contest, historic museum
displays and movies. Special events include a reunion of the 1982 superstars who
appeared in the legendary LIFE magazine photo, a 30th Anniversary party for Pac-Man
and a re-enactment of the 1983 World Championship filmed by That’s Incredible. Plus,
many not-to-be-missed events, such as Ottumwa ceremoniously raising its new flag as the
“Video Game Capital of the World” and renaming Central Park to “Pac-Man Park.” Plus
lots of further activities to be announced by the IVGHOF.
The City of Ottumwa would like to invite you to come and celebrate Ottumwa’s
unique video game legacy. The Big Bang will be held at: Bridge View Center, 102 Church
Street, Ottumwa, IA 52501 (641) 684-7000 www.bridgeviewcenter.com
Pac-Man’s 30 th Birthday Celebrations at the Big Bang
The Big Bang is throwing a party for Pac-Man
that includes re-naming the city’s Central Park
to “Pac-Man Park.” And, as a build-up to the event,
the IVGHOF conducted a worldwide campaign to
gather birthday cards for Pac-Man, using the special
NAMCO card created for the celebration. But, the
best part happens on Friday afternoon, August 6th ,
when the official Pac-Man Birthday Party is conducted
in the Bridge View Center auditorium and
Pac-Man is joined for a public panel discussion by 7
or 8 of the greatest Pac-Man players in history, who
will discuss how Pac-Man affected the culture of our
times. And, don’t forget that Pac-Man and Mr. Masaya
Nakamura are being inducted into the IVGHOF
on Saturday night. And, to preserve it all for history,
noted British filmmaker Anthony Caulfield will be
on hand to create a documentary film on Pac-Man
that captures all the landmark activities in Ottumwa.