Video
Gamers set world records, the TV show “Thats Incredible” broadcast a tournament to a national audience, and then-mayor Jerry Parker dubbed Ottumwa “The Video Game Capital of the World.”
The glory days didnt last long. The Twin Galaxies arcade closed within a couple years, and memories of Pac-Man and Donkey Kong dimmed for everyone – except arcade owner Walter Day, who dreamed of making Ottumwa into a permanent game destination.
“You know how your average person fantasizes, when they daydream about having a new car or having a beautiful wife or inheriting from their uncle $2 million or something like that? Im a little bit different,” he said. “I fantasize about owning downtown Ottumwa and turning it into the first video game-themed amusement attraction.”
Its a calling thats been heard by town officials. In April, they announced plans for an International Video Game Hall of Fame.
“Every town needs a place to be recognized for,” said Terry McNitt, head of Ottumwas Chamber of Commerce.
Day said he envisioned making Ottumwa a “cultural home base” for the lucrative worldwide gaming industry. The Entertainment Software Association, a game publishers trade group, said computer and video game industry sales climbed to $22 billion in 2008.
Ottumwas bid to reclaim its past also was inspired by a pair of 2007 video-game documentaries, “King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters” and “Chasing Ghosts,” both of which featured the Twin Galaxies heyday when Day was known as the king of video game stats.
Although his arcade closed, Days scorekeeper status remains. Twin Galaxies Inc., his Fairfield-based company, tracks rankings, high scores and championship tournaments for video games around the world.
City officials are passionate about Days plans, but the idea is mostly a vision backed by a Facebook group with about 800 members. Officials said they hoped to buy a building near the original Twin Galaxies site and want to secure naming rights and a designation as a nonprofit and build up a Web site.
Day said hes also reached out to his contacts in the gaming industry for donations. The hall of fame would likely include donated classic games, exhibits about the industry and an area with modern games for visitors to play.
Dale Uehling, the citys mayor, noted there was “a lot of interest, a lot of enthusiasm” for the project.
“The thing is, its real and it has potential, and I think thats what excites everybody,” McNitt said. “Why Ottumwa, Iowa? Were a population of 26,000. Well, were a great little town.”