Let’s Go to the Daikatana Party

John Romero is about to make you his guest.

The following is part of our 25-day Holiday Countdown Calendar! Every day from December 1st through the 25th, we’re posting a cool game history treat, daily updates from the VGHF, giveaways, and more! To make sure you don’t miss a day, sign up for our email list:

This is all part of our annual Winter Fundraiser donation drive, where we ask those who are able to generously give what they can so that we can continue thriving. If you’re able to make an additional one-time charitable contribution, this really is the best time to do so, as your donations will be DOUBLED thanks to a generous group of sponsors! Head on over to gamehistory.org/donate to learn more and give today.

We’d like you to a party… from 24 years ago! This is an invitation to the official Daikatana launch party, held on December 17, 1999.

Daikatana was one of the most hyped and controversial games of the late 1990s. Led by John Romero, the co-designer of Doom and Quake, it was supposed to usher in a new era of first-person shooters. Instead, the intense publicity and extravagant behavior from studio Ion Storm would turn it into a punchline.

This little memento of the Daikatana hype comes to us via a donation by former GamePro editor Dan Amrich. As you can see on the flyer, this party was hosted at Chase Tower, where Ion Storm’s infamously lavish headquarters was located.

This invitation is part of our library’s collection of flyers, advertisements, and event memorabilia, which we’ll eventually be able to scan and catalog with your support!

GOG Bundle Now Available!

GOG, along with a group of game developer friends, has put together a game history bundle for our benefit!

We’ve personally curated a selection of three historically important and interesting titles: The Last Express by Jordan Mechner and Smoking Car Productions, The Manhole by Cyan, and Wasteland by InXile (or originally, Interplay).

Not only have these three publishers agreed to donate all profits to us, so has GOG! If you’re interested, the bundle is available now through December 20th.

You can see tomorrow’s post right now!

Members of our Patreon who support us at $5 a month or higher get access to our daily Holiday Countdown Calendar posts one day early!

If you’re a patron, then you can see one of the coolest things in our collection: the first prize ever awarded at an Awesome Games Done Quick (we think!).