U.S. National Video Game Team
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The U.S. National Video Game Team was founded on July 25, 1983 in Ottumwa, Iowa, USA by Walter Day and the Twin Galaxies Intergalactic Scoreboard.
In 1986, the USNVGT continued on without Day with Donn Nauert [1] as team captain. Eager to increase their reach, the Team purchased Twin Galaxies from Day for $1,500 [2] and began to extend their reach to include publishing the Top Score Newsletter and Electronic Game Player Magazine, which became Electronic Gaming Monthly a short time later. [2] Nauert appeared in television commercials for the Atari 7800 [3] and served as the referee for Incredible Sunday on That's Incredible!, a three-game competition on the Nintendo Entertainment System that served as a precursor to the Nintendo World Championships 1990. [1] The USNVGT also endorsed various video game products with a Player's Seal of Approval from 1988-1989.
On August 7, 2015, the U.S. National Video Game Team concept was rebooted by gaming advocate Patrick Scott Patterson and founding member Tim McVey after Patterson obtained the trademark on the name. On September 27, 2015 the two announced the reboot at the film premiere of Man VS Snake: The Long and Twisted Tale of Nibbler in Austin, TX, also announcing multi-Guinness World Record gamer Carrie Swidecki as their first member. [4]
- Carrie Swidecki, Bakersfield, California
Historic Dates & Events
- July 25, 1983; Team founded in Ottumwa, Iowa by the Twin Galaxies Intergalactic Scoreboard with Walter Day as Team Captain.
- August 11, 1983; Embarked on a national tour to conduct the 1983 Video Game Masters Tournament
- Cystic Fibrosis Video Game Challenge Week in Ottumwa, August 8, 1983
- Letter from Michigan House of Representatives. Harold Sawyer to USNVGT, August 16, 1983
- "They're masters of Video Games", Spokesman-Review, August 24, 1983
- August 24, 1983; U.S. National Video Game Team inspired Civic Proclamations around the USA.
- Proclamation for Cystic Fibrosis Video Game Challenge Week, Lake Odessa, Michigan, August 8, 1983
- September 15, 1983; Conducted a tour of the East Coast of the United States on behalf of Video Game Player Magazine to verify excessive high-score claims submitted by players.
- September 24, 1983; Hand-delivered official documents to the Japanese and Italian Embassies in Washington, D.C., challenging these countries to an International Video Championship.
- "Benefit Hones Video Game Skill", Chicago Suburban Tribune, August 24, 1983
- "U.S. vs. Japan Video Tournament", CashBox Magazine, August 27, 1983
- "U.S. Video Team Forming, Plans Call for Match with Japan", RePlay Magazine, October 1, 1983
- November 15, 1983; Ottumwa Proclamation to the People of the Country of Italy, November 15, 1983
- Ottumwa issues a Proclamation, challenging the Country of Italy on behalf of the U.S. National Video Game Team, November 15, 1983
- January 14, 1984; Working with the Twin Galaxies Intergalactic Scoreboard, the USNVGT conducted the 1984 Coronation Day to crown the 1983 players, manufacturers and magazines of the past year.
- Twin Galaxies' Coronation Day Crowns Video's Best of '83 - RePlay Magazine, February 1, 1984
- February 12, 1984; The U.S. National Video Game Team attends the February, 1984 AMOA Expo in New Orleans, beginning a long tradition of reviewing new games for the video game industry.
- "U.S. National Video Game Team Rates Games", PlayMeter Magazine, March 1, 1984
- February 10-February 12, 1984; Canada-USA Video Game Team Conference is organized by USNVGT.
- Canadian Video Team Being Formed - CashBox Magazine, March 10, 1984
- U.S. National Video Game Team at 1984 AMOA Expo - Vending Times, December 1, 1984
- April 12, 1985; The Red Cross Video Game Team Invites President Ronald Reagan to Join The Team
- The U.S. National Video Game Team organizes a fundraiser for the Red Cross and announces plans to create a Red Cross Video Team to take to Washington, DC.
- April 8, 1986; The U.S. National Video Game Team is authorized by the Guinness Book of World Records to organize contests.
- Guinness sends letter to U.S. National Video Game Team, April 8, 1986
- April 1, 1987; U.S. National Video Game Team Announces its 1987 "Best Games" at the ACME.
- U.S. National Video Team Picks its Favorites, Vending Times, New York, NY, April 1, 1987
- April 1, 1987; U.S. National Video Game Team Conducts 1987 Video Game Masters Tournament for Guinness.
- Video Game Masters Match Will Help March of Dimes, Vending Times, New York, NY, April 1, 1987
- July 12, 1987; The U.S. National Video Game Team organizes 1987 Video Game Masters Tournament for Guinness Record Book.
- Video game champ buys 40 hours of play with 25 cents - Torrance Daily Breeze, Torrance, CA, July 12, 1987
References
- ^ a b Patterson, Patrick Scott (June 25, 2015). "ICONS: Donn Nauert is one of the fathers of eSports competition". G4@Syfygames. NBCUniversal. Retrieved June 25, 2015.
- ^ a b Patterson, Patrick Scott (May 8, 2015). "ICONS: Jeff Peters has left his mark on multiple aspects of gaming culture - Part 2". G4@Syfygames. NBCUniversal. Retrieved May 8, 2015.
- ^ Owen Good (13 Apr 2012), There was Once a U.S. National Video Game Team, and This Guy Was Its Captain, Kotaku, retrieved 7 Aug 2013
- ^ PatrickScottPatterson.com. "U.S. National Video Game Team is rebooted for the 21st Century | PRLog". www.prlog.org. Retrieved 2015-10-04.