Oh Dreamcast…you fickle bitch. Raising the hopes of gamers and then smashing them on the floor like a stupid-frigging-controller after a particularly frustrating Ikaruga session. But nobody’s hopes and dreams were smashed quite as tragically as the 9-09-99 Dreamcast launch team. Still, tragic as it must have been to work tirelessly on what was to be The Next Cool Thing, only to see it fail epically, that was a whole ten years ago. A lot has happened since then. New jobs were found. Families were started. Somehow, somewhere, game journalists got together and decided that Seaman will forever and always be put on every Weirdest Game List that will ever be written. And slowly, the dream team got over the tragedy. Oh yes, let’s not forget that this is America, and in America, as soon as we get over a heartache, we hit the nearest karaoke bar.
And no one throws a karaoke party like Dreamcast’s rock star PR girl, Heather Hawkins. How much does she rock? She had her trademark blue hair waaaay before accepting the gig at the home of Sonic. She also rocks hard enough to take upon herself to not let this momentous, ninetastic date go by without throwing a kick ass party. Well, almost kick ass, she did mention in her Evite that this event was no-frills and specifically stated that there was no money to “…to hire Verne Troyer to make an appearance, nor have roaming jello shot girls” (Yep, they had both those crazy expensive, yet annoying-sounding perks at the original launch party), but would provide 1999-themed Karaoke, quipping “Chumbawumba, anyone?”.
Yesterday, as the start-time neared, she kept invitees updated on the party preparations, tweeting that she wasn’t brave enough to draw a chalk swirl on the sidewalk outside of Annie’s Social Club, the downtown SF rock club where this all went down. Still someone had the guts to decorate a cake with a big, sugary orange swirl (I’m sure soon someone will tell me who made the cake and perhaps even send me a picture to post for you all); and lots of members of the launch team had the guts to show up, bearing swag and mementos dug out of closets and storage spaces. Also attending were wigs so big no human head could possibly hold them, Former SOA prez, Bernie Stolar (gasp)and rockstar COO, Peter Moore.
Now, I was not there, but former launch team member, Mike Spiegelman, told me that Stolar and Moore gave speeches that were freaking amazing, and Heather has mentioned that she is still a bit peeved that no journalists thought this event was important enough to cover. Well, Heather, I think it’s important enough, but then, as I’ve said before, I’m not a journalist. I’m just someone who writes stuff on the internet that no one reads.
But if you were there, or you wish you were there, or you had a 9-09-99 party of your own, please leave all the torrid details in the comments section.
