Players who registered a rare 1999 Japanese game invited to a secret party 25 years later

[George98]

People who registered their copies of an obscure 1999 Japanese point and click game have been invited to a secret 25th anniversary party in Tokyo, Kotaku reports. The game is Cookie's Bustle: Mysterious Bombo World, and the party was organised by QualityTime Consulting. It featured live musicians playing the game's music, exclusive merchandise, costumed characters and Cookie shaped treats. Guests were asked not to take photos, but details leaked through social media posts anyway

The invitation read: "We hope that your adventure with Cookie was wonderful." It said the game had gone into "a long hibernation" after it was discontinued in 2001. The game follows Cookie, a dog from Jersey who believes she is a bear, on a trip to an island nation founded by aliens. It is every bit as strange as that description suggests

Cookie's Bustle became better known for fights over ownership than for its gameplay. Someone using the name Brandon White filed copyright takedowns to erase the game's online presence, which frustrated preservationists. The Video Game History Foundation successfully challenged him in March this year. That dispute brought the game far more attention than it had in its original release

Kotaku notes that the organisers "didn't mention any announcements for rereleases, remasters or sequels," but suggests the event hints that the long hibernation may be ending. Tracking down people who registered a game in 1999 and inviting them to a party is a wonderfully odd gesture. Registration cards were usually thrown away and forgotten, so whoever kept those records deserves some credit

Did you ever fill in a game registration card, and did anything come of it? And which forgotten game deserves a comeback?

Registered Players Of Rare Cookie's Bustle Invited To Secret Partykotaku.com