Once a year, the mothership beckons us back to commune with our kindred spirits. We heed her call and are rewarded with a glimpse of things to come and a reminder that we are not alone. That time of year has come and gone and we have since stumbled back into reality wondering if it was all just a dream. What follows is a glimpse of the experiences we have remembered of The Event upon waking:
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PAX has come and gone again, leaving behind the bittersweet memories of the annual massive gaming “fix” that only serves to keep the appetite aroused.
Overall, it was fun. The immense size this year from taking over the entire convention center had all activities under one roof. The floor layout kept the bottlenecks to a bare minimum and the expo hall was filled with wondrous sights and sounds (for the most part).
It’s almost time for PAX! That magical weekend when the Washington State Convention and Trade Center becomes everything an arcade should be: a friendly and inviting place to play games (from the brand new to the time-honored), meet friends and people from the gaming industry, learn about the gaming industry, and basically get your geek on.
“PAX is a three-day celebration of games and gamer culture. The festival includes an exhibition floor filled with playable builds of upcoming tabletop, console, and computer games; a conference program of game industry speakers; music concerts; freeplay areas; industry parties; game tournaments and more. Since its inception in 2004 the show has doubled in size year-over-year, growing from 4,500 attendees to 58,500 in 2008, making it the largest gaming festival in North America.”
Verdict: Steampunktastic!
In a Nutshell: This is an action/adventure meets RPG, third-person perspective game with turn-based combat about evil gods, robots that ravage tree-based produce, and those that would stop the nefarious ways of both.
“Whether you’re a fan of the first installment or new to the series, you’ll be able to pick up and play Episode Two as a standalone experience. This time, armed with a new gardening implement and witty repartee, you rejoin Gabe and Tycho in searching for more clues and another place to live.
Explore new areas, combat bigger, badder and stranger enemies, solve even more puzzles and move one step closer to unraveling the mystery hidden deep in the sinister heart of New Arcadia.”
And the winner is . . . . .The MAW!
The 2008 Penny Arcade Expo has come and gone from the Washington State Convention Center. I’m finding it difficult to sum up in words my experiences of this past weekend. I’m glad today was a holiday because I definitely needed some recovery time. But even though the respite was welcome and very beneficial, I’m still left with a feeling of loss.
After posting some pictures over on Flickr, a friend asked “What is PAX?” I supplied a link to the PAX site and tried to sum it up. But after thinking about it, my answer was not as sufficient as I would like. If asked again, my answer would have to be something like this:
“The PAX 10 is a games showcase open to independent developers worldwide. The winners will be shown in the PAX Exhibit Hall alongside over 70 other exhibitors – including top publishers like Activision, EA and Ubisoft – allowing those publishers, attendees and media to view their home-grown potential. Attendees will have the opportunity to vote on the exhibited games, honoring one of The PAX 10 with the “Audience Choice Award,” to be announced on www.penny-arcade.com following this year’s expo.”
The Penny Arcade Expo independent game showcase winners have been selected and are listed below:
