Some of you might recognize the above comic as Penny Arcade, whose creators also ran the Penny Arcade Expo (PAX) last weekend in Seattle, WA (USA). While the above comic represents industry-focused expo E3, it does not at all summarize the fan-focused experience that is PAX.
One of the things I liked about PAX is that it really is a chance for a bunch of gamers, whether they play video games, card games, tabletop games or traditional RPGs, they all get together under one very large roof. As keynote speaker, Ken Levine said, “We are all just a great big bunch of nerds”.
This fan focus affected the booths, as they were definitely designed to please the gamer, not the investor. Whether you were a member of the media (like me) or a gamer, you had a chance to get your hands on a new product.
Not without waiting in line, though. It was pretty crowded this year as a final count of attendees was approximately 58,000. While I was there, I had a hard time getting around Friday (August 29, 2008) afternoon and Saturday (August 30, 2008) but the pedestrian traffic “lightened up” by Sunday (August 31, 2008).
Those crowds completely wore me out. It has been two days since PAX, and it has taken me that long to recover. Thank God for Labor Day and I can only imagine what they will put on at PAX 2009. You will be seeing a lot of articles in the coming month about what was experienced at PAX last week.
I do have one complaint about PAX 08: An increase in the number of “booth babes.”
These are attractive females dressed in skimpy video game-based outfits such as the one in South Peak’s XBlades. I really don’t think gaming developers need to stoop this low to attract people, for these games are not going to get you a date with any of these women. Yeah, booth babes are more of an E3 thing but I guess they can’t pass a law against them.
Read [Gamertell] Site [Penny Arcade Expo]
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