Penny Arcade Expo 2008: Pure Awesomeness
Hope you like the new look. It's but a glimpse of my evilness.
I went to PAX 08. If you are not aware what that is - then what kind of self-respecting nerd are you ;)?
In a nutshell, PAX 08 is the largest (by attendance) gaming convention - pretty much in the world (though I could be mistaken). Unlike other conventions like E3 or Leipzig Games Convention PAX is also entirely open to the public and covers all forms of gaming (including the forgotten realm of tabletop).
I only got to go for one day since, among other things, I poorly planned the trip and wasn't sure if we were going 100% until about two weeks ago. More the point, it was Sunday rather than Saturday, the height of the festival.
All the same, it was pure awesomeness.
There were many things that were awesome about it. First off, there was actually seeing Gabe and Tycho, the creators of Penny Arcade, an enormously popular gaming webcomic to those who still have no idea what I'm talking about and the ones who came up with the idea for PAX, though, as you may suspect, they don't manage or run it. They did a Q&A session just as my brothers and I entered the convention and we managed to slip in quietly enough.
I didn't realize they were that funny. Writing a webcomic is one thing. You plan the jokes ahead, you think things through in advance. But they actually were funny on the spot, as some of the most bizarre questions in the universe (and I do mean bizarre) came flying in their direction. From run-of-the-mill "what are you looking forward to / planning" questions to awkwardly personal ones the two handled themselves remarkably well and had a good sense of improvisational comedy.
Best yet, they got "sniped" by a Whedon-imitating chorus delivering a song for "Bad Horse", which they promptly joined in on. All in all, that part was awesome, though it would have been even cooler if I had the guts to ask a question myself. But I'm reputably horrible at that sort of thing, too stunned by the moment to ruin it with a half-mumbled question.
Right after that, came yet another gleeful fan moment though, which was the arrival of BioWare to introduce the toolset for their new RPG, Dragon Age. Granted, I'm not all that excited about Dragon Age as a story yet and the trailer was seriously underwhelming for me. Oddly, I'm more excited about Storm of Zehir than I am BioWare's new CRPG, though gameplay videos and the presentation made me substantially more enthusiastic.
I've never been a very dedicated modder, though I'd love to be one. I've played with the hobby once or twice and made a few half-finished maps from time to time. The truth of the matter is that I have so many other projects going on that I don't usually give myself the time to focus on this one other little hobby. I get far with the writing and then, after hours and hours of actual design work, I usually abandon my work. I wish I didn't. I like toolsets. I just don't do much with them.
That said, Dragon Age's toolset looked pretty fun to play with and not all that different from the one in Neverwinter Nights 2 though that likely has something to do with the fact that the toolset in that was based off of one BioWare built years before. I could see myself getting into the toolset. Now, show me some more of that kickass combat gameplay I saw in an earlier video (precisely what I think Obsidian should look at for inspiration in their next fantasy CRPG - assuming they make one of course) and something that makes the story actually sound appealing to me rather than a rehash of demonic invasion (ala Oblivion and I will be your loyal buyer, just as I have been for the past five years.
Provided I can find a computer that will run the damn thing that is.
Those were the two highlight events. Sunday was kind of low-key in terms of actual press corps and I'm really disappointed I missed the writing conference that had Chris Avellone attending and numerous other little events. There were even some demos I didn't get to try like Fallout 3 or the Dragon Age demon, more or less because both were swamped by crowds that made the other booths look pathetic in comparison.
Still, I did get to see a lot. My brother Andrew tried out a demo for Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of a New World, which I also caught a glimpse of and which looked pretty good (and very similar to the recently released Tales of Vesperia in all the right ways as well as the original ToS). I also got to try a demo of EVE, which I have heard about for years from my Homeworld buddies and which looks exceedingly awesome - so much so that I'm glad I didn't have a computer that could run it back in high school otherwise I might have faded away from behind my screen. We had some technical difficulties in getting it started but overall, it was a fun experience once I got started. I still probably won't get it, if only because I'm too worried it would eat up all my time.
Lastly, I also got to try a demo of Storm of Zehir and meet Matthew Rorie, Obsidian's new PR manager. At first I was quite shy but I managed to inch in a few questions, some of which I awkwardly already knew the answers to (I told you I'm bad at asking questions). The world map, for those who are interested, seems a fair gameplay mechanic and if fully supported for modding as claimed would make a very nifty feature. Basically, it gives all those little skills no one uses an actual application.
I didn't learn anymore about the story, though I got to try some of the cohorts out and their abilities, which was fun. I think I definitely like the hellfire warlock among others. But I'm still a little skeptical as to how interesting team interaction can be without "real," non-player controlled companions. It's nice to be able to have a companion give some input all of their own, but that was already possible in NWN2 and KOTOR. The only difference was the player didn't choose what they said which, me being weird, I think I'll like better overall since it at least gave me the illusion that I was talking to a real, breathing character. But since I didn't really get a chance to see those kind of moments, I could be wrong.
What I want to know though was... dear gods, what was that machine made of? That was an entirely smooth rendition of SoZ, which I have never seen before.
Overall, PAX was a very cool experience, even though I missed a ton of stuff. We're planning to go for two days next year (Friday's still not an option given my classes) and I can recommend it to anyone who loves gaming. After all, it's only $30.
I went to PAX 08. If you are not aware what that is - then what kind of self-respecting nerd are you ;)?
In a nutshell, PAX 08 is the largest (by attendance) gaming convention - pretty much in the world (though I could be mistaken). Unlike other conventions like E3 or Leipzig Games Convention PAX is also entirely open to the public and covers all forms of gaming (including the forgotten realm of tabletop).
I only got to go for one day since, among other things, I poorly planned the trip and wasn't sure if we were going 100% until about two weeks ago. More the point, it was Sunday rather than Saturday, the height of the festival.
All the same, it was pure awesomeness.
There were many things that were awesome about it. First off, there was actually seeing Gabe and Tycho, the creators of Penny Arcade, an enormously popular gaming webcomic to those who still have no idea what I'm talking about and the ones who came up with the idea for PAX, though, as you may suspect, they don't manage or run it. They did a Q&A session just as my brothers and I entered the convention and we managed to slip in quietly enough.
I didn't realize they were that funny. Writing a webcomic is one thing. You plan the jokes ahead, you think things through in advance. But they actually were funny on the spot, as some of the most bizarre questions in the universe (and I do mean bizarre) came flying in their direction. From run-of-the-mill "what are you looking forward to / planning" questions to awkwardly personal ones the two handled themselves remarkably well and had a good sense of improvisational comedy.
Best yet, they got "sniped" by a Whedon-imitating chorus delivering a song for "Bad Horse", which they promptly joined in on. All in all, that part was awesome, though it would have been even cooler if I had the guts to ask a question myself. But I'm reputably horrible at that sort of thing, too stunned by the moment to ruin it with a half-mumbled question.
Right after that, came yet another gleeful fan moment though, which was the arrival of BioWare to introduce the toolset for their new RPG, Dragon Age. Granted, I'm not all that excited about Dragon Age as a story yet and the trailer was seriously underwhelming for me. Oddly, I'm more excited about Storm of Zehir than I am BioWare's new CRPG, though gameplay videos and the presentation made me substantially more enthusiastic.
I've never been a very dedicated modder, though I'd love to be one. I've played with the hobby once or twice and made a few half-finished maps from time to time. The truth of the matter is that I have so many other projects going on that I don't usually give myself the time to focus on this one other little hobby. I get far with the writing and then, after hours and hours of actual design work, I usually abandon my work. I wish I didn't. I like toolsets. I just don't do much with them.
That said, Dragon Age's toolset looked pretty fun to play with and not all that different from the one in Neverwinter Nights 2 though that likely has something to do with the fact that the toolset in that was based off of one BioWare built years before. I could see myself getting into the toolset. Now, show me some more of that kickass combat gameplay I saw in an earlier video (precisely what I think Obsidian should look at for inspiration in their next fantasy CRPG - assuming they make one of course) and something that makes the story actually sound appealing to me rather than a rehash of demonic invasion (ala Oblivion and I will be your loyal buyer, just as I have been for the past five years.
Provided I can find a computer that will run the damn thing that is.
Those were the two highlight events. Sunday was kind of low-key in terms of actual press corps and I'm really disappointed I missed the writing conference that had Chris Avellone attending and numerous other little events. There were even some demos I didn't get to try like Fallout 3 or the Dragon Age demon, more or less because both were swamped by crowds that made the other booths look pathetic in comparison.
Still, I did get to see a lot. My brother Andrew tried out a demo for Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of a New World, which I also caught a glimpse of and which looked pretty good (and very similar to the recently released Tales of Vesperia in all the right ways as well as the original ToS). I also got to try a demo of EVE, which I have heard about for years from my Homeworld buddies and which looks exceedingly awesome - so much so that I'm glad I didn't have a computer that could run it back in high school otherwise I might have faded away from behind my screen. We had some technical difficulties in getting it started but overall, it was a fun experience once I got started. I still probably won't get it, if only because I'm too worried it would eat up all my time.
Lastly, I also got to try a demo of Storm of Zehir and meet Matthew Rorie, Obsidian's new PR manager. At first I was quite shy but I managed to inch in a few questions, some of which I awkwardly already knew the answers to (I told you I'm bad at asking questions). The world map, for those who are interested, seems a fair gameplay mechanic and if fully supported for modding as claimed would make a very nifty feature. Basically, it gives all those little skills no one uses an actual application.
I didn't learn anymore about the story, though I got to try some of the cohorts out and their abilities, which was fun. I think I definitely like the hellfire warlock among others. But I'm still a little skeptical as to how interesting team interaction can be without "real," non-player controlled companions. It's nice to be able to have a companion give some input all of their own, but that was already possible in NWN2 and KOTOR. The only difference was the player didn't choose what they said which, me being weird, I think I'll like better overall since it at least gave me the illusion that I was talking to a real, breathing character. But since I didn't really get a chance to see those kind of moments, I could be wrong.
What I want to know though was... dear gods, what was that machine made of? That was an entirely smooth rendition of SoZ, which I have never seen before.
Overall, PAX was a very cool experience, even though I missed a ton of stuff. We're planning to go for two days next year (Friday's still not an option given my classes) and I can recommend it to anyone who loves gaming. After all, it's only $30.