PAX 2007: Day 2
Another day in the geek parade, I can’t believe you aren’t here yet.
Tags: Penny Arcade Expo 2007 Categories: Features, Tech Features
Posted by Mike "Two Tone" McConnell on Aug 27th, 2007
If I needed to, I could sum up for you Day 2 of PAX in one word: lines. There were lines for panels, lines for demos, lines for free-play consoles, lines for food, and even longer lines for the bathroom. I even saw a line to get into a line. All kidding aside it was so busy on Saturday at the convention center I had to wait nearly twenty minutes to get into the main exhibition hall. This was so that traffic could filter down to acceptable fire code standards. While it was tempting to be upset, there are so many DS’s and PSP’s around that it is a snap to pass the time.
Once I made into the convention hall it was Nintendo day for me. I got to check out DK: King of Swing which will bring the franchise to the DS. I finally got my hands on the Chibi Robo sequel and wasn’t as excited as I was by the GameCube version. Nintendo’s booth overall needed more games. The DS had an array of upcoming titles there, but the Wii only had Fire Emblem, and Metroid Prime 3 – which is about to be shipped out. Where was Super Mario Galaxy or Super Smash Brothers Brawl? What about Battalion Wars 2 or Endless Ocean? With three stations taken up by Super Mario Strikers, and one set aside for Wii Sports I was irked. What gives Nintendo?
In addition I did get to check out Naruto: Rise of the Ninja for the 360. The look and feel of the Clash of Ninja games remains, but the fluid animation of the Ultimate Ninja series. As I am not a 360 veteran I didn’t get any time with it beyond learning the basic controls and being beaten by other players. It was a lot of fun nonetheless.
I got to check out the live demo of the Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness. The room was packed, but everyone was treated to an MC Frontalot video, which makes up for missing the show later tonight. The game looks great, and should be a license to print money for Hothead.
I also saw a presentation and demo on Stranglehold that resembled the sort of gushing for John Woo usually reserved for closing time at your local Blockbuster. Sardonic as that may sound, this is a good thing. The devs love John Woo, and have toiled tirelessly to make sure that the game is everything that fans would want it to be, you know what licensed games should be like.
The most interesting panel that I saw on the second day was about the future of the game industry. From the advent of casual games going hardcore, to the rising cost of development a wide array of issues were discussed that face the future of our hobby. Like many of the panels everyone knows that things are changing, but no one knows exactly what gaming will look like at PAX 2017.
An extra room of consoles opened up today comprised entirely of classics. From Atari to N64 they were all there. I got owned at Smash Bros by kids who weren’t even alive when the game was released. Which mean two things: first I am officially no longer in my prime gaming years, and second that classic consoles transcend nostalgia. You could argue for borrowed nostalgia, but who cares. It is awesome to see kids enjoy a true classic. It’s no Adventure or Zork, but it is a step in that direction.
Tomorrow is the last day,and rest assured that if you didn’t make it, you’re missing a heck of a party. I have to get here early on day three, so I had to miss out on the late-night stuff. Before leaving, I saw a tribute to one of my favorite comics, Real Life (although the guy may not have known the source). There was a kid running around with a T-shirt wrapped around his head, the shirt ninja.
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Tags: Penny Arcade Expo 2007
Posted by Mike "Two Tone" McConnell on Aug 27th, 2007 and is filed under Features, Tech Features. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can post a comment, or trackback from your own site.
