Post Convention!

Hey Everyone,

Hope you like my little project!

Why yes, I do have post-convention blues

Pictures from your Resident Cameragirl

Though most of my work was videography, I did manage to snap a few good photos:










Athena Twin hosted many raffles for the PMS clan. These were from sunday.


Athena Twin in front of the prize wheel.


Athena Twin directing a game of Commodor Says.




People playing Commodor Says.








Crowds make it hard to walk around! Yikes!


People gaming at the LAN Center hosted by Virtual Rush.


Intel was one of the biggest portions in the main hall.




Not gonna lie, I wouldn't want to be alone in a dark alley with someone in this costume.


One of my favorite cosplayers! He had many little details about the costume that made it complete including a voice amplifier.

More Coverage of the VGXPO

Plus, Gamasutra recaps the convention.

Interview with Athena Twin

It's all I've been talking about all weekend. Here it is! It's my interview with Athena Twin, the leader of the PMS clan!

Every New Beginning...

Hey Everyone,

So it ends. For all of you that came: thank you so much! More than 10,000 people over three days! The last day was spent looking around for what you missed. Some sellers lowered prices to sell games and some people stayed just to play more games. I in particular was helping people with the "Time Traveler" game. Interesting game, you should look into it.

As with any event, we'll learn and grow and come back with even better product next year! Some vendors want to come back already! :).

We'll have more posts for you over the next few days.

Caption Contest!

We've got a caption contest for you. The best response gets the finest prize someone can receive: my undying respect.

DDR!

Hey Everyone,

We're going to have 32 person DDR footage later today!

Hey Everyone,

Where was the Cloud and Sephiroth love?

Day 3 VGXPics

Look out! Jawa incoming!

Darth Vader is tall. Like, as tall as you'd expect Darth Vader to be, but still.

See, gaming is family friendly!

Sunday

The final day of the VGXPO has been underway for awhile, and while the crowds are slightly smaller, the energy is certainly not diminished. We've got some great coverage coming up, so stay tuned for Day 3 blogging of the convention.

End of the convention for me :(

(If this shows up twice, I have NO idea what I am doing haha!)

Okay so it is two a.m. and I am just getting home from all of the festivities of Saturday's after party 0.0. I absolutely had an amazing time this weekend and I am so glad I got to meet so many of you who attended and volunteered!

My favorite part of the entire time was ggetting to see all of the cosplayers-Kairi who had that wicked keyblade she got for like 75 dollars if I remember correctly, the Miltank from Pokemon, Sailor Moon, and Zack from Final Fantasy 7 (Holy crap, no Clouds or Sephiroths??) I LOVED THE COSTUMES!!!! The band that played tonight at the after party...as I said there you were really great, I look forward to listening to the new CD you guys are recording in Florida, if you missed these guys (and main singer is a female!!) perform you missed a really really good treat they are probably one of the best bands I have seen live and I do TONS of photography for local bands in my area.

If you saw me running around today with my huge camera and said hello to the random red head running around (so many people!) thank you again; all of the pictures will be uploaded soon (i was saying hopefully for me by tuesday at the latest because I took SO MANY pictures today)! Hope you all had as much fun as I did and I hope I get to see you guys at the next convention!!!

xox,
Gina

Blog Coverage of VGXPO

We should have a roundup of media coverage tomorrow and in the foreseeable future (there were many media outlets at the expo today), but for tonight, here's a post on the con from one of my personal favorite blogs, Geekadelphia, complete with their own photos.

After hours!

Hey Everyone,

For those who were there it was a tale of two events. In one corner we had a rather adult(you had to be over 21) party and the other...thirty-two people DDR! I don't know how many of you caught it but it was something else.

I have two quick things to finish with: what would you like as a finale post? A clip show or a video? The second is that we are taking your responses seriously. We at the command center when not sweating were talking about how we can incorporate your ideas and comments. So keep them coming! I'll make sure you are heard!

Day 2 Continues....

More After Hours content upcoming tomorrow, once it's actually, you know, happened. But for tonight, blog posts are complete for Day 2. Thank you to everyone who came out, both attendees and volunteers, for making the VGXPO such a success today. We'll catch you tomorrow starting right before the show does, around 9 AM.

More VGXPO Reporting

More LAN Center, Free Play and Exhibitors

Because I know how much you love LAN Center Pix.

On the Floor of the Convention

Cos Play Competition

That's right, Mario came. But where is his giant shoe?

Second Day Impressions.

Hey Everyone,

The second day in one word: WILD! With 10,000 people, contests all over the place a people having fun there was a ton of energy! Did any of you run into our buddy, the Master Chief? He likes smoothies and he loved VGXpo!

The VGXpo concludes tomorrow. Stop by and get in some gaming!

Partay!

Hey Everyone,

So the second(and most awesome) day has come to a close...or has it? We have two parties going on right now. One for VIPs and one for late night performances. You HAVE to be a VIP to go to the VIP party. Makes sense, right? :). See all of you there!

Thoughts of a blogger.

Hey Everyone,

Gaming was once the domain of people who were looked at as something of an oddity. Now because of games like Goldeneye 007 and Halo, gaming has gone mainstream. It is because of moments like that that events like VGXpo are able to take place! What do you viewers think?

Scenes from Saturday

The expo hall has just closed, and we are on the cusp of After Hours Fun Times. But for now, let's take a look back at more of the day that was in the Expo Hall

The LAN Center of Dreams

Counter-Strike Central.

More games!

Pictures!

Hey Everyone,

Here are some more pictures!

Intel Draws Big Crowds

Amber "Athena Twin" Dalton lays down the law!

Amber draws big crowds too!

Who will win? Only Amber knows!

We have a winner!

Lightsaber duelers!

VGXPics 3:

Guitar Hero Tournament Finals

The Tournament Zone

Another aerial view

What's better than placing a racing game? Playing a racing game in a racecar.

RetroCon: A Convention for Kids at Heart

RetroCon was full of people and classic games, a great combination.

A collection of classic consoles and controllers.

Seeing this warms my gamer heart. Super Mario Bros. 3 or even A Boy and His Blob, anyone?

ColecoVision! Who's up for some Donkey Kong?

More VGXPics

The arcade games are a popular section, for obvious reasons.

Attendees sit in the Lounge area, like ya' do.

The Guitar Hero 2 Tournament in full swing.

Halo 3 2v2 Tournament. Name Brand vs. Whipped Cream, Game 1 of 3 in the Semi-Finals

During the Live Actiion Role Play presentation, the staff of Knight Realms gave an overview of the immersive live gaming experience, which occurs in the Poconos.

What video games convention would be complete without lightsabers?

The Wii Bowling area, complete with comfy couches for an optimum bowling experience

Unreal Tournament 3 Tournament Time!

Master Chief may have been busy saving humanity, but he still managed to come back in time to attend the VGXPO. What's your excuse? (Also, he endorses ssmoothies, apparently.)

The tabletop game room.

On the Floor

Hey guys, we've got a huge event going on right now at the PA Convention Center. The crowds are enormous and, while admittedly the lines are long and technical issues abound, people are still coming, watching and playing in tournaments, and enjoying the experience of being with 10,000 other people with the same interests as them.

For those who had to wait or didn't get to see what they wanted to see, we do apologize. The volume is much higher than last year, and we have volunteers working hard to make sure everyone has a good experience. Every year we try to improve and anticipate problems, and this year is no exception. That's also one of the reasons this blog exists, to capture moments during the convention that you may have missed. Hopefully we accomplish that task today.

10,000!

Hey Everyone,

Thank you so much! 10,000 people is amazing!

Postage

Okay so this is my second day here and it is absolutely amazing!!! I have NEVER seen these many computers in one spot outside of a store. My throat is raw too I keep stealing some of one of the volunteers iced tea to try and make it not so but its so hard not to yell when all the contests are going and your energy is great! I am uploading all of my pictures onto my Myspace, doing the pictures one by one is kinda annoying right now when all this is going on and I really don't want to waste my opportunty to meet all of you...so when I stop doing my crazy hecticness it'll all be posted here!

xox

Gina

VGXPics

The masses lined up early. They were promised cake, but were soon disappointed. The cake is a lie.

A shrine was built to our Intel overlords, for sacrifices to the gaming gods.

A bird's eye view of the convention hall, with a plasma cannon fight going off on the left there, I believe.

The LAN Center is in full swing, and doubles as a supercomputer used to calculate the answer to Life, the Universe and Everything.

VGXpo Part Deux

Hey Everyone,

Day two has started! If you thought yesterday was chatoic, you HAVE to come today! There are at least FOUR times as many people! Get here as soon as you can so you don't have to wait... as long!

End and Beginning.

Hey Everyone,

It's the end of day one! Wow, what an event! Gamers of all sorts were hanging out, having fun and some were even playing for money. Some even represented a foreign country. Guess which one. Give up? Brazil!

While there were some tense moments(mostly because of a lack of food for workers) there was fun and good times had!

Tomorrow promises to be even more enjoyable with bands, Anime and more gaming! We expect at least twice as many people. If the posted photos have shown you anything, that is going to be a lot! So get there early! The event starts at 10!

Visions of fun!

Packed house!

Matrix gaming!

Who wants an AWESOME shirt?

Remember the post about a free processor? Here is what you compete in!Intel has the biggest convention area!
A bunch of gamers smile for the camera!
Meanwhile the OneUps get crazy...
Excellent artist Shawn Alleyne!
Classic gaming.
Who remembers Defender?
Family fun!
Suicide Girl!

Classic gaming guru Eddie Dzierza gets interviewed!
Army gaming!
A convention goer poses for the camera.

Of Grrls and Canadians

Readers,

Amber "Athena Twin" Dalton is a fireblazer! This gamer is the leader and Co-Founder of Pandora's Mighty Soldiers(PMS). Ms. Dalton fired up the crowd and also gave away many prizes including Guitar Hero guitars and a Saphire graphics card.



Be proud to play games if you are female! Video games are for Grrl AND guy gamers!

There are also attendees from another country attending! For anyone that thinks that this is just for people in the area, remember that Canadians love VGXpo too!

VGXPO Fights Off the Competition

With the grand opening of the fantastic 2008 Video Game Expo, being held in the City of Love, Philadelphia, gamers from across the East coast, West coast, and even other nations from around the world, will be fleeting to see what new opportunities will be revealed in 2009.

It is a conference for aspiring game developers, designers, and programmers, as well as your common old school junkie who still has that old grey box, the NES, in their basement, leading up to your modern day competitive gamers.

But the expo falls on a weekend that will challenge its success. Other events, besides the expo, taking place this weekend include the Major League Gaming(TM) National Championships in Las Vegas, and some sort of music awards (who cares, this is a video game expo blog).

Even though these challenges exist, so far, the expo has had a drastic effect, especially on the teenage population, which has morphed away from its stereotypical, jocks are cool attitude, and turned into, an, its okay to game! situation. Gaming is turning into a true sport, and it's devolving the view of a common, nerd, or geek.

If the world wasn't paying attention to this expo, I wouldn't have noticed this. There were at least one hundred kids missing from my public school, located an hour or so out of center city Philly, and it wasn't because of the snow....

That's right, these kids literally got out of school to attend this expo.

Video game development is a heavily growing career among today's youth, and this expo is a great place to go if you're an aspiring developer.

But we aware, that these teenagers are treating this convention, not just as a leisure activity, but as a way to explore their intended choice of a career.

This event is the college fair of aspiring video game developers, and that is why it will over come its media induced odds, and that's why it is such an important event.

Fixed!

Hey Everyone,

I previously posted a comment about another site we blogged on, please don't go there now. The problems here are fixed! :).

Racing for a prize!

Hey Everyone,

Free Intel Processors...provided you can drive a car at blinding speeds! Want to know more? Attend the VGXpo! The festivities are underway and people are piling in!

T.V. for gamers!

Hey Lovers of all things game,

Do you ever wish that you could watch video game themed shows ? PBC Productions are the people to talk to! They have an awesome series called "Captain S" that features all your favorite Sega Genesis games and a whole bunch of other video game references!

http://www.pbc-productions.com/CaptainS/Main.html

It's ON!

Hey Everyone,

Free Intel Processors...proided you canbeat a lap time! Want to know more? Attend the VGXpo!The festivities are underway and people are piling in!

VGXPO This Weekend!

Prizes, Fun, Excitement! These are the words that go with a convention like the VGXPO!

At this convention not only can you meet others just like you but you can also play them in the games that you both enjoy! Imagine arguing about who would win in a fight between Bowser and Mario and then going to prove your point!

But it's not all about gaming. Anime plays a big role too! If you think you know Anime, we'll have the trivia for you to prove your mettle.

Like robots? We've got you covered! The R-Bots competition takes place at VGXPO and is sure to be a crowd pleaser!

--Lieutenant Drakmyre

Welcome To The VGXPO Blog

This is where all the up to the minute news from the VGXPO will take place. Join us all weekend long for coverage.