I've told a few people that I would post to my blog regarding my experience at my first E3. Well... most of the information in terms of the show itself can be found at gamershell.com in the "reflections on E3" article. On the other hand, that article kind of leaves out all of the personal feelings on that situation, so here goes nothing:
I guess there is the whole part about first plane trip, blah blah... I guess it was somewhat of a letdown.. Pretty cool, and I like the fact you get there so quickly, but the hype of how great flying is, was kind of detered by the fact that my sinuses felt like they were going to explode. Not to mention I didn't sleep a minute the night prior to the trip.
When I arrived at LAX it was just as overwhelming as I thought it would be. I just stayed logistical, and followed signs, eventually finding my bags just fine. The problem thereafter came when I was trying to figure out when and where the people I was supposed to hang out with were arriving. I knew their flight number, and I knew their phone numbers, but it was still kind of a mess. I ended up taking a little journey, and eventually figured out where they were comming in. On that journey, I experienced beggars, and cult leaders. Yes, cult leaders. I was offered 2 books by a "monk" who knew that I was there for E3... strange yes, commical? even more so.
When I finally met up with the guys, we were one short, so we ended up sitting at the airport for another 2 hours, now bringing my total to 5. I don't think anyone should have to hang out at that airport for that long. We finally got our rental van, and began to trek the 28 mile distance from the airport and the hotel. Impressively, we avoided all major highways and interstates, but in turn went straight through the ghettos. The highlight of this??? Well, to our left, in the middle of a crosswalk ( with cars well packed behind) some bum dropped his pants and took a big shit in the middle of the road. No joke. Needless to say, this was the subject of conversation for the entire week.
I guess I should mention... all of the guys that I went down with ended up being cool as shit. We all clicked pretty well, but they all knew each other before I had met them. They're all people I could see myself hanging out with on a regular basis, and I am damn thankful for that.
When showtime came around, I was a box of joy just waiting to be opened. Arriving at the convention center, you begin to realize just how damn big this show really is. Traffic was backed way the hell up, nerdy kids lined the sidewalks, and there were advertisements everywhere for games and companies. When I went into the convention center, it all just kind of sank in, and I realized that all the talk, videos, magazine spreads, and internet content I had seen growing up couldn't even begin to describe a situation like that. In a word it was perfect.
I know that alot of people go to the show, but I had no idea how crowded it would be. It was essentially a swarm once those doors opened, and they couldn't really confine it. Everyone there is supposed to have a badge that you wear around your neck, and if someone would have come in with that first swarm, you would have been just fine. For those that don't know, there is a South hall, West hall, and Kentia hall at the show. South and West halls are the huge rooms ( think big civic centerish) in which all the big companies put their stuff. Kentia hall is reserved for "everyone else", and there are a ton of cubicals and small booths down there. It's usually overlooked, but that is where most of the hardware and accessories hang out, so there was definetely some cool stuff down there too.
Inside the main halls, its just a mess. Everything is organized of course, but its so big, the music and sound is ridiculously loud, and you just have so much in front of you that it's nearly impossible to know where to start. I had a number of games I wanted to check out, but that all sort of leaves as you start seeing things of interest. Many of the big titles are behind closed doors. You have to wait in line just to see a video or product demonstration. By the time I had found the Sony area, I realized that the line to see the short (3 minutes) PS3 video was already at the 5 hour mark (they have little signs that tell the estimated wait time). I decided that I would spend more time with games on the show floor for the first day, and take a hands on approach to as many things as possible. It's tough to give a game much time. It's as though you are a kid in a candy store, and as soon as something looks good, something else catches your eye and you have to have it. For someone with ADHD, E3 would be a complete waste of time.
By the time the 3rd day of the show arrived, I sort of thought I had a grasp on everything that I wanted to do. Instead, we ended up getting private screenings for the ps3 video (the one people were waiting in line for), along with a private screening for Unreal 2k7 and Alan Wake. I decided that being with the press definetely has it's advantages, because from what I noticed, most of the people there were wearing exhibitor badges, or "exhibits only" badges. The exhibit only badges were reserved for people who aren't exactly involved with the industry, but sorta (IE people who work for gamestop, EB games etc). Those kids really couldn't get into much, and it's sorta funny that they paid 400 bucks to be there. As press, we got free food, drinks, and an entire room filled with computers, wi-fi, and leather couches. Go press.
The Midway and some other (it never really said who was sponsoring it, we were just invited) parties were an absolute blast. They were held at the Avalon which is just down the street from the capitol records building, and is right on the walk of stars. The parties were completely different from each other, but both a great time. Midway's was essentially a showing off of games, free drinks, and then "rap star' Twista came on the stage and rapped for us. I met some great people there, mostly because I was kind of a loner there. I went with one other person, and he was interested in running around. I sorta just stood my ground, and people continually just came up to me and asked if I worked for midway, or how Im involved with the industry. If I had wanted to, I could have turned it into an all out lie fest, but I kept honest. Made some good contacts, and realized that the guys from midway are all pretty cool. The other party seemed more like a club night, and drinks weren't free. I learned quickly when I ordered an 8 dollar vodka and coke. ouch. I think the party was open to the public, because deep dish played, and lots of people who didn't have the " game industry look" were abroad. I had a good time, but I was pretty damn tired, as the show and lack of sleep wrecked the hell out of me.
The final night we were there, the guys all wanted to take me out to the beach, and I was all about it. We went to Santa Monica, and it was just a great experience. The beach and ocean were beautiful, especially with the boardwalk sporting a carnival on my left, and some scenic hills on the right. After the beach, we hit the boulevard and had some amazing itallian food. Maybe it was the hunger, but that meal was quite possibly the best I have ever eaten.
I thought I hated L.A, but when I hit all the surrounding areas, such as pasadena and santa monica, I realized that it can be a great place. Downtown and central L.A is just a mess, and I don't reccomend that anyone go there other to experience the culture shock I did. It's definetely a far reach from South Dakota, but I think that is what I enjoyed about it.
Overall, E3 was absolutely amazing. It is definetely one of the pinnacles in my life, and I'm even more excited for next year's showing. This is something I could see myself getting used to, sparking even more of an interest in the game industry. Good times, good people, good E3.
Most of the pictures I took down there are being hosted on gamershell. If you look in the "booth babes" pictures section, you'll see all mine... most of them aren't booth babe photos heh. Don't hesitate to watch the booth babe video we made as well... it has a very climactic ending!
cheers.
Umm...
Well, since I haven't actually talked about myself in ages, I figure now is as good of a time as ever.
So, the blog thing wore off on me I guess. I look back and realize that even though I had used it to keep track of events in my life, I could never really capture the essence of the time. Sure, for me it's alright, but for anyone else, its just worthless meandering. And so goes life.
As for me. Well.. lets see... E3 is in two weeks... and, after discussing on end with rob about it, I am just as excited as ever to go. It's tough for me to actually grasp that I am going, pretty darn surreal if you ask me. Like I've said in the past, if you would have told me I would be in this position a year ago, I would have thought you were (insert adjective). All and all, April has been a weird month, but mostly for the better. Some strange experiences here and there, but mostly good times, and good eats.
I've been pulling two "jobs" and school for the last month now, and I am greatly appreciative of the latter being just about over. It's been a rough semester, not so much in work load, but in my interest of attending. I guess I've realized that this school is just not important to me right now. There are plenty of other things I am involved with that could be moving my career in the direction it should be going. After having tasted the experience of post college video game industry delight, it's tough to even think about going to an engineering school for an IS degree. I'm not sure where or when I will go, but it's definetely going to happen eventually. It's also worth mentioning, that working at the library gives me a ton of time to realize why I hate my school. I'd like to thank an education arena for teaching me that education is retarded.
On the love front...well, thats a mixed bag too. So many angles of people, so few protractors to read them. I'm never getting married, and if you know me, you understand why.
Well, I am tired...Ill probably update before e3, but if not, Ill come back with lots of pictures that wont show up on gamershell.com . Im sure Ill give a detailed experience of that madness too.
Until next time space cadets,
rockets away
So...
As you can see, the site now features ads. Strangely, its already made me like 4 bucks... so, click on the links a couple times... go crazy.. search on google even... they're so great. God i love those guys at google.. so cool. so hip.. so google..
Did I mention that google is the cool? TEH COOL TEH COOGLE LOL OMG!