After Action Report: The Cultural Event Called PAX East
For the vast majority of gamers the idea of attending PAX East was one of games, games, some games, and then there are the games. Oh, and did I mention the games? The amazing thing for most of the folks who attended was that after they got over the initial mind-numbing Cornucopia O' Gaming Plenty and saw enough to quench their thirst a bit, they discovered that there was a lot more to the event than it seemed at first.
PAX East -- and PAX Prime for that matter -- are not just about games and gaming; though admittedly those are major parts of these events. They are also about the life of a gamer, being a gamer, being a gamer parent, and more. Sound odd to you? Well, considering that PAX is by its nature and intent a celebration of not just games but the gamer lifestyle, it makes perfect sense that it would include a wide variety of offerings from self-help and parenting advice to social issues and even how to maximize your time at PAX!
Arrivals and Departures
The site for PAX in Boston this year was the Convention and Exhibition Center across the Charles River, where the big events happen. The word is that Boston grossly underestimated the attraction that the event would have when it stuck PAX East 2010 over at the Hynes Convention Center, and it did not want to make that mistake again.
For most attendees, arrivals and departures took place via the shuttle buses that were put on for the event, and so their first look at PAX was through the queue line or the massive front hall of the BCEC, where you couldn't actually see the exhibit floor. What you could see were the signs that announced the different events that were being held throughout the Expo, from panels to talks to self-help courses and everything in between.While we cannot cover every special event, there are some that we really want to bring to your attention, to help you understand that PAX is not just a gaming expo, but an event for and about gamers that goes way beyond what game they will be playing this Summer. The sampling below gives you an idea of the range of benefits that attending PAX offered to those willing to take advantage of it!
A sampling of the non-gaming gamer events includes:
State of the Industry: What Are Your Career Options?
A panel whose focus was on the current state of the game industry and the many career paths available to those interested in breaking in.
The panelists included John Comes, Creative Director, Uber Entertainment, Lindsey McQueeney, Corporate Recruiter, 38 Studios LLC/Big Huge Games, Jim Rivers, Hiring Manager, Obsidian Entertainment, Limor Schafman, President KeystoneTech, and Mary-Margaret Walker, CEO & Founder, Mary-Margaret Network.
Experts in their fields, some of them the actual keepers at the gate, and here they were sharing their wisdom with a bunch of gamers!
Online Gaming Communities and "Real Life" Relationships
A panel that discussed the gaming communities the panelists have created and support, and how they impact real life relationships for gamers of all types, and the relationships that can and often do originate in those communities.
The panelists included Derek Nolan, Co-Founder / Host, 2old2play.com / 2old2type Radio, Ross Furman, Founder SFX360, Stan Press, Community Marketing Manager, Astro Gaming, Morgan Romine Frag Doll Manager & PhD Candidate, Ubisoft, and Hamza Aziz Community Director, Destructoid.
Getting the Most Out of Game Education
Representatives from game development studios and degree programs at several colleges and universities discussed what to look for in game education, curriculum structure, internship programs, special projects, software, and portfolio development for the gamers who want to make games their life.
Panelists included: Adam Chapman, President & COO, Poptank Studios, Terrence Masson, Director of Creative Industries, Northeastern University, and Jim Rivers, Hiring Manager, Obsidian Entertainment.
Games are a big part of the draw for PAX, but the gamer events including a plethora of panels are the true hidden treasure for many attendees.
Winning the PAX East Game
A panel that examined PAX East as a game, teaching the proper strategies for when to show up at a given panel to get in? How many people are entered into a given tournament, and when do those entries open and close? What the best times were to swing by a free play? From opening patterns, to time traps...when to hustle, and when to relax...and, of course, the shortest escape route to the local bars! The MGT guys turned regular gamers into PAX Wizards, and redefined "Winning!" ripping the word right out of Charlie's mouth.
Panelists and Wizard-Makers included: Joe O'Brien, Co-Host, Metagame Theory, Brian McDermott, Co-Host, Metagame Theory, Tom Gisondi, Co-Host, Metagame Theory, and John King, Contributor, Metagame Theory.
Geek Parenting
A panel that answered important questions like how young is too young for The Hobbit? Why is LEGO Star Wars the best console game for your child? What's the best way to deal with bullying? How old should your child be before you stop letting/helping them win games against you?
As a parent, how do you deal with smart phones, texting and technology in your kids' lives? These questions and many more were discussed by writers for GeekDad.com, GeekMom.com, and geek parents in the audience.
Panelists included: John Booth, Geekdad.com, Matt Blum, Managing Editor, GeekDad.com, Natania Barron, Senior Editor, GeekMom.com, Corrina Lawson, Senior Editor, GeekMom.com, Dave Banks, Core Contributor, GeekDad.com, and Doug Cornelius, Core Contributor, GeekDad.com.
And there was more...
There were also panels on Legal Issues in Gaming, How to Fund Your Game Development Project with Kickstarter, Interactive Drama: Dialogue as Gameplay, Starting Your Own Game Company, Resumes that Rock, Gamers Doing Good - How We use Games to Make Life Better for Others, and Mock Job Interviews, a virtual treasure trove of education, self-help, information, and assurances that not only are there other people out there just like you, there is a huge population of them!
The day before PAX East I stopped in at the local hair salon to get my hair cut and my beard trimmed -- the hair cut is a normal monthly thing, but the beard trimming happened because my 12 year old trimmer died on me. While I was in the chair the young lady cutting my hair asked me if it was a special occasion -- because she saw that I was a week earlier than usual.
"Not really well, sort of. I am covering PAX East this weekend," I replied.
Of course she asked what was PAX East? And I explained as best I could -- that it was more than just a place to see and play games, it was a cultural event. The grandmother behind the counter at the front of the store then joined the conversation, and I learned that her regularly routine was to get off work at 8:00 PM and go home where, after cooking dinner for her boyfriend -- she actually called him her boyfriend -- they would jump on their respective XBox 360's in their living room and spend the evening fragging noob's in Call of Duty.
That is proof, if you need it, that the gamer community is much larger, and much more diverse than you probably think, and a reminder that the sniper who just cleaned your clock and then tea-bagged you could very well be someone's grandmother!
A great many of the world's problems were addressed if not solved over barley-rich beverages at this oasis in the desert of the Gamer's Mecca.
It's News, Mate
When the TV Networks aired their coverage of PAX East, the majority referred to it as a Gamer's Mecca, thinking that they were being clever. As the word Mecca is actually the city in Saudi Arabia where the profit Muhammad proclaimed Islam, it is clear that they are using the more generic definition of any place considered to be a very important place to visit by people with a particular interest. And it is that, sure, but it is also more.
PAX East may have started out as the East Coast version of PAX Prime, but by its second appearance it has managed to eclipse its momma, and create a Cultural Event for gamers in the heart of what is the most densely populated section of Gaming America.
For three days in March over 60,000 gamers came together at a gamer city located on the banks of the River Charles, and became for that 72-hours citizens of PAX, a nation of gamers.
Where were you?
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