things you'd like to see at game cons

[koifish | 556]

the very cool Sega Saturn Room at Portland Retro Game Expo last year made me think, what are some things you would like to see at a con? Just in general, can be any idea or theme, though oerhaps something that a single group could install into a room or other small space.

 

I thought it would be cool to have a tetrisphere room. It would be a pitch black room, with several identical N64 setups. Each would have a typical setup with one controller and a pair of headphones (plus a spot where you could plug in your own instead). Around each setup would be temporary wall/dividers so that each one was isolated from the others. Every system would have tetrisphere on it and nothing else. You would simply go in and experience the zen of tetrisphere in its ideal environment. Drugs would be Bring Your Own though.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ca9F4IgKo5I&

So, what say you? What kind of event would you want to see at a con?

[docile tapeworm | 4,198]

….

Edited June 13, 2023 by docile tapeworm

[Jfreakofkorn | 282]

Dunno , dont have any gaming cons around me 

Have a fan expo and a collectors expo 

Thats about it . . . 

Would be cool to have one around here 

But am guessing not enough of a demand to have one , imo 

[Sumez | 2,951]

Any convention I've been to, the most interesting part has always, with no exception, been indie and hobbyist developers showcasing the games they made themselves. I love playing a promising game and talking directly to the person who made them.

Just much more of that, really

[Sumez | 2,951]

Though to tap more into the "unique game setup" that the OP seems to lean more on - here's one I've always wanted to do. And I think I'm actually getting close to having it set up now. Basically, it's:

• Five GameCubes
• One projector
• Four smaller TVs
• Four GC->GBA link cables
• Four GB players
• One copy of Zelda Four Swords Adventures

[DefaultGen | 5,405]

I just like weird stuff hooked up. Vectrex, Laseractive, Odyssey, Video Music, even just less common consoles like Jaguar.

I discovered Atari Video Pinball at PRGE and I love that thing (the console, not the arcade/console game). There's no chance I would've ever discovered it on my own or through emulation. I get that more people are probably excited to sit down at play Sonic 2 but I can play Sonic 2 anywhere.

[DarkTone | 984]

Closest is EGX and MCM comic con. I seem to play more "retro" games these days, and love seeing kiosks showing overpriced games no one would buy. 

[a3quit4s | 4,097]

I haven’t been to one yet but this is the year. I’m probably gonna spend a buttload of time in the vendor area but I’m with @DefaultGen - lots of weird stuff hooked up. It’s probably a pain in the ass for short time cons but pinball machines are also awesome and a bunch of fun. 

[RH | 4,903]

6 hours ago, Sumez said:

Though to tap more into the "unique game setup" that the OP seems to lean more on - here's one I've always wanted to do. And I think I'm actually getting close to having it set up now. Basically, it's:

• Five GameCubes
• One projector
• Four smaller TVs
• Four GC->GBA link cables
• Four GB players
• One copy of Zelda Four Swords Adventures

I want to see stuff like this.  I can't recall which ones but all of those console systems that had a handful of games that could be linked together, directly system to system, and played on multiple CRTs would be cool.  We had LAN gaming on PC for a while, but just seeing multiple Xboxes or Game Cubes linked together and demonstrating early, linked game play has always been a dream of mine.

In fact, I have two CRTs hooked up into my Extron and it's been my intention to get a pair of OG xboxes and to do this myself.  I'm just not an Xbox guy and I'm only intereseted in Halo on the machine, so I've not taken the time to invest in the setup.  But one day maybe I will.

[theirontoupee | 44]

I'd like to see myself at a con. Interestingly enough I've never been to one. Goals

[koifish | 556]

11 hours ago, Sumez said:

Though to tap more into the "unique game setup" that the OP seems to lean more on - here's one I've always wanted to do. And I think I'm actually getting close to having it set up now. Basically, it's:

• Five GameCubes
• One projector
• Four smaller TVs
• Four GC->GBA link cables
• Four GB players
• One copy of Zelda Four Swords Adventures

For me it would be for final fantasy crystal chronicles, but something like Zelda (or specifically tetra's trackers) would lend itself better to the ebb and flow of con play. I remember one important tip I got from a room runner: "if you put in some long sitdown game like an RPG or something, then you're gonna have someone sit down and play it for hours and hours. Better to keep it arcade-focused."

 

[Webhead123 | 675]

10 hours ago, DefaultGen said:

I just like weird stuff hooked up. Vectrex, Laseractive, Odyssey, Video Music, even just less common consoles like Jaguar.

Anytime I see a working Vectrex, I have to play it. I love that little console and it's so rare to actually come across one. Getting to play Berserk on a Vectrex...hell, getting to play anything on a Vectrex just brings a smile to my face.

[koifish | 556]

The weird stuff being set up can also be a relief. You can be like "wow, that thing actually sucks a lot. I'm glad someone else has it and not me!" That was my takeaway from experiencing an apple-bandai pippin at a con once.

Vectrex is definitely tops though. Cons always get better with a vectrex.

[Link | 2,710]

I've only been to one con, Midwest Gaming Classic in Milwaukee this past spring. I'd love to experience things I never have before like Four Swords Adventures, and other new or re-lived and well-worn well-loved co-op experiences like that or 4-6 player X-Men or TMNT arcade games. I also like exploring oldschool classic arcade games. And different consoles I haven't known. I like advertising art (a la the Worlds of Nintendo campaign), discussion panels, indie / homebrew games, vendors vintage and new, books, history, etc etc. I'd love to experience both a Vectrex and a Pippn.

I think there could be other communication possibilities....

[Tanooki | 4,933]

I can think of three things going by years of Louisville Arcade Expo visits.  I'd like to see:
- Handheld gaming represented with playable titles and handhelds
- More aftermarket game projects to try out/meet up over
- Reasonable prices if not deals on games/game accessories instead of ebay plus

There's never any handheld stuff, maybe people fear theft and don't want to attach some security cable to a handheld, nor do they want to sacrifices a kiosk getting damaged I guess.  And while I've seen a few projects, not too much shows up at these shows, usually it's locals if they have stuff.  And the sales stuff, I mean come on it's a group of gamers who know their stuff yet trying for huge mark ups feels like a slap in the face.

[Ferris Bueller | 495]

44 minutes ago, Tanooki said:

I can think of three things going by years of Louisville Arcade Expo visits.  I'd like to see:
- Handheld gaming represented with playable titles and handhelds

There's never any handheld stuff, maybe people fear theft and don't want to attach some security cable to a handheld...

Yep. We could never figure out a good way to do handhelds that wasn't just an empty area for people to sit with theirs. How to put them out and not have them walk off I never solved. Best I could figure was a Super Game Boy, which I did last year for ATG Expo (my new show in Waco) for a From Below tournament.

[Tanooki | 4,933]

1 hour ago, Ferris Bueller said:

Yep. We could never figure out a good way to do handhelds that wasn't just an empty area for people to sit with theirs. How to put them out and not have them walk off I never solved. Best I could figure was a Super Game Boy, which I did last year for ATG Expo (my new show in Waco) for a From Below tournament.

My thoughts were Super Gameboy, Gameboy Player, maybe a consolized Virtual Boy if that counts, consolized other units too.  Outside of that, get a beater and apply one of those industry retail annoyances with the lock, key, and steel cable attachment to the table and to the handheld itself.

[koifish | 556]

2 hours ago, Tanooki said:

I can think of three things going by years of Louisville Arcade Expo visits.  I'd like to see:
- Handheld gaming represented with playable titles and handhelds
- More aftermarket game projects to try out/meet up over
- Reasonable prices if not deals on games/game accessories instead of ebay plus

There's never any handheld stuff, maybe people fear theft and don't want to attach some security cable to a handheld, nor do they want to sacrifices a kiosk getting damaged I guess.  And while I've seen a few projects, not too much shows up at these shows, usually it's locals if they have stuff.  And the sales stuff, I mean come on it's a group of gamers who know their stuff yet trying for huge mark ups feels like a slap in the face.

The prices point is real. It comes down to people wanting to take advantage of con excitement, to say nothing of how they have to pay their own ebay/whatever fees to get the stuff in the first place. But yeah, there is basically no reason to buy stuff at a con. The only thing I've ever bought at a game con was a book about the making of some classic video games...sold to me by the creator of said video games.

[Scrobins | 1,725]

4 hours ago, Tanooki said:

Outside of that, get a beater and apply one of those industry retail annoyances with the lock, key, and steel cable attachment to the table and to the handheld itself.

I prefer to imagine there’s just some big guy in a suit standing behind you while you play, holding a baseball bat, saying: “Is youze playin the one with the toitles? Daz a good game but you don take capiche?”

[Tanooki | 4,933]

3 hours ago, koifish said:

The prices point is real. It comes down to people wanting to take advantage of con excitement, to say nothing of how they have to pay their own ebay/whatever fees to get the stuff in the first place. But yeah, there is basically no reason to buy stuff at a con. The only thing I've ever bought at a game con was a book about the making of some classic video games...sold to me by the creator of said video games.

I buy, but I found there are a few semi-local (like in town up to coming down 71 from Cincinnati) types who aren't predators and I've got one at a befriended-ish level who remembers me and we talk a bit.  That guy was already fair as he buys in bulk for his collection but would do me a bit better of a solid taking a few dollars more off on things so I will buy from him.  Just last March I got Top Players Golf for my MVS, a couple of cheap famicom carts, and a Game Gear game if I remember right.  The rest though, especially the big sellers they'll have those common like Nintendo plushies you see at game exchange for $15 for $20, etc on the games being marked up.

[Tanooki | 4,933]

4 minutes ago, Scrobins said:

I prefer to imagine there’s just some big guy in a suit standing behind you while you play, holding a baseball bat, saying: “Is youze playin the one with the toitles? Daz a good game but you don take capiche?”

[Sumez | 2,951]

19 hours ago, koifish said:

The prices point is real. It comes down to people wanting to take advantage of con excitement, to say nothing of how they have to pay their own ebay/whatever fees to get the stuff in the first place. But yeah, there is basically no reason to buy stuff at a con.

It seems kinda impossible for me that a physical market would ever be able to compete with eBay prices. After all, that market is designed to be heavily based on actual market value, and sellers will be competing with the entire world.
The best deal you'd get is saving on some shipping for larger items and such. Realistically though, it seems like marketplaces at cons generally hope to rely on people getting swept up by the mood and the ability to stand there with the game in your hand and say it's yours if you pay up, as well as just everyone expecting to spend money in the first place. You probably don't go into a marketplace at a convention expecting to find one specific game. Seems unlikely you'd be able to strike up a better deal than eBay.

But apparently it does happen. I've been to Portland Retro Gaming Expo twice, and lots of sellers there actually do sell their games at favorable prices compared to online marketplaces. It's the only place I've ever seen that. Any other market you're more likely to find prices that go as high as 200-300% of the eBay rate.  Usually you need to be able to find that lucky single stall with a guy just looking to have a fun time and get rid of some old stuff, not hoping to turn a profit, or spot the odd gem in the junk pile of someone else's.
You're not gonna make a good deal on Panzer Dragoon Saga or Harmful Park, but maybe you'll find a Crisis Force or Dino Riki at a slightly favorable price.

[DefaultGen | 5,405]

I generally find deals at game conventions. I've been to many events where sellers just price at Pricecharting price regardless of condition or variant. It's the kind of stuff that would be snapped off Ebay in 5 seconds like a near mint ALTTP with the shrink wrap and sealed maps/strategies, but since it's just a few hundred nerds digging through bins haphazardly I can actually nab it.

[koifish | 556]

Interesting. I have never gotten a good deal at a con, only at flea markets. Maybe someday though! Though at this point I'm more likely to be the one who offloads a bunch of stuff at low prices than anything else.

[FireHazard51 | 2,043]

Arcade "free play" area - I've been to cons that have this and cons that don't

A fucking bar with good beers - I want to enjoy a good drink while playing/watching some video games.

Video game museum section -  Area showing off historic items with a description of why they are worthy of being in a museum.  Bonus points if you get to interact with said pieces.