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The Gathering 2005

Posted by Zonk on from the geeks-in-the-thick-of-it dept.

Advill wrote to mention a story on Tom's Hardware discussing The Gathering 2005, an enormous LAN party that takes place in Norway. From the article: "For a while now, The Gathering (TG) has been competing with Dream Hack in Sweden for the title of World's Largest LAN Party. Last year The Gathering won the title, but then Dream Hack struck back again and regained it. This year, the organizers of The Gathering thought that 5,200 participants ought to be enough and decided to stop competing for the title."

35 comments

  1. Bastards. by Seumas · · Score: 3, Funny

    I wanna be a norwegian! What is your immigration policy with regard to obese biker-looking geeks? And more, how easy are your women?

    1. Re:Bastards. by sgant · · Score: 1

      Obese biker-looking geek here too.

      We need to find a place where they actually worship people like us.

      --

      "Leo Fender was in a 'state of grace' when he designed the Stratocaster." -- Paul Reed Smith
    2. Re:Bastards. by Seumas · · Score: 2, Funny

      I went to a place like that once. Looked like I'd fit right in. Everyone was tall, fat, hairy. Everyone was wearing lots of leather. Some seemed to like leather so much that they didn't even want to wear shirts underneath the vests or pants underneath the chaps. Funny thing though - there weren't any women there the entire night and they played a lot more disco than I'm used to hearing.

    3. Re:Bastards. by jericho4.0 · · Score: 1

      Judging from the pictures, they have no women.

      --
      "A language that doesn't affect the way you think about programming, is not worth knowing" - Alan Perlis
    4. Re:Bastards. by Noah+Adler · · Score: 1

      And more, how easy are your women?

      Well... Apparently, relatively easy.

    5. Re:Bastards. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's because they are *vikings*, my pleasently plump friend. Of course, I don't have to tell you that vikings are fat, hairy, and tall. It is not well known that they wear leather and listen to disco though. The leather keeps them warm and doubles as a light body armor. They listen to disco because when they listen to the Bee Gees before raiding some Norman village, it pleases Odin and he blesses them before the glorious battle ahead!

      --Mr. Internet

  2. That rules. by TsukasaZero · · Score: 0

    I wanna go. I accept PayPal Donations =).

    1. Re:That rules. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So does your mom.

  3. Big selection of games... by rlbond86 · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Counter-Strike, Quake 3, Battlefield (1942?) and Warcraft 3. For such a huge event, they should have had more than 4 games!

    1. Re:Big selection of games... by Seumas · · Score: 1

      I can understand why the lack of Counter-Strike: Source, but I'm surprised that there's no Unreal Tournament 2004.

    2. Re:Big selection of games... by JNighthawk · · Score: 1

      UT2k4 was played almost exclusively at my last LAN. We had an hour of CS:S, hour of HL2DM and a couple hours of W3, but the rest of it was UT2k4 Onslaught. SO MUCH DAMN FUN!

      --
      Wheel in the sky keeps on turnin'.
    3. Re:Big selection of games... by Ghost429 · · Score: 1

      Those were the 4 games with competitions attached. You can bet people were playing just about every multiplayer game out there at some point or another.

      --
      I already know i'm going to hell, now i'm just trying to get cable down there.
    4. Re:Big selection of games... by Dizzle · · Score: 1

      5,200 participants ought to be enough for anyone.
      -Bill Gates, 2005

      --
      -Dizzle
      "I most likely AM so interested in myself."
    5. Re:Big selection of games... by MadMoses · · Score: 1

      lol

      --

      Do not be alarmed. This is only a test.
  4. Temperature? by schaedelbach · · Score: 1

    Isnt it damn hot at such a hughe LAN party? Thousands of Pcs, Screens and sweating bodys. Must be hot as hell.

    1. Re:Temperature? by rlbond86 · · Score: 1

      Look at the pictures. I'd be freezing in that place.

    2. Re:Temperature? by Cheapy · · Score: 4, Funny

      What part of "Norway" is so hard to understand?

      --
      Would you kindly mod me +1 insightful?
    3. Re:Temperature? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah I guess it's the modern version of their saunas

  5. LANning Out? by fodi · · Score: 1

    Back in the days of dialup LANS were the only way for groups of freinds to enjoy an equally balanced, smooth, multiplayer game. I remember packing my car with 3 or 4 of my mates' PCs and lugging them to someone's house. Then we'd spend an hour or so untangling cables, setting up table space and getting all the PCs communicating, before having a few ours to actually enjoy playing a game, then packing up again...

    It was a lot of hard work for a few hours gameplay, but it was our only option.

    Now with DSL so wide-spread, we don't bother with LANs. If we want to multiplay together we organise to meet on a server an go with it. For me, LANning has died and evolved into online play. Why does everyone enjoy the LANning so much???? Is it more of file-sharing exercise? I don't see the attraction...

    1. Re:LANning Out? by the_unknown_soldier · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Filesharing Would be awesome at this lan. I would go just for that. Also, LANS offer shorter pings so that nobody has an advantage on different servers. It also helps teams look at eachothers strats right in front of them.

      Most of all it turns an online community into a real community. Where people talk and interact. For computer nerds this is an important thing to do every so often.

    2. Re:LANning Out? by Seumas · · Score: 1

      Show off your computer and your girlfriend (if you have one) and to check out other people's computers. And girlfriends (if they have one). And to totally geek out. It's a different experience with dozens or hundreds of other geeks instead of just you, half naked, sucking down a mountain dew in your apartment.

      It's the same reason people still go to arcades sometimes. And why car geeks get together and show off their cars, check other people's cars out. Drive 'em ar ound a bit. Talk. Make contacts. Share information. Sure, they could work on their car alone at home and connect online and over the phone and read magazines. But doing it in person is a unique experience.

      And if nothing else, it makes you feel better about yourself to see that there are other people in the world who smell worse, look worse, haven't showered longer and are generally more geeky and withdrawn than you are. :)

    3. Re:LANning Out? by Bongo+Bill · · Score: 1
      It's very much a social exercise. With online play you often end up playing with idiots incapable of expressing themselves without insulting your sexuality in the process. With LAN play they're your idiots, and the insults are much more clever - not to mention the delivery is improved because they don't have to type it.

      There's just something about knowing the people you're playing against and being able to gloat in person when you start winning that makes LANs so much more rewarding than online play.

      --
      ...but is it art?
    4. Re:LANning Out? by Catnapster · · Score: 3, Interesting

      At least for me and my friends, LAN parties are more fun because of their dual nature - aside from the multiplayer gaming, they are also physical gatherings of like-minded people. The games are only a part of the experience, as we can share our music (often at high decibel levels), show each other amusing websites between games, talk trash as one can only do in person, and feel the goodwill and cameraderie that comes about from the donation of drinks and snacks to the party. And don't even get me started on the communal partaking of pizza.

      It brings a tear to my eye just thinking about it.

      --
      The world can be wrong today for once.
    5. Re:LANning Out? by Psiven · · Score: 0

      True, but at a party this size. you're still going to have to type in you insults.

  6. Alert Gary Bettman! by Otter · · Score: 2, Interesting

    That's a great use for an unoccupied hockey arena. We've got quite a few in North America now -- maybe the NHL could throw LAN parties to cut their losses a bit.

    --
    What I'm listening to now on Pandora...
    1. Re:Alert Gary Bettman! by nc_yori · · Score: 3, Funny

      I can see it now... "LANboni, 2005"

  7. No no no no no! by bVork · · Score: 5, Informative

    The Gathering (and really, how hard is it to put the official URL in the summary?) is primarily a demoparty, not a lan party. I'd say that this would better belong in a different section. Its not just about games and it has never been about games!

    Instead of just oogling over the gaming competitions, take a look at the compo winners (hell, all of the entries) and see what kind of artwork can be done with computers.

    Ignore the games and appreciate the demos. Keep the spirit of the demoscene alive.

    1. Re:No no no no no! by Sebadude · · Score: 1

      A-men. Mod parent up!

      --
      Eh.
    2. Re:No no no no no! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I was going to say! I was surprised to see this in the Gaming section, it always used to be a demo party when i was young. Has it changed in recent years?

    3. Re:No no no no no! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes, indeed. Don't bother going to The Gathering if you're looking for a demoparty. Go to events like Breakpoint instead. Breakpoint is the biggest demoscene only party around, so no gamers. There are lots of other, smaller, demoparties if you don't like a crowd. Check out the party list on Orange Juice for more info.

    4. Re:No no no no no! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes, indeed. Don't bother going to The Gathering if you're looking for a demoparty. Go to events like Breakpoint instead. Breakpoint is the biggest demoscene only party around, so no gamers. There are lots of other, smaller, demoparties, too, if you don't like a crowd. Check out the party list on Orange Juice for more info.

    5. Re:No no no no no! by Lord+Graga · · Score: 2, Informative

      The Gathering is not a fullblodded demoparty, but rather a combined LAN and demoparty. The largest demoparty, Breakpoint 2005, was held at the exact same time as TG, and we had "live" contact on the bigscreen from time to time.. great fun :P
      Anyway, if you wanna see PC art, check out the Breakpoint entries too.

    6. Re:No no no no no! by Bega · · Score: 1

      Don't forget Assembly.

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  8. Demo party by mwvdlee · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Didn't the Gathering used to be a Demo party? You know; with people who could actually do something remotely usefull with their sparetime.

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    1. Re:Demo party by dpryo · · Score: 1

      Yes, and the democompetition is still quite big :) ..I was there!