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PAX Prime: An Extra Day In 2013, and Plans For Australia
PAX Prime, probably by far the largest ongoing event spawned by a web comic, is in progress right now in Seattle, with an attendance of 70,000 gamers (and a smaller number of dancing stormtroopers). Two big announcements about future PAX events were announced on Saturday. The first is that next year's event will be a four-day gathering rather than the thus-far usual three; the second is that, some time next year, PAX will make its first international foray, with an event in Australia — exact time and place to be determined.
Never heard of it
"Toss attachment for body aside, realizing I am everywhere. One who is everywhere is joyous."
--Osho
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~ Whence do you come, slayer of men, or where are you going, conqueror of space?
Now that it's legal to sell good video games in Australlia, I guess this type of pan-pacific expansion is a good thing.
In keeping with Australian video game practice, the PAX event there will cost twice as much as the American version. Because reasons.
I've been to E3 before PAX existed, and this year I'm at PAX Prime (And PAX Dev), and it's been a totally better experience all around.
1. No booth babes - don't get me wrong, I love the female form, but there's a huge difference between PAX fans of all shapes dressed up in what they genuinely want to, with real life behind it, and the going-through-the-motions gals hired at E3. Don't get me wrong - companies still specifically hire marketing girls between 20-30 from agencies in a lot of cases, but the lowered sleaze factor helps in making for an environment where nerd-sexy can thrive - and I fully support that.
2. Parties are way better. I remember the Rockstar events at E3, and so on - but just last night, I came from a creepy, but superb costume party held in a Mansion clone of the level they've been demoing, compete with a rather well-done ARG - it was certainly money wasted that really should have gone into the development, but as long as these companies waste the money, I did find the whole experience far more compelling than "here's some drinks and music and trailers, don't you think we're cool."
3. The folks are really a functioning community. Any time there's a slack, of someone's having a hard time, you'll find a lot of humanity there. I left my laptop in a room on the first day, and a chain of people helped make sure it got to the lost-and-found - and that's just a tiny story. "Don't be a dick" is still in its functional golden era there, and it doesn't look like it's faltering soon.
Don't get me wrong, there's plenty of healthy skepticism and differences in opinion, and hardships exist all over (mostly from 70,000 people), but it all works remarkably well. Enforcers (small army of volunteers) helps too.
Final day is tomorrow - bittersweet and exhausting, but still awesome.
Ryan Fenton
As somebody who unfortunately missed the Scott Kurtz/Kris Straub-presented "Video Games Unplugged" in Melbourne last April due to being unable to get mid-week off work, I would blissfully welcome a local PAX convention in Melbourne or Sydney.
There's definitely a critical mass of convention-starved gamers here in Australia and probably a fair lot in New Zealand too that would love a chance to experience some of what we only read about in the American cons.
That generally indicates that the text should be read in the voice of William Shatner.
How does anyone justify going to a Penny Arcade convention?
What is there to be justified? They have done nothing wrong.
Why hasn't everyone joined the boycott?
See point 1; also, nobody cares. You are clearly an exceedingly stupid person, so I will break this down for you:
The humorous point of the comic strip in question is the perpetually unchanging state of NPCs in MMOs, and the strange quest systems that only incentives freeing of a selected number of slaves. Think now, if you were a really good person, wouldn't you give out a quest to free all of them? For the indifference of the player to really seem callous, (and thus HUMOROUS), the slave is revealing the awful conditions they must endure.
Does the player character ever say, 'OMFG, YOU ARE RAPED, YOU DESERVE IT!'? No. There isn't anything even vaguely hinting that rape is somehow OK or acceptable. In fact if there was, the joke wouldn't really work, would it?
If you were upset over this web comic, I would think you had low reading comprehension or some sort of over-developed sense of political correctness. The fact that years later, you are still losing your shit over this tells me that you are a true imbecile. Because you are taking umbrage and holding a grudge at a truly trivial event, when far worse things are occurring than a video game convention. (And a remarkably progressive one at that: PAX panels this year addressed GBLT gaming, among other things). Go boycott the Catholic church, the people who have systematically hid and protected serial pedophile rapists for decades. Or, how about working on recalling Todd 'Legitimate Rape' Akin from office? No, instead you are losing your shit over a comic that isn't even really about rape.
What kind of people go there?
Thankfully, not you. But don't let me dissuade you, I had a great time being surrounded by truly wonderful people this year. Your non-attendance is appreciated, it keeps the jerk factor good and low.
HA! I just wasted some of your bandwidth with a frivolous sig!
Acquisitions Incorporated
It's all about finding better ways
It was announced Friday morning during Gabe & Tycho's Q&A. Not Saturday. Friday.