First, a little about the con itself. It was actually held at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center, located in Oaks, PA. This was the first year for GameX, which is seen as a competitor for VGXPO, a con that was held earlier this year.

Going into GameX, I didn’t know what to expect. I knew there was bad blood between GameX and VGXPO, since many of the main staff members of GameX has worked for VGXPO in the past. After attending both shows, I know where my personal alliance lies. I went to VGXPO with Binge Gamer in 2008, and although this show was full of attendees, it was highly unorganized and frustrating for vendors. I also found the head honchos at VGXPO to be incredibly rude, as my many emails to him (including some offering time and money to help with VGXPO events) went unanswered. I didn’t go to VGXPO 2009, and after hearing about it, I’m glad I didn’t waste my time. That’s not to say GameX was perfect, but the staff was amazing, the events were organized, and I had more fun than I’ve had in a long time, even though I was working.

There were two main rooms for GameX. One had a main stage, a number of vendors, hands-on previews of many different games, and an artists’ row. The other included retro and arcade games, an area for people competing in a con-long game designing contest, a few vendors, and an area for panels and QVC. Yes, QVC did a live broadcast from the event, selling millions of dollars worth of Wiis.

Binge Gamer's James Walker interviews Yahtzee. Yes, he is very tall. No, he doesn't speak incredibly fast all the time.

GameX secured a few great celebrities for the weekend:

• Ben “Yahtzee” Croshaw who does Zero Punctuation at The Escapist
• Brian O’Halloran (Dante Hicks) and Marilyn Ghigliotti (Veronica Loughran) from Clerks
• Sandeep Parikh (Zaboo), Robin Thorsen (Clara), and Jeff Lewis (Vork) from The Guild
• David Nykl (Dr. Zelenka) from Stargate: Atlantis
• Jsu Garcia, film and TV actor, most notably from Nightmare on Elm Street
• Rake Yohn of MTV’s JackAss and Viva La Bam

They also had a number of games available for press and attendees to play:

• Bayonetta
• Dante’s Inferno
• Global Agenda
• Shaun White Snowboarding: World Stage
• Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning
• Storm

That’s in addition to the Rock Band 2 tournament on the main stage, a huge DDR set-up where a dozen people could play at once, too many retro games to list (including tournaments), and a bunch of other games I’m probably forgetting. Oh, and the tabletop group that was there was running RPGs all day.

I had nothing but love for the steampunk people all weekend. For the record, that's a working zombie cattle prod he's holding.

The con also had a Steampunk Fair. They invited Steam Gear Lab and the League of S.T.E.A.M. to invade GameX, and along with items to demonstrate, members held a meet-up in full costume (and in character), and there was a steampunk art competition with thousands of dollars in prizes.

GameX 2009 Pros

Ok, so now that you know what went on at GameX, let’s talk about the things this con did incredibly well:

• I can’t say enough about the staff. As soon as our site got there, the two PR guys introduced themselves, and throughout the weekend, they connected vendors and press. Now, if you were an attendee, that might not seem like a big deal, but believe me – the staff aren’t just for the press and vendors. Everything ran smoothly and on time, and a number of non-press attendees that I talked to told me how helpful the staff was with finding events and solving problems. Basically, if they didn’t know the answer, they took you to someone who did know the answer.

• ORGANIZATION. My main gripe with VGXPO was that nothing was organized. You might as well have used the schedule to wipe your ass, because every single event was canceled or changed. I’m sure there were scheduling issues at GameX, but I didn’t know about a single one. The program had not only a schedule, but also a map to help conference-goers find the booths that most interested them.

• The event covered a wide variety of interests. There were video games of course, but also table-top games, dealers, the Army, Star Wars cosplayers, bands, arcade machines, tournaments, steampunkers, artists, and celebrities. I’m sure that even the non-gamers that got pulled to the con with their friends or significant others found something to enjoy.
  

  Like playing with dice more than a controller? GameX has ya covered.

• There was something going on most of the time. During the entire weekend, there were panels, celebrity meet-and-greets, and stuff going on over at the main stage. At some cons, it is easy to get bored once you’ve walked around the booths once or twice, but at GameX, you could stay the whole day and find things to do.

• GameX had a whole separate food area. Yes, it was overpriced, but it was run by the convention center (I think). The main “plus” to this was that there were plenty of tables if you wanted to sit down for a few minutes. Speaking of sitting down, GameX had a nice press room where people like me could sit to do work or interviews, which was invaluable.

• The afterparty was amazing. GameX held an afterparty for vendors, press, and attendees who wanted to stay (I’m not sure if it was for all attendees or just VIPs). The Escapist also held an afterparty at the same facilities, Arnold’s, which was like a Dave and Busters. There was an impromptu band, as well as free food and drinks. SO MUCH FUN.
  

  One thing that definitely did not suck? Bayonetta. I think I had a nerd-gasm while playing it and will be first in line to buy it when it's released.

GameX Cons

This convention was not perfect by any means. Hopefully, since it was a first year convention, most of this stuff will be cleared up for next year.

• The main stage was LOUD, and the placement sucked. Half of the time, you had to SCREAM to talk to a vendor, and the panels were very hard to hear because they were in a room right across from the stage.

• It wasn’t easy to find the convention center. They did have signs and the parking was free, but it really was in the middle of nowhere. You had to drive to get to hotels or most restaurants. A little birdie told me that it *might* be at the PA Convention Center next year, which would be MUCH better. It’s a hassle to park at that location, but it’s much more convenient in every other way.

• Attendance was low. I don’t know how many people made it to the event, but some of the vendors told me that they were promised 20,000+ people. My estimate is more like 5,000, but I wasn’t counting heads, so maybe I’m completely off. All I know is that a lot of the booths were empty, with vendors standing around, especially when major panels were going on.

• The Internet went down a few times. This was a major problem on Sunday because vendors couldn’t even use credit card machines, and a lot of people left upset about that. Personally, I see this as more of a site failure than a GameX failure, but they were ultimately responsible for the net access, so the fact that it was down stank.

I’m not really saying anything here that hasn’t been said by multiple other members of the press. Even staff members I talked to were very, very aware of the problems with the show, as well as very happy about the things they did well. At the end of the day, though, the failures are all things that you’d expect from a first-year con. I’ve been told there there IS going to be a GameX 2010, and I look forward to attending again – and you should too.

P.S. If anyone reading this is going to MAGFest in January, look me up!

All pictures are courtesy of BingeGamer.net unless otherwise noted.

Post from: EveryJoe

GameX 2009 Review

I personally am thinking about getting the Renegade Edition Featuring Jay-Z and Eminem since it looks like a lot of fun and probably features music that could work well with a turntable.

The set list is constructed of 100 songs, crafted into more than 80 two-song DJ mixes created by the game development team and internationally known DJs such including DJ Shadow, DJ Z-Trip, Daft Punk and the late DJ AM.

“All songs used are new to the Guitar Hero family of games and are pulled from a wide array of genres, including pop, grunge, soul, R&B, techno, hip hop, and house” so it will be great to try out some new tunes with this popular game franchise.

Post from: EveryJoe

“DJ Hero” Now Available!

The Dance Dance Revolution Hottest Party 3 bundle was released yesterday and, while I’m not sure I’m going to rush out and buy this, I’m sure that fans of the games will find it a lot of fun.  It is used with the floor peripheral but, for the first time, players can use the Wii Balance Board.  I think that I would like that a lot more because I find the mat a little cumbersome and weird to store.  Has anyone ever had it suddenly stop working?  We did and then after a few weeks, it suddenly healed itself.  Very weird.

According to the Amazon product information, this current version of the game features the following:

Post from: EveryJoe

Dance Dance Revolution Hottest Party 3

Looks like I just might find that in Dragon Age: Origins.

Even though I am a diehard PS3 fan [fangirl?] this is one game that I’m probably going to get for PC based on the awesome Tool Set. See below.

The character creation reminds me a bit of Oblivion and I’m not complaining. Being able to micromanage the character traits added realism to the game and made me feel more connected with the character that I had lovingly created.

This type of customization is brought to Dragon Age: Origins but with necessary tweaks and it doesn’t seem to be as in-depth as Oblivion. However, I’m not sure that’s necessarily a BAD thing since I did end up spending an hour creating my character for Oblivion.

The intro video does a damn fine job of bringing you up to speed as to what you’re about to encounter with Dragon Age: Origins.

There are way too many videos for me to post here. If you want to watch the rest, check out IGN’s YouTube channel or just click on one of these embedded videos and they should take you to where you need to go.

I’ve also included some screens from the game since I do like my pretty pictures.

Look for Dragon Age: Origins November 3rd.

Images|EA

Post from: EveryJoe

Dragon Age: Origins

If you are in the same boat (or you just like these types of racing games), you might be interested in Madagascar Kartz which will be released on Nintendo Wii, DS, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.  It really doesn’t look like the highest quality game but it could be fun, especially if you are planning to play with younger kids.

I will say that the variety of environments actually looks a little cool since there are levels in downtown New York City and then in the middle of the jungle.

If you’d like to get a better idea of the gameplay, check out this trailer:

Post from: EveryJoe

“Madagascar Kartz” Out Tomorrow

The seat is made of black synthetic leather and features red stitching and comes with an Xbox 360 Wireless Wheel adapter kit, which connects the Xbox 360 Wireless Wheel to the steering wheel support.  The frame is made of an extra-strong, black, powder-coated tubular steel and includes a special pedal support plate with a high-tension spring and wire system.  Even cooler?  You can fine-tune the supports for the gas/brake pedals and steering wheel.

One thing that has prevented me from getting something like this is the size and I’m guessing the manufacturers thought of this because the cushions are removable and the frame folds so that storing the seat is pretty easy.

Key Details:

• For ages 8+
• Measures 19.7 by 52.1 by 38.6 inches (W x H x D)
• 300-pound weight capacity
• Black synthetic leather and red stitching
• Powder-coated tubular steel frame
• Pedal support plate with a high-tension spring
• Removable seat cushions
• Patented folding system

image: Amazon

Post from: EveryJoe

“Forza 3” Evolution Racing Seat

Usually, if things are going to happen then they happen right after a show is proven to be a hit. And heck, Prison Break started way back in 2005.

Maybe Deep Silver was just waiting to make sure the show was a sure thing?

The game is being billed as an action adventure which is a nice change from what you normally see with a show/game tie-in. Time will tell but this is what the CEO of Koch Media had to say about it.

From the release:

“The ingenious plots and fast action of “Prison Break” thrill TV audiences around the world, and provide the ideal basis for a video game,” says Dr. Klemens Kundratitz, CEO of Koch Media. “The game will offer the same blend of action and suspense as the show, appealing to fans of the series as well as video gamers.”

Release date hasn’t been announced yet but it will be out for “next gen” consoles and PC.

Check out JoyStiq’s take on Prison Break. They slay me.

Images|Deep Silver

Post from: EveryJoe

Prison Break – The Game

Anyway, as you would expect, Cooking Mama is all about food preparation and she’s back with all new recipes.  In this game, you will have to shop for ingredients, combine dishes and engage in optional multiplayer challenges. 

There are six gameplay modes to choose from:

• Let’s Cook: Try to prepare the dishes but don’t worry if you mess up – Mama will help you!
• Let’s Eat:  Mama doesn’t help you in this mode!  Your hard-to-please friends will be judging the food oyu create based on how it tastes (mistakes made during preparation affect the taste).
• Combine and Create: Take steps and ingredients from different recipes and create your very own concoctions.
• Let’s Shop: Head to the store to pick up the things you’ll need to prepare so many delicious dishes.
• Time Challenge: Play against up to 3 friends and faceoff in timed cooking challenges!
• Picture Diary: Keep a scrapbook of your favorite dishes in this digital picture diary.

Players will use the stylus to chop, grate, slice, stir, spread, sprinkle, roll, and much more in over 200 different mini-games.  You’ll also get to try to make 80 new recipes including chili con carne and  Eggs Benedict (that’s going to be a disaster!).

Depending on the quality of the cooking, players can earn bronze, silver, and gold medals.

Post from: EveryJoe

“Cooking Mama 3: Shop & Chop”

Taking place in the alternate dimension, Vestroia, players will use their unique Bakugan to “join forces with Dan and his fellow Brawlers as they battle to save Vestroia and ultimately, Earth from destruction” from a variety of monsters with crazy powers.

Here are some game details:

• Over 200 player cards, including 12 never seen before.
• Create-a-Brawler: Create and customize your own Bakugan Battle Brawler with unique attributes and features that will separate your Brawler from all others on the planet.
• Epic storyline of good vs. evil: take your side in a brand new adventure and fight with Dan to defeat evil, save Vestroia and rescue Earth from total destruction.
• Play with 16 characters and 40 Bakugans across 24 action packed levels.
• Includes 4 unique characters and 2 unique Bakugans only available in the video game.

Post from: EveryJoe

“Bakugan Battle Brawlers”

I didn’t pre-order the game and I didn’t rush out to buy it. I’m still holding an artistic grudge against Borderlands developers for changing the artistic direction mid-streams but now it’s time to suck it up and get on with it.

Sure. THIS game isn’t the game that I had pictured in my head but from what I got all last night via texts, it is a very, very solid game that “freakin’ rawks” – direct quote.

So, later on today, I plan on heading to my local game rental store and seeing if I can secure a copy of Borderlands. I figure my chances are about as good as a bottle of beer in an AA meeting, but I’m going to give it a shot.

I’ve talked enough crap about Borderlands without actually having any in-hand action and now it’s time to put my money where my mouth has been.

Hopefully I’ll have a review for you in the very near future.

Anyway. Here’s a video I found that IGN did. It’s pretty freakin’ funny. I laughed.

Image|Gearbox

Post from: EveryJoe

Borderlands is for Real Gamers Video