Some news over the weekend from PAX, the show that started as a fan-meet-up for PENNY ARCADE:

The Penny Arcade Expo celebrates its fifth anniversary this year by completely taking over the 300,000 square feet Washington State Convention Center in Seattle. Started as a way to bring fans of the Penny Arcade webcomic together, PAX has grown from 3,700 attendees in 2004 to an expected 50,000 this year.

Even though the program officially runs from 2pm to 10pm on its first day, a Friday, those scant eight hours were packed with over twenty panels in satellite theaters where industry pros cover such topics as Video Games in Public Policy to the Speed Run Showcase, where clips of highly talented gamers complete difficult tasks at lightning speed. An appreciative and discerning audience audibly gasped and cheered as if it was a Sportcenter highlight reel.

1 COMMENT

  1. I was at PAX on Friday. The opening surge was so strong it totally overwhelmed the con center staff. The dude in charge – a dead ringer for J.K. Simmons – had his veins bulging and screamed at the fans to keep moving or risk being thrown out. Nice.

    The show was 99% video game or related stuff like Intel. Udon was the only comics publisher present & their booth was mobbed. The dueling Rock Band & Guitar Hero platforms on opposite ends of the floor was really cool. Slightly unnerving was the sight of a hundred geeks lip-signing to Aerosmith while wearing ”I grock Spock” t-shirt.

    By far the best booth was a war game that offered a ”hell cut” – an on-site barber giving you a military style crew cut with the words Hell carved onto your head – all so you can get a free copy of the Xbox 360 game. Nice.

  2. We actually shared booth space with Udon and had a great show! We limited our offerings to things that had a clear gaming influence and had a fantastic time meeting existing fans of the books and turning some gamers on to books they’d never heard of. Major props to the Penny Arcade guys for putting on one of the best run shows I’ve ever attended. Their “Enforcer” volunteer staff is hands down the best I’ve ever seen and the entire vibe and mood of the show was just incredibly positive.