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e3 drama

Industry Insiders Discuss ESA, E3's Future

What's the fate of E3, and of the Entertainment Software Association? It's worth examining in light of recent events. This morning we broke the news that two major publishers, Activision and Vivendi, have decided to take a pass on the event and exit the trade association, while other companies have withdrawn their E3 attendance as well. At the same time, the ESA appears to be facing stirrings of industry discontent with the ESA's leadership, namely its current president, Mike Gallagher.

E3 is not the boon to publishers that it once was, says Penny Arcade's director of business development Robert Khoo, who as the organizer of the PAX fan expo clearly has an interest, to say the least, in how things turn out.

"The reason that E3 imploded in recent years was because the publishers felt that it turned into this sort of pissing contest between them... where they were trying to figure out who could one-up each other," Khoo said. "They all thought to themselves that it just wasn't worth it."

3:40 PM on Fri May 2 2008
By Leigh Alexander
4,507 views, 22 comments

Latest by Jenstar: I have 3 letters for you all, P-A-X. August, go sign up now. TYVM. See you there. more »

Just a friendly reminder - if you are planning to attend this year's Penny Arcade Expo, now would be a great time to go ahead and pick up your membership. Early bird registration for North America's largest gaming festival ends at midnight on March 31st, after which time the price jumps up another $5 and you won't be eligible to participate in this year's Omegathon gaming competition. Head over to the PAX website to sign up!

8 comments

e for all

E For All Returning In October, PAX Gets August All To Itself

Sure, it attracted 18,000 people last year, but with a planned move to August 28-30 - ie the same time as PAX - this year's show was always going to struggle. Which is probably why the show's organizers have announced that the 2008 E for All will instead be taking place between October 3-5. They're trying to spin this as "a decision that reflects the great success of the last year's event — also held in October — as well as the positive feedback from exhibitors and attendees about the Fall timing", and if that's what helps them get to sleep at night, then that's what counts.
E For All 2008 No Longer Competing With PAX [Game|Life]

3:30 AM on Tue Feb 12 2008
By Luke Plunkett
817 views, 29 comments

Latest by DaveKap: PAX doesn't really have August all to itself as it still interferes with Burning Man which still pisses me off since I still haven't been able to go. Why can't they just move it up 1 fricken week? more »

Just a quick heads up. Tickets for the Penny Arcade Expo 2008 have gone on sale. Dates run August 29th to August 31st. Last year's PAX made the event North America's largest game festival. Last year's event drew 37,000 gamers, while this year is expected to reach "forty-seven million bajillion people." Can't wait. Early bird three-day badges are going for US $40. Significantly cheaper than a three-day Disneyland pass! Alrighty, who's going?
Buy PAX Tickets [Brown Paper Tickets Thanks s7arbuck!]

29 comments

clips

Penny Arcade Game Gameplay Videos

I got a chance to check out an early build of the Penny Arcade Game when I was at PAX last year and really enjoyed it. The character customization was fun and the use of the old school turn based gameplay was a clever throwback to many of the games I loved as a kid. Now we have some new gameplay videos featuring a new comic book style interface at the bottom which replaces the more steampunk style one that I saw. Truth be told, I liked the old version of the interface more, but this one looks seviceable and certainly blends well with the cut scenes of the game which are also done in the same comic book style. I look forward to the game's release especially since it is one of a very few interesting titles that I can play on my Mac without having to switch to my Windows partition. Make the jump for two more clips.

6:00 PM on Sat Jan 19 2008
By fdemarco
9,733 views, 143 comments

Latest by kw4k: i may just get this, haha more »

e for all

E For 18,000

Despite some doom sayers *hides* and a Friday evening blackout, IDG Worldwide reports that over 18,000 gamers showed up for the inaugural E for All Expo, calling the event a resounding success. Despite the lack of some major names in the gaming industry, it turns out that a gaming convention is, at it's heart, a gaming convention, and gamers love that sort of stuff. Despite hoping for a turnout closer to 20-30K as stated in a GameDaily interview, CEO Mary Dolaher was pleased.

"We are thrilled with the attendance, and we are pleased that we delivered the event we aimed for, which was a celebration that truly was for the entire game community," offered CEO Mary Dolaher.

Due to the overwhelming response, the Expo is definitely on for next year, where it could face some stiff competition as the show moves to August, around the same time as the next Penny Arcade Expo. Good luck with that.

18,000 turnout for inaugural E for All [GamesIndustry.biz]

9:40 AM on Mon Oct 22 2007
By Mike Fahey
1,072 views, 31 comments

Latest by Gnarlo: @Jazhuis: was disappointed in E for All. Smash Bros is great. sorry to be confusing. @WPACK911: heard in rumor mill that Nintendo was given their E for All both for free, but have no actual confirmation. Any convention that gets all more »

pax

PA's Khoo On E For All

In all honestly, calling E For All's announced 2008 show dates a conflict with PAX 08 is like calling getting poked in the eye with a sharp stick a conflict with free candy. Obviously people are going to pick one over the other, and in E For All's situation it truly is a case of move it or lose it. It's like they are trying to perfect some kind of twisted game expo that no one wants to go to. They're afraid a few people might show up this year, and they've decided to fix all of that by scheduling the event opposite PAX next year. The point I am trying to make is Penny Arcade's Robert Khoo is a lot more diplomatic than I am. FiringSquad recently interviewed Khoo about the whole messy situation.

But I'll be honest with you- since PAX started I've seen my fair share of consumer shows come and go (take IGNLive for instance). It's super hard to run one of these things, and I'd be surprised if E For All lasts longer than this year.

5:30 PM on Mon Sep 17 2007
By Mike Fahey
3,434 views, 24 comments

Latest by CyberSkull: If I had to choose between the two, it would be the vastly further away PAX. more »

random act of kindness

Games, Hope and Charity

It always warms my heart to hear gamers acting selflessly and this little tale from the halls of PAX is one that deserves telling.

Mr. Pulsar (pictured, above) arrived at PAX this year wanting to compete in the Guitar Hero II Tourneys and with the help of a new found friend ended up taking first place in the GH II team competition. In an amazing feat he turned around the next day and took home first place in the GH II singles tourney as well. Using the prize points he had won in the tournaments, he then purchased a Wii which he took around the conference and had various internet gaming celebs sign. Signers included VG Cats' Scott Ramsoomair and the masters of PAX themselves, Gabe and Tycho. Once the Wii was autographed to the teeth, he promptly donated it to Child's Play, Penny Arcade's charity for hospitalized children, to be auctioned off.

It really gives me renewed faith in the gaming populace to hear stories like this and I hope that other gamers will read this story and be inspired to similar acts. A tip of the hat to you, Mr. Pulsar, you are truly a Guitar Hero in more ways than one.

12:00 PM on Sun Sep 2 2007
By fdemarco
8,571 views, 62 comments

drinking and gaming

VGXPO Visits PAX

You can't have a highly successful gaming convention without the competition showing up to hawk their own ghettoized version of your event, especially when you're a show as big as PAX. Not only were E for All reps there handing out glow sticks, further strengthening the link with raver culture we thought we were kidding about, but the Seattle convention received a special visit from VGXPO executive director Ed Fleming, the very figure of grace and charm. According to the PA folks, Fleming was on hand posing as a member of the press, taking pictures of the exhibit halls and gaming rooms, interviewing PAX volunteers about how the show is run, and trying to sell his Philadelphia-based convention to the vendors on the show floor. Quite a piece of work, eh? Well it gets better. More »

2:30 PM on Fri Aug 31 2007
By Mike Fahey
3,721 views, 28 comments

Latest by BartonFink: Man, I really, honestly do not get you people. Why are all you people worked up about this guy? I was reading through the thread about this on the PAX forum, too. The oh-so-enlightening comments there range from "Ed Fleming more »

steaming mad

GC Asia Announced Just to Piss Us Off

ENOUGH WITH THE SHOWS. E3 ends, and shortly after that, there's Leipzig. Just after that, there is PAX. Then? Then we've got the Tokyo Games Show. But between PAX and TGS, there's GC Asia, which runs from September 6-9 in Singapore. Sony will be in appearance at GCA, showing off PS3 and PSP games, while Nintendo will be using the event to launch the Wii in the region (cue Wii Sports kiosks). Also, Electronic Arts will be showing off 15 titles, including Crysis, FIFA 08 and Rock Band. Expect appearances by Blizzard and Nokia NGage as well!

Seriously. Event organizers, spread this stuff out so we can actually cover it all without dying. This is getting RIDICULOUS.
GC Asia Info [Games Industry]

7:00 AM on Tue Aug 28 2007
By Brian Ashcraft
1,070 views, 22 comments

Latest by w3513y: Oh cool, I just bought the tickets for the event. 130 bucks for students. Looking forward to the event, maybe I can share whats available there! more »

dead trees declares show dead

Wired Declares E3 "Expired"

Flipping through the latest issue of Wired Magazine, the Martha Stewart edition, I noticed that E3 made the Wired-Expired list... but not in a good way.

The info box lists E3 as Expired, Comicon as Tired and PAX as Wired. Wired has spoken: E3 is dead, long live PAX... not really, but it has to be a bit disheartening for the ESA to see Wired putting a bullet in the head of their baby.

8:30 AM on Tue Jul 24 2007
By Brian Crecente
1,701 views, 22 comments

we're getting tipsy

First Round of Penny Arcade Omegathon is Jenga

Penny Arcade has retracted statements that the PAX ubergame battle royal, the Omegathon, would start with a round of Pac-Man. What will we see instead? Jenga. "Not the new Wii version of Jenga but actual wood blocks on a table Jenga." It's also better known as the Jenga with the pieces on which you can write naughty commands, like "run around in your underwear" and "take a shot from between two manboobs covered in Mario tattoos." And that worries me at a hardcore gaming fest like PAX. More »

1:20 PM on Wed Jul 18 2007
By Mark Wilson
2,791 views, 13 comments

Latest by xerxes7: I'm totally in agreement with BIGmog. Jenga would have been the ultimate "holy shit" unveil for the final round. more »

the new e3

PAX '07 Chock Full Of Exhibitors

If you are a major or minor gaming company looking to hawk your wares at this year's Penny Arcade Expo and you haven't signed up yet, PA has issued a press release detailing how very screwed you are. Despite the tripling the available area over last year's event the show floor is completely booked. Oh well...there's always E for All? More »

1:20 PM on Wed Jun 27 2007
By Mike Fahey
2,313 views, 20 comments

c'mon clean the pile

Chop Chop Master Onion's Rap Showdown

Want to win that stylish PaRappa the Rapper t-shirt from Paul Frank Industries? How about all manner of PaRappa swag? By entering Sony's Chop Chop Master Onion's Rap Showdown, you can secure more than that, you could win an all-expenses paid trip to Penny Arcade's yearly PAX expo. More »

4:40 PM on Tue Jun 26 2007
By Michael McWhertor
2,407 views, 11 comments

gotta believe

Paul Frank's PaRappa The Rapper Tee

A collaboration between cutesy clothing line Paul Frank Industries and PaRappa The Rapper creator Rodney Greenblatt has resulted in this fine-looking PaRappa t-shirt, planned as a promotional giveaway this summer. More »

8:40 PM on Fri Jun 22 2007
By Michael McWhertor
2,579 views, 19 comments

pax

Live Anywhere Mobile Pics

All of the panelists were hanging out in the Green Room before the blogging panel at PAX, when we started comparing sexy phones. More »

10:00 AM on Thu Aug 31 2006
By Brian Crecente
1,750 views, 11 comments

star fox command

Star Fox Command: Not Bad, Not Bad At All

OK, so maybe it was the migraine medicine, or the fumes, but after spending two hours vegging out on the PAX bean bags playing Star Fox Command, I'm addicted. More »

3:30 PM on Wed Aug 30 2006
By Brian Crecente
222 views, 20 comments

warhammer online

Warhammer Online Gameplay Video

I didn't get a chance to play Warhammer Online, but it looked an awful lot like a lot of other MMOs out there. I doubt spending ten minutes with it would have let me figure out the differences. MMOs nowadays all seem to be about backstory and play nuance. This video shows a bit of play, but not much nuance. Brian Crecente

4:00 PM on Tue Aug 29 2006
By Brian Crecente
2,371 views, 13 comments

Kotaku

Interview: Frontier Hopes LostWinds Breezes In More WiiWare Innovation

Gawker Media Network

Pax