Originally Posted by RadarX
I've been to almost every major gaming show done in the US and have done Fan Faire at least 6 times (3 as an employee). This is hands down one of the best shows I've been to. Why? Glad you asked!
- Smaller - Realistically only a few thousand people can attend the event. This provides a more intimate setting where you aren't washed away in a sea of people and poor hygiene (thanks Comic Con).
- More Developers - A large portion of our company goes to the show. While many of them are there for panels and to support other initiatives one of their big goals is to hang out and talk with players about the game. It's hard to understand until you've had that moment where you sit down with a game designer or programmer and find out they are just normal people with a cool job.
- Full Schedule - Most shows run like 10-5 and send you on your merry for the evening. This show runs events for the entire time including a large suite of gaming machines we make available if you want to play your favorite SOE game.
- It's Vegas - Seriously. Do you need an excuse to hit Vegas? If so, this is a good one.
- History - This show has been going for nearly a decade and there are folks from all over the country who come every single year. For some this is the only time they see their virtual friends in real life. It's a lot of fun for us to watch as an employee.
The details still aren't finalized on format and what will be available but this is a big year for PS2 and I can guarantee some cool things will be there including the Dev team. |
I am going to have to partially disagree on this one. I stopped going to Fan Faire because it became a sad state of a show as SOE floundered horrible from epic failure to moderate failure one title after the other. Between the years of the end for Everquest and the build up for SWG and subsequent epic flame out to the start of Everquest II, SOE tried very hard to engage its fan base and keep the players that were in exudes to Blizzard at the time.
There are plenty of things SOE has done and continue to do well in its yearly fan engagement, and Radar-X actually outlines some of them. One of the core advatages of a FF is that its only one Publishing house and you get more time with some of your developers then you do at other shows. The drawback being is that there isn't anyone at the show besides SOE and whatever panels they have put together. Personally I have interests beyond what SOE has to offer and what has been in SOE's stable the last 5 years has not been very inspiring.
When it comes to offerings from a variety of development and publishing houses, actual fan engagement beyond some cursory 10 minuet expo, my money is on PaxPrime every year after year.
Vegas is a pit. I don't need to go to the middle of the desert to drink like a fish and act like a fool. The only real value it provides is that it allows you to do these things 24 hours a day, which isn't always true in most places of the world.
2012-03-26, 05:11 PM
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