-=< Ovge 2k9 >=- !

[-^Cro§Bow^-]

Many have sent e-mail asking and everyone has been waiting most patient. So it is my pleasure to finally announce...

Oklahoma Video Game Exhibition 2009 (http://www.ovge.com)!

Tulsa, OK – August 1, 2009– Classic video games will once again rise from history as mid-America's one and only OVGE returns for the sixth Oklahoma Video Game Exhibition.

On October 24, 2009 video game collectors and enthusiasts from Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, and even further will come together at the Spirit Bank Event Center (http://www.spiritbankeventcenter.com/) in Tulsa to celebrate the history of the video gaming industry. “Before the OVGE, people from the surrounding states had to travel across the country for an event such as this,” said Jesse Hardesty, founder and organizer of the OVGE. Doors will open to the public at 9:00 a.m. and close at 5:00 p.m. Cost of admission for ages eight and above will be $5 dollars at the door.

In 1972, the video game industry began with the release of the Odyssey by Magnavox, the first multi-video game system for the home. However, in the early ‘80s an overflow of games and poor sales forced many companies to close resulting in drastic drops in prices for their merchandise. Companies still in business could not compete with the low pricing and lost money from their over stocked inventory causing the great crash of the video game industry in 1983. Since the rebirth of the industry in 1985, with the introduction of the Nintendo Entertainment System, video game sales have flourished.

Still, many video game players are returning to classic video games. With the advanced graphics of today’s video games, why are so many people fascinated with the classics? “Even though modern game systems have amazing graphics and sound, the most important aspect of any video game is that it actually be fun to play. Because classic game systems, like the Atari 2600, had very simple graphics, game designers had to focus on the game-play. Those same games that were fun in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s are still just as much fun today,” stated Albert Yarusso, modern video game programmer and co-founder of AtariAge.com.

"With video gaming being today’s main form of home entertainment, the history behind it should not be forgotten,” said Hardesty. “The Oklahoma Video Game Exhibition is providing the youth and their parents a chance to visit and interact with that past.” Numerous video game systems, computers, and arcade machines, will be set up for the public to play. Vendors and exhibitors will have memorabilia on display with many items for purchase.

The OVGE is organized by a group of gaming enthusiasts who want to share their hobby and passion for classic and modern video games with the public.

This is our largest venue to date and there is plenty of space available, so contact us (http://ovge.com/contact.php) now to reserve your space at the show!

Look to the website (http://www.ovge.com) for the latest information as we get it! See you in October!

[Atarian76]

I hope I can make this years event. I flew in for the day last year from St Louis, but SWA change their schedule to where I cant do that this year.

[yummysmokedham]

I sent you an e-mail to ovge@cox.net the other day but have not heard back, put me down for two tables.

[-^Cro§Bow^-]

Jordan,

I did get your e-mail. I have many to reply to. My apologies, I have my boys with me this week and we literally just got back about 30min ago from White Water Bay. Point is, I've been rather busy with them this week and haven't really been up on my e-mail as I should

Just shoot me another e-mail if you could with what you plan to bring to display so I can finally get some exhibitors on the site.. hehe

[yummysmokedham]

Sounds good, I was just concerned that my e-mail may have hit the spam filter. For some reason I have a lot of trouble with that. Are we going to be able to setup the night before like in the past? From the wording on the website it did not sound like that was going to happen.

[-^Cro§Bow^-]

No there isn't any setup the night before. All setup will have to be done the morning of the show this year. None of the venues really have Friday available in addition to Saturday, and the one venue we do have wants twice as much money for Friday night. Just too cost prohibitive this year. But I have made arrangements to have the room opened as early as about 5am if need be.

[Pantechnicon]

What's the deadline if I want to pay for an exhibitor table?

[Phosphor Dot Fossils]

On the off chance that there was any doubt on anyone's part, I'll definitely be back this year, with DVDs and games aplenty up for grabs.

In the past I've brought stuff like my Odyssey2 collection (complete with exteremely rare stuff), a working Atari Video Music, the original Magnavox Odyssey, a working Famicom, Coleco tabletops, and so on...question is, what do YOU folks who are coming to the show want to see?

[purenergy]

Count me in for a table displaying Colecovisions, Homebrews and a set of Custom Controllers.
It will be great to see everyone again!
:)

[brykasch]

Glad you asked about Friday setup iw as curious when we at the time were thinking about getting a table, but wont due to a lack of wares at this time. But we ( me the wife and daughter) will definitely be coming down from Springfield for the day, and spending the night. Probably going to go to Casa Bonita for supper as is the custom when in that area. any suggestions for game stores to visit as I doubt we'll spend the whole day at the show.

Been a few years sicne our last one, hope to meet you all there!

[neist]

Good to see that this is happening! I'll try to make it for sure.

There's far too few events in the area to miss out on one.

[Flack]

Looking forward to seeing you out there, Neist!

[-^Cro§Bow^-]

Nothing set in stone and I won't know for sure until after the first week of October, but Friday night setup is now a good possibility! Long as the event center continues to not have anything happening Friday before the show, then they will let us setup night before and lock it up for us.

So.. as of now, it would be best to prep for a Friday night setup than to not and then have it as an option.

[98PaceCar]

Nothing set in stone and I won't know for sure until after the first week of October, but Friday night setup is now a good possibility! Long as the event center continues to not have anything happening Friday before the show, then they will let us setup night before and lock it up for us.

So.. as of now, it would be best to prep for a Friday night setup than to not and then have it as an option.

That's great news! I'll keep my fingers crossed!

[Wraith Storm]

Glad to see that this is happening again!

This show is one of the few highlights of the year for me... seriously. I look forward to it every year! You can bet i'll be there, and as always, I will be one of the first in line!

I'm already saving my money and counting down the days!!! Maybe i'll get to meet some more fellow DPers this year! :guitar:

[Pantechnicon]

Count me in as going and looking forward to seeing everyone again (or for the first time if we've never met).

The kids and I will be running our own booth this year, but I don't want to go into a lot of detail yet. I sent Crossbow a blurb about it and I'm just waiting for him to put it on the website first.

[-^Cro§Bow^-]

Pantechnicon,

I do have your information thanks! I've just been waiting for some more info to be confirmed before I add all the details. There is a lot to add to the exhibitors side of things and the like.

Still plenty of space left for any interested!

[Phosphor Dot Fossils]

Don't forget, OVGE folks, you can pre-order any PDF or CGE DVDs you want and pick them up at the show (http://www.thelogbook.com/media/ovge-ccag-pre-order/). This way you've got a copy reserved, rather than having to beat the crowd. :p

I'm still open to suggestions on what nifty stuff I should bring. Someone's suggested Tron swag already, which I'm thinking about...we'll see!

I will be bringing the vast majority of my collection with me, as it's up for grabs these days; if everyone likes I can post a list before the show. I'm still working on doing inventory and pricing on stuff - both boxed and loose carts for a number of consoles and computers. My friend Kent may be bringing his stash of PC DOS games - the vast majority of them boxed with docs - as well. There'll be no shortage of cool stuff. On the non-game-related side, I'll have some DVDs and carded action figures up for grabs too.

Look forward to seeing the whole gang there - there are a number of people I haven't seen in years who are promising/threatening to go, and I'm definitely looking forward to catching up with everyone.

[purenergy]

As for the exhibitors section, I just emailed Crossbow about the Colecovision competition that will be featured at my table, with some cool prizes!

PDF: Pre-order sent!
(still hoping you display some Tron stuff...)
:-D

[Magnaflux]

I look forward to seeing Flack and Phosphor Dot along with Jesse and everyone else this year.

Planning this year hasn't been terribly efficient but we hope to bring some fun stuff again.

Thanks Jesse for all your hard work!

[Phosphor Dot Fossils]

I'm still getting ready - look at what I finished working on today!

http://www.thelogbook.com/earl/hizzouse/q4-09/cge05dvd.jpg

Don't forget to pre-order your copies (http://www.thelogbook.com/media/ovge-ccag-pre-order/) for OVGE and CCAG! :-D

[-^Cro§Bow^-]

Several updates to the OVGE website to include current list of known exhibitors and vendors. Flack I still need to know what you want me to put up there for you so I can let the world know you plan to be there! hehe

Look over the website and remember...

ONLY 4 TABLES LEFT!

[Deadman]

Crossbow I appreciate your plug for my art website! Right now I'm not sure if I'm going to have a lot of new art for sale, but I will be bringing a lot of my collection and at least one console for free play. Probably my childhood Vectrex or maybe my 2600 with one of my rarer games going.

Also, please keep us informed on the availability of Friday setup. I know it will probably be a last minute thing, but I've got a room Friday night at the Hampton and will get there a bit earlier if we get setup that night.

[Phosphor Dot Fossils]

FYI: pre-orders for the PDF and CGE DVDs for OVGE close on Monday - if you want a reserved copy of anything, get your order in (http://www.thelogbook.com/media/ovge-ccag-pre-order/) by Monday night! Thanks to those who have placed their orders already.

[dstone]

Pre-order in! Can't wait for the expo!

[-^Cro§Bow^-]

Just a heads up!

We are now just about a week away from OVGE2k9 and I have a few minor things to announce.

The good news first...

We now have Friday night setup! Yeah!!! I got the confirmation late Wednesday afternoon as I made the final payment for the event space. What time or how early we can begin setting up I don't yet know but I'll send out updates as I know more. At least we have some setup for Friday now!

Bad news...

All the tables require covering of some sort, so even those that paid additional for the table skirting will still need to get some covering for your tables. I've heard that party stores and the like have plastic like large table coverings for really cheap that can be bought. This would be ideal since you wouldn't care if it got torn or anything and you could just dump it in the trash afterwards. I'm likely to go this route myself.

I also learned that we won't be the only thing going on that day in the event center. There will be a charity silent auction taking place in the main arena. Because of this I lost some of my tables and now only have 2 left available at this time. Seems the auction requires more tables than I do, so the event center is taking away some of mine that hadn't sold quite yet. ugh...

Tournaments...

There is of course the standard OVGE classic gaming tourney. I haven't quite decided on which games it will be. But I do know that it will be strictly a 2600 theme this year and I know one of the games will be Centipede. I could use some ideas on two more 2600 games that are easy to play and understand and could get some scoring in during a 3min time frame?

Brad Prillwitz will also be hosting a Pac-Man Collection tournament on the colecovision using the Opcode games Pac-Man collection cartridge!

The layout has been sent to the vendors and exhibitors so they know where to setup in the event space. Any questions etc... please do NOT hesitate to contact me!

Thank you everyone and I'll see you guys in a week!

[Pantechnicon]

Tournaments...

Might as well plug my own here.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v255/pzcortez/GameZilla3.jpg

[Vectorman0]

I could use some ideas on two more 2600 games that are easy to play and understand and could get some scoring in during a 3min time frame?

Kaboom! - Paddles
Plaque Attack

[Gapporin]

I concur with Kaboom! and add my own two opinions: River Raid and Berzerk.

[-^Cro§Bow^-]

Kaboom! and Berzerk! Now those are two of the easiest to understand and play games. I like the way you two think! In fact... you just decided the last two games for the tourney thank you!

Okay.. so the OVGE tourney will be Centipede, Berzerk, and Kaboom!. Now to make sure I got some excellent non-jittery paddles. I don't feel like cleaning any pots but I gots plenty of tuner cleaner if needs be!

Thanks again Gapporin and Vectorman0!

[purenergy]

Here's some info about the "Pacman Collection" competition held at my table:
Players with the top three scores will win the following prizes:
First place:
One (new) Pacman T-Shirt "I stopped playing Pacman. It was the worst 7 minutes of my life " (size: Adult XL.)
Second place:
One (new) Pacman official keychain from Namco.
Third place:
One Pacman (cloth) retro patch from the 80's!

I also have 2 other prizes that may be given away: Pacman power pellets candy, and one Pacman tablecloth.

Rules for the Pacman competition:
- Competition starts at 1:00 p.m.
- 5 minute time limit per player.
- Joystick controller used. :)
- Player must be present to win prize.
- In the event of a tie, a standard Atari 2600 Pacman cart will be flipped, like a coin (label up or not? 8-))

[Phosphor Dot Fossils]

How lame is it that I want to play to win the third-place prize? :evil:

[Deadman]

Starting to pull together my games for sale and trade and organize my lists of things to look for! I will be setting up Friday night, will anyone else be there? Since I'll be at my table most of the day Saturday I'm hoping to do some browsing early on Friday.

[neist]

Aw, dang it.

Not sure if I can go. Insurance said my car was totaled from the wreck. Don't think I'll have a car to drive up there now. :(

Hope everyone else has fun though!

[8bitgamer]

Starting to pull together my games for sale and trade and organize my lists of things to look for! I will be setting up Friday night, will anyone else be there? Since I'll be at my table most of the day Saturday I'm hoping to do some browsing early on Friday.

I'll be there Friday night as well, setting up and browsing. Since I'll be there by myself, I'll have to do my shopping Friday night.

BTW--love the Ace Frehley pic.

[98PaceCar]

I'll be there friday as well, though probably late.

I've decided to bring up a selection of PCBs with me, so anybody into arcades should stop by. Mostly Jamma, but some good stuff. Also bringing some really oddball games (NGPC, Laseractive, Gizmondo, FDS, etc), so there will be something for everybody!

[Deadman]

I'll be there Friday night as well, setting up and browsing. Since I'll be there by myself, I'll have to do my shopping Friday night.

BTW--love the Ace Frehley pic.

And according to the layout I got from OVGE, we're right next to each other. I want to get one of your new books for sure to go with my first one.

Oh, and Ace is still the man!

[8bitgamer]

And according to the layout I got from OVGE, we're right next to each other. I want to get one of your new books for sure to go with my first one.

Sounds like a plan.

I'll also have lots of classic games for sale, including some hard to find ColecoVision stuff.

[Magnaflux]

I'll be there friday as well, though probably late.

I've decided to bring up a selection of PCBs with me, so anybody into arcades should stop by. Mostly Jamma, but some good stuff. Also bringing some really oddball games (NGPC, Laseractive, Gizmondo, FDS, etc), so there will be something for everybody!

Are you using a supergun or bringing a cab?

Good call on the pocket color, I'd love to check out what you have.

[98PaceCar]

Are you using a supergun or bringing a cab?

Good call on the pocket color, I'd love to check out what you have.

Neither, just boards for sale. Hoping to clear some space! Off the top of my head, I have a spare Biomotor Unitron, Metal Slug 1, and Baseball I think. Haven't gone through that box yet!

[Steve W]

Dang, it sounds like everything good is going to be sold before the show even starts!

[8bitgamer]

Dang, it sounds like everything good is going to be sold before the show even starts!

No, that's never the case. Most every convention, be it comics, video games, baseball cards, or whatever, has dealers checking out the dealers' room the night before the show. Also, many conventions have a preview night, and there is always plenty of cool stuff left to sell. I rarely sell much the night before a show.

[-^Cro§Bow^-]

We have Friday night setup confirmed and can begin around 7pm. Until only about 10 or 11pm. However, I likely won't be there by 7pm as I and Ed Martin will be busy loading up his Arcade cabs and my two for the show.

Vendors and exhibitors:

There is a back loading dock that is a straight shot to the South Banquet hall on the back south end of the event center. When you approach the event center from 105th street, keep going straight. Eventually you have you hit a fork where you either go towards the parking garage, or the front of the event center. There is a center lane between the garage and the event center. This will take you to the backside of the event center and to the loading dock.

Event center personnel should be nearby and on hand inside if the doors are locked etc.

The tournaments have been decided..

the OVGE tourney will be 3 2600 games played for 3min each, or until all lives are expended. The games are...

Centipede, Berzerk!, and Kaboom! (I just de jitterized a set a paddles for this one...)

There is also Greg Little SF3 tourney for the PS2 being held. I have prizes from Vintage Stock that will be at the show that he can use as a prize for that.

Brad Prillwitz will have his Pacman collection tourney and last but not least...

Paul Cortez and his family will be hosting a Destroy all Monsters! Melee tourney!



I'm posting this information here, because naturally as luck would have it.. my router at home died last night. I will get another after work today, but still wanted to make sure everyone got this information!

See you guys Friday night!

[Deadman]

No, that's never the case. Most every convention, be it comics, video games, baseball cards, or whatever, has dealers checking out the dealers' room the night before the show. Also, many conventions have a preview night, and there is always plenty of cool stuff left to sell. I rarely sell much the night before a show.

I'm hoping there might be some trading available as well. In case some people are wanting to trade, here is some of the stuff I'll be bringing:

Games from these systems:
Atari 2600
Atari 5200
Atari 7800
Nintendo NES
Sega Genesis
Sega 32x (Star Wars loose only)
Sega CD
Sega Saturn
Sega Dreamcast
Nintendo Gameboy and GBA (a few)
Nintendo DS (just a couple)
Xbox 360
Wii

Lots of other items like:
Some strategy guides
game storage cases
Accessory packs

Highlights include:
Jurassic Park Operation Genesis (Xbox)
Pete Rose Baseball (2600)
Final fantasy (Wonderswan color - NEW)

Not a whole lot, but for a first OVGE, Im bringing about 6 bins of stuff. I'm still debating bringing my Vectrex set up for play - all depends on having enough room on the table.

[Pantechnicon]

I will have a trade/bargain bin with lots of common stuff. Mostly Atari 2600, a few INTV and Odyssey as well. I'm also bringing a few loose consoles too (PSX, MSX). Mostly $1 each for games, but nothing in the bin will be priced higher than $5. Y'all will be doing me a big favor grabbing whatever you can.

[Felixthegamer]

My wife has been sick the last few days and now I am sick. Nothing all too serious, but I am tired with a sore throat. I hope everybody has fun though and I hope to hear about all the fun!

[98PaceCar]

I will have a trade/bargain bin with lots of common stuff. Mostly Atari 2600, a few INTV and Odyssey as well. I'm also bringing a few loose consoles too (PSX, MSX). Mostly $1 each for games, but nothing in the bin will be priced higher than $5. Y'all will be doing me a big favor grabbing whatever you can.

MSX?? You might want to hold on to that stuff for me!!

[Deadman]

I will have a trade/bargain bin with lots of common stuff. Mostly Atari 2600, a few INTV and Odyssey as well. I'm also bringing a few loose consoles too (PSX, MSX).

I was going to bring my extra Genesis, N64, 5200, and 2600, but the amount of time to pull them all out, test the controllers, organize them - plus the added space they take up at the show made me pass on that idea.


Mostly $1 each for games, but nothing in the bin will be priced higher than $5. Y'all will be doing me a big favor grabbing whatever you can.

I'm the same way - lots of $1 games for 2600 and intellivision, and all my Genesis carts (loose or boxed) are $3-5. Ditto on the whole "favor" thing, as I'm hoping to trade for stuff I need/want or just not bring them home!

[Phosphor Dot Fossils]

Here's a PDF covering just about all of the games I'll have at OVGE this weekend. (http://www.thelogbook.com/earl/hizzouse/q4-09/pdf2009ovge.pdf) See everybody in a couple of days!

[Pantechnicon]

MSX?? You might want to hold on to that stuff for me!!

:embarrassed: I think I used the wrong abbreviation. I meant SMS i.e. - Sega Master System. Sorry. Nothing fancy here.

[Deadman]

Here's a PDF covering just about all of the games I'll have at OVGE this weekend. (http://www.thelogbook.com/earl/hizzouse/q4-09/pdf2009ovge.pdf) See everybody in a couple of days!

You definitely have some commons that I'm interested in either trading or buying from you. Are you setting up Friday night or Saturday morning, as I'd love to browse some before the show gets going and I'm stuck at my table.

Also, is anyone stay at the Hampton Inn Friday night or are most of you guys sticking around Saturday night?

[Steve W]

I hope we'll have access to name badges so I can identify people. Last year (or possibly two) I remember briefly talking to a guy a couple times and finding out a day or two later that it was Gapporin. Dang, I feel bad that I didn't chat more with him.

[Pantechnicon]

Also, is anyone stay at the Hampton Inn Friday night or are most of you guys sticking around Saturday night?

Ubik and I will be at the Hampton both Friday and Saturday night. Look forward to meeting you!

[dstone]

I'll be driving up early Saturday morning. Really looking forward to chatting with everyone again!

[Phosphor Dot Fossils]

I'll be arriving Saturday morning, though I hope to beat my usual record of setting up 15 minutes before the doors open tothe public. :evil:

[98PaceCar]

I'll be arriving Saturday morning, though I hope to beat my usual record of setting up 15 minutes before the doors open tothe public. :evil:

If I have room, I'll bring a dolly to make it easier this time!

I'll be in tonight, probably pretty close to setup time. Looks like I'll be able to get out of work early, provided nothing implodes on me.

Did a scan of what I'm bringing last night. As it stands right now, I've got a big box of systems (some working, some not), about 10 or so PCBs, and 9 boxes of games of various types. Maybe I should have gotten another table!

[obliterator918]

I'm looking forward to seeing everyone -- I'll be setting up tonight. I designed a new retro gamer shirt and still have a bunch of the ones from last year to sell.

[Flack]

I hope we'll have access to name badges so I can identify people. Last year (or possibly two) I remember briefly talking to a guy a couple times and finding out a day or two later that it was Gapporin. Dang, I feel bad that I didn't chat more with him.

I have a stack of them in the truck. Stop by my table if you want one.

[Flack]

Dang, it sounds like everything good is going to be sold before the show even starts!

I'm not even getting there until Saturday and I'm bringing a bunch of boxed Commodore systems and games along with quite a few other boxed items and a few loose ones. There should be plenty of things left Saturday!

[dstone]

I'm glad to know I'm not the only one still up before the expo. LOL

[neist]

Good to see not everyone is already at site. :cheers:

See everyone there!

[Steve W]

Well, I'm eating lunch here in Tulsa. Spent the morning here at the show, wild-eyed from energy drinks on the drive. It's a fun show so far, but I popped out during TV Death Squad's "performance". Maybe I should have stuck around for a bit, just to see if anyone protested during his concert. Oh well. Within a half hour I was almost out of money, so it's a standard show so far. :)

[neist]

Well, I'm eating lunch here in Tulsa. Spent the morning here at the show, wild-eyed from energy drinks on the drive. It's a fun show so far, but I popped out during TV Death Squad's "performance". Maybe I should have stuck around for a bit, just to see if anyone protested during his concert. Oh well. Within a half hour I was almost out of money, so it's a standard show so far. :)

Yeah, I think I spent my share of spending money probably in the same amount of time. Some people's booths had some really decent stuff. My expectations were actually much lower as to what would be there.

And I found a cheap Namco PS1 arcade stick. Though are nearly impossible to find, let alone for a decent price.

[Deadman]

Made it home at 9:00 pm tonight and have already unloaded and put a lot of the stuff away. Just one last time I have to say THANKS to all the OVGE crew for a great show. I had a fantastic time and you guys made it all the better! I will definitely be in for the next show and hopefully all of the shows after that. The venue was great, the other dealers were great and the buyers were enthusiastic and willing to spend a few dollars, which helped make up for their lack of overwhelming numbers.

One other note on the "musical" selections. Being as I was right in front of the setup, I took the time to ask the patrons what they thought of it and it was pretty unanimous that they thought the music was okay for the first 10 minutes or so and then it was just too much and waaaay too loud! I have to attest that when they began to play, our end of the venue cleared out as all the buyers moved to the other end of the room hurting the sales for sure. Either way, I had a great time and also wanted to leave a few other comments:



I'll also have lots of classic games for sale, including some hard to find ColecoVision stuff.

Yes you did! And I got a few of them for my collection. Great to meet and talk to you as well - and I just realized as I was unpacking: I forgot to get a copy of your new book....


Mostly $1 each for games, but nothing in the bin will be priced higher than $5. Y'all will be doing me a big favor grabbing whatever you can.

I believe your bin was the first of many to take my $$$ before I even sold $1 worth of stuff! A well spent $14 and now I have another face to the name from DP.


Here's a PDF covering just about all of the games I'll have at OVGE this weekend. (http://www.thelogbook.com/earl/hizzouse/q4-09/pdf2009ovge.pdf) See everybody in a couple of days!

Saturday morning was busy for you - you weren't kidding! A great pleasure meeting you and thanks for having such a great selection at great prices!


I hope we'll have access to name badges so I can identify people. Last year (or possibly two) I remember briefly talking to a guy a couple times and finding out a day or two later that it was Gapporin. Dang, I feel bad that I didn't chat more with him.

I saw that you made your own badge, but each time you walked by my table you I was either busy or you were talking to someone so I never got to formally meet you. I really wanted to pick your brain on where you can find all those great deals around here.


I'll be driving up early Saturday morning. Really looking forward to chatting with everyone again!

I think we killed some time chatting about the Vectrex, the OEGE, and you kicking my but at Space War. It was still cool to say hey and meet another new gaming bud.


Did a scan of what I'm bringing last night. As it stands right now, I've got a big box of systems (some working, some not), about 10 or so PCBs, and 9 boxes of games of various types. Maybe I should have gotten another table!

I got back home without having to ride on your tail to let you get all the speeding tickets! Thanks for the great Saturn deals and the hang time on Friday.


I'm looking forward to seeing everyone -- I'll be setting up tonight. I designed a new retro gamer shirt and still have a bunch of the ones from last year to sell.

Great pleasure to meet you, your wife, and your son today! I'm glad there was someone nearby with a good sense of humor to help pass some of the "downtime" during the "music??" See ya'll soon.

Sorry for the long post, but I think it was probably better than 10 separate posts.

[Steve W]

I got home around 10:15pm. The year before last, I woke up early and left around 3am, and the late drive home was frightening. By the time I was in the Dallas city limits, I was struggling just to keep my concentration on the road because I was so tired. Last night I had a bout of insomnia and only slept maybe 3 hours. I was scared that I'd have another bad drive and I might get into a wreck. Luckily, an overabundance of energy drinks and Mountain Dew kept me relatively alert, but jittery all day.

I blew quite a bit of money today. I kept going out to my car and dropping off my loot when it would overload my pockets, and it seemed at the time like I had a proverbial ton of stuff on my floorboard. Sadly, when I got home and brought it all in, it seemed like I had a single grocery bag full of stuff rather than the trolley I imagined I'd need to haul in everything.

This was a good time of year for a show in Tulsa. It was pretty dang cold in the morning, but nice and comfortable in the afternoon, and the trees all over town were turning fall colors. And the Spirit Bank Event Center is a great venue. Great room we were in, too. My only problem wasn't with the show itself, but because of all the nightmarish road work (and literally road removal in some places) going on all over town, I ended up getting to the Weber's Superior Root Beer restaurant at 5:04pm, four minutes after they closed. Damn, I wanted some of their root beer before I left! That's the second year I've had to leave Tulsa without any of their root beer. :(

[Phosphor Dot Fossils]

Steve makes it sound like he was tweaked, but I really didn't pick up on that. Maybe I should've wolfed down some energy drinks too. :drinking:

It was great fun hanging out with old friends and meeting new ones too - my apologies if I seemed to be a bit scarce, but my table was really busy (which, believe me, was a good thing). I appreciate everyone who dropped by and even bought so much as a $1 DVD or game or what have you. I had mispriced a few things here and there due to being completely worn out, but if the little price booklet said it, then I honored it rather than trying to change the rules on the spot under someone's feet. I screwed up and had a Criterion Collection DVD priced at a buck, and while I kinda slapped myself mentally for that one, it was worth it for the look on the face of the guy who bought it from me. LOL I'll have a word with the management about these inefficient pricing practices ASAP!

The live music was... well... if he'd broken his set up into songs rather than doing epic-length ear-shattering stuff that would've left Kraftwerk agog at the sheer length of the music, that might've helped. It was a bit on the loud side. I had two TVs, each about 4 feet in front of me if even that far, playing the loop DVD of CGE and PDF DVD clips at a pretty good volume; I kept one peeking around to make sure my TVs were still on and running the loop because I couldn't hear them from that close.

But other than that, it was a great show - I hope I made up for having to miss last year's! Hope everyone enjoys their loot, and I hope to see everyone there again next year.

[Wraith Storm]

OVGE was awesome this year!

I had never been to the Spirit Bank Event Center before. I have to say that I really liked it. It was an excellent replacement for the Marriott. I got up bright and early so I could be there at 9:00. Last year I heard there were quite a few DP members there, so this year I whipped up a nametag the the night before and got to meet a few of you that I hadn't met last year, so that was cool!

I made off with a bunch of loot! I picked up a boxed C64C and a donor 1541 drive!!! I also picked up some C64 classics (Skate Rock and Gemstone Warrior). Then I snagged Castlevania 64: Legacy of Darkness. It was just a loose cart but the price was pretty good. Then I got a few PS1 and Dreamcast games. But the score of the show for me was FINALLY getting a copy of Street Fighter Collection for the Saturn. That game is getting tough to find!

Anyway, I would like to thank everyone who made this show a possibility. The people who organized it and the vendors who stocked it with goods! I'm already counting down for OVGE 2K10!!!

[8bitgamer]

OVGE 2009 was a blast. Kudos to Jesse Hardesty for putting on a fun show. It was great catching up with Flack, dstone, Earl, PaceCar, SteveW, and the rest, and the attendees were enthusiastic and ready to spend money.

You can see photos and read more here:

http://brettweisswords.blogspot.com/

[obliterator918]

(I hardly ever post here, so for you guys who aren't sure who I am, I'm the guy who was selling "retro gamer" t-shirts.)

We (me, my wife, and my 10 year old son) had a lot of fun at OVGE 2009. Although turnout was kind of low, we still managed to sell some stuff, and it was fun talking with the other vendors/exhibitors. Even though I picked up some good stuff (I even managed to find something for my Star Trek game collection), somehow I managed to leave with more money than I came with, so I'll count that a win.

I agree with everyone else about the music. Me and Holt were *right up against* the set, so it was probably harder for us. The music definitely drove people down to the other end of the room, and made holding conversations impossible. It wasn't the music itself that was a problem, it was the volume. If there will be music again next year, I hope that the sets can be broken up to be much, much shorter and that the volume will be much lower.

I set up the night before and there was an empty table next to me. Jesse said to fill it if I could, so the next morning I brought my Star Trek videogame collection, which took up a full table. I'm glad I did, because a lot of people got a kick out of seeing it and commented on how diverse the collection is. It made me want to get back to finding more stuff to add to it. And I just love telling people "not for sale" when they say "how much for this one?"

I set up an Amiga CD32 and had Chaos Engine running on it, which seemed to draw a lot of people in to sit and play for a while. One guy actually read the instructions screen and played for a solid 15 minutes.

I also had my Commodore 64 with 1541U expansion cart, which has a custom paint job, that brought some comments as well. For most of the show I had Archon running on it with two controllers hooked up, and to my satisfaction, several times two people were playing against each other. Later I switched to Ghosts 'N Goblins which was a hit.

My last exhibit was my custom pained SX-64. A few people commented that they never knew Commodore sold red ones. :-) The SX-64 always gets a lot of comments, with its tiny built-in color monitor...

I will definitely be coming back in 2010. Spirit Bank Event Center is a great venue. Hopefully we can work on getting more people next time, but honestly, I don't go for the public, I go to meet and hang out with other people who love classic gaming, and by that measure, OVGE 2009 was a smashing success.

[obliterator918]

I've posted some pics. Sorry, no captions.

OVGE 2009 (http://picasaweb.google.com/brandon.staggs/OVGE2009)

[neist]

[snip...]

I set up an Amiga CD32 and had Chaos Engine running on it, which seemed to draw a lot of people in to sit and play for a while. One guy actually read the instructions screen and played for a solid 15 minutes.

[snip...]

That may have been me. I know I sat there for a while. I think I got into the third or forth level. I was honestly quited amazed to find Chaos Engine there. I'm a pretty big fan of the "top-down-shoot-things-that-move" sort of games. I have both SNES and Genesis ports, but never played the CD32 port. :) They remind me a lot of Dungeon Explorer, and I love me some Dungeon Explorer.

At any rate, getting to play that CD32 Chaos Engine was one of the highlights of my trip.


I've posted some pics. Sorry, no captions.

OVGE 2009 (http://picasaweb.google.com/brandon.staggs/OVGE2009)

Hah, there's me. Far left, standing up with the unshaven face.

http://picasaweb.google.com/brandon.staggs/OVGE2009#5396680271088093458

[Steve W]

Who was the person who put out the Vectrex? I'd like to know where he got those great homebrews.

Here's my photos...
http://i414.photobucket.com/albums/pp222/StevePW/PureEnergyTable.jpg
Pure Energy's table, with the awe inspiring neon Pac-Man lights and the reproduction Colecovision controllers, along with a sah-weet assortment of homebrews to play.

http://i414.photobucket.com/albums/pp222/StevePW/Pantechnicon2.jpg
Our own Pantechnicon's Godzilla themed table and tournaments, picture 2.

http://i414.photobucket.com/albums/pp222/StevePW/Pantechnicon1.jpg
Another shot of his table from the front.

http://i414.photobucket.com/albums/pp222/StevePW/icbrkrTable.jpg
Icbrkr's table with an Atari ST running Bubble Bobble and an Amiga 600 running Creatures. Cut off on the left side is a Commodore 116 running Mr. Do.

http://i414.photobucket.com/albums/pp222/StevePW/EarlandUbik.jpg
A shot of various board games based on arcade titles, and on the right is our own Phosphor Dot Fossils sitting down and Ubik standing next to him.

http://i414.photobucket.com/albums/pp222/StevePW/BrettWeissTable.jpg
Brett Weiss's table, and I guess TV Death Squad was playing in the background (the picture can't capture the incredibly high volume of his music, although it was still not as loud as the music at the Houston Arcade show I went to a couple years ago).

http://i414.photobucket.com/albums/pp222/StevePW/98PaceCarTable.jpg
98PaceCar's table. How often do you see Laseractive games? Or Gizmondo games? Or even boxed NGPC games?

http://i414.photobucket.com/albums/pp222/StevePW/arcade2.jpg
Some arcade cabinets, with a cocktail cabinet style Joust obscured at the far right.

http://i414.photobucket.com/albums/pp222/StevePW/arcade1.jpg
The other arcade cabinets, unfortunately Star Wars Arcade must have died on the trip. :( And the kid was blocking my view of the Frogger cabinet.

[Deadman]

Who was the person who put out the Vectrex? I'd like to know where he got those great homebrews.



That would be me. For the most part, I try to hit a few of the online Vectrex fan forums and sites, and typically if there's a homebrew in development I will check it out and either pre-order one, or get one when they come out.

[slapdash]

@PureEnergy: Who made those controller sets? Got better pics?

[obliterator918]

That may have been me. I know I sat there for a while. I think I got into the third or forth level. I was honestly quited amazed to find Chaos Engine there. I'm a pretty big fan of the "top-down-shoot-things-that-move" sort of games. I have both SNES and Genesis ports, but never played the CD32 port. :) They remind me a lot of Dungeon Explorer, and I love me some Dungeon Explorer.

At any rate, getting to play that CD32 Chaos Engine was one of the highlights of my trip.



Hah, there's me. Far left, standing up with the unshaven face.

http://picasaweb.google.com/brandon.staggs/OVGE2009#5396680271088093458

Yes, I remember you. I love it -- it's always nice when someone gets some enjoyment out of what I bring to the exhibit.