VGXPO 2006 - Offical Digital Press Forum

[Ed-Fleming]

This is the official forum topic for VGXPO at Digital Press.


America's VideoGame Expo (aka VGXPO)
October 27-29, 2006

Valley Forge Convention Center
15 minutes from Philadelphia

www.VGXPO.com

[Ed-Fleming]

LET THE REVOLUTION BEGIN

VGXPO print ads start hitting newsstands.


If you have a subscription to EGM, VGXPO ads featuring Ben Franklin started to hit mailboxes today. We have 2 ads in this month's edition of EGM (Guitar Hero is the cover).

Our ads can be found in September copies of:

- Electronic Gaming Monthly
- Computer Gaming World
- Official Playstation Magazine
- Play Magazine
- VideoGame Collector
- Tips and Tricks


The LET THE REVOLUTION BEGIN ad will be printed on over 3 million pages of enthusiast magazines.

www.VGXPO.com

[Sniderman]

This is the official forum topic for VGXPO at Digital Press.

Okey-dokey. I'll lock the others then and will direct all further VGXPO comments, queries, and what-not to this thread.

[rolenta]

[VGXPO print ads start hitting newsstands

I received the new issue of Tips & Tricks yesterday and the ad was in there.

[BillKunkel]

I strongly believe that it's in the interest of gamers to support this event -- which is one of the reasons I'm on the advisory board and am flying out there on my own coin. I'm not making a nickel off this, folks, as Ed can tell you, but I am firm in my conviction that North America needs a new type of show, something like the Japanese and Euro shows where the fans aren't just allowed in, they're celebrated! I want a show where the developers -- the most important people in the business -- aren't stuck in a dump like "Yenta Hall" which, let's face it, has become a joke. I did an interview recently with a Viennese radio game show and the interviewer was actually laughing at E3's Kentia Hall. Because when you stick the developers and even the mom & pops in the equivalent of the Warsaw Ghetto, you're telling people that they aren't nearly as important as the hardware manufacturers and the EAs. But they are not only MORE important (who makes the games that EA publishes?), they're a hell of a lot more interesting to the gamers.
I think game fans would rather meet the people who make the games than all the suits and bean counters in the industry.
In any case, I've said it elsewhere but since the discussion has officially moved here, I wanted to go on record as to why I'm giving my time to this project and why I'm doing everything possible to support it. Because I'm sick of going to trade shows; I want to get together with the playas, the game makers, the people who REALLY move and shake this business. I want a big party where we can all get together and it isn't insiders-only. I've been to enough CES and E3s to last me a lifetime.
This show should begin the revolution, as well as the evolution of the games industry toward a new direction and if you take a gander at the industry heavyweights who are supporting this show, you can see I'm not the only one who thinks so.
Come to VGXPO and help make it the most entertaining game show there is, with everything from LAN parties to all-night game-a-thons to respect for the classics that made this business what it is.
P.S.: I am NOT dissing ANY of the other game gatherings; I think they are tremendously important. I just think VGXPO has the best shot at becoming the Next Big Thing in gaming because of the people and weight behind it (and no, that was not a shot at Ed).
Seeya there!

[BillKunkel]

Sorry, guys, I accidentally hit the Submit button twice. See how jazzed I am? :eek 2:

[Kid Ice]

I strongly believe that it's in the interest of gamers to support this event --

Some of us are ill at ease with this event because DP was banned last year. Also IMO what you are saying about the "Next Big Thing" could more readily be applied to CGE which is already an established event.

[BillKunkel]

I strongly believe that it's in the interest of gamers to support this event --

Some of us are ill at ease with this event because DP was banned last year. Also IMO what you are saying about the "Next Big Thing" could more readily be applied to CGE which is already an established event.

Well, I'll leave it to Ed and Joe to settle this, but I don't believe anyone was "banned" from the show. It was a misunderstanding that stemmed from the former people behind the Philly Classic (which morphed into VGXPO under Ed Fleming) and Ed had nothing to do with it so far as I know.

Also -- and look, I've been to every CGE since it was run by the Atari guys and have the badges to prove it (as well as TWO Lifetime Achievement Awards, which says something considering this is my first life where we've had videogames) -- a classic gaming show will never become THE primary show for gamers because retro is just a part of the scene, Iceman. You need to take a look at the Big Picture. The fact that there is no CGE this year, I think, speaks volumes. It will always be a fun show and I'll be at them whenever possible, and I love Joe and the CGE guys and always will, but the Next Big Thing has to cover more than just classic games and I think that is painfully obvious -- even to one of the dinosaurs like me.

[Kid Ice]

Well, I'll leave it to Ed and Joe to settle this, but I don't believe anyone was "banned" from the show. It was a misunderstanding that stemmed from the former people behind the Philly Classic (which morphed into VGXPO under Ed Fleming) and Ed had nothing to do with it so far as I know.

http://www.digitpress.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=74136&start=25


a classic gaming show will never become THE primary show for gamers because retro is just a part of the scene, Iceman.

I guess I'm confused because last year VGXPO seemed primarily geared toward classic gaming. I was one of the "17,000" people who was there.

[16-bit]

I guess I'm confused because last year VGXPO seemed primarily geared toward classic gaming. I was one of the "17,000" people who was there.

This thread isn't about last years show.

[Kid Ice]

I guess I'm confused because last year VGXPO seemed primarily geared toward classic gaming. I was one of the "17,000" people who was there.

This thread isn't about last years show.

Ahhh, touche'! But I'd think last year's show would bear some relationship to this year's show. One wouldn't want to let down the 17,000 people that mobbed the place last year. Hell, I waited in a line for the Tempest machine with about 600 people in front of me.

[BillKunkel]

I guess I'm confused because last year VGXPO seemed primarily geared toward classic gaming. I was one of the "17,000" people who was there.

This thread isn't about last years show.

Ahhh, touche'! But I'd think last year's show would bear some relationship to this year's show. One wouldn't want to let down the 17,000 people that mobbed the place last year. Hell, I waited in a line for the Tempest machine with about 600 people in front of me.

BILL: Right, sort of like the way the Simpsons cartoons on Tracey Ullman's show bear some relationship to the show's first full season. It was recognizeable, vaguely, as the same cartoon but, wow, it sure wasn't the same cartoon.

Have you even BEEN to the VGXPO.com site? If you have and got the impression that it was a retro show, then I think you need to take another look.

Just cause they invite me, doesn't make it a retro show (and hell, I'm still working full time in the industry; the Game Doctor ain't gonna sleep till he's dead!).

[Kid Ice]

Have you even BEEN to the VGXPO.com site?

Yeah, that's why I keep beating up on the 17,000 people thing, doc.

But this has been going on for months now and it's pretty clear I'm not going to get an answer to (a) how can you promote the event on this site after DP was banned last year and (b) how can someone say 17000 people were at the event last year. So now I'm going to STFU and see what happens next. Good luck with Game Jam.

[BillKunkel]

Have you even BEEN to the VGXPO.com site?

Yeah, that's why I keep beating up on the 17,000 people thing, doc.

But this has been going on for months now and it's pretty clear I'm not going to get an answer to (a) how can you promote the event on this site after DP was banned last year and (b) how can someone say 17000 people were at the event last year. So now I'm going to STFU and see what happens next. Good luck with Game Jam.

Okay, this is a wrap with you as far as I'm concerned. I have no idea what has been "going on for months" -- I entered my first post on this subject about a week or so ago.

First point: since when is it your business what is or is not "promoted" on this site? This space is featured as an open forum in which to discuss game-related events. As the author of one of its regular columns and somebody with just a tad of credibility in this business, if you have a problem with my support for this event, I guess I'll just have to bear up under that enormous burden.

And if you can ever find a spot anywhere in the world of print where I said there were any particular number of people at last year's show -- or even provided a wild guess -- I would just love for you to find it.

I have no idea how many people were at last year's show and wouldn't even hazard a guess. I also think it is utterly irrelevant. If it's used by others in the grand tradition of hype to build up an event that would be a boon to everybody who plays games, then I'll live with that, just as I live with all the other hype I'm bombarded with on a daily basis.

I neither know nor care what your personal agenda is in all this, but I'm out as far as wasting my time on you. Unless, of course, I see you at the show waiting on line to play Tempest... :D

[Kid Ice]

I neither know nor care what your personal agenda is in all this, but I'm out as far as wasting my time on you. Unless, of course, I see you at the show waiting on line to play Tempest... :D

Yeah then you and Leonard Herman and Ralph Baer can stomp a mudhole in my ass.

[Ed-Fleming]

In regards to 2005, our attendance count was over 17,000 people in attendance. NBC's count was higher then that. In the past, PhillyClassic shows had over 3000 attendess, our attendance was many multiple times bigger then any previous PhillyClassic show. In addition, many casual gamers only came to the show for a few hours, so many, many people filtered throughout the weekend. Anyone at the show knows that from open to close, the show was busy.

This year, we are advertising in many, many videogame magazines and in the Philly Inquierer, as well as other outlets. We are expecting to reach 20,000 folks, but we will be happy to reach the same number attendees as last year. To give an idea of possible growth for VGXPO based on the results from other shows - last year PAX had 9,000 attendees, this year they reached 19,000.

I'll say this again. I hope that DP and Atari Age will both be at VGXPO. I've mentioned this in other posts too. I've talked with the DP and Atari Age guys and told them that VGXPO cannot be involved with the politics or other issues between them.

So you know, we do not have a relationship with PhillyClassic. VGXPO does not own PhillyClassic, and VGXPO is not a replacement for PhillyClassic.

For the record, VGXPO was born from PhillyClassic and the concepts behind Game Jam. Again we have no affiliation with PC. Yes, VGXPO has classic gaming, but it celebrates all games - new and retro.

VGXPO is not going to ever be an E3, it also isn't going to replace PhillyClassic or emulate CGE - it is its own thing. Our vision for VGXPO is to grow it into a large consumer games festival - something for everone. I hope everyone reading this will come to VGXPO this year, or someday in the future.

Last, if it is possible, let's bring this forum's focus back to VGXPO 2006. If some folks want to post about VGXPO 2005 please post in one of the 2005 threads or make a new one.

Thanks,

Ed

www.VGXPO.com

[Mangar]

Just to chime in.

I attended the past Phillyclassic shows, and while they had a decidedly less "professional" feel then the VGExpo, they were much more enjoyable. I loved the Phillyclassic shows so much, i made it a real point to attend last years VGExpo, and well it was just horribly lacking for all of the reasons people have mentioned here.

Being confined to that little corner of the room was also plain pathetic. It was like this little videogame oasis, surrounded by a vast desert filled with used car salesman, home improvement guys, and people looking to sell me aluminum siding. Not sure how the future of shows, can be expected to play 5th wheel to the real reason why most of those people were there.

I may still show up this year, but unlike last year it's hardly a priority. More like "Meh.. if i get bored. I can at least go and laugh at the geek in the Link costume."

[Ed-Fleming]

This year VGXPO will feature 2 huge arcades. Here is a sneak peak of the games we will be featuring:


I, Robot
Arabian
Pole Position
Klax
Tetris
Dragon Spirit
Centipede
Crystal Castles
Marble Madness
Road Runner
Road Blasters
Indiana Jones & the Temple of Doom
Missile Command
A.P.B.
Assault
Escape From the Planet of the Robot Monsters
Shuuz
Vindicators
Blasteroids
Gauntlet
Gauntlet 2
Xevious
Dig-Dug
Food Fight
Moon Patrol
Defender
Blaster
Stargate
Robotron
Joust
Tron
Gorf
Rally-X
Ms. Pac-Man
Pac-Man
Galaxian
Galaga
Tapper
Timber
Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong Jr.
Frogger
Zaxxon
Pengo
Q*Bert
Super Off-Road
Track & Field
Computer Space
Pong
Gunfight
Jaws
Fire Truck
Sky Diver
Breakout
Space Attack
Space Invaders
Night Driver
Destroyer
Dragon's Lair
Lunar Lander
Asteroids
Asteroids Deluxe
Red Baron
Battlezone
Tempest
Space Duel
Gravitar
Quantum
Black Widow
Star Wars
Major Havoc
Tac/Scan
Eliminator
Star Trek
Warrior
Space War

[mindlesspunk77]

cant wait next weekend woooo!

[JC]

I've got admissions for Sat. Oct. 28 -- the day the vendors open. I can't go. If you want me to transfer my admissions to your name, let me know. I've got to send the name change to the VGXPO people ASAP. It's free for you. Please only ask me to do this if you can and will go.

jerahcordova@yahoo.com

[Ed-Fleming]

Atari, Inc. is bringing an Atari-sponsored classic gaming booth to the VGXPO. At the booth you'll be able to meet and talk with Atari executives, including Chairman and Chief Creative Officer Bruno Bonnell, play and buy the latest Atari homebrew games, examine, play and learn about various prototype games, and learn more about Atari's rich past.

In addition, you'll be able to sign up to win one of 100 Atari Flashback 2 game consoles being given away!

[Ed-Fleming]

Consumers as Creators: Ready, Set, Create!

Millions of gamers around the world enjoy video games, but only a select few get to participate in the creation of them. In films and music, YouTube and MySpace are showcasing extra-ordinary creations that come from the community. The creativity of consumers turned creators is amazing and powers these vibrant communities. The key enabler for creators is the widespread availability of easy-to-use, low cost tools – something that has been missing from the gaming industry in general and specially from the closed world of console development. This holiday Microsoft seeks to end this exclusivity with the release of XNA Game Studio Express. For the first time ever Microsoft will demonstrate their next-generation community development system working on Xbox 360. Come learn the strategy and vision that is driving this sea-change in thinking around who gets to build games and how they do it.

[RCM]

I can't wait! I'll be there on Saturday. I promise I won't be tossing back alcohol or throwing large objects at anyone...unless there's demand.

Should be fun.

[mindlesspunk77]

yeah like i warned before ecgx NOONE GIVE ROB ALCOHOL!!!!!!!! you didnt listen last time and look what happened. so this time for god sakes people dont give him boooooozzzzzeeeee!!!!!!!

[Sniderman]

Been a bit quiet here as of late, especially considering the expo's been in full swing for 2 days now. Any reports? Pics? How about the keynotes? Robot Wars? Attendance? Cosplay contest? Vendors?

I'd sure like every little detail about this year's event posted and discussed by those who attended.

[intvsama]

Been a bit quiet here as of late, especially considering the expo's been in full swing for 2 days now. Any reports? Pics? How about the keynotes? Robot Wars? Attendance? Cosplay contest? Vendors?

I'd sure like every little detail about this year's event posted and discussed by those who attended.

I'm assuming from the lack of discussion it was either SUPER MEGA AWESOME and people are still at the show and will post about it when they get home.

Or, that it was another unfortunate victim of poor video game show attendance this year. 8*(

[DreamTR]

Very few vendors, I can honestly say around 7 are selling games only. There are around 15-20 booths, but a lot of dead space. Lots of open air to play video games and there are quite a few keynote speeches going on.

Attendance? I don't know exact numbers, but I can say that unless the VGXPO is counting the anime convention and the "Body, Mind, and Spirit" expo, there is no way that more than 1,000 people paid to come to this event. It was very well run, but attendance is pretty low, especially after it's noted that "17,000-20,000" were estimated to be here....

Some good vendors, decent deals, but a few lessons to the sellers that are NOT doing so well (like the flea market guy in the corner).

Try to not sell your games ABOVE retail price for one thing. Also, don't try and sell sealed Aladdin Deck Enhancers for $250 when there are two other sellers letting them go for $20, or attempting to hawk a released Batman Forever prototype for SNES at $450. I saw a guy buy Earthbound from him CIB for $150 (slightly higher than eBay) and his son immediately proclaimed "I can't believe you sold that!"

A few other sellers have decent prices, another is too close to eBay, and you just aren't going to get those prices at these type of shows.

Lots of classic arcade games to be played and underage anime kids running around the center, not necessarily the expo, though.

[intvsama]

Some good vendors, decent deals, but a few lessons to the sellers that are NOT doing so well (like the flea market guy in the corner).

Try to not sell your games ABOVE retail price for one thing. Also, don't try and sell sealed Aladdin Deck Enhancers for $250 when there are two other sellers letting them go for $20, or attempting to hawk a released Batman Forever prototype for SNES at $450. I saw a guy buy Earthbound from him CIB for $150 (slightly higher than eBay) and his son immediately proclaimed "I can't believe you sold that!"

That would have happened to be Games, Tapes Unlimited, would it? They're a flea market dealer up in this area and are known for their batshit insane pricing on games, and I happened to see that they were signed up as vendors for VGX. An old guy and his son? Perhaps rednecks?

[DreamTR]

Chuck: That's them! They even had a crapload of slot machines.

[mindlesspunk77]

chuck yup that is the zerns weirdo! fucking nutjob rednecks god i hate that guy..... ever dealt with his dad? my dad has known him for years that guys worse than his son.

Dream TR... the guy slightly to close to ebay.... was that me? no offense taken if it is just curious i know my prices tend to be on the higher side but ask anyone i dont mind working with people and those are basically asking prices. by the way im paul from games 2 go we were set up next to moby games and the animation people.

and yeah the show was kick ass from a vendors standpoint. from a collectors standpoint there wasnt shit to buy! i mean i had alot of nice stuff and so did mike and j2games always does. but i dont need to go to vgxpo for any of those vendors. so i was highly disapointed.

[DreamTR]

mindlesspunk: Nah, that's the guy from the flea market in the opposite corner I was referring to. Your prices were on the upper side for an expo, but they were lower than eBay, so they were fine in my book. I remember you had some good games sitting there for most of the show (complete Harvest Moon for N64 for $40) which I don't understand why they sat put, that is a decent price for that game, but I guess higher than expogoers were willing to pay....the flea market guy's prices were crazy!

I just wish there were things such as:

An auction
VGXPO game "releases" like CGE
More vendors with stuff to buy


I had fun regardless, but the numbers were not as promised....

[DreamTR]

mindlesspunk: Nah, that's the guy from the flea market in the opposite corner I was referring to. Your prices were on the upper side for an expo, but they were lower than eBay, so they were fine in my book. I remember you had some good games sitting there for most of the show (complete Harvest Moon for N64 for $40) which I don't understand why they sat put, that is a decent price for that game, but I guess higher than expogoers were willing to pay....the flea market guy's prices were crazy!

I just wish there were things such as:

An auction
VGXPO game "releases" like CGE
More vendors with stuff to buy


I had fun regardless, but the numbers were not as promised....

[mindlesspunk77]

ok i was just curious cause i know my prices are on the higherside. yeah i hate that flea market guy fucking redneck! was also disapointed that there was no auction. atari age had one game released that was launching at vgxpo but there was no anouncement. were you there sunday to see the nwc tournament? the guy who won.... yeah he was the nwc world champion of course he was going to win haha got like 300 something thousand points.

[Trade-N-Games]

This was the first show I have not attended as a vendor in a long time. I am always excited to attend the shows to see everyone in person and sell some great stuff but I was worried that I would not make any money like what happened to me last year at both shows. I think the tables were way way to high. I think this will hurt the show and the people who used to come to the shows will not bother to attend this show unless more vendors can attend like the old days.
Jason
Trade-n-games

[16-bit]

A few other sellers have decent prices, another is too close to eBay, and you just aren't going to get those prices at these type of shows.


Vendors pay attention to eBay too.

Why attend an event that costs more than eBay fees to attend, but sell for less than eBay prices?

Of course It makes sense to do this if you can do an incredible volume in sales, but the lower the attendance, the more difficult to near impossible it becomes. Moreover, a good portion of eBay's fees are conditional on selling merchandise, while nearly all of the costs associated with selling at a convention are fixed. This risk is another reason why attendance numbers are so critical in decision process for vendors.

My tip for the savvy buyer: check out the booth and table fees on the event site. There is a relationship between table/booth cost and merchandise prices/# of vendors.

[Kid Ice]

A few other sellers have decent prices, another is too close to eBay, and you just aren't going to get those prices at these type of shows.


Vendors pay attention to eBay too.

Why attend an event that costs more than eBay fees to attend, but sell for less than eBay prices?



Because on eBay you theoretically can have millions of people competing. There is less competition at a gaming show no matter how large.

Look at it from the buyer's POV...why should I pay admission to go into a show and pay eBay prices, when I can just do that on my computer? Yeah, you get to see the merchandise first hand and there's no shipping and other nonsense, but when I go to a show like this I expect bargains (and every show I've ever been to there have been bargains without exception).

[DreamTR]

16-bit, as Kid Ice said, there is no point to attend if I am a buyer and can find those items from the comfort of my computer. I do look at the seller's point, as I have been to these shows as a seller before, and you really only should be selling stuff you have multiples of, and don't WANT to pay all the eBay fees. If your table is $100-150, it is more than worth it for 2 days at the show IF the volume of people are there. This show, I believe was at $500. A bit tougher for the seller to make some bucks.

mindlesspunk77: That was ME that won the NWC tournament, but I think there was some miscommunication about who won what. I got to the semifinals at the NWC in Miami Beach (29th leg of 30 cities in 1990) I choked on the stage and was averaging close to 1.1 million on the 6:15 cartridge back then, and ended up with around 400,000 in the final, so I did not win my 12-17 age bracket. I practiced all weekend on that cart (it was $3 to play it each time) and I figured I had a really good chance of advancing, but it was not to be.

The tournament at VGXPO was only a 5:00 cart, which makes the scores seem a tad lower because usually you have around 2:30 to play Tetris if you can blaze through Rad Racer and SMB. The person I defeated in the final was the WINNER of one of the Pennsylvania ones for the under 11 age group (he said his name was Jim), so in actuality, he was one of the 90 winners of the cart back in the day, not me. I just did not screw up much like I did back in 1990 this time ; )

[mindlesspunk77]

dreamtr... ah i see now i have the facts! that is awesome though. i wish i would of known you were a dp member. it was nice talking to you though before the competition i blew chunks! i was so pissed. and ed telling people if you die or crash just give up fuck that! if you can get to tetris and get 1 tetris your doing good. i heard about your techniques i will remember them for next year and i will practice so its on! =)

[16-bit]

16-bit, as Kid Ice said, there is no point to attend if I am a buyer and can find those items from the comfort of my computer. I do look at the seller's point, as I have been to these shows as a seller before, and you really only should be selling stuff you have multiples of, and don't WANT to pay all the eBay fees. If your table is $100-150, it is more than worth it for 2 days at the show IF the volume of people are there. This show, I believe was at $500. A bit tougher for the seller to make some bucks.


That is exactly the point I tried to make in the last part of my post. If the table fees are low, then selling at a convention can be a good alternative to eBay for a seller, and thus increase the attractiveness of the event for dealers...those are the events you should seek out if finding deals is your main motive for attending. More dealers makes it more competative and results in a better selection for the show which would help address some of the VGXPO complaints I've read on this site and others. The attendance to cost ratio needs have the right balance otherwise selling from the comfort of the computer makes much more sense from my standpoint.

Lastly, dealer rates for the 1 day (Saturday) anime convention that was in the same facility (source: zenkaikon.com): Dealers Tables: $35 until June 15, $40 until October 1

[DreamTR]

mindlesspunk: it's cool, I did not exactly go around advertising that I was or anything ;) I saw a LOT of people I knew and had met before briefly. I even had a chance to say hi to Al Backiel when he showed up on Saturday!

16-bit: $500 or $35....hrmm... =D

[mindlesspunk77]

but see the thing with the 500 - 35 table ratio vgxpo has the philly classic name kinda behind them wich granted they are ruining. but yeah my space may have cost me 500 but i would of picked vgxpo over some tiny anime con. because last year at vgxpo i did very well and this year i almost doubled what i made last year. i think part of that is being one of the only vendors with a wide variety and very good abundance of harder to find and very highly sought after titles. i think that whole thing kinda sounded like me jumping around but you get the point =)

[Sniderman]

Wow, sounds like attendance is highly disappointing.


In 2005, VGXPO attracted 17,000 attendees...

So, if there were 1,000 attendees this year, does that mean there was a confirmed 85% drop in attendnace from last year?

[J2games]

we posted a review of the VGXpo 06:

http://www.j2games.com/new/forum.php?address=forum/index.php?topic=115.msg226#msg226

you can also check the ARTS section of today (11/1) NYTimes (Page B6) for the article by the NYTimes Reporter I mentioned in my piece. Seems others besides him were expecting Sony/Nintendo/MS to display systems....

[Sniderman]

you can also check the ARTS section of today (11/1) NYTimes (Page B6) for the article by the NYTimes Reporter I mentioned in my piece. Seems others besides him were expecting Sony/Nintendo/MS to display systems....

Found the article online. Posted here:

A Basement Full of Video Games, With Something Missing
Classic arcade games were featured at America’s VideoGame Expo.

By SETH SCHIESEL
Published: November 1, 2006

KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa., Oct. 30 — Surveying the sparse scene by the old-school Gorf machine, bathing in the greasy odors of cheese steaks and chicken fingers wafting from the cookery in the linoleum-tiled basement of the Valley Forge Convention Center here this weekend, it certainly felt a long, long way from Los Angeles.

For the last decade the video game industry’s annual calendar has been dominated by the elephantine Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles each spring. E3, as the show has come to be known, was not supposed to be open to the public; instead it was theoretically meant for journalists and industry professionals.

In reality, E3 ballooned to almost unmanageable proportions in recent years because it seemed as if any young person who worked in any local video game store around the world could get into the show with five friends. As one top game executive put it this summer: “Look, to run this business effectively, there are really only 150 people that I need to deal with worldwide. The other 80,000 people coming to E3 made it almost impossible to actually get any business done.”

So a few months ago the Entertainment Software Association, which ran E3, killed it. Starting next year, E3 will no longer be the sprawling convention the industry had come to know and loathe, but rather a far smaller, invitation-only conference at the posh hotels by the Santa Monica harbor.

And that’s why many people in the video game business were curious about what would go down in the distinctly un-posh basement here, where a local entrepreneur named Ed Fleming was staging a fan fair called America’s VideoGame Expo. While the annual Tokyo Game Show and Leipzig Games Convention in Germany are open to the public, there is no major national event for video game fans in the United States. So this weekend’s expo was a sort of bellwether for the future of smaller regional events driven by local fans rather than big corporations.

With the industry headed into its all-important holiday push, and with Sony and Nintendo set to release new game consoles in just a few weeks (the PlayStation 3 and Wii, respectively), the hope was that the game expo here would be a rollicking, packed-to-the-gills scene with throngs of fans playing the Wii, the PS3 and this holiday season’s top new games, debating their merits until all hours of the morning.

Put gently, those hopes were not fulfilled, not least because the event drew only about 5,500 attendees over three days. That was roughly a third of the 17,000 who showed up last year, when the show was part of a broader consumer show sponsored by a major Philadelphia television station.

There were no Wiis. There were no PS3s. There were no demonstration booths from any of the major video game publishers. Instead the show was dominated by an array of classic arcade games from the 1970s and ‘80s, like Gorf, Frogger and Zaxxon.

“Frankly, I was disappointed there wasn’t any next-generation presence here,” Jamil Moledina, executive director of the Game Developers Conference, the top event series for nuts-and-bolts game professionals, said on his way out the door, referring to the PS3 and Wii. “That’s really what you need to make a consumer event succeed. I think a lot of people had fun playing the classic machines, but that’s not really enough for a national-level show.”

Sleep-deprived but optimistic on the show floor on Sunday afternoon, Mr. Fleming himself acknowledged the hurdles but held out hope for the future.

“Certainly, I think some people were hoping for more from VGExpo,” he said. “This is our transition year from a regional event to something with a national and maybe even international scope. I think the industry still doesn’t really grasp the potential of consumer events, and it’s been really difficult to educate them about the merits of these kind of events. What we need now is for the likes of Electronic Arts, Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo to become a part of this.”

Mr. Fleming said that in four or five years, he hopes to draw 100,000 people to the show.


5,500 attendees? Wow, are there some records to back this up?

[rolenta]

5500 attendees?

I'd be surprised if a tenth of that number walked past my table.

[J2games]

I think I mentioned MAYBE 3000 attendees... either way, if 5000 attended and there were indeed 17000 last year, what would have changed to drive 12000 people away?

Let's look at what the differences are:

1. NBC Consumer Electronics was part of the show
2. $25 a day to enter the show (or whatever the weekend rate was)

Ed mentions in the NYT article that this is a transition year. I guess what I'm wondering is gamers aren't in transition, so what do you think is?

In the end, I still think the show is a good idea, but I hope the folks at VGXpo will consider taking care of us vendors who took a hit on this show, or we'll probably start dropping out (and as many saw at VGXpo '06, many already did.)

[Trade-N-Games]

In the end, I still think the show is a good idea, but I hope the folks at VGXpo will consider taking care of us vendors who took a hit on this show, or we'll probably start dropping out (and as many saw at VGXpo '06, many already did.)
Take care of us LOL . I want to say so many things about the show but I will just keep my mouth shut! I know Ed has good intentions.

[mindlesspunk77]

yeah a good way to take care of us is make it less corporate and more towards the games! not comcast and the intelligencer. and to maybe make the prices a little better so more vendors would return. and maybe drop the insane atendance fee some so people would show up. there was so much unused space. maybe if they cut down on the size they could cut back costs.

[J2games]

I will just keep my mouth shut! I know Ed has good intentions.

I agree, he does have good intentions and we plan on attending next years event. I just hope they get a formula that works a little better. sometimes to make money, you need to spend it. hence most companies post losses the first 18 months of life while they build up to the profitable years....

[joydivision]

5500? x_x I was there both Saturday and Sunday and estimate the attendance to be at best between 500-1000 people. Had there been 5500 people, they admissions desk would have been overwhelmed, the arcade mobbed, and you would have fought for elbow room in the dealer's area the entire weekend. Oh, and not everyone who came to the show would have left with an Atari Flashback. :P

We were promised the next E3, yet there wasn't one developer or manufacturer for the next generation to be found. The Wii & PS3 are only weeks away, yet outside the geek who crafted a Wii controller costume from a cardboard box, you wouldn't know it!

[DreamTR]

I loved the show, but these attendance numbers are skewed IMO.

Tips & Tricks Magazine had 2,000 magazines, and had to take back way more than half of them. That should tell you something.

[rolenta]

I never agreed with the 17,000 number from last year, but even if that number is true, I'm sure that a majority of them were people who came to see the Consumer Fair and had no idea what a videogame was, let alone buy something

Anyway, I agree that Ed has good intentions, but good intentions are not what make a good show. I agree with Scott whether there will be another show because there were too many promises here that were broken (Where was Intelliivision?). Prices were too high for both vendors and attendees. Slashing both would definitely brought in more since everyone would have less at stake). I had frirends who attended VGXPO last year and Phillyclassic the year before but they didn't come to this one because of the $25 cover price. That's just too much for the casual gamer. And if anyone came on Saturday there was nothing there that would have brought them back for Sunday (a la CGE where there is a different keynote every hour!),

I think someone also said that the arcade machines should be mixed in with the vendors such as is done at CGE and Phillyclassic. Or at least make peple walk through the exhibit area to get to the arcade, instead of vice versa. Finally, the idea of a 48 arcade was completely nuts in my opinion.

Despite my lack of sales it was still great getting together with old friends.

[Mangar]

After last years show, i skipped this one. From what i read, i'm glad i did.

I did love the Phillyclassic, but these VGE things are a waste of time really. Unless of course you live 10-15 minutes away and are going for the arcade.

[Zadoc]

Vendors pay attention to eBay too.

Why attend an event that costs more than eBay fees to attend, but sell for less than eBay prices?




Because why should I put pants on to go buy something in person if I can get it for the same price or less on eBay?