T-Minuse 10 Days and Counting (Chaos Ensues)

Rapture Personified

PAXEast is now just 10 days away and I could not be more stoked. For those of you who have been lost from society or locked in a panic room somewhere, you should know a few things. First, Boston has become a slightly (oh ever so slightly) drier version of Rapture (Take THAT 2K Marin) over the past several days. After more than 72 hours of continuous rain, the sun has finally begun to shine once more in Beantown. However, the return of the light did not arrive quickly enough to save us much gnashing of teeth as we do our best to literally keep our heads (and in my case my collection of classic arcade games) above water. Early Saturday morning I noticed that the floor in my basement was beginning to darken with moisture. By Sunday, standing water was collecting on one side (luckily the one without the arcade cabs). As I left for work on Monday, I had a dehumidifier and sump pump running to keep the water at bay and my collection dry. By luck of the draw and with a bit of ersatz praying to the rain gods to move on, my games were spared any actual soaking or water damage. Several of my fellow collectors in the area (and my office) were not so lucky. Upon arriving at work yesterday, I was met with 4" of standing water in one area of our store (not the video game/comic book establishment, but my "real" place of employment) and water rapidly rising in another. After a few hours at work, I returned home to make sure that my basement was still dry (and it was). Some of my local arcade collecting friends were not as lucky, including one who reported that he had 18 vintage pinball machines sitting in over 3' of standing water in his basement. As I stated earlier, the sun finally came out today and things are now beginning to dry out. We have a forecast for at least a week of more sun and warmer (60 degree) weather. So hopefully you won't need a snorkel to get around by the time you arrive here in Boston for PAXEast next week.

Let the Games Begin

With a little over one week until people begin to arrive for PAXEast, planning for this event has ramped up to critical stage and things are getting a bit chaotic. I am working with our partners over at SFX360 to pull together the final pieces for our Gamers Gone Wild Event, scheduled for Saturday March 27th at Lir from 7:00 pm - 1:00 AM. We have so many cool things planned for this event, I don't know where to start. As you probably know by now, Carlos Ferro will be joining as a special Guest VIP. Carlos, who did the voices for Dom Santiago (Gears of War I & II) and Leonardo DaVinci (Assasin's Creed II), will be on hand to play some Gears of War 2 with attendees, sign memorabilia and judge our Rock Band Contest. Both 2old2play and SFX-360 will be holding special contests in the coming week that will give a few lucky folks special VIP access to meet and hang out with Carlos, so stay tune for more details coming soon.

Playing Gears of War 2 not enough for you COGs out there? Well then, how about a chance to win a custom-designed, Dom Santiago-themed Project Total Domination Gears of War Xbox 360 Elite from GamerGrafix.com . Our good friends at GG have been working very hard to pull this incredible machine together in time for our party. Check out some of the work that Omega and Co have done so far.

You do not need to be present at the event to win this beauty and can enter the drawing online. Carlos Ferro will draw the winner via a live online feed at Gamers Gone Wild, so head over to Gamer Grafix for details on how you can enter, before it is too late.

So You Want More?

The Gears of War Goodness above not enough to make you come hang out with 2old2play and SFX-360? OK, fine. We have much more in store for those who do turn up for our little party. Harmonix has graceously provided us with several Rock Band Bundles for our tournament, which will be held on the 3rd floor of Lir on Saturday. This is your chance to get a group of your friends together and show the crowd your moves. Winners will receive tons of cool gaming swag from our sponsors and bragging rights for the rest of the night. Here are the details for the contest:

• Hit the stage in our 3-6-0 Rock Band Tournament: 3 Judges, 6 Rounds, 0 Talent!
• Starts @ 9pm, bands must register before 9pm to qualify.
• First Place wins a $50 GameStop gift card per band member, up to four (4) members!
• Every participant will receive a prize, so sign up and rock Gamers Gone Wild!

Still not enough for you? Well then, dress up as your favorite Gamer Geek Icon and enter our Gamers Gone Wild Costume Contest.

• Starts @ 12am, contestants must register before 12am to qualify.
• Best Mens & Womens costume to be decided, Best Overall wins a Rock Band 2 bundle!
• Every participant will receive a prize, so go all out and steal the spotlight!

And yet you want more you say? How about a chance to win a full-sized, fully functional Street Fighter II Arcade Cab signed by Justin Wong (current Street Fighter IV World Champ)? All you have to do is destroy the competition in head to head, one-on-one brutality during our Street Fighter II Tournament. I am working to fully restore the cab as I type and pictures will be posted this weekend. Justin and his fellow Empire Arcadia Crew will be hosting demos and pointing out tips leading up to the tournament (No, Justin will not be in the actual tournament. We are not THAT mean).

Empire Arcadia Members in attendance will include:

• Justin Wong: World Champion- Street Fighter IV
• TriForce: Guinness World Record for Tetris DS and 30 other World Records
• Sanford "Santhrax" Kelly: 2009 Marvel vs. Capcom 2 World Champion
• Andre "Jago" Lambert: Street Fighter 4 Pro Bison Player
• Ariel "FightingGM" Capellan: Tekken 6 Pro Lee Player
• Micheal "IFC Yipes" Mendoza: 2007 Marvel vs. Capcom 2 World Champion
• Kevin "DieMinion" Landon: Street Fighter 4 Pro Guile Player.

Party with and challenge these gamers while they show you how to win like a pro in: Tekken 6, Tetris Party, Street Fighter 4, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, and Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All Stars. Do you have what it takes to defeat the Empire?

And if all this still were not enough to get you to come and hang out with us on a Saturday Night, check out what else we have lined up for you. Additional swag provided by all of our incredible sponsors, including officially licensed t-shirts, games, and tons more!

All the action will be STREAMING LIVE @ ufragtv.com, so join us March 27th at the Lir Irish Pub, 903 Boylston Street in Boston, Mass. at 8pm for the most unforgettable, unimaginable party for the gaming community during PAX East weekend!

NO cover, NO inhibitions, NO excuse not to be there!