UK Games Expo 2010
Event and Advertising
This weekend (4th-6th June) saw the UK Games Expo making it's way to a very sunny Birmingham and, not only could we not have hoped for better weather but, also i dont think that we could have asked for a better atmosphere.
As soon as you stepped into the lobby you could hear the chatter of hundreds of happy gamers that didn't dwindle as you passed from floor to floor in either numbers or mood. Now there can be no doubt to those that read some of my excited posts over at Trollhalla that i was more than looking forward to this fun day out but, let me be the first to say that the website showcasing what would be available on the day really didn't do it justice!
The website listed only a small proportion of the actual stalls that where apparent on the day and, missed out on some of the real gems whilst highlighting some things that where particularly anticlimactic. To be quite frank, i dont think it was a gamer that put the site toghether at all. Just someone given a list of names and told who to plug. For example, one of the main points they advertised was that they had a talk being presented by Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone, as well as a Fighting Fantasy stall.
Now, i'm sure that as kids (and many of us as adults have picked up a Fighting Fantasy interactive novel and whilled away an hour or two and, i think that it's fair to say that despite the lack of material in recent years that Fighting Fantasy is still a big name and hearing that they would be at the expo themselves was a definate selling point. So suffice to say i was somewhat disapointed with to find the minimal prescence that they actually had at the event. In fact, it could be summarised as two tables, a hand full of leaflets and less than 30 books for sale, a sign and a salesman.
Now 30 books may not sound bad but, when i say 30 books i feel i am being generous and the 30ish number accounts for the entire stock they had on the day with only 7 or 8 different titles to choose from of which only 3 where new additions. The biggest shame was that the older titles where all reprints from the relaunch and none where signed. Still, in the defence of Fighting Fantasy, they did have new material, friendly sales staff and, they only wanted £5 a book. I guess i just expected more from the hype. I guess it's also a matter of prespective. It was great if your just breaking into the books but, if you already own copies of many of the originals like myself, not much for you.
In fact, it is fair to say that the event was really a triumph for the independent gaming companies and every one of them that i spoke to, shone brightly with brilliance and the spirit of a true gamers. Each one of them that i gamed with and spoke to made the day a joy and, you couldn't hope to meet a more pleasant bunch of people. Maybe the big boys could take a note out of their book?
So all in all, my day at the expo was by far the highlight of the month and, it will be hard to top this year! Excellent products, staff, atmospere and, location and i sincerely hope that the expo will roll back into town next year.
For those interested in frank and honest reviews of the products that i playtested and purchased during the day, click on the following hyperlinks, as usual they are in alphabetical order.
Products
Backswords and Bucklers
Jurassic Wars
Labyrinths and Lycanthropes
Numerix
Pro Wrastling
Pulp!
Swansong
Warrior Elite: War for Edath
Wildlife Rescue
I tried to cover a lot during the day so it will take me a couple of days at the very least to write them all up. If an item is listed but not hyperlinked, it means a review will follow but, i just haven't gotten round to it yet. So watch this space if you want to hear about some of the hottest new games that'll be hitting a gaming store near you.