E For All 2008 in Review

E3, once the de facto video game trade show, was a pseudo acronym for Electronic Entertainment Expo. E For All’s “e”, as far as I can tell, stands for “Eh..”. Where E3 had industry insiders and press, E For All has public accessibility. Where E3 had excitement and freshness, E For All enjoys mediocrity and the day old. Here’s the ups and downs.

Energy Drinks (and Food)

Lately this crap is just squeezing out of every hole. Sports nuts are out and gamers are apparently in, so the latest in not-Jolt Colas are being marketed to the extended session PC and console gamers. The first I tried was NOS. Elsewise known for their racing fuel, NOS has produced a carbonated purple cough syrup to keep players a-playin’. If you can imagine what Dr. Pepper would taste like with double the sugar, you get NOS.

Next up was Mana Energy Potion, an ounce and a half of citrus flavored caffeinie that tasted like a warm Otter Pop. This stuff freaked me out a little. Not only was an ounce and a half a whopping 3 bucks, but they actually warn against something called a niacin flush. Anyone that might have a niacin deficiency in their body COULD develop a sunburn like rash, on your face, for 15-20 minutes after drinking the potion. I dunno about you, but continually scratching my face tends to cut into my game time.

Lastly, there’s Gamer Grub, “the first performance snack formulated especially for gamers”. 4 flavors of snack food in “ergonmic” packaging. Each 8 oz. tube carries a combination of nuts, raisins, dried cranberries, chocolate bits, pita or pretzel bits and peas. I’m all for innovation and new marketing techniques… BUT THIS IS TRAIL MIX! I can pick up a full pound bag of this stuff from the grocery store at around $2.50. I was told a price hadn’t been nailed down yet, but I can’t imagine a pack going for less than 4.

Games

I hate to dwell on the negative… I lie, I love it. The magic that used to be E3 was in the new: new games, new peripherals and new possibilities. The first thing to greet my eyes on the E For All show floor was a vacant kiosk peddling Boom Blox on the Wii. I should point out that I’ve personally owned this title since May. That basically set the tone for the show. Not even taking up a full hall at the convention center, the only really new stuff was Guitar Hero: World Tour thanks to an energy filled tournament presented by Target (conveniently next door to a Target retail booth).

Truly originally however were the independents at the show. Convincing hard core gamers to try something actually original is a difficult thing, and these are beyond original. These are genuine doozies. One title pits two players against each other, one is the hunter and the other is the hunted. The kicker is a special peripheral with small, um, tentacles worn like a hat. Each tentacle vibrates at the tip. All this might mean nothing, except that the hunter has no video screen. It’s black. The hunter must use the vibrations to sense where his hunted is and use the gamepad to navigate to attack.

Another that is deservant of its own article is Super Energy Apocalypse. SEA is a Flash game, free on the net, that has the player managing energy stores using currently available technology to balance the outpost’s resources… during the day. Nighttime brings new challenges in the form of zombies. Yup, choose corn oil, wind power, coal or even nuclear energies to keep your society functioning, but make sure you store up enough without producing the garbage and polution that the Zombies live off of.

Other Stuff

World Championship Gaming was there holding expo-long competitions and included teams from around the world. I mentioned this in a blog post last week, but professional gaming, no matter how competetive and exciting the games can be, offer nothing to spectators. Video games just aren’t a sport. I love my games, I take them as seriously as I take any of my entertainment options, but to hear an italian competitor (ranked number one in Counter Strike apparently), dressed in a jumpsuit complete with product sponsorship ads, talk as if he were some sort of toned olympic athelete while buying 17 Red Bulls is just a little on the ridiculous side. Don’t even get me started on Jonathan “Fatal1ty” Wendell. Props to the guy for turning gaming into a career, but slapping his face on a mouse or a video card doesn’t make it a better product.

The Final Verdict

I’m still not convinced this show has a place amongst the other shows like PAX, TGS or even Comic-Con. The exhibitor list is still so small and there wasn’t anything new to speak of. If I had paid the $30 ticket price to get in, I’d probably be pissed that I forked over the equivalent of 3 movie tickets to walk around a hall full of ads for old games. Still, it’s the few times the public has had the doors open to them, but to call it a trade show would be innacurate.