T Minus 2 days…

The first convention I ever went to was Quake Con. Which shouldn’t count. I had never played Quake. A week before, I didn’t even know what Quake was.

The conversation went down something like this: (At nerd video game school)

Professor: Remember to sign up for Quake Con. You will need to… *blah blah blah*

Me to student next to me: So… Quake… It’s a game?

Student: Are you kidding me?

Me: No.

Student: It’s like Doom. You’ve played Doom right? (slightly indignant)

Me: I’ve heard of that one!

What can I say? I’m an RPG kind of girl. Anyway, I went to QuakeCon and found it mildly interesting. A year later I would attend PAX for the first time… That was an event. I couldn’t believe it. The surreal experience of being in a place with 15000 other people just as obsessed about games as you. I recommend the experience to anyone who has never been to a convention. It will get you hooked.

Now, I attend 2 conventions every year. PAX and GDC. GDC is a smidge more work related, and gets me in the mood to make better games. When people ask me if I will go to Pax East or to Comic Con or something similar, I always say no. I can only attend so many conventions and those are the ones I pick. If I *could* go to another one, I would go to BlizzCon.

This year, thanks to sheer dumb luck, I get to go to BlizzCon. And I am excited in a way I haven’t been since that first PAX.

25000 people, all as obsessed about Blizzard as I am. True, many of them are there for Starcraft and Diablo, which I am less enamored of…. But many will be just as obsessed with WoW as I am.

The bond of camaraderie and instant connection will be present. The ability to strike up an impassioned discussion with a simple question “Horde or Alliance?” The simple fact that you will see hundreds of other people wearing shirts you wished you owned and shirts you DO own.

Being able to completely geek out over your favorite game knowing that no one will even remotely judge you. Things that would indicate mental illness anywhere else, indicate you are a fan here in this place. A chance to revel in our shared passion.

Now I get to do it at BlizzCon. My current holy mecca of conventions. I can’t wait.

Leave a Reply