Leipzig Gamers Speak
The Leipzig Games Convention this year was the biggest yet. With around 200,000 attendees coming through the turnstyles over the course of the four-day consumer event, the impact that the games industry has made in Europe is clear.
This year’s GC was truly a consumer-oriented event: concession stands, areas where show-goers could relax and spectacle (full-size half-pipe), spectacle (stage acts), spectacle (massive booths)—something that currently the US games industry is lacking with the demise of the old glitzy (and bloated) E3.
But where E3 could be negatively described as an overblown circus, such a festive atmosphere is acceptable for a consumer event. You’re not trying to make biz deals over the drone of a subwoofer (there are separate, large business areas for that, as well as the Developers Conference earlier in the week). You’re there to hang out with friends and other gamers, grab a hot dog and a “bier” and of course, check out new and upcoming games.
The demographic at Leipzig may surprise some here in the US: It wasn’t just a bunch of young males, and not all of them were even gamers, actually. There appeared to be a pretty fair representation of the general population at GC. Young men and women, school age boys and girls, 30- and 40-somethings and a few middle-agers. Plenty of young parents were there with stroller-riding toddlers and infants in tow, too.
Despite the wide variety of people in attendance, there was a common thread amongst many attendees, which is that they know their games. Many have been to GC multiple times.
One teenage boy said that it was his fifth GC. For him, GC 2007 was all about seeing more of Halo 3. “I’ve only missed the first Games Convention,” he boasted.
But access to Halo 3 was limited at GC. “Microsoft doesn’t really show much of it, though. I guess it’s too small of a release,” he said sarcastically. “It’s only the biggest game Microsoft is publishing.”
Another young Leipzig man has come to every GC so far, which gives him some room to compare the event year to year. “It’s a tradition to come here. This year, I don’t think it’s as good as last year’s. I wanted to see Unreal Tournament 3 and Crysis, but I can only see it after waiting in a long line. I’d love to play it, but I don’t want to wait an hour.”
An event such as GC is a good chance to see the entire industry in a microcosm. The European market is packed into one space, making it even more obvious that right now, shooters rule.
When asked which game they’re most looking forward to, many attendees responded “Crysis.” Not only is it shaping up to be an incredible first-person shooter, but it’s also made by Frankfurt, Germany’s own Crytek.
A large number of attendees also said the chance to see Unreal Tournament 3 was one of the main draws of GC.
Not everyone, though, is pleased with all of the FPS action being thrown about. One GC three-timer said, “This is not one of the best [GCs]. This year, only the shooters are the main thing—Crysis, Far Cry 2, Turok. I’d like to see more variety.”
Even though shooters like Crysis, Unreal Tournament 3, Turok, Far Cry 2, Halo 3 and Team Fortress 2 were some of the games that assumed much of the laser lit hype, there were plenty of other games that didn’t involve a crosshair in the middle of the screen.
The line (or human mass) for Blizzard’s Starcraft 2 and World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King was insane. A similar herd stood in front of the area where Heavenly Sword was on display and to a lesser extent the booth that held Lair, Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune (or in Germany, “Drake’s Shicksal”) and Time Crisis 4. Devil May Cry 4 also drew a very long line.
There was also a 30-minute wait for Wii Fit, and lots people were still standing in about eight separate lines to check out different Wii Sports games. One young man, who was at GC mainly for Halo 3, tossed some love at Nintendo.
“The Wii is the greatest console. Casual gaming is now the hardcore. Nintendo has new ideas and the Wii and DS are just fun to play.”
For some, the crowds are okay—others, not so much. One young Bavarian woman (who was dressed as an anime character, incidentally) was there for the first time. “It’s a lot of fun, but crowded,” she lamented while holding her fake wooden sword.
A GC three-timer welcomed the plumpness of the event. “It’s very big, and that’s a good thing.”
Some attendees drove several hours to come to GC. A young married couple from Austria, who said GC receives plenty of media attention and advertising across German TV and other outlets, took a bus 10 hours to come to the event for the first time. “There are many games coming out that I’m here to see—Crysis, Unreal Tournament,” said the husband. His wife said she was mainly there for him, but laughed, “I also play things like The Sims—girly stuff.”
Other show-goers weren’t even gamers, but still opted to pay up some Euros to come and hang out with friends. “I don’t play games a lot,” said one girl. “I’m just here having fun.”
Even such a multifaceted event (they had human bowling) can’t please everyone. “It’s great, but there’s too many people here,” said one honest attendee. When asked if there’s a game he’s seen at GC that he particularly likes, he simply said, “Um, no.”
(Check out
this link for some pics of the crowds on what was probably the lightest day of the event.)
Source
Linear Mode
