S1500 Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 Good God my head hurts.... I think all the fun I had on Friday night caught up with me finally on Sunday. Still think it's funny you got me into an after party that other friends got kicked out of later. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Climber Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 I think all the fun I had on Friday night caught up with me finally on Sunday. Still think it's funny you got me into an after party that other friends got kicked out of later. lol, yeah that was fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Climber Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 Some of my eprsonal highlights were an actual playable "fix it felix" one of 3 made for movie promotions and the famous Wizard of Oz pinball machine!! Was also cool to see Ben Hecks new pinball project, was still a very early prototype but was playable and fun for what it was 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+McCallister Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 Some of my eprsonal highlights were an actual playable "fix it felix" one of 3 made for movie promotions and the famous Wizard of Oz pinball machine!! You are the second person today to mention the Wizard of Oz machine. The other person mentioned there being a huge line for it; is there some backstory on this particular pinball? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Climber Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 You are the second person today to mention the Wizard of Oz machine. The other person mentioned there being a huge line for it; is there some backstory on this particular pinball? Oh yes... I'll give you a quick rundown. Basically STERN was the last pinball company around for many years. While they had good pins and all, they were not much different than the stuff we had out 15+ years ago. Many would argue (and I tend to agree) that mid/late 90's Williams pinball machines were BETTER than the games STERN was pumping out 5 or so years ago. That was part of the reason older Williams games like Indiana Jones, Twilight Zone, etc started pulling some SERIOUS money, more than the cost of a brand new STERN machine. Basically 90's williams machines were becoming the peak interest of your average pinball collector. Well, a few years ago, self made millionaire Jersey Jack decided he was going to make a full production run pinball "The wizard of Oz" He decided to ditch the traditional DMD screen and add a full blown LCD screen on the backglass, which kicked things up a notch in the pinball world as STERN is following suit and making there games better now. Due to the insane line, and impatient friends, lol, I did not get a chance to play it. If it's good or bad though pinball has changed forever!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retro Rogue Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 Umm...yah... apparently this 18 year old whiney girl isn't a big fan of the show: http://www.gamezombie.tv/2013/03/24/my-experience-at-the-midwest-gaming-classic/#comment-129442 Sounds to me she wants a more corporate trade show PAX style experience. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FABombjoy Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 Good God my head hurts.... Brother, you earned it Good seeing you again! We'll try for breakfast again next year... Sunday turned into a bit of a goat rodeo. It was nice to put a few more forum names to faces. I haven't been to MGC in 5 years and I was pleasantly overwhelmed by how much there was to do and see. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Climber Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 Brother, you earned it Good seeing you again! We'll try for breakfast again next year... Sunday turned into a bit of a goat rodeo. It was nice to put a few more forum names to faces. I haven't been to MGC in 5 years and I was pleasantly overwhelmed by how much there was to do and see. Yeah man! We ended up hitting a Taco Johns...six pack and a pound...in aftermath not the best breakfast choice, lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S1500 Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 Umm...yah... apparently this 18 year old whiney girl isn't a big fan of the show: Sounds to me she wants a more corporate trade show PAX style experience. She's in the minority, since there were a lot of teenagers there having a blast. Good to see younger folks there, for in 20 years THEY will be bringing pinball machines & arcade cabs over there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Iacovelli Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 Umm...yah... apparently this 18 year old whiney girl isn't a big fan of the show: http://www.gamezombi...#comment-129442 Sounds to me she wants a more corporate trade show PAX style experience. theres always a few in the crowd saying how they didn't like. dan himself said, they exceed attendence from last year on the first day (he said that in after party in pinball/aracde area) and the Jagfest section was the busiest on both days,unlike the previous years when the was busy on sat then slow on sunday. I have always said you can't please everybody. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassGuitari Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 Umm...yah... apparently this 18 year old whiney girl isn't a big fan of the show: http://www.gamezombi...#comment-129442 Sounds to me she wants a more corporate trade show PAX style experience. Interesting that she enjoyed the Underdog Chamber. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Climber Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 I have always said you can't please everybody. That statement is about right, and the larger it gets, the more "some" people will complain about things. If Dan had the highest attendance ever then it looks like there is not much to worry about, lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassGuitari Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 (edited) If Dan had the highest attendance ever then it looks like there is not much to worry about, lol This...apart from the problem of finding a bigger venue that can support a crowd that -based on past trends- will only get bigger. We are at critical capacity at the Sheraton. Probably beyond critical capacity, actually, judging by the fact that individual suites are now being commandeered for show use. I say it every year, and every year it feels like it's true, but I think this year was the biggest one yet, attendance-wise. Even Sunday was pretty busy (for a Sunday). Edited March 25, 2013 by BassGuitari Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Iacovelli Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 This...apart from the problem of finding a bigger venue that can support a crowd that -based on past trends- will only get bigger. We are at critical capacity at the Sheraton. Probably beyond critical capacity, actually, judging by the fact that individual suites are now being commandeered for show use. I say it every year, and every year it feels like it's true, but I think this year was the biggest one yet, attendance-wise. Even Sunday was pretty busy (for a Sunday). I agree with that statement. to paraphrase the captian from the movie Jaws: "Looks like we need a bigger boat" lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
racerx Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 Some of my eprsonal highlights were an actual playable "fix it felix" one of 3 made for movie promotions This was actually built from scratch (well, starting with a DK cab) including software built from the ground up. It's not one of the Disney ones. To me, the homegrown software makes it even more impressive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the.golden.ax Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 This was actually built from scratch (well, starting with a DK cab) including software built from the ground up. It's not one of the Disney ones. To me, the homegrown software makes it even more impressive. I wonder if there is a mame rom yet? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S1500 Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 I wonder if there is a mame rom yet? There wouldn't be. It's run on a PC. Sure, that would be 'downloadable', but the game wouldn't be made from scratch down to the CPU/board level. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+thanatos Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 Umm...yah... apparently this 18 year old whiney girl isn't a big fan of the show: http://www.gamezombi...#comment-129442 Sounds to me she wants a more corporate trade show PAX style experience. "Upon entering the bar, we noticed an absurdly small number of attendees. There were two major demographics: late-forties men made up 95% of the bar crowd, the other 5% being their (in this case, very drunk) wives" Late 40's? Ouch! I mean, I'm close to 40, but damn. Plus, I thought those girls were cute, which apparently makes my transition to dirty old man officially complete. And while I'm sure my wife was drunk, she wasn't even in the same state. Sounds like they just wanted a bunch of free food and drinks too. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimefighter Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 The Gamezombie review names a number of issues I've pointed out year after year. I am enjoying the convention...but space is a major problem. They claim there's more space here at the Sheraton than Oconomowoc, but if that's so then space has run out there as well to the point people have trouble navigating the halls. And I have to say also, I stopped to overhear the Fire Marshall voicing major concerns about it after they arrived when the fire alarms were going off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassGuitari Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 The Gamezombie review names a number of issues I've pointed out year after year. I am enjoying the convention...but space is a major problem. They claim there's more space here at the Sheraton than Oconomowoc, but if that's so then space has run out there as well to the point people have trouble navigating the halls. And I have to say also, I stopped to overhear the Fire Marshall voicing major concerns about it after they arrived when the fire alarms were going off. There is more space available at the Sheraton than at the Olympia, but as I understand it the real problems with the Olympia were that A) it's in the middle of nowhere and really isn't convenient for anyone to get to, B) they started asking for a LOT more money and/or became quite difficult to work with. I understand there were other logistical issues as well. The other idea was State Fair Park, but there aren't any convenient, affordable hotel/lodging options at the moment, the nearest ones being in downtown Milwaukee about 10-15 minutes away. It's also more expensive than the Sheraton (which, after the bad experience of 2004 and a subsequent change in management, bends over absolutely backwards for MGC) and there were concerns about the "feel" of the show being in a convention center. It has the space and open layout MGC will need in the foreseeable future, though, and I understand there is a new hotel being built next to State Fair Park. That said, State Fair Park is probably where the show will end up going within the next couple of years. In fact, part of the reasoning behind this year's price increase to $30 (no, it wasn't greed) was A) to test whether it would be supported (since it's likely we'd have to charge at least that much at SFP), and B) to begin financing a future move to the more expensive venue. So no, the Sheraton isn't an ideal venue, what with its cramped and scattered layout. Believe me, we're aware! We've been aware for years! But the fact is, the proximity to major interstate highways and other hotels/restaurants, its cost, the total square footage available to us, and the willingness and flexibility with which the management works with us and accommodates us have made the Sheraton simply the best option available to MGC the last few years. But the way the show keeps growing (MGC has never once experienced negative growth to my knowledge), we will be forced to move sooner rather than later...especially after, I'm sure, the business with the fire department. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassGuitari Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 As for the GameZombie review, I'm sorry they feel they way they do. Although, it seems like MGC was never going to be their kind of show anyway unless it becomes a corporate-sponsored monster trade show like PAX or E3. Maybe we just weren't hipster enough, I dunno. I'd never even heard of GameZombie before, and probably wouldn't have if not for this thread. I will say I found it discrediting that a couple of 18-year kids criticized the level of "professionalism" of the staff's t-shirts while wearing t-shirts themselves. I will also say I'm annoyed that they were allowed into the E2M afterparty/Marty's birthday party, which was supposed to be a private "event" for we exhibitors in the E2M Wing, a gathering of closely-knit vintage enthusiasts to hang out and enjoy each others' stuff. How would you like it if some smug snot-nosed "media" crashed YOUR party? Also, the cake was cut with a knife; I know this because I cut it myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+McCallister Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 Oh yes... I'll give you a quick rundown. Basically STERN was the last pinball company around for many years. While they had good pins and all, they were not much different than the stuff we had out 15+ years ago. Many would argue (and I tend to agree) that mid/late 90's Williams pinball machines were BETTER than the games STERN was pumping out 5 or so years ago. That was part of the reason older Williams games like Indiana Jones, Twilight Zone, etc started pulling some SERIOUS money, more than the cost of a brand new STERN machine. Basically 90's williams machines were becoming the peak interest of your average pinball collector. Well, a few years ago, self made millionaire Jersey Jack decided he was going to make a full production run pinball "The wizard of Oz" He decided to ditch the traditional DMD screen and add a full blown LCD screen on the backglass, which kicked things up a notch in the pinball world as STERN is following suit and making there games better now. Due to the insane line, and impatient friends, lol, I did not get a chance to play it. If it's good or bad though pinball has changed forever!! Thanks for the informative info, man. Always like to hear interesting stories like this. Sorry I missed the show this year; sounds like there were some fantastic times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Climber Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 My main gripe was the arcade was just too damn packed, lol Spent roughly 90 minutes bumming around, played maybe 3 or 4 games and it was basically "thats open, grab it!!" instead of trying the stuff I've never played. Not much can be done about that though, guess I'll extend the trip another day next year to get a little play time in, saturday evening was PACKED in the cade. Kind of one of those love/hate things...nothing beats the feel of a packed arcade, but like 10-15% less would have been ideal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 As for the GameZombie review, I'm sorry they feel they way they do. Although, it seems like MGC was never going to be their kind of show anyway unless it becomes a corporate-sponsored monster trade show like PAX or E3. Maybe we just weren't hipster enough, I dunno. I'd never even heard of GameZombie before, and probably wouldn't have if not for this thread. I will say I found it discrediting that a couple of 18-year kids criticized the level of "professionalism" of the staff's t-shirts while wearing t-shirts themselves. I will also say I'm annoyed that they were allowed into the E2M afterparty/Marty's birthday party, which was supposed to be a private "event" for we exhibitors in the E2M Wing, a gathering of closely-knit vintage enthusiasts to hang out and enjoy each others' stuff. How would you like it if some smug snot-nosed "media" crashed YOUR party? Also, the cake was cut with a knife; I know this because I cut it myself. Can someone explain to me who these GameZombie people were? All I saw were a bunch to teenager to early twenty-somethings running round in identical t-shirts proclaiming that they were some new hot gaming website and that surely I must have heard of them (and looking quite annoyed when I said I had no clue who they were). They weren't being obnoxious or anything as far as I could tell, but they seemed to think that they were all important for some reason. I really wanted to point out that there were tons of other podcasters, gaming websites, and media there and that they really weren't special, but I figured that it would just burst their bubble. I guess wearing matching t-shirts goes to ones head or something. Maybe next year they'll go elsewhere and make room for the rest of us who enjoy the 'enthusiast powered/non-corporate' nature of the event. If I wanted a mega corporate sponsored show, I would have gone to PAX. If I had one gripe it's that the hallways are too packed with arcades and people milling about watching them. Sometimes you just can't move and it's annoying. I'd leave the arcades out of the hallways next year, but that's just my opinion. I had a blast at the show this year (minus my Sunday morning hangover). I'm already planning on what I'm bringing to the show next year (VideoBrain and Astrocade were a hit, Arcadia and SV-328 not so much). Shame the show is only once a year, 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S1500 Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 My main gripe was the arcade was just too damn packed, lol Spent roughly 90 minutes bumming around, played maybe 3 or 4 games and it was basically "thats open, grab it!!" instead of trying the stuff I've never played. Not much can be done about that though, guess I'll extend the trip another day next year to get a little play time in, saturday evening was PACKED in the cade. Kind of one of those love/hate things...nothing beats the feel of a packed arcade, but like 10-15% less would have been ideal Perhaps it is just a testament that arcades largely do not exist anymore. Suddenly, we have an arcade of a large size appear in front of us, and we're on it like a pack of wolves. I didn't have too hard of a time finding a game to play. I just had to nicely wait out until someone was finished, or ask to join in. My only gripe was some people hit an additional credit on a game, where we had to drain out(or that other person plays 2 credits) the remaining player. But some pins just don't notify you nicely that another player was added. Arcade etiquette was largely obeyed. I saw some doubling up on games & credit hogging, but most people were nice. I was mainly interested in playing pins I never played before. I could have gotten more play time in Sunday, but I was sick, so that's all on me. Wish the arcade was open a bit later on Saturday, like 10pm, for all enthusiasts to get some time in. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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