The Student News Site of Fitchburg State University

The Point

The Student News Site of Fitchburg State University

The Point

The Student News Site of Fitchburg State University

The Point

    GameCon 2016: oH iT'S oN!

    Screen Shot 2016-04-15 at 9.31.18 AM.png
    Written By: Andy Nalewski and Michael “Boots” Osborn
    Boots
    This was my fifth year at Gamecon and I was glad to see that it was more booming than the previous four years I had gone. When I walked in, there were plenty of people playing all sorts of games like “League of Legends”, “Mario Kart”, “Super Smash Brothers”, “Halo”, “Magic The Gathering”, and I there was also VR going on in the back.
    There was an almost endless supply of sodas to quench the thirst of all the participants. A couple hours into the event, the pizza showed up, enough to fill up side to side of the basketball court, but it wasn’t enough with an announcement later in the night saying to refrain from eating more than one slice.
    The league of legends tournament was significantly smaller this year with only four teams playing The winning team from Bridgewater State University came to reclaim their title in a whomping first round victory and a slightly more competitive finals match Richard Maguire, their support said “It’s too bad the finals was only a best of one, especially since there was only four teams competing.” Evan O’Brien the top laner, Matthew Maguire the jungler, Richard Maguire the support, Brian Dignazio the ADC, and Brent Ellis in the mid lane.
    “Super Smash Brothers Wii U” was once again the main event of the evening. One of the bleachers was pulled out and almost completely filled with multiple people standing on the side to watch the brawl. With the competition just shy of competitors from last year with 93 rather than the 95 from last year. After several hours and at least seven rounds, Michael Difranza won the tournament again
     
    Andy Nalewski
    To be honest, I went into the event with an air of disdain around me. I had only been to one convention before this one, and my memories of it were soured after my discovery of “Con Plague”. I’m happy, however, to report that my experience was delightful.
    It started with a casual game of Halo with none other than The Point’s production editor, Nate Thomas (I schooled him 25-6, naturally).
    Afterwards, I tried out Oculus VR for the first time; I’ve always dismissed virtual reality as a cheap imitation of real gaming, but I was very impressed.
    Other than that, however, I didn’t play too many games and the rest was all atmosphere
    The convention was small but it had the energy of Anime Boston and it was a really fun experience
    Students participated in many different aspects of the con; from cosplaying, to video games, to board games. One thing that was particularly awesome was the line of gaming PC’s populated by PC Gamers and enthusiasts on the far side of the room. I found myself geeking out over them. One particular rig was owned by Alan Perry. The specs were ridiculous, and I won’t bore you with the tech, but I geeked out hardcore.
    Another man by the name of Matt McGuire showed me his rig and told me it cost around $2,000 in total. I really, really, really, wish I had the cash to do something like this, but being at the con and looking at it is the best thing I can do.
    That’s what this convention was all about: entertainment at its finest. Though we will caution you: the absolute worst thing about conventions is something called “Con Plague”. This awful phenomena is a sickness that one contracts from being surrounded by people in an enclosed environment, some of whom almost never leave their house. The both of us have come down with this awful thing.
    Other than that conventions are the greatest thing ever and you should go to one as soon as you get the chance specifically game con.

    Leave a Comment
    More to Discover

    Comments (0)

    All The Point Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *