Part 27: Trip report: Louisville Arcade Expo

Hey, everybody! Sorry I haven't been keeping up with the thread; I'm going to sweep through in the next day or two to pick up latest updates (and also post a few of my own). I had a good excuse, though, because this weekend was the...





























Most of these are pictures from the official walkaround video since I'm a shit photographer. Seriously, I hate walking around with a camera and taking constant pictures, it makes me look and feel like a tool.

Anyway! You can't appreciate how big the expo is without attending. I know that sounds lame, but they basically take the entire undivided ballroom of a major Louisville hotel and stuff it full of arcade machines and pinball. Then they take the side rooms from the ballroom and stuff them full of old consoles. And they bring some obscure shit, too—Jaguar, CDi, Spectrum MX, you name it, we got it.

Before someone asks, yes, there was a Commodore 64. The guy who brought it also brought a malfunctioning joystick, which means I didn't get to play Toy Bizarre on an actual C64. I'm pretty sure that's a war crime. Haul that asshole in front of the Hague.












I can't stress enough that they have literally every game you want and a shitload you've never heard of. I didn't even know they had made Pitfall 2 for the arcade until I started going to this thing, and it's addictive as hell. It's probably the closest thing to a Metroidvania game the arcades of the 80s and 90s had until the Monster Land series hit. I mean, they have to put a little map on the machine so people could keep up with it without complaining. Also available were not one, but two original Dragon's Lair machines. At about 3 PM on a Saturday, apparently no one was interested in playing it any more, and I got to learn the rooms for a good 30 minutes. This span of time is incredibly unusual and also unfortunate because I couldn't stop playing and I still don't know why









Also available was this thing, because combining DDR with Guitar Hero and layering on the most Japan allowed by international export standards is a fantastic idea. I'm only half-sarcastic. I took 5-6 years of piano, and I was putting on a show on this thing. I actually suck at both, but in the land of rhythmless neckbeards, the untalented pianist is king

Let's see, was there anything else to note?

















Uh













NO, NO THERE WAS NOT





So, that's my (brief) trip report! I make it a point to go every year and vidya-game myself stupid. It wasn't all upside, though. Besides a bunch of bad cosplayers, people who are old enough to know better seriously didn't observe proper arcade ettiquette. (When there is a line behind you, alternate turns on the machine you fuckers.) Also, the creator of one of the indy shooters I was trying play wandered up and decided this would be a good conversation:


Oh, don't pick that ship.
...why? Is it unfinished?
N...no, the other one's just easier to use
...okay? I'm picking this one anyway.


Dude was out of his mind, the Ring Ship and its spread-stream gimmick ruled. Besides, who goes out of their way to tell people to not play their game a certain way and that it's too hard for them if they try? Fuck off, junior, this isn't my first rodeo t

Oh, and on top of that, there was some smug professional Street Fighter II prick who decided to show up at a place where everyone is more or less here to have a good time and savagely beat the tar out of me everyone. It was absolutely terrible, and I didn't even acknowledge his smug little "hey good try maybe next time" so I could get back to playing Dragon's Lair faster. Because oh my gods why can't I stop playing Dragon's Lair.

So, all in all, it was good. I'm a little worried about the conference, though, as it will eventually lose steam, and it seems like this year was—


























NEVER MIND BEST CON TOTAL SUCCESS HOLD IT EVERY DAY