The first-ever GaCuCon Gaming Cruise land expo went down last night and it was legit, comfortable, and indie-tastic. We were treated to play new games in progress, like a shmup where an old man takes vengeance on birds for shitting on his car by firing at them from his helicopter. That's so Raven, Miami.
The gaming cruise pre-party was an intimate get-together nestled into two large private rooms adjacent to the Dave and Buster's billiard hall and game center. The vibe was decidedly adult, and wristbands provided access to the cocktail bar. They also fed us a generous buffet, which I've never seen at a gaming con. Players were also given a gold coin each time they completed a demo station, and each coin was redeemable for raffle tickets at the end of the night. One guy even won a complete Oculus Rift kit with the Touch controllers and a copy of the upcoming title The SoulKeeper VR. Not bad. Andru Fratarcangeli, the show's organizer, proudly announced plans for 2018 as the evening wrapped.
Indies aside, I found Microsoft, Alienware, and Origin PC showcasing their hardware running golden co-op favorites. Having the event at D&B was smart, as wait lines were mitigated by the sprawling arcade next door. It's hard to say which side of the room had more oddities. I encountered a giant Rock 'em Sock 'em Robots (be still my tin foil heart) and a bastardized copy of Flappy Bird. I was worried that the arcade would be a huge distraction from the event, and that wasn't the case at all. It simply provided the right vibe.
I'm pumped for the rest of this event, as GaCuCon is a weird bird. It's gotta be crazy stressful to take on a venture like this on a first year. We're all the way on the Southeastern flaccid penis of America, and if you're not already here it's an intimidating proposition. Nobody's ever done a gaming cruise on this scale (that I'm aware of) and people generally suck at imagining things, so in the coming days I hope to photograph and catalog what a gaming cruise is actually like. Until then, I'm loving 80 degree weather searing ivory vampire forehead.
The cruise portion of the expo kicks off later today at 4pm from the Port of Miami aboard the Carnival Sensation. How do you even pack for this? I hastily threw a handful of ill-fitting shorts and USB cables into a duffel bag and am hoping for the best. In the next couple of days I'll be taking a closer look at the games and bringing you detailed video previews, but for the time being I leave you with a big fat photo gallery. Good times!
[Disclosure: GaCuCon provided travel and board for my interpretive dances and pool yoga instruction.]
via destructoid http://ift.tt/2kp8wIj