Posted: Tue Aug 16, 2005 12:17 am
I enjoyed the show a lot, although I was disappointed that Matthew Smith and Jeff Minter didn't turn up, and Retro Gamer pulled out... but that's always a risk with any event, and bear in mind that a lot of problems were caused by the cancelled link-up with the Game Stars Live event.
I enjoyed the two nights of socialising even more. Plenty of alcoholic beverages consumed, plenty of chatting on hundreds of different issues and some brilliant jokes/puns/hilarious statements.
However, I take issue with the "jumble sale" analogy and the harsh comment on high prices. Yes, the prices on some stands were high - for stuff that is in MINT condition and has been checked thoroughly. (I'm thinking here of Console Passion and Retro Passion, as well as Keith Ainsworth's stand). But there were some real bargains - Dreamcast games for a quid, stacks of tapes on the UKretro stand, unboxed SNES carts for LESS than a quid.
The seminars were probably not as good as last year, due to a lack of microphones.
Just bear in mind how much EFFORT went into getting all that stuff there, and consider how much more it could have cost in a bigger venue in London. £10 for a ticket is cheap.
I enjoyed the two nights of socialising even more. Plenty of alcoholic beverages consumed, plenty of chatting on hundreds of different issues and some brilliant jokes/puns/hilarious statements.
However, I take issue with the "jumble sale" analogy and the harsh comment on high prices. Yes, the prices on some stands were high - for stuff that is in MINT condition and has been checked thoroughly. (I'm thinking here of Console Passion and Retro Passion, as well as Keith Ainsworth's stand). But there were some real bargains - Dreamcast games for a quid, stacks of tapes on the UKretro stand, unboxed SNES carts for LESS than a quid.
The seminars were probably not as good as last year, due to a lack of microphones.
Just bear in mind how much EFFORT went into getting all that stuff there, and consider how much more it could have cost in a bigger venue in London. £10 for a ticket is cheap.