Random Review: MAGfest

First off I would like to say that no, this isn't a movie review. From the amount of comments I have been getting this past month I am going to take a break from them for a while. Instead this one is about a gaming convention that you all should go to. It is MAGfest and this year it is being held in Alexandria, Virgina from January 1st-4th. There official website is http://magfest.org.

What makes this event stand out is one simple thing, music. MAGfest is the Music and Gaming festival after all so there will be plenty of music for your ears to consume. Now how much music? Well if you look at this year's lineup there are going to be 8 concerts (9 if you include the New Year's eve bash), a chiptune battle (which lasted well over 6 hours last year), and Jamspace is coming back. Jamspace is a chill out room where a stage and a full piece band set is available at all times to come in, play a few songs, and pass it on to the next person. This room is making a comeback due to its popularity of impromptu chip tuning jam sessions, rock concerts, and other musicians showing off their talents in this open room. If you have a specific genre of music that you like to listen to, you will most likely find some variation of it here for you to enjoy.

Now what about the games portion of this festival? Well they have the modern items here for you to enjoy, but what makes this event stand out is the classic nature of things. In the gaming room you will likely see a PS2 next to a NES and both will have a line to them. Also some interesting titles are to be had at the event. Last year titles such as DJ Beatmania, Dragon's Lair (Laserdisc edition), Quix, Bride of Pinbot, Para Para Revolution, and root beer (old mechanical arcade game) were the highlights. As you can imagine tournaments are held and prizes are awarded to the winners, however the magic of an event like this is that side tournaments are held all the time. All you need is a bunch of people, a staff member with a piece of paper and a pencil and you are set to create your own competition with anyone who is around you.

Now some other aspects to this events are the uniqueness of the panels and festivities going on. Panels can range from an author showing off his latest novel, to independent game companies telling you how to make it into the business. Panels are usually held all day (from 8 AM to 2 AM) and have a variety of subjects to peak your interest. Also at the event there is a movie room you can come in and watch movies of a geekery nature, from old cartoon shows, to classic geek movies (ie matrix and joysticks). However the highlight in here is the premieres of work from independent film production companies debuting their work and allowing you to talk to the people who stared in them. This in itself is incredibly unique and if you are a fan of independent films, it is always a highlight.

The biggest drawl out to the event is none of those thing (to me) it is the comradery you will have with the various attendees. You will come across people of all different tastes and genres, and the way the event is set up it makes everyone open to talk to everyone else. In larger cons usually you will be hard pressed to find people that are willing to come up to you and chat while both are enjoying the festivities. In this event however you will easily find people to invite you over to come and check out what they are doing. I had this happen to me when I attended the last year by walking past the tabletop gaming room, and people asking me where I was going. I said nowhere and the next thing I know I was watching a 2v2v2v2 Magic the gathering battle. DSes are always out and wifi games are played over and over and a variety of vendors will also help you get some unique gaming on whether it is imported rarities, or pirated multicarts, items to be had and to get here are vast and will drain anyone's wallet. I picked up my poison mushroom hat and it became my favorite headwear for parties.

All in all, if you are in the east coast it is highly recommended that you come out and support this event. This is one of the few gaming events that is literally for fans, by fans. People from across the country come down to enjoy a positive atmosphere and meet new people to try out new things. I got into chiptunes when I came to the event, and many other people realized the power of Harvest Moon after I talked about it. You are not going to find this atmosphere anywhere else is a larger con, this event is perfect to explore your horizons with the sights and sounds of music and gaming. I highly suggest everyone to check out http://magfest.org and come to witness the event for yourself.

That is all for now and until next time, make sure you buy your earplugs before the Arm Cannon show, you will thank me later.

This article was done by Coldguy

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