Biggest screenburn ever, with a big “indie zone”. Upsilon Circuit. A reality TV gameshow arranged around an action RPG. The “stars” play 8 at a time, and when they die they’re permanently eliminated. The real game is what the audience do to intervene in the game. It’s a bit like crowdsourced D&D. I could see something like this becoming a TV show. It has its own Max Headroom style presenter who resembles Doonesbury’s Ron Headrest.
As usual, I went to the free SXSW Interactive Gaming Expo this year, and here’s my report. I should warn up front that (a) I don’t really play FPS games except for Team Fortress 2, and (b) I don’t do Microsoft, so if you’re a hardcore Windows gamer, this is probably not the report you are looking for. Nintendo had teamed up with the Video Game Museum for a small exhibit on the history of (mostly Nintendo) video games.
This week at SXSWi a Homeless Hotspots campaign has been causing debate. It seems there are plenty who approve of the scheme, so I thought I’d come up with a few more ideas for next year. Homeless Coffee Tables. It’s hard to juggle a Starbucks latte and an iPad. Let one of our homeless hold the coffee for you while you Tweet what you just overheard. Homeless Umbrellas. The weather’s been pretty bad, so why not make use of our special mobile umbrellas?
I started my afternoon by shuffling to the bus stop at the end of our street, to get the bus downtown. It wasn’t long before a SXSW attendee turned up, badge in hand. The bus was on time, and quickly filled up with mothers and children who were traveling to the capitol building to protest the planned cuts in education. I chatted and expressed my support, but it wasn’t my destination.
List of people to maybe try and sneak in to see at SXSW 2009 (because $600 is way too fucking expensive and the ticket prices have turned it into an industry trade show): Explosions in the Sky (who I didn’t know are from Austin) NASA Ulrich Schnauss And in the “Yeah, like there will be any space to sneak into that” category: Margaret Cho DEVO
We went out in search of some music on Saturday night. 8bitpeoples were having a label party at Molotov’s on 6th. When we got there, it became readily apparent that the best sound was available by standing on the sidewalk outside the venue, and looking through their open windows. We had a pretty good view of the stage too. Later we went in search of Chris de Luca vs Phon.o, the former being half of Funkstörung.
Well, at the weekend I had my first SXSW experience, and it was a good one. Last year I managed to miss John Watts, but this year I was prepared. We went to The Hideout downtown about an hour early, and waited in line. The rule was SXSW badges first, then wristband holders, then if there was still space in the venue proletarians could pay $8 each to get in.
Only now do I discover that John Watts was at SXSW this March.