Official attendance numbers have come in from last weekend’s Penny Arcade Expo and attendees should be proud that they set the all-time PAX record with over 68,000 stepping through the doors. That’s the largest gathering of geeks and nerds since the Great Dweeb Roundup of 1987. Some of you may be too young to remember that but it was a magical time, with protractors and Ti-87 calculators for all. The attendance number we’re most interested in is of those 68,000, how many were dressed up as Slave Leia? We’re guessing at least 67,600.
“We always joked about taking over Seattle, but it’s seriously happening,” said Penny Arcade co-creator Jerry Holkins. “We [now] take up five blocks.†The duo aren’t done though, as the massive success of both PAX and PAX East now have them thinking of adding an international show to the schedule. Holkins and partner Mike Krahulik haven’t shared any more details yet beyond saying that they’d like to host a show in a city they’d “like to visit,” so if you happen to be their travel agent and have some inside information please contact us immediately.
If there ever truly is a PAX International then where should it be held, and when? Europe has Gamescom in Germany every summer and Japan is geraing up for the big Tokyo Game Show next week so they’re covered, then what’s left? Do Europe or Asia have room for a second major show or is one enough? Then again, could the duo be truly thinking outside the box and planning an event for South America or Africa? The gaming communities on those continients are much smaller than elsewhere in the world, but they do exist. Who knows, a Penny Arcade Expo in South Africa or Brazil could actually be a rousing success, though we apologize in advance for Mike and Jerry inevitably strutting the beaches of Rio de Janero in Speedos.
More than anything, Krahulik and Holkins are proud of the accomplishments of PAX because it’s helping spread excitement about gaming year-round, and the duo hopes that events like this will encourage the industry to move away from such a holiday-centric release schedule. They cited the announcement of Duke Nukem Forever as an example of this hopeful new phenomenon, maintaning they knew nothing of the game’s impending reveal at the show and were just as surprised as everyone else when Gearbox shared their news with the world. With E3, Comic Con and now potentially PAX spreading the love of gaming in America, not to mention other expos around the world, it seems that games are poised to truly break out and become the mainstream media of the 21st century. I think that’s a future we can all get behind.
