Gaming expo Saturday at WCC
By Andrew Bell
Published in News on January 24, 2007 1:47 PM
Video game players will converge at Wayne Community College this Saturday to participate in the second annual Goldsboro Gaming Expo.
Last year, more than 700 people attended the day-long event, which features some of the latest innovations in video gaming.
This year, with even more video game systems being introduced, such as XBox 360, Playstation 3 and Nintendo Wii, members of the Phi Beta Lambda business club who created the event said gamers will be able to do everything from play old Atari games to trying their hand in a tournament for XBox 360's Gears of War.
The event will start at 10 a.m. and continue until 10 p.m.
A number of tournaments will be held, including a 256-person free-for-all Halo 2 battle in which the winning player will take home a $1,024 first prize. Four versus four tournament team play will also be held for Halo 2.
Other tournaments will include Madden '07, Dance Dance Revolution and Gears of War. The finales for the larger tournaments, like Halo 2, Dance Dance Revolution and Madden, will be played in the campus' auditorium. While gamers aim to take first prize, their game play will be shown on a projection screen for everyone else to see.
Throughout the rest of the campus' main building, unlimited free play on nearly any gaming system will be available through the price of admission.
Advance tickets for the event, which must be bought before midnight Thursday and can be reserved online at www.g2expo.com, are $7.50. Any tickets bought at the door will cost $10. Teams or individuals joining in tournaments will also have to pay a minimal entry fee.
Gamers of any age can attend the event, but attendees must have photo identification or a parent with them to confirm their age. Organizers said parents can also be assured that no games with an Adults Only rating by the Entertainment Software Rating Board will be featured at the event.
But many other games will be, they noted. The managing director for Red Storm Entertainment will show an exclusive screening of the upcoming Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter 2. Sponsors will also play a larger role in this year's expo. One of two large 18-wheeler rigs in the Wayne Community College parking lot will be sponsored by Pepsi. Inside will be a NASCAR simulator. The other rig is the U.S. Army Mission Support Battalion's "Adventure Van," which includes a virtual reality helicopter simulator. Other sponsors for this year's event includes Wal-Mart, BAWLS energy drink and GameStop.
But some of the event's activities will be similar to last year. The expo will have a speaker's forum with corporate executives and creative leaders discussing the future of game development, software and design. There will also be panel discussions with industry leaders including a question-and-answer session.
For more information on the expo, visit www.g2expo.com.