Fun adventures in gaming, after the break!
The Southern California Gaming Expo
at the
Pasadena Convention Center
(06/09/24)
Soundtrack for the Day:
Linkin Park - 'Papercuts' (2024)
"Surrounded by Nostalgia"
That's what the feeling I got as I slowly walked through the Pasadena Convention Center, hunched over booths of fancy plastic & jewel cases the entire afternoon. Pieces from my youth staring back at me. Hoping I'd adopt them once more. Recapturing an age long forgotten. No matter how brief it would be. That's probably a similar feeling all of us longtime gamers got over the two-day SoCal Gaming Expo taking place in historic Downtown Pasadena.
For we are now a generation of geeks. And this was our paradise for the day.
We, my brother & I, couldn't have begun this experience any better. The first room we wandered into was "World of Gaming Apparel" & "The Art of Nintendo Power" museum exhibit. This author had collected Nintendo Power magazines from a young age. Kept my subscription until the monthly book was discontinued in 2012. I wouldn't be surprised if many of the magazines I saw on the expo show floor belonged to me at one time. So it felt awesome that many devoted fans were keeping the memories, stories, and history alive for everyone to partake.
We had a chance to chat for a few minutes with the Nintendo Power exhibit Curator, Stephan Reese, about various pieces. He randomly walked over to us as we... mostly me honestly... geeked out at the real-life models and pictures. Loved Stephan's passion as he answered our small questions. Really hope he can turn this important history-keeper mission into a full-time gig because these iconic covers, articles, and merchandise mean so much to our generation. Got a lot of us gamers into Journalism & Technology after all.
Me included. Because I didn't read books as a kid. I read Nintendo Power, GamePro, and EGM! Little known secrets.
Afterwards, we began our trek towards the show floor passing through the Classic Tetris World Championships showcase that had been going on all weekend. They were nearing the finals and the battles felt intense in the darkly lit & packed room. But I saw the shopping lights calling to me. So we didn't stay long and began the collectible hunting.
And honestly, unlike most geek conventions I have been to... whether it be ComicCon, WonderCon, Stan Lee's Comic Con, Anime Expo, D23, Star Wars Celebration, and all the rest... the SoCal Gaming Expo appealed to me more than any of those combined. Almost every booth had video games, toys, trading cards, memorabilia, pins, and artwork that spoke to the devil on my shoulder. Normally it is easy to find one or two booths like that. Not here in Pasadena though. It was every single one of them.
I'm glad they didn't have a convention floor like Anaheim because 6 hours wouldn't have been enough time. We spent almost our entire walk duration hunched over each booth. What also helped was that most of the prices were in the upper collector's range. So I was easily turned off by some of the items quickly. I come to conventions for deals, hard-to-find items, and random pictures. Meaning we should've visited this Gaming Expo on Saturday over Sunday. All those rare items had been scooped up by those many hawks. Despite the fact by 2pm, the deals started to fly: Ten percent off... twenty percent off! That was a nice bonus. Enough to sway me to buy stuff by the end of the day for sure.
Walking out of any geek convention under budget & with some solid pickups is every hunter's dream! And I achieved mine on this day. This author is glad he didn't have the unlimited credit card of my youth because those vendors' collections would become my collection. Sitting here, gathering dust, in this suburban office.
I'm quite excited to stop by again next year. Play some more arcade games, watch more competitions, and touch plastic in a room full of my fellow fandom. Will have to prep my pocketbook accordingly moving through 2024 into 2025.
Thanks for reading my latest, non-music, adventure! We did listen to Linkin Park's 'Papercuts' compilation on the freeway ride between Pasadena & North Hollywood. That's why I named it our Soundtrack for the Day up above. It is an album with classic BANGERS. In case you haven't heard it yet. Had to play our oldies for this nostalgic event, right? Seemed proper.
Check out my camera phone pictures below to see select moments from the SoCal Gaming Expo show floor & "The Art of Nintendo Power" Exhibit.
More Summertime Southern California journeys soon!
Photo Slideshow
