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| UPDATE: I spoke on a panel at PAX East by Ice Cream Jonsey 03/27/2010, 12:17am PDT | ||||
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| I thought it went really well. My heart was racing at the very beginning because, well, I am not very experienced at this sort of thing. Not having to talk right away helped settle me, and after breaking the ice with a joke I was able to relax and talk about text games. A video of it was shot, and I'll link to it when I see it posted.
It was exhilarating. Okay, I had my glasses off so I couldn't be overwhelmed by the crowd, and I'm sure for one stretch I made eye contact with nothing but the lamp sitting on the table, but we can build on this. (It's not lost on me that some of you probably talk to more people for your jobs and whatnot; this is totally a sliding scale.) If I have any of this wrong, Worm was there, so he can correct me. At the end of the day we all went to see the premiere of GET LAMP. The director made a 60-minute cut just for PAX. I loved it - I really don't want to spoil anything, but there is one scene early on about Infocom, with many different Imps speaking, one right after another, and it just blew my fucking mind. What a triumph. A few of the Infocom implementers were on a panel after the show. Dave Lebling, Brian Moriarty and Steve Meretzky (Infocom) were there, as well as Don Woods (who co-created "Adventure," one of the very, very first text games - he's pretty much the co-father of the genre). Most questions towards a panel at one of these things are long, rambling, misplaced diatribes or verbal manifestos, but it was rather good for the Get Lamp panel. At the end, right before it was over, someone (and I am unfortunately drawing a blank as to whom) said simply that hey, we want to thank Don Woods for inventing this... all of this. And I don't expect everyone to understand or feel what we were feeling, but the applause given to him at that point - I don't know if he ever made a dime from "Adventure," but it was a genuinely touching moment for people who are into this hobby and/or people with a soul. He deserved that. One last bit, I guess - so, after the panel was up I walked over to where Steve Meretzky was. And growing up, I wasn't 100% aware just who was behind the video games I really loved. The authors weren't necessarily listed on the Infocom box. But Steve made Spellcasting 101: Sorcerers Get All The Girls, the Superhero League of Hoboken, Planetfall, A Mind Forever Voyaging, Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Stationfall, The Space Bar, and more. One brilliant game after another. I eventually, as I got older, figured out that there was a guy writing the exact games I wanted to play, who had a wicked sense of humor, who was clever and witty and just... funny. Genuinely funny. Not video game funny, but honestly funny. He's been the absolute inspiration to the text games I've tried to make. I shook his hand and told him I loved his games - what a nice guy. I left before I embarrassed myself, but this whole thing has been pretty amazing. What a fun trip. Oh yeah, I don't believe any Bostonian can drive fifty feet without riding the fucking horn, it is outstanding how dedicated they all are to THEIR craft. I am among professionals in this town. the dark and gritty...Ice Cream Jonsey! |
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