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Many of us Generation X gamers around the age of 30 remember dropping
quarter after quarter into a Pac Man arcade machine or playing hours of
Pitfall on our Atari 2600s growing up during the dawning of the video
game era in the early 1980's. Now, classic gaming has seen a resurgence
of popularity. There are a few classic gaming conventions throughout the
country every year, most notably the Classic Gaming Expo in Las Vegas.
One of the newest conventions is the PhillyClassic, which returns the
classic gaming community to the vicinity of the City of (Mario)
Brotherly Love, Philadelphia, on Friday April 26 and Saturday April 27
in the Valley Forge
Convention Center. It's a place to either buy, sell or display mostly
old-school console systems and their games like the Atari 2600,
ColecoVision, and Intellivision, but really includes every type of
gaming system through the present generation of Xbox, GameCube, and PS2.
You also get the opportunity to revisit the days of arcade past playing
tons of arcade machines. And for those anxious to display their gaming
prowess, there is an array of PhillyClassic gaming tournaments. David
Newman and a
small horde of classic game enthusiasts have been organizing the
PhillyClassic show, now headed into its third year.
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David Newman
(PhillyClassic3) Interview
By Lee
Cieniawa
Armchair Empire (AE): Explain the initial genesis of you getting the
idea for and following through with organizing a classic gaming event.
David Newman (DN): I saw the success of the biggest show in our hobby,
Classic Gaming Expo (http://www.cgexpo.com)
held annually in Las Vegas, and also smaller regional shows popping up
in the Northwest and Central states and I decided the East coast needed
a classic gaming event, so I put it together. Following through the
first year involved knocking on a lot of vendors' doors asking for loot
to use for door prizes and tournament prizes, finding a space, ponying
up some cash for facilities rentals, and conning about 50 hardcore
gamemeisters to schlep out to Villanova University outside of Philly for
a little fun.
(AE): How has the show grown from year one to this year in terms of
expected attendance (how many gamers coming to the show and the age
demographics), sellers, sponsors, tournaments, and required
convention/display space?
(DN): Great question. And you packed a lot into that one, little feller!
Well, here are the stats from year one (2000) to what we're expecting
this year for PhillyClassic3:
Space: 1938sq/ft (2000); 3000sq/ft (2001); 15,000sq/ft (2002).
Attendees: 50 (2000); 300 (2001); 700+ (2002).
Vendors: 5 (2000); 12 (2001); 25 (2002).
Tourneys: 6 (2000); 8 (2001); 10+ (2002).
Demographics haven't changed much: large men with beards and poor taste
in hats and suspenders. No, I'm kidding; we get the gaming demographic -
typically, males 30-40 years old reliving their youths (like me!) and
the newer gamers, age 12-19 coming out to see what was, what is, and
what always has been cool - great video games. Whether played on an
Atari 2600 or an Xbox, it's all about the games. By the way, we'll be
giving away some Xbox consoles at the show this year. I'm very excited
about that!
(AE): What has been the most enjoyable surprise of the PhillyClassic
experience for you in the two previous shows?
(DN): Not getting arrested. Beyond that, there are no enjoyable
surprises. There are surprises. And there are enjoyable moments during
the preparation and the actual show, but if my co-organizer Marc and I
have done our work, there are no real surprises to speak of. Our arcade
technical coordinator, Jeff F., got a surprise last year when one of his
arcade games fell off the back of his Ryder truck, but again, this was
not in the enjoyable category.
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(AE): What's your favorite classic system and game of all-time?
(DN): System is easy - Atari 2600. My first videogame love. Purchased
with my own money at the tender age of 16 back in 1980. I logged A LOT
of time on games like Starmaster, Space Invaders, Asteroids, Demon
Attack, and Gorf. Now, favorite GAME is much harder. I'm gonna go for
Elevator Action on the NES. I just love squashing the enemy agents under
an elevator car. Another all-time favorite is Goldeneye for the N64.
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(AE): What classic systems, games, and arcade machines do most show
attendees/buyers/sellers seem to have the biggest interest in?
(DN): That really cuts across the board. Some people come to see the
oldies - ColecoVision, Intellivision, Atari 5200, or the old computers
like the VIC-20, Commodore 64, and Atari computers. Other folks are nuts
over the classic compilations for modern platforms, such as the Midway
and Atari collections for PSX and the ever-popular Namco Museum series.
And some people like the experience of seeing Combat running on a 2600
alongside Spy Hunter and Tekken Tag for PS2 and Halo on the Xbox.
(AE): Are there any video game celebrities that can be expected at
PhillyClassic 3?
(DN): You mean besides Classic Gamer himself, Mr. Marc Pallante? Sure -
you can expect to see anyone and everyone in classic gaming there. We've
always had some terrific support from people like John Hardie of CGE,
Joe Santulli of Digital Press, multi-cart wiz Sean Kelly, games guru
Scott Stilphen, author and gaming historian Leonard Herman who writes
the Phoenix books, John Dondzila of Classic Game Creations, handheld
games king Michael Roberts, Atari historian Curt Vendel, and many
others. This event is about the games and that always brings great
people together for a weekend of fun, trading stories and treasures, and
some spirited joystick jockeying.
(AE): Has the recent influx of all things 80's prevalently coming
back in the public realm including "That 80's Show" and
80's-format radio stations translated into bigger interest in this
year's PhillyClassic?
(DN): I hope not. Cel - a - brate - Good times - Come on!
(AE): Do you think the PlayStation Generation of gamers has a true
appreciation for classic gaming?
(DN): Absolutely. When today's kids see these old games, and especially
when they see how well the gameplay holds up, it's not unusual for a
25-year old console to be pronounced "cool" right there on the
spot. That "cool" factor is helping the hobby. Younger people,
even some 12 and 13 year old kids, see these games at a friend's house
or in a parent's basement and say "Wow, I didn't know these old
games were this much fun." No 700Mhz processors, no hard drives, no
video streaming off any DVDs; but they're hooked the same way we were
hooked back in the day - the games just put you in the "zone"
and the blocky graphics and cheesy sounds become a totally immersive
experience. Perhaps even more so than the graphically awesome games of
today, because you're using your most powerful entertainment resource,
your imagination.
(AE): How many times have you heard someone greet you with the
Seinfeld-inspired "Helllooo, Newman!"?
DN): More than I'd care to recall. Plus one more just now.
(AE):
If you attended Video Game High School, who would you want as your prom
date, Ms. Pac Man or Lara Croft?
(DN): Ms. Pac Man. Never trust a woman carrying large weapons.
(AE): How soon will it be after PhillyClassic 3 ends when you start
planning
PhillyClassic4?
(DN): We usually need a few months to recover emotionally, physically,
and otherwise. The planning cycle starts in earnest in July or August
for the April show. So we end up hibernating for most of late spring and
early summer, then start to move on the next show by late summer.
(AE): Thanks David for your time.
(DN): No, Lee, thank YOU for sharing these thoughts with your readers. I
hope to see many of you at the end of April, mashing buttons like crazy.
This year's PhillyClassic is shaping up to be our best show yet.
For more information about the show including prices for attendance and
selling/display tables, sponsoring, hotel reservations, and updated
tournament schedules visit the official PhillyClassic 3 Web site: www.phillyclassic.com.
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