Before I get into today's happenings, I want to mention something very important I forgot to mention yesterday: My souvenier t-shirt count.  That total was 9.  Friday's total is 6, bringing the grand total so far to 15 (if I can still do math at this hour).

Oh, and yesterday, when the doors opened to the general public, they were led onto the floor by a marching band.  Today, a celtic band, complete with bagpipes, entertained us while in line and led us up the escalators when the doors opened this morning.  It's actually a pretty cool way to start the day.  It gives the crowd energy and makes the opening of the doors that much more fun.  I'm curious to see who shows up tomorrow. 

Once again, I was one of the lucky early birds who scored an Intel branded freebie: a vinyl drawstring backpack/bag containing a frisbee and a skullcap (a hat, not a literal skullcap... that's just gross).  I made my rounds, re-entering contests where I could, getting my high score listed as one of the top 5 high scoring Ms Pac-Man players for the day (it lasted only a few minutes before I was bumped out), and of course made my first trip of the day to the Nintendo Wii Super Smash Bros Brawl game (I would return 3 more times that day and I wasn't the most frequent repeat customer, for sure).  I did my best to not play Guitar Hero 3 (fear of death by embarassment was my primary motivation), but I did pick up a few stickers to accessorize the guitar I'll never have.

While there are few real gaming software development companies at the show, there are more than enough hardware companies wanting to make sure that their stuff is in your hands whenever you play a game.  As I said yesterday, a lot of them are unique and somewhat gimmicky (make that REALLY gimmicky), but that's not always a bad thing.  Here are just a few of the ones that stood out...

D-Box racing chair - Some racing games can be rough.  This chair makes sure you feel every bit of it.  At $15,000, it's not a toy for the frugal gamer, but it does come with just about everything a hardcore racing gamer could want.  It shakes and bounces with every ripple in the road, every sideswipe from your opponents, and you hear it all with a 7.1 surround sound system that's available with purchase.  If I had this, I don't think I'd let anyone play it unless they buckled up.

Z-Dome - I don't imagine this is something that's meant for the home gamer, but rather for companies or groups that want to give customers an immersive 3D experience by putting them directly within the action of whatever they're presenting, whether it be a game, a video presentation, or a training simulation.  I might step inside it when I have time, but even from a distance, watching a trailer for Halo Wars, I was glad I didn't have lunch yet.  It's not for the weak of stomach.

Falcon controller - Yes, it's strange looking, and no, I can't imagine it ever becoming commonplace on my desk, but I'm sure they said the same thing the first time someone plugged in a mouse.  To use, it you basically grab a small ball that's attached to a larger base-ball by spider-like arms.  And you move it around to interact with the items on the screen to play games and the like.  Also, depending on what kind of surface your game employs, it allows you to feel textures with every move, whether it be bumpy, sandy, or gooey like molasses.  It's a rather astounding bit of technology and if anything is going to pull it into the mainstream, it's going to be gaming.  Now all it needs is the perfect game.  It's pretty neat, but in an industry that's continually getting smaller and more wireless, it's got a bit of an uphill battle.

3rdSpace Vest - The CEO of the company, Mark Obrellaro MD (a doctor?!), was kind enough to walk me through all of the features and details of the vest as he strapped it tightly to me.  Within seconds I was making my way through a first person shooter and was taking fire from all sides.  And with each hit, either in front of me or behind me, I'd feel a little kick from one of the many pneumatic air pumps within the vest that felt a little like someone rudely poking me repeatedly, mainly because I played very poorly in order to give the vest a good workout (honestly!).  While I fear this opens up the door to shock collars or tickle shoes from other manufacturers with just a hint of sadomasochism, I found it pretty cool to feel a poke in my ribs from behind, telling me that I've got monsters lobbing fireballs at me and I'd better turn around to take care of them.  It ships with Call of Duty 2 (which it was also tested with) as well as an original indie FPS, but it also supports other games such as Doom3 with downloadable patches available online, with more to come. 

Fatal1ty (yes, I spelled that right) - The once teenage uber-player was once again hawking his brand of video cards, sound cards, mice, keyboards, and more.  He's pretty much become a regular among the gaming shows, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't want to own his gear.  I don't care if his name or face is on it.  I just know he associates himself with good stuff.  And that's why I stand at his booth for ever raffle drawing, hoping to walk away with something worth more than my monthly car payment.

LAN Parties - I can't mention hardware without mentioning the fact that this game is HEAVILY focused on the social game player, whether it's something like an online community (Entropia) or showmanship gaming (Rock Band or the ubiquitous Guitar Hero 3), this show has something for everyone, especially those who like to shoot other people sitting in chairs beside them.  Counterstrike, World of Warcraft, Enemy Territory: Quake Wars, Unreal Tournament, Universe at War, Battlefield 2142, and countless others are represented here this week, either in small casual gatherings at booths or in the massive multi-seated rows of tables with high-end PCs lined up on them, ready for the abuse of any gamer seeking fame and fortune (yes, they play for money and prizes, according to the German fellow at the Intel booth, guarding the gate between spectators and hardcore (virtual) killers.  

But if you put that much hardware in one spot, you have to imagine that at some point, it's going to break.   At a little after 7pm tonight, as I was walking through the Nintendo booth, half of the floor went black.  Everything from the Super Smash Bros Brawl main competition stage on the right to the far wall went down, while the players at the Super Smash stations just a few feet away on the other side of that invisible line just keep playing.  Facility managers and security were all on their walkie talkies, trying to figure out what happened to half of the convention floor.  It was late and my car was parked in the dark half of the building, downstairs, below the South Hall, so I didn't stick around to find out.  I had to drop my bags full of t-shirts off at my car so I could meet my friend on the other side of the Convention center (I walked the well-lit streets) to take in the highly-touted Video Games Live concert at the brand new Nokia theater, just across from the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles.

When I finally made it to my seat (used possibly only once before by the crowd who had come to see the Eagles and Dixie Chicks the night before at the venue's first event ever), the show was already starting.  It began with the grand-daddy of them all: Pong.  It blooped plaintively on the 3 big screens until it was replaced by newer games like Space Invaders, Asteroids, and more... and then things shifted slightly with the introduction of music into games, which nudged the orchestra into action, accompanied by a choir.  Too many games to mention had their moment in the spotlight, none gathering a stronger cheer than the classic Tetris, which, to me, is one of the first games I remember music playing such an integral part in the gameplay.  The nearly sold out crowd (the venue seats about 7500) cheered and laughed and shouted out the names of games as the opening number took everyone down memory lane, where the love of gaming for so many of us (over 30) began.  Even the games I didn't know well, like Metal Gear Solid, the later Final Fantasies (I was never a Playstation playa), Kingdom Hearts, and World of Warcraft were still mesmerizing when I realized that I was listening to video game music.  These were scores that rivaled any motion picture or television drama.  And when they played suites dedicated to games I did know and love, such as Super Mario and Legend of Zelda, I was transported.  Mixed with clips from the histories of each game franchise, it was enough to give me goosebumps. 

Between the songs, host and co-founder of Video Games Live, Tony Tallerico introduced a slew of gaming world celebrities and musicians, including Atari/Pong/Chucky Cheese creator/legend Nolan Bushnell, who presented one lucky fan with a bag full of games for attempting to take part in a live interactive version of Space Invaders right there on the stage as the audience cheered and the orchestra changed their speed on the fly.  The fan in the banana suit (no one is sure why) may not have cleared out all of the Space Invaders in under 2 minutes (a pretty formidable feat even in the normal game), but he did meet a legend and embarass himself on stage in front of thousands.  Later in the evening, when they grabbed two audience members to play Frogger on the big screen as the orchestra played along, someone kicked the power supply, preventing the first player from finishing his excellent game, resulting in both players winning the prizes (a plug-n-play version of Frogger and passes to the opening of the movie Postal -yikes).  Other than that little hiccup, the night went smoothly, the creators and composers from nearly every musical selection introduced their work either from the stage or via pre-taped message from far off Japan.  Characters from Final Fantasy and Splinter Cell roamed the stage at times and a red cycle from Tron buzzed across at the finale of the suite focused on the movie and games of the same name.  One disappointment was the fact that Square Enix did not allow the show to use footage from their games in the show for some unfathomable reason, which meant that the gorgeous visuals of the Final Fantasy series were replaced by multiple shots of the orchestra and a pumped up light show.  One way around the block on using Kingdom Hearts visuals was to just use approved footage from nearly every Disney animated feature ever made that also contains a character in the game.  Matched with the music, it was a stunning testament to the beauty of Disney animation that stretches from Steamboat Mickey, Cinderella, and Bambi all the way to the Little Mermaid, Aladdin, and the Lion King.

But nothing captured my attention like pianist Martin Leung, the Video Game Pianist (look him up on YouTube).  I've seen him a number of times in person using a high quality electronic keyboard (he's playing all week at E For All), but that's nothing compared to hearing him play a real piano.  He did two sets; one featuring the music of Chrono-Cross and the other a ten song medley of Final Fantasy music that took my breath away and garnered a standing ovation.

In all, it was a long, exhausting, and eventful day at the LA Convention Center.  Tomorrow is Saturday, which they are hoping will be the day that brings out everyone who hasn't bothered to come to the event yet (the crowds have been pretty small as I've said).  I like the size of the crowd just fine, but I suppose that wouldn't bode well for the event if they didn't get to hand out all the t-shirts they printed up... (I'll take 'em!)

Also tomorrow: comments on more than a dozen new games that I've played so far...