So, MAGfest X is over and I’m at home in my studio. I’m extremely tired and worn out but I can sincerely say that this was one of the best convention experiences I’ve ever had. All of my old friends and new friends really made the whole experience feel like a family gathering. Staying in the OC Remix block of the hotel was so perfect since it gave us such an easy way to hang out with each other for the entire event. Below is a rundown of the top ten awesome things about MAGFest X.
1. The Love! Again, MAGFest is a family of geeks. It really feels that way.
2. Nubuo Uematsu and the Earthbound Papas. These guys have influenced a generation of musicians to follow their dreams.
3. Brendan Becker – He’s one of the big reasons MAGFest has steam in it’s engines. I was so happy to see him more relaxed this year.
4. The Overclocked Remix Crew – Oddly enough, I didn’t enjoy my first MAGfest about five years ago but that was before I met all of these guys. I’m thankful to have many of them as my friends.
5. Kill Studio Chops – I’m not sure that this will ever stop being funny.
6. Running into John St. John and having him invite us to go with him to his next interview – We politely declined but it was a rather surreal moment.
7. The Gaylord – This hotel is massive and the staff that run the joint were amazingly nice to us. The convention area was spacious and I never felt claustrophobic at all. I was also happy that the atrium was still decorated for the holidays. I’ll never forget that beep!
8. The giant game room! – While I didn’t spend a ton of time in there, it was bigger than ever. It’s difficult to find a good old school arcade these days and MAGfest makes up for it each year.
9. Concerts! – Since I stayed at the convention hotel this year, I got to see a ton of great shows. It was my first time seeing most of these bands play and I can honestly say that each one of them put on a terrific show.
10. The National Harbor – It’s truly nice to have some places where you can get away from the convention for a bit. The only unfortunate thing was that most of the restaurants close at 9pm.
With that said, I don’t really have too many negative points from my weekend. So, if you like video games and video game music, you should really look into going to MAGfest XI. I promise that you’ll have a good time and you’ll come away with many new friends. I’ll see you there!
***
For those that want to see the rest of my pictures, you can click here to see my Picasa page. I also have a few videos on my Youtube page as well.
