GameOn New York 2004

Between the days of Friday, October 15th and Sunday, October 17th, DigitalLife held a convention/tounament
called GameOn New York 2004 at the Jacob K Javits center in New York City. This convention at the Crystal Palace
was a pretty even hybrid between technology and games. Many heavy hitters included Microsoft, T-Mobile, Google,
and, of course, DigitalLife. In terms of gaming, however, Xbox clear had the biggest presence.
Among many of the events were tournaments. Some of the larger tournaments included
Halo,
DDR, and
Unreal Tournament 2004, with hard hitting competition and lofty cash prizes. Although Xbox may have had
the upperhand when it came to attractions at the convention, other industry giants also had their presence, such
as Nintendo, which boasted it's brand new street team SUV, stocked with games such as
Soul Calibur 2, the
revamped version of
Metroid Prime,
Donkey Konga,
Super Smash Bros. Melee, and many more,
playable through the back and sides of the vehicle as well as in the back seats.
Many other fresh and new games made their appearances as well. Games such as
Guilty Gear Isuka had huge lines
of cosplayers ready to take the first shot of a demo version of the game.
DefJam: Fight for New York also had a
gaming lounge where you could play the new game against the stars themselves, such as Ludacris and many others.
Other big attractions amongst the huge Xbox section of the showfloor included demos of
Bloodrayne 2 and
X-Men:
Legends. In addition was the new version of
Conker, hooked up through Xbox live to boast it's new multiplayer
system (which I thoroughly enjoyed).
All in all it was a great convention with a huge turnout. With many new games and sneak previews, I'm sure
attendees got a great look at the upcoming holiday season. It was a pleasure helping get GAF some coverage of this
event and I definitely recommend trying to attend public expos like this if you can.
Jack Smith IV, freelancer at large (picture at right)
Maplewood, New Jersey