Otronicon 2009 Kicks Off
January is an exciting month to be a gamer in Central Florida, with the annual Otronicon video game convention bringing the industry’s latest trends and technology to the Orlando Science Center for five days of exhibits, education workshops, and of course, games, all sponsored by Full Sail University.
“Across the board, Otronicon represents a really neat convergence of what goes into creating games, while still celebrating everything that’s fun about playing them,” says Dustin Clingman, Full Sail’s Course Director for the Structure of Game Development class. “I think representing all of those different facets – the science, technology and fun of games – is really something you don’t find in any other event.”
There will be no shortage of entertainment at this year’s show, with tournaments scheduled for new classics like Super Smash Brothers: Brawl, Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe, and Wii Fit, as well as rows of retro arcade cabinets from the '80s and '90s.
Special installations will also include a “PC Gaming Dungeon” stocked with multiple World of Warcraft stations, as well as a full scale concert stage set up for five-person Rock Band marathons - letting gamers live out their rock star fantasies in front of the Otronicon crowd.
More than just an excuse to play games, the conference also offers a number of workshops for middle and high school students. These free classes are taught by instructors from Full Sail’s Game Development program, and offer a behind the scenes look at the art form – exploring the basics of what it takes to design and program the graphics, audio, and gameplay for your average title.
“These are opportunities to delve down deep and learn more about games,” Clingman says. “We want to put this stuff in the hands of everyday people, and hopefully we can inspire some of them to get into gaming as a career.”
This year will also see a number of new additions to the Otronicon roster, including the “Machinima” film festival, which will screen the best in virtual film and video on the Science Center’s 8-story CineDome screen. Also on hand will be the “Artronica” gallery, showcasing game-related art from local talent – including paintings, sculpture, and digital media.
“They’ve really done a great job in modifying the event to give people what they’ve asked for and more,” Clingman says about Otronicon’s evolution. “Originally it was a question of could something like this have relevance, would people care? But since the community’s had such a good response they’ve really paid attention to the feedback they’ve gotten, and it’s really become a great event in the Orlando community.”
* The fourth annual Otronicon runs from January 16 – 20, and for information on tickets and schedule you can visit the website at: www.otronicon.org
“Across the board, Otronicon represents a really neat convergence of what goes into creating games, while still celebrating everything that’s fun about playing them,” says Dustin Clingman, Full Sail’s Course Director for the Structure of Game Development class. “I think representing all of those different facets – the science, technology and fun of games – is really something you don’t find in any other event.”
There will be no shortage of entertainment at this year’s show, with tournaments scheduled for new classics like Super Smash Brothers: Brawl, Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe, and Wii Fit, as well as rows of retro arcade cabinets from the '80s and '90s.
Special installations will also include a “PC Gaming Dungeon” stocked with multiple World of Warcraft stations, as well as a full scale concert stage set up for five-person Rock Band marathons - letting gamers live out their rock star fantasies in front of the Otronicon crowd.
More than just an excuse to play games, the conference also offers a number of workshops for middle and high school students. These free classes are taught by instructors from Full Sail’s Game Development program, and offer a behind the scenes look at the art form – exploring the basics of what it takes to design and program the graphics, audio, and gameplay for your average title.
“These are opportunities to delve down deep and learn more about games,” Clingman says. “We want to put this stuff in the hands of everyday people, and hopefully we can inspire some of them to get into gaming as a career.”
This year will also see a number of new additions to the Otronicon roster, including the “Machinima” film festival, which will screen the best in virtual film and video on the Science Center’s 8-story CineDome screen. Also on hand will be the “Artronica” gallery, showcasing game-related art from local talent – including paintings, sculpture, and digital media.
“They’ve really done a great job in modifying the event to give people what they’ve asked for and more,” Clingman says about Otronicon’s evolution. “Originally it was a question of could something like this have relevance, would people care? But since the community’s had such a good response they’ve really paid attention to the feedback they’ve gotten, and it’s really become a great event in the Orlando community.”
* The fourth annual Otronicon runs from January 16 – 20, and for information on tickets and schedule you can visit the website at: www.otronicon.org
