It’s late September, there’s a new games article on Disposable Media – it can only mean one thing. Yes, I went to EGX 2017; a world of gross energy drinks, packed demo stations and a cacophony of noise. To some, it’s like a videogame themed hellhole, but personally I find that there’s always a lot to enjoy amongst all of the crowds and nonsense. Besides, I was feeling a little more relaxed about EGX 2017 compared to my other visits. In the past I’ve kind of visited the show with the intention of checking out one or two specific games: Bloodborne in 2014, Mighty No. 9 in 2015 (yes, I know) or Sonic Mania in 2016. However, with my visit to EGX 2017 I didn’t have a plan to see certain games – instead it was just a chance to go out and take in little bits of everything. All of the big-name titles and forthcoming games were well-represented: Destiny 2, Dissidia, Gran Turismo Sport, Project Cars, Dragonball FighterZ, Street Fighter V and more.
Since I wasn’t in the mood for queueing, it was a nice excuse to step back and look around… and even from a spectator viewpoint, a lot of my favourite forthcoming games still impressed. DB FighterZ still looks great in action despite having a daft name (reassuringly, Dual Shock 4s were being used to play, so you may not need a specialist 6-button controller or arcade stick), Destiny 2’s shooting and looting looked even more impressive on the hardware being used at the show, and Dissidia still looked completely impenetrable for those who hadn’t experienced the game before. Even for someone like me who had played the beta it still looks a bit busy.
EGX 2017 – Game of the Show
When it came to playing some games, the most fun and least chaos was found (once again) in the smaller areas on the EGX 2017 show floor. The leftfield and indie showcases, the retro zone…heck, there was even time to see some fancy cosplayers and browse for merchandise. And my game of the show? It’s a tough call to make but it’s probably either Space Invaders (where a few minutes of competitive turn-based two-player action was enjoyed) or Super Mario Kart (which I’m no better at than before.) I even managed to avoid the gross energy drinks this time around – maybe this was because I was prescient enough to bring my own beverage before leaving for the NEC, or maybe it was because last year I finished off one can in the evening and was simultaneously exhausted and filled with energy. Never again.
EGX 2017 – Mysteries
As for that merchandise that was on offer at EGX 2017… well, I feel like I spent way too long looping around the same stalls hoping that this time I would see something that I’d like to pick up, but nothing really grabbed my interest enough. You can only gaze up and down walls of T-shirt designs so many times, after all. In the end, I opted to pick up a mystery loot-crate style box which ended up containing a talking Lemming plush (the perfect companion to the Protoman plush I picked up from a previous show), Titanfall hat, Hitman and Metal Gear keychains, a Dying Light mug and a Watch Dogs…bandana thing? Who cares – it was worth it for the lemming.
Maybe other people are showgoers who have to go to the biggest, most glamourous venues and see the biggest games, maybe you’ve seen press coverage from shows that’s either too cynical or too positive, and maybe none of it’s helpful if you’re thinking about visiting a show close to you. Honestly, you’ll never really know until you go to one yourself, but it’s an interesting way to experience gaming nevertheless. Just watch out for those energy drinks…
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