Madison’s own Geek.Kon celebrated its fourth anniversary this past weekend, with the motto “Bigger on the Inside.” The Marriot provided the Geek.Kon crowd with its largest space ever – 50,000 square feet. The difference was noticeable. The video game room and exhibition hall were not cramped as in previous years. There was plenty of seating room for every panel. Even the halls were less congested.

When I wasn’t playing Munchkin in the Marriot bar or having a couple drinks with presenters, I managed to catch some of the sessions. Here are my notes on 3.5.

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GeekKon.  For three years it has delighted Madisonites and Midwesterners who enjoy gaming, anime, sci-fi, art and video games.  This year the event reached maturity – moving away from the Humanities building on the UW campus to the Sheraton.

While the event was growing up, those attending were getting younger.

I last attended GeekKon its first year.  Maybe it was because it was held on campus, but a large section of the crowd was at least college age.  This year the demographic skewed younger.  When I entered the hotel, most of the faces that greeted me looked barely old enough to drive a car.  Parents hung out and occasionally joined their children in costume.
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My lust for interactive pixel-crafted stories began at an early age.  Sunday mornings – before church of course – were spent preventing alien ships from touching down, no matter how fast they moved as their fleet was destroyed.  My Commodore 128 taught me about text-based games and to always carry some form of light when entering a dark area.  While other children saved their money for a Nintendo, my cash went towards the superior 16-bit graphics of the Sega Genesis.  Beating Sonic the Hedgehog made the investment worthwhile.   My first year of college I spent more time sacking the quarterback in Super Tecmo Bowl than attending class.

While in college I quickly realized the cost of games when they are first released, as my parents no longer subsidized my obsession.  Sure, I enjoyed being the first person to beat Streets of Rage, but I learned that if I waited six months, the price would drop in half.  Being a poor college kid, that was like an extra two months of ramen noodles and a case of Schlitz.
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It has been a while since I have had the opportunity to game.

During the past two years, I was a full time student, part time web geek and lived in a city where every night was a Saturday night.  One of my favorite passions – gaming – suffered.  I determined once I graduated I would play catch up; play the great games I missed over the last year or so.

That time is now.

Starting this weekend, I will play and review one video game per week.  You can find the reviews  posted here each weekend.  I will continue for 14 weeks, playing a minimum of 14 games.  These will be some of the top games that I’ve neglected from the past year and a half, plus anything exciting that surfaces during that time that strikes my fancy.  On April 15 – tax day – I will choose my game of the year and compile my “best of” list.  I am limiting this to mostly 360 and computer games, unless I find a place that rents PS3′s where I live.  So check back for updates on what I’m playing and weekly reviews.

Harmonix continues to add awesome downloadable content to their Rock Band lineup. First there was Jonathan Coulton’s “Still Alive.” Now, get ready for Stephen and the Colberts doing “Charlene (I’m Right Behind You).” Yup, it’s who you think it is.

Thanks Katy.

Seth McFarlane, creator of Family Guy put together a short that video gamers should enjoy.