PAX East, and a Deadly Game of Cat and Anonymouse

Irish Coffee. It was the perfect Boston drink for PAX East. It's hot, it's sweet, it keeps you alert and awake, and yet it sneakily ushers copious amounts of Jameson into your bloodstream.

The Destructoid community functions much the same. They keep you on your toes, their enthusiasm and joy are intoxicating, and I can't think of a better panacea for the biting cold of the northeast than the warm embrace of the second family I've come to treasure.

PAX East was a wonderful experience on many levels for me. I got to reconnect with those Dtoiders I was fortunate enough to meet at PAX Prime last year. I got to meet a whole new group of Dtoiders and really get to spend time with some of them. I even got to catch up with my sister and her fella who live in Boston!

Dtoiders represented HARD in Boston. DanlHass brought home the bronze medal from the Pitch Your Game panel (he's writing a blog with the details, can't wait!). Power Glove not only worked hard to keep the robot army coordinated for meetups and updates, but he and his team also took 1st place in the Monday Night Combat tournament. Kauza even accidentally (allegedly) team-killed Jeff Gerstmann when we were playing the demo of Breach.

The cry of JASON! was in the air. I must have shouted it hundreds of times. It was a clarion call summoning the faithful, an inside joke that formed the basis of a shared culture and experience, and a reminder that games can be simultaneously life-defining and joyously frivolous.

For me, the defining moment of PAX East was on Sunday evening. After running on 3-4 hrs. sleep a night for 3 days straight, and pounding Irish Coffees in the evenings, I simply had to recharge by myself in the hotel room for a few hours before making the final trip out to Pizzaria UNO on Boyleston St. one last time to say fare thee well to my robotic brethren.

I was dragging myself up from the bed for the final round, when I get a call from Kauza. As soon as I picked up and said hello, I was answered with a chorus of Dtoiders screaming SHAUN! SHAUN! SHAUN!

Although I was not in fact slowly drowning under a storm grate, I couldn't help but get choked up by the laughter and camaraderie I experienced in Boston. An uncanny valley filled to the brink with gamer love.

To those I was blessed enough to meet and spend time with: thanks for making this trip so memorable and fun; we'll always have UNOs.

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Before I share how my adopted avatar experience went this PAX, I have to give a quick shout-out to robotbebop for taking the avatar adoption that I did on a lark, and kicking it up to a whole new level. It was wonderful to see so many other Dtoiders join us there in spirit, and I only hope that even more people participate in it next time!

As for my traveling paper companion, I have to say that Anonymouse was the perfect model of a well-behaved avatar. After dealing with Kauza's belligerent, lecherous avatar last year, it was truly a breath of fresh air.

The most trouble Anonymouse got into at PAX was "borrowing" my Dtoid login in the press room to go back and fap every single one of his recaps with my account.



Mouser is much snugglier than a robot seahorse with a jetpack.



My cblog-sensei instructs me in the mouse style of kung-fu. Am I doing this right?



What happens when a shark meets a mouse? Surprisingly, LOVE. <3



Avatar play date!



Truly, Anonymouse was a joy to have as my adopted avatar for PAX East, which is why I feel so terribly remorseful about what happened next.

Upon hearing that this PAX adoptee was so much nicer than the last, I got permission from my wife for Anonymouse to come and stay with us for a while. The one warning I gave to him was to wait to get out of the backpack until I got the cats shut into another room.

It was the perfect storm, really. My wife was in the kitchen, making cheese enchiladas, and Anony-avatar couldn't resist the smell. You know what? I'll just let the pictures tell the story. And Anonymouse -- I'm truly sorry.