Talk about a busy schedule around here!  Beginning at 10:00am and going all day long, excluding the evening attractions, the staff of SOE are keeping us and themselves very busy!  There are of course several gaming kiosks showing current and upcoming titles.  Also, all sorts of panels for us to attend and learn some fantastic information about our favorite titles.

I arrived in Las Vegas early, and so yesterday morning I was all ready to get going - starting with the Station Voice/Vivox panel.  This was a discussion on the in-game voice chat system currently available in EQII and SWG, and on the test server for EQ.  When I arrived, the room was fairly empty and the folks in attendance were milling about.  Apparently, the tables and equipment were still in the process of being set up.  Never to be flustered, however, Bruce Ferguson, Senior Producer on EverQuest II, promised a demonstration in interpretive dance should the equipment setup take awhile.  Not to be outdone, Monty Sharma, VP of Product Management & Marketing/Founder of Vivox, ensured us of his skill with shadow puppets!

Needless to say, I was sincerely disappointed when just a few moments later the hotel staff arrived with the necessary accoutrements for a proper panel discussion.  Next time, Bruce and Monty... next time!

Wow, where do I start?

I got myself up around 8am. Bludwyng promptly texted me that he was going to breakfast, but I had work to do and passed. Around 9 Kiara and I met for danish, and we parked ourselves at a lovely wine and coffee bar in the main lobby and proceeded to inflict DPS on cheese danish and talk to several devs and gamers about Fan Faire.

I had signed up for the G.I.R.L. breakfast (I know, I just had danish, but I woke up starving!), so I headed to that while Kiara went to start her work day. As an aside, all the developers, staff and, community personel have really put the hours into this event. Sure, it's their job, but desipte lack of sleep and overload from taking mass quantities of player feedback you can really tell that they love what they do. If you're here, don't be shy. SOE people love their work and if they're too busy to talk right then they'll say so.

LEGACY OF EVERQUEST ® FRANCHISE CONTINUES WITH ANNOUNCEMENT OF EverQuest ® AND EverQuest ® II EXPANSIONS AT FAN FAIRE

All attendees to Receive Both Expansions for Free as Part of Living Legacy Program!

LAS VEGAS , NEV. – Aug. 15, 2008 – Thousands of video game enthusiasts are in Las Vegas for the annual Sony Online Entertainment Fan Faire where the upcoming expansions for the online role-playing games EverQuest® (EQ) and EverQuest® II (EQII) were just announced. EverQuest® Seeds of Destruction ™ is scheduled to be available on Oct.21, and EverQuest® II The Shadow Odyssey ™ is scheduled to be available on Nov.18. As part of SOE’s extensive Living Legacy program designed to entice new and past EQ and EQII players into the games and reward the existing loyal playerbase, all Fan Faire attendees will receive the software for both expansions for free, an unprecedented offering.

“It is such a privilege to announce the upcoming expansions for two of our most popular games, EverQuest and EverQuest II, in a venue like Fan Faire where we are joined by thousands of our loyal fans, and it seems more than appropriate to give those fans access to both of the expansions for free,” said John Smedley, president of Sony Online Entertainment. “Both of these expansions are rich in content and adventure, and will provide our players with hours of excitement as they explore the online world of Norrath.”

This morning I was privileged to have breakfast at the G.I.R.L. - Gamers in Real Life panel. With a group of about forty people, the women involved in the G.I.R.L. program discussed gaming, their personal experiences, and how the gaming industry involves and represents women.

Moderated by Dana Jongewaard, Editor-in-Chief, IGN.com, the panelists were:

• Torrie Dorrell, Senior Vice President of Global Sales and Marketing, SOE-San Diego
• Laura Naviaux, Director, Global Brand Marketing, SOE-San Diego
• Lorien Gremore - Producer, The Agency(tm), SOE-San Diego
• Laralyn McWilliams - Lead Designer, Free Realms(tm), SOE-San Diego
• Julia Brasil, G.I.R.L. Game Design Competition Winner
  

Day 1.  Well, sort of.

It's 8am in Vegas, and kinda quiet, relatively. Everyone seems to be sleeping in. The kids have me too well trained, I woke at 7am.

I got here Wednesday afternoon, coordinated with my boss Draknorr and AutunmKiss from our news site. We indulged in some carboydrates and went to the Star Trek experience. If your're here, you should do this, as its closing its long run at the end of the month.

Then I came back to my room and went to bed early. I woke to text messages from several people sent last night from Quarks. I missed the party! I must be getting old, but getting up at 3am to fly half the day just takes it out of me.

Fan Faire has already brought the EQ community some awesome news: The newest expansion, Seeds of Destruction!

To prevent the cataclysm and defeat the forces of chaos, players must journey through time portals to the greatest moments in EverQuest history. From the founding of Qeynos to the battle of Bloody Kithicor, players will be called upon to safeguard history and ensure that events unfold without interference from the gods of Discord.

EverQuest® Seeds of DestructionTM Features :

• Mercenaries Player controlled NPCs are available in EverQuest for the first time! Visit the EverQuest home page for a video demonstration!
• 20 New Zones Features re-imagined classic content as well as brand new realms to explore! Check the EQ Players community website for regular features on zones, NPCs and more!
• Level Cap Increase

• Includes all features and content from the 14 previous expansion packs

The expected release date is October 21st, and try though I might, I can't find the info on the EQ page. As soon as I can, we'll update this post with direct links!

EQII Players reports:

Even if you can't make it to Fan Faire, be sure to register for the live webcast of the 2nd Annual Community Address to see what's new at SOE! We will be broadcasting live from Fan Faire this Friday night, August 15th, at 6:00pm PDT.

To register for the webcast, please go to http://www.videonewswire.com/event.asp?id=50659 .

Read more at EQII Players !

I'm a little better prepared for Fan Faire this year. Mostly because I have an idea what to expect this time, while last year I was a total Fan Faire newb. This time I swear I'll be prepared. I sincerely believe that half of enjoying a convention, or any trip, is in how you prepare. And I'm a planning type person. I've been trying to work, but I keep jumping up because I think of one more thing I shouldn't forget.

My friend Rijacki, who has more con experience than I do, recommends the 6-2-1 rule. She tells me you need 6, 2, and 1 of these things to "function" at a con:

• showers
• hours of sleep
• meals

And she swears it actually does work in any combination. The recommended configuration is 6 hours of sleep, 2 meals, and 1 shower. But it's been done as 2 showers, 6 meals, and 1 hour of sleep. Sounds like great advice to me!

EQ Players has posted a great piece on how you can stay connected to the net once you get to Fan Faire . Registration for the player gathering closed on Friday, and now it's just a matter of waiting until it actually rolls around, this Thursday!

Nowadays you can't go out to eat, to a movie, or even into...eww...the little elves' room, without hearing someone talking on a cell phone or sending a text message. Laptops, cell phones, and portable devices are taking over the world, and far be it from us to prevent anyone from communicating with their loved ones while they're at Fan Faire. (However, conducting actual business is strictly prohibited, as this is supposed to be a fun event!)

Keep up on all the ways you can tell those of us not going how much fun you're having!

Amnerys posted on the official forums :

Signups for Saturday's EQII Tournament will take place at Fan Faire on Thursday, during registration/badge pick-up.

If you are interested in playing in the tournament, and you would like to use your own character, please type /testcopy while you're logged into the game on the character you wish to compete with, sometime before Thursday.

There will be pre-buffed characters available for use for those competitors who do not /testcopy their character over before Fan Faire begins.

Doing a /testcopy of your character does not guarantee your place in the tournament. Signing up at Fan Faire is on a first come, first served basis and is the only way to get a seat in the tournament. Doing a /testcopy beforehand is simply to make sure your character gets copied over if that is the toon you want to play with and will simplify the process if you do end up competing in the tournament.

Fan Faire Tournament Goodness!  Hope to see you there!