PAX 07: The Mega64 panel
Mega64, purveyors of awkwardly hilarious videos that blend real life and tiny chunks of our favorite games, warned us all at the outset (after a montage of Internet video clips in the vein of Bubb Rubb, followed by a rousing dancing-through-the-crowd-to-2-Unlimited intro) that their panels were disappointing. And then, as if trying to prove the point, they proceeded to spend the next twenty minutes or so battling technical difficulties with video, only to replay the same introductory video when they regained the capability. Also, there were no lights (prompting Mega64's Rocco to remark that this would be a "sexy panel"). They were still wrong. It was not disappointing at all-- we felt perfectly appointed.
During the unexpected void left by video problems, and again at the end of the panel, the guys took questions from the audience, ranging from the hilariously Mega64-nerdy ("How often does the 'we're shooting this for school' excuse work?" Answer: "100% of the time") to the general (Ages of Mega64 performers: 23, 23, 21, 25-- all younger than me, and I have yet to create a hit video on the Internet, much less hold a gathering to discuss them).
When video-playing returned, we were treated to a selection of Mega64 videos, including a new-- and briliiant-- Kuribo's Shoe trip around town, along with favorites like Sexy64 and "I'm Captain Basch from Dalmasca!" We then saw a bizarre video taken years ago in a Barnes & Noble: about five seconds of some guy glaring at the group as they walk through the store in full Wizarding attire. But while that may have been (one of) the Greatest Videos Ever Made, their rejected Jam Sessions ad was the highlight of the show: it featured a homeless character who, after a failed attempt to earn money with a whistle, begins playing a lovely guitar melody in Jam Sessions (which obviously wasn't created with Jam Sessions), attracting two admirers who not only throw their cash and credit cards into his cup, but become so enraptured with the music that they begin undressing and writhing on the ground.
The ESRB rejected the video because it featured a homeless character.
After the break, I've posted a picture of the "tattoo" Rocco gave me at the Mega64 booth.
It's the Prince from Katamari Damacy, and there's his little katamari-- only, it's not a ball, it's a bomb!
