QuakeCon 2011: Day FOUR (Kind Of)

The final day at QuakeCon really wasn't much of day. The slot was basically reserved for gamers to dissemble and extract their CPU's from the BYOC.

In the morning, we checked out from the hotel and arrived to the BYOC for our final farewell. Upon entering QuakeCon, we watched as countless dejected players dismantled and unplugged their precious rigs. The atmosphere was quite gloomy, yet the place was also a wiring mess! Wires from keyboards, mouses, monitors, routers, and more keyboards littered the entire BYOC floor.

After hooping through a sea of electronic gear (praying dearly not to get electrocuted) we finally arrived back to our PC.

I will admit the dissembling process was certainly melancholic, as it was sad to see the great weekend come to its inevitable close.

We gazed around and saw a few scattered players cramming in last minute sessions with their CPUs:

As well as others catching up on some much needed sleep:

Alas, soon everything was locked, stocked, and loaded for the trip back home.

Reflecting back on our weekend at QuakeCon 2011, there are quite a few things to take away. Firstly, it was endlessly fascinating to see like-minded individuals show the same amount, if not more, passion for a hobby that can sometimes be quite isolating. The BYOC wasn't filled with rude introverts, petrified of human contact. It was full of enthusiastic gamers, simply excited to share their beloved passion and technology with others.

It was a gathering of positiveness, not weirdness. Sometimes the media can dissuade our perception on these types of fans, believing them to be nerds without any sense of rationale, communication, or thought. Spending quality time at QuakeCon instantly erases such stereotypes, and casts a bright light of respect and admiration for the people that indulge in the art of gaming.

Couple this with an amazing array of game presentations, developer encounters, and E-Sports tournaments, and you have yourself a wondrous weekend.

I admit that gaming can be sometimes alienating and difficult to get into, but if given the time, there are marvelous treasures to be found within. I implore anyone untainted in gaming to give this hobby a slight chance; I suspect you'll be quite shocked with the results.