Curse

Gaile Gray · Oct 13, 2006, 06:13 AM // 06:13

Quote:

Originally Posted by vinegrower

Oh, and Gaile, if you happened to bring some Daniel Dociu concept paintings or prints that I can keep, I wouldn't mind.

I wont be getting too drunk, I still have to drive home. Besides, as an aspiring game designer, I'll probably be chatting Jeff and the other designer's ears off. Not all that often I get the chance to talk to designers face to face.

No concept art, sorry!

And hey, please, this is not a job fair! All of us are looking on this as a social event and dang, we deserve a few hours of that! I've seriously asked people, and will continue to do so, with all good humour: Let's keep the job talk to [email protected], mmmk?

Quote:

Originally Posted by ElinoraNeSangre

I didn't see the musical itself, but I do know the guy who submitted it and he's a great guy!

Loved the work. It'll be fun to meet the author...composer... creator!

vinegrower · Oct 13, 2006, 06:38 AM // 06:38

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gaile Gray

No concept art, sorry!

And hey, please, this is not a job fair! All of us are looking on this as a social event and dang, we deserve a few hours of that! I've seriously asked people, and will continue to do so, with all good humour: Let's keep the job talk to [email protected], mmmk?

I'm sorry Gaile. I didn't mean it as I was going to try to convince them to hire me or anything. More of just talking about the design behind various games. Trying to talk balance or game theory with my friends doesn't get very good responses. If I am pestering anyone too much, just shove some food in my mouth or wave something shiny in front of my face and I'll be distracted long enough for them to escape. Last thing I want to be is a bother.

ElinoraNeSangre · Oct 13, 2006, 06:52 PM // 18:52

Quote:

Originally Posted by vinegrower

I'm sorry Gaile. I didn't mean it as I was going to try to convince them to hire me or anything. More of just talking about the design behind various games. Trying to talk balance or game theory with my friends doesn't get very good responses. If I am pestering anyone too much, just shove some food in my mouth or wave something shiny in front of my face and I'll be distracted long enough for them to escape. Last thing I want to be is a bother.

Oh now this could be fun. They'll be waving something shiny and we'll both go running to look.

I had a dev who used to get shiny things to roll down the hall just to see if I'd dash out of my office and chase it. Not one to disappoint, I did. He thought that was hilarious and persisted to try to get me to chase everything, all the time, for a week. :P

... ahem maybe I shouldn't be saying that to people who will be meeting me next week... I swear I won't crack out on energy drinks ahead of time, really! :: tries to look cute and fails ::

vinegrower · Oct 13, 2006, 07:57 PM // 19:57

I can see it now. Two devs will be talking, some fans approach.

"Oh, no. Here comes the fans."
*thows shiny object, fan runs after*
"so as I was saying..."

They better be careful though, I bet a couple other devs may chase after the object too.

(I think I have now confirmed that I am a "geek.") *hangs head in shame*

ElinoraNeSangre · Oct 13, 2006, 11:27 PM // 23:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by vinegrower

I can see it now. Two devs will be talking, some fans approach.

"Oh, no. Here comes the fans."
*thows shiny object, fan runs after*
"so as I was saying..."

They better be careful though, I bet a couple other devs may chase after the object too.

(I think I have now confirmed that I am a "geek.") *hangs head in shame*

I'm right there with you.

Even better is candy in shiny wrappers. Then it's CANDY that's shiny. You can't go wrong with that.

More seriously: Gaile, I doubt anyone for all their jokes will confuse party with job fair (and I confess I'm guilty here in making job jokes, but I always do that anyway to *everyone* because I'm massively excitable). Party is very clearly time for FUN and RELAXATION after a job well done for you guys! It's above and beyond for you to extend that invite to fans, and we are deeply appreciative of the opportunity!

If you want, I can bring a spare ClueStick just in case though.

-k
keeper of the ClueStick (not to be confused with gluestick, although that might be kinda funny too, especially if it's a Shiny Gluestick... erm... ohhh hot chocolate! :: slurps and runs away :

Sir Skullcrasher · Oct 14, 2006, 12:23 AM // 00:23

Quote:

Originally Posted by vinegrower

I can see it now. Two devs will be talking, some fans approach.

"Oh, no. Here comes the fans."
*thows shiny object, fan runs after*
"so as I was saying..."

They better be careful though, I bet a couple other devs may chase after the object too.

(I think I have now confirmed that I am a "geek.") *hangs head in shame*

Hey vinegrower, which one are you on the list?

Gaile Gray · Oct 14, 2006, 04:35 AM // 04:35

I am sure I won't need to smack anybody upside the head for being a bother. If I thought you were going to be a bother I wouldn't have wrested those invitations and wouldn't be looking forward to this so much!

I'm really am looking forward to this, too, and to meeting you guys. I came up with a great idea for... something something... and had to hail out to Austin to send me some... thingies... to make it happen. Unfortunately, they were out of the whosit's when I asked, but they had the more-minor thingies, so we might be good. After all, others were saying "Oh, that'd be fun, yeah!" so I went ahead and Austin didn't say "No can do" so I'm expecting my... thingies... for the something something and we'll see how it goes.

(Note, it's only a modest thingie, contributing to a minor something something. Just so you don't get your hopes up or anything.)

actionjack · Oct 14, 2006, 04:40 AM // 04:40

I would of try to enter... but WA is so far away...

vinegrower · Oct 14, 2006, 04:52 AM // 04:52

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gaile Gray

I am sure I won't need to smack anybody upside the head for being a bother. If I thought you were going to be a bother I wouldn't have wrested those invitations and wouldn't be looking forward to this so much!

I'm really am looking forward to this, too, and to meeting you guys. I came up with a great idea for... something something... and had to hail out to Austin to send me some... thingies... to make it happen. Unfortunately, they were out of the whosit's when I asked, but they had the more-minor thingies, so we might be good. After all, others were saying "Oh, that'd be fun, yeah!" so I went ahead and Austin didn't say "No can do" so I'm expecting my... thingies... for the something something and we'll see how it goes.

(Note, it's only a modest thingie, contributing to a minor something something. Just so you don't get your hopes up or anything.)

heh, that sounds almost frightening when described that way.

Man, this should be a blast.

Shakti · Oct 14, 2006, 04:45 PM // 16:45

Quote:

Originally Posted by vinegrower

I can see it now. Two devs will be talking, some fans approach.

"Oh, no. Here comes the fans."
*thows shiny object, fan runs after*
"so as I was saying..."

They better be careful though, I bet a couple other devs may chase after the object too.

(I think I have now confirmed that I am a "geek.") *hangs head in shame*

Hold your head up high sister!!! Show some pride girl, the Geek shall inherit the earth baby!

Oh man please say you really are a girl too lmfao...

**runs off embarrassed...oooooooooooooo look shiny................

vinegrower · Oct 14, 2006, 05:41 PM // 17:41

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shakti

Hold your head up high sister!!! Show some pride girl, the Geek shall inherit the earth baby!

Oh man please say you really are a girl too lmfao...

**runs off embarrassed...oooooooooooooo look shiny................

nope, I'm a man

ElinoraNeSangre · Oct 14, 2006, 06:10 PM // 18:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by vinegrower

heh, that sounds almost frightening when described that way.

Man, this should be a blast.

Uh huh huh... she said thingies.

Wait, thingies? :: jumps down hall on one foot and smacks into wall :: I love thingies!!!

Dude I'm giddy with excitement - October is the BEST MONTH EVER (and that's not just for GW related things, but it sure helps!).

Quote:

Originally Posted by vinegrower

nope, I'm a man

That's what you get for having a female ele as your avatar.

But we have proved that there are geek chicks out there that will dig The Geekness. :: cackle ::

Shakti, your post made me grin.

We need more geek chicks! A whole army of geek chicks!

-kel

vinegrower · Oct 18, 2006, 06:43 PM // 18:43

So the party was last night and it was a ton of fun.

The room was decorated to reflect Nightfall, and looked great. The food was interesting, not much of a fancy food person, so it may have been lost on me.

The best part was when they brought out the three belly dancers. Thats right, real belly dancers. The funny part was the the really hot asian dancer got her scarf stuck on my head. (I decided not to shave my head before the party so it was quite stubbly and acted like velcro) Got her to put her arm around me as she appologized, so its all good.

The making of video was great. So if you are getting the CE version, be sure to check it out. One thing I learned while watching that video is that everyoen at ArenaNet is crazy. Whenever one of them would be on screen, the room would erupt in cheers and screams.

They also premeired the new trailer (dont know when it is comming out to the public) that featured the Heros. I wont say more so as to not ruin it for the rest of you.

The computers they had set up for us to play only had the beginner island available, so I wasnt' able to check out anything that we hadnt seen already. One thing I did notice while watching someone else play was their hero list had all the heros we know of, plus some listed as PvP Dervish, PvP Monk, etc. Wasnt able to get confirmation if this was what the PvP heros were actually going to be like or if it was something set up specifically for the dev server we were on.

Gaile was as nice as everyone says. Didn't get to talk to her much, she was either surrounded by people or running around at a hundred miles an hour. I'm not one to approach strangers and start a conversation, so i didn't get to talk to any other devs. Besides, most of them were always surrounded as well.

All in all, it was a great night and I'm so glad I got to go. Thanks Gaile and the rest of the ArenaNet team for letting us share in the night!

Clamatius · Oct 18, 2006, 07:02 PM // 19:02

Fun party. I wrote up a brief summary. Nice to see everyone again and meet some new people too. I wasn't on a fan invite this time, I was just escorting my wife.

I didn't see the PvP Heroes - that's what I get for socializing too much, I guess.

Quote:

Originally Posted by vinegrower

some listed as PvP Dervish, PvP Monk, etc. Wasnt able to get confirmation if this was what the PvP heros were actually going to be like or if it was something set up specifically for the dev server we were on.

I'm pretty sure that's the way it's going to work - I'd be very surprised if you couldn't play the Hero PvP with a PvP character.

Alleji · Oct 18, 2006, 07:15 PM // 19:15

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zinger314

Not geeky enough. I have "Pi" as my ringtone. And I still think the aforementioned statement is too geeky.

I have "Pi" as my guild tag >.>

vinegrower · Oct 18, 2006, 07:27 PM // 19:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by Clamatius

I'm pretty sure that's the way it's going to work - I'd be very surprised if you couldn't play the Hero PvP with a PvP character.

Yeah, I knew that PvP characters would have access to some sort of PvP hero, just wasn't sure how it would work, as in if we are given PvP heros or if we unlocked heros for use in PvP. Since they wern't named heros, I'm now assuming that they are just given.

ElinoraNeSangre · Oct 18, 2006, 09:32 PM // 21:32

Vinegrower - I kept trying to find you and couldn't! :P Or did I talk to you and not even know it?

I was the short blonde chick (brown shirt) with the redhead guy. I'd be totally embarassed all to hell if I talked to you and didn't know it was *you*. Separating fans from ANet staff wasn't easy so I never knew where to start a conversation. :: snicker :: "Hi, I'm Kelli, I'm one of the Super Fans, what are you?" Heh. Not so graceful.

I spent the first half hour kind of staring and trying to decide who to talk to. Finally I just started finding random people and starting random conversations. My husband and I looked for people who looked as lost as we did and chatted with them, or started conversations over random things like pomegranate martinis (subsequently went and acquired one myself, but only one because I'm a cheap date). Huge thank yous to everyone who took the time to chat!

Someone was playing a level 20 char, probably an employee; the later stuff looks really sweet.

The staff is very excited about Nightfall and about upcoming projects (which they were understandably mum about - all they will say is that it's exciting stuff!).

We thought the belly dancers were a brilliant idea, too; take a room full of geeks that are primarily male and add belly dancers?

You can't go wrong with that.

Gaile runs around a lot, but she seemed willing to stop for a fan. She was very friendly and immediately herded us off to the bar. She has the rare honor of being one of the few people who actually remembered how to spell my first name (which makes her the goddess of amazing memory in my mind). She was very gracious and SO friendly (I can't say this enough - for someone who puts up with as much stuff as she does, she is such a sweet person, and her love for the fans shows).

I enjoyed the making of video, too - I have a feeling that some people are going to get interesting nicknames as a result of some of their quotes! Everyone was really excited to talk about what they did, and the video really shows that enthusiasm.

Watching the video and talking with the people, one thing is very obvious - these people are NOT just making "good business decisions so they can make money". Unless you count being insanely passionate for their work, for the game, and for the fans a good business decision. Yes, ANet is a company, and yes, they have to make money, but the driving force is their passion for Guild Wars. THAT is why ANet employees get up and go to work in the morning, and it sounds like it's the number one qualification to work there. They love this game so much, and they want to put so much into it. They want it to be great for the sake of it being great.

My husband and I really appreciated the chance to attend the event; it was an honor to be able to share in the festivities. Thank you!!!

I came home last night so wired that I didn't want to sleep!

-Kelli

PS: My husband actually told at least one person that our 10 year anniversary from the day we started dating falls on the release date of Nightfall. We're taking the day off. There well be at least SOME geekiness that day I'm sure.

Mirka · Oct 18, 2006, 09:44 PM // 21:44

I am also a Super-Fan and went to the party last night. (I wrote the Mesmer themed "Power Leak" blurb that they published on the website, haha). I had a great time, as so was everyone there, I was so glad to beable to be apart of the celebration for this awesome game!

The making of the video and meeting the Devs gave me the impression Elinora wrote. They're so passionate about the game and what they create for the fans, it was great.

The bellydancers were great, and it was quite amusing at one point because one belly dancer was trying to get the attention of one guy watching the Nightfall gameplay on one of the plasma displays - dancing around him and clanging the symbols at his ear... and she couldn't get his eyes off that TV. hehe

vinegrower · Oct 18, 2006, 11:12 PM // 23:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by ElinoraNeSangre

Vinegrower - I kept trying to find you and couldn't! :P Or did I talk to you and not even know it?

I was the short blonde chick (brown shirt) with the redhead guy. I'd be totally embarassed all to hell if I talked to you and didn't know it was *you*. Separating fans from ANet staff wasn't easy so I never knew where to start a conversation. :: snicker :: "Hi, I'm Kelli, I'm one of the Super Fans, what are you?" Heh. Not so graceful.

I dont think we talked. I would have remembered since my name is Kelly as well. I only talked to a couple people and none of them had your discription nor name.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mirka

The bellydancers were great, and it was quite amusing at one point because one belly dancer was trying to get the attention of one guy watching the Nightfall gameplay on one of the plasma displays - dancing around him and clanging the symbols at his ear... and she couldn't get his eyes off that TV. hehe

My friend and I noticed that people were spending as much time if not more, watching the monitors than watching the dancers. At first I thought it wouldn't be safe to release some scantily clad women into a room full of "geeks", but then my friend reminded me that geeks are too affraid to approach beautiful women. (no offence to anyone that may think of themselves as a geek)

and I agree with both of you. None of them gave off the impression that this was just a job and a way to make money. They all seemed like the truly love the game and nothing was more important that making it the best it can be.

Gaile Gray · Oct 19, 2006, 04:29 AM // 04:29

So happy that you guys could join us! I only wish it could have been everyone.

I had a hard time sleeping too, Kelli with an "i".

And I think I only had a few minutes with Kelly with a "y" but it was a pleasure in both cases. Same to your other non-Kellys/Kellies/Kellis, too!

That was an interesting night, though. Pretty decor, I thought, and a nice beverage choice, and the bellydancers were gorgeous! Great outfits -- I want one of those for my Ranger.

End of the night, 1:30 in the morning, actually, I'd lost track of the trips up and down the stairs to see folks off. Imagine -- a couple from North Carolina, folks flying in from California and Canada and other distant places -- how cool is that?

In a word, I can't wait for the next party!