Mindark's small display stand

[Coelacanth]

To all the brown-nosers saying "Looks really nice and simple", come ON...how can this display be effective at promoting EU? You get 3 people hunched over a dinky little laptop, that probably isn't even a gaming laptop...no big screen LCDs, a single stool and a poster...yikes, I've been in bigger phone booths!

If anything, this worries me...

[SB2]

Originally Posted by Coelacanth

To all the brown-nosers saying "Looks really nice and simple", come ON...how can this display be effective at promoting EU? You get 3 people hunched over a dinky little laptop, that probably isn't even a gaming laptop...no big screen LCDs, a single stool and a poster...yikes, I've been in bigger phone booths!

If anything, this worries me...

As much as I criticize MA for their overblown PR, I do have to say that the booth here is standard for a 10x10 conference space... It would work for the smaller shows.

Besides, I'm pretty sure that the laptop wouldn't get too crowded at shows of that size... It's probably just displaying a loop of the flying cars video anyway...

[AlphaGeek]

Yep, that looks like one of those "instant (haha!) up" backdrops that collapse down to roughly golf bag size.

No idea how the podium packs up. It does look like it's picked up a ding already, though.

SB2, you're right. That's pretty standard faire for a 10x10 booth that does duty on multiple continents. Nicely portable.

At least with a booth like this, we're likely to see more about "the MA booth at..." rather than "MA attended..." Booth space is pretty high priced real estate, and often a 10x10 can get slipped in at the last minute should a company bail out of a show at the last minute. This is much harder to arrange with a giganto booth.

Besides as anyone that's worked a trade show can attest, booths are all (L) anyway. They're built already falling apart to make the poor sales dweebs that put most of them up feel more adequate about their lack of opposable thumbs. As (L) material, I'm sure that next seasons booth will have different artwork.


David|MindArk, pack good comfy shoes. I see your booth doesn't have carpet. Trade show floors can be merciless to the unprepared foot!

AG

[Nor Alien]

Woot I like it!!!! Im thinking the avatars are more representative of CE2 maybe.........?

[Coelacanth]

All this "10x10 booths are large enough" blah-hooey...you're kidding yourselves if you think this is the appropriate way to showcase your game. A single lonely decrepit laptop and a stool. I mean cripes, there isn't even separate PCs for the demonstrator and viewers! Even if the booth is only 10 x 10, where is the necessary hardware to properly showcase the goods?!?!

I can see it now:

-MindArk official standing behind the laptop, neck craning over the screen, bumping foreheads with the closest of half-a-dozen semi-interested visitors clustered around the screen, trying to see wtf is going on...plinky little AM-radio audio squeaking out of the integrated speakers...ohhh yeah, baby!

Yeah. It's all good. You'd have more success trying to bob for apples with 6 other people's heads trying to bob in the same bucket.

[AlphaGeek]

Oh I never said it was large enough. LOL

I'm just saying "Any exposure is good."

...unless callous enough to expose yourself to kids in the grocery store or something like that. LOL

[Dion Red Strike]

Originally Posted by Coelacanth

All this "10x10 booths are large enough" blah-hooey...you're kidding yourselves if you think this is the appropriate way to showcase your game. A single lonely decrepit laptop and a stool. I mean cripes, there isn't even separate PCs for the demonstrator and viewers! Even if the booth is only 10 x 10, where is the necessary hardware to properly showcase the goods?!?!

I can see it now:

-MindArk official standing behind the laptop, neck craning over the screen, bumping foreheads with the closest of half-a-dozen semi-interested visitors clustered around the screen, trying to see wtf is going on...plinky little AM-radio audio squeaking out of the integrated speakers...ohhh yeah, baby!

Yeah. It's all good. You'd have more success trying to bob for apples with 6 other people's heads trying to bob in the same bucket.

Have you ever been to a serious trade show?

I can tell you that if this display stand is used for showing off the platform to potential partners, it is perfect. You are probably thinking that this owuld be for huge game shows... I agree, not a great idea for a huge game convention/conference/show... but for what it is for, small things, it is perfect...

Just out of curiosity Coalacanth, has MA ever done anything you didn't have an objection to?

[Coelacanth]

Originally Posted by Dion Red Strike

Have you ever been to a serious trade show?

I can tell you that if this display stand is used for showing off the platform to potential partners, it is perfect. You are probably thinking that this owuld be for huge game shows... I agree, not a great idea for a huge game convention/conference/show... but for what it is for, small things, it is perfect...

Just out of curiosity Coalacanth, has MA ever done anything you didn't have an objection to?

Indeed I have, Dion. I used to do hardware validation for Matrox's digital video capture equipment, primarily the DigiSuite and RT2000/RT2500 equipment, and we did shows in NAB (Vegas, in case you didn't know) and Amsterdam; though I didn't go to those shows, we used the same showcase in various local shows in Montreal, and I was involved with the setup/tear-down.

[hooters]

Originally Posted by Coelacanth

All this "10x10 booths are large enough" blah-hooey...you're kidding yourselves if you think this is the appropriate way to showcase your game. A single lonely decrepit laptop and a stool. I mean cripes, there isn't even separate PCs for the demonstrator and viewers! Even if the booth is only 10 x 10, where is the necessary hardware to properly showcase the goods?!?!

You have to think about the amount of people and Mindark reps. that will be at the booth as well. They need place to move. Sure, they can have 2-3 big screens and 2-3 laptops with stands... but, no one will be able to see anything.

I think it's decent, and at least MA is attending the events. They could just skip all the small events and only go to the big ones. And like someone said before, i think the background needs to represent the game a little more (Where are the robots?). The background basically tells me, "Hey, i get to have an avatar, dress him/her up and chat."

[Coelacanth]

Originally Posted by hooters

You have to think about the amount of people and Mindark reps. that will be at the booth as well. They need place to move. Sure, they can have 2-3 big screens and 2-3 laptops with stands... but, no one will be able to see anything.

And one single laptop, no big screens, and a single stool *helps* everyone see anything?! Hmm your post seems to contradict itself.

I agree with your point on MA attending smaller shows, good on them for that, but I'd love to see them represent a lot better than this. Get real, people; how many people are going to simply pass right by without a second glance, due to the lack of visibility and "eye candy"? A show like this is a way to SELL YOURSELF, and this just won't cut it on the showfloor.