Hello my dear GS friends!

I'm sorry that I did not spend a lot time here during the past weeks. I missed most of your blogs and also today I feel too tired to stay for a long time. I'm sure that condition will improve once I got used to my new life.

Like I told you I finished my studies on Media IT and am now a Master of Science. Three days after my final exam I started to work in my new job. I'm a software developer (C and Java) now. My company earns money with software for big German gas companies. Not the most exciting branch of trade but it is well paid and the C code is funny

I had to travel to Berlin a lot to get some lessons on the code. Those who travel have stories to tell and I have this one for you:
I went by train in the first cIass and played some N+ on my DS. That's when the stewardess stepped in and asked me "Bist du erste Klasse?" which means "Are you first cIass" in the informal colloquial form you may use for friends and children. I was wondering about the form she used to address me. I'm 23. She probably thought I was younger, maybe 17? It was still not very polite.
I said that I am first cIass and she left.
A couple of minutes later she came back to sell food and drinks. And then she asked me "Did your parents give you money, so you can buy yourself something to eat or drink?" What??! That's a question you can ask a twelve year old!! But not somebody over fourteen. And surely no one at the age of 23! I don't look that young! I did not have to show my passport for years! My only explanation for this is the DS. It is probably still seen as a pure children's toy by many adults.

In gaming news I played through R&C: Quest for Booty - it's good but since it is the same as all the other R&C games before I still felt kinda bored.
I bought the Orange Box to play Portal. I have to say I expected more from the hype but I'm only half way through. Maybe it will get more exciting.
And we (EiRoGGe and me) do now own Guitar Hero. We waited a long time for a cheap offer but it was worth it.

Thank you for reading! I'll visit your blogs soon!
Mog

In the time shortly after the GC newspapers and magazines are filled with related content. I have three selected quotes for you (all translated).

"It is terrifying how many freaks are walking around here. Most of them are nice and only want a picture. But sometimes they are making strange body noises."
~ Booth Babe Linda at the GC in an Interview for GC Today
Aren't you paid for being nice to your guests? I mean the only readers of this are the GC guests.

"The distribution costs of a game are not determinant for its price. The development costs are."
~Uwe Bassendowski, Sony Computer Entertainment Germany
And now explain again why the European prices are so much higher compared to the US prices?

"We are not leaving because the GC in Leipzig is doing bad but because it is too successful for Leipzig."
~Lorber, Speaker for EA on the movement of the fair to Cologne
Well, thanks.

Today was the last day of the Leipzig Games Convention and again I had a lot of fun. We played the new Viva Pinata, Banjo-Kazooie, Spore, Mirror's Edge and some more Little Big Planet and Streetfighter (I'm still proud on my crazy finishing move that filled the whole screen with purple energy). We got Guild Wars t-shirts and witnessed an NCsoft costume contest with a lot of high quality GW and Tabula Rasa costumes. We also paid more attention to the hall with educational expositions and retro games. I played an extremely old game made by MB which worked on a white-on-black vector screen. The game was basically Geometry Wars and was already fun back then.

If you have read my older blog post or the news you know that this was supposed to be the last Games Convention in Leipzig. It will be moved to Cologne. Sony made me almost cry when they placed a huge crying sack boy (real water from a spring) on the Augustus square on a box with the text "Der Abschied fällt schwer" (meaning "It's hard to say goodbye"). Thank you Sony, that's kind! ;_;
Not so kind: Someone made posters with the text "Game Over - GamesCOM 2009 in Cologne" and placed them over our GC posters.

However since the GC was so successful this year (10% growth) it seems like there will be another GC here in 2009! According to market research only 10% of the exhibitors want that the fair leaves Leipzig. Unfortunately they are the big ones (EA). I can imagine that the fair in Cologne will be more expensive (for exhibitors and visitors - current tickets are 12 euro for a day) and that smaller publishers don't want to pay more.

Currently the GC is a cooperation between the Leipzig trade fair and an association of 12 publishers (out of hundred who attended this year's GC). The association decided this year to move the trade fair to Cologne. Everyone else isn't that happy and now it looks like there are going to be two events next years. The games convention in Leipzig and the GamesCOM in Cologne. Will that be a good thing? And how will the fight end? I don't know but my position is clear. Of course it is good for the people around Cologne to have the event there and I can understand that they are happy about it but we invented and established the convention and don't want it to be taken away for no real reason.

You know after almost 20 years German unity East and West Germany are still split. We get a lot lower wages here and many West Germans still have prejudices that the East Germans are lazy and don't do anything right. But once we establish something here it is taken away. No need to say that the GC with over 200 000 visitors has an impact on our economy. So I hope the best. Viva Games Convention!

And now I have finally time to read your posts.