PAX Prime Postmortem (by Robert)

I wanted to check in with my review of our trip: an assessment of where I think we’re at with this RV thing.

What Went Right:

You have no idea how awesome it is to ride on this RV. It is engineered perfectly towards a singular purpose: being a perfect atmosphere for a geek on the road. If you want to play vidjagames, check. If you want to watch a movie or TV show, check (provided you can convince one other person to join you). If you want to sleep, there’s room for one or two people to attempt that scenario. If you want to read, no one’s stopping you.

There came times, about once every 24 hours, where a grin spread across my face at the realization of what a great time I was having. If I wasn’t experiencing a fungasm, it was most likely because I was awash with contentment or relaxation.

Every project we undertook for this trip bore fruit. The Bunk TV was an unmitigated success. I rocked Borderlands and Shadow Complex on this TV, and there really is no better way to play a game, in my opinion. We showed this apparatus to many people, and although the ridiculousness of it is immediately apparent, the true measure of its awesomeness is in just how practical and comfortable it is. Understanding this requires time with the device.

The total comfort of the sleeping situation was made possible by the inclusion of the single bunk bed, although I would have been perfectly happy with far less posh amenities. I slept on the top bunk each night, and that mofo could not have been better engineered or implemented. Solid as all get-out. Another unmitigated success.

Room for Improvement:

On the trip, we at R2P are on the lookout for any ways in which we could “fix” the experience or carry it to the next level. This trip rocked, but nothing is ever perfect. Everything may be made better through conscious effort and a healthy sense of self-one-upsmenship.

First, our storage situation seemed to be at a maximum, and I certainly wish I would have brought a spare bag for the swag/dirty clothes I accumulated. More storage or tighter packing may be in order for PAX East. We’ll see what’s possible there.

We also noticed a few things that broke or needed improvement (like the ledge behind the couch, the weather stripping on one of the outer storage spaces, or the charging area that somehow kept getting drenched in SoftSoap). The ledge will be a tricky project that should also remedy the cup-holder situation that has plagued us, so that should be a priority.

Aside from technical problems with the RV, the whole R2P experience should be working towards a larger goal. We at R2P are huge fans of the Child’s Play charity (childsplaycharity.org), so maybe there is someway to leverage our unique situation into cash-money for a worthy cause. We are looking into several angles regarding this, hopefully this will bear fruit. Any suggestions you may have, let us know!

In any event, we have several months and several nerds, so this $#!+ is gonna get realz.

In summary, I had probably the best time of my life on this trip. The whole package was necessary: The 4800 mile road-trip and the convention. I loved hanging with my friends, meeting new folks and experiencing the expo in the way I chose. Mike and Jerry deserve their success and earn my admiration many times over every time they open their mouths, and I thank them for fostering this community event. Many thanks to them, the Enforcers, the concert performers, the industry professionals and the 67,000+ attendees. See you at PAX East.