While music and movies usually spring to mind at the thought of the annual South by Southwest festival, one organization is hoping to add a new aspect to the festivities: gaming.
This year marks the second appearance of ScreenBurn, Austin's own gaming expo. For four days, both local and national industry players will give their views on developments in the field of gaming. The concurrent ScreenBurn Arcade will give those interested a chance to play the newest games and compete in special events, including tournaments and facing off with professional gamers, according to the ScreenBurn Web site.
Perhaps most important for ScreenBurn is its lineup of speakers. The ScreenBurn Web site details this year's 20-panel lineup, with talent from local developers including GameCamp! and Pixel Mine, along with renowned industry figures such as Warren Spector and Will Wright.
Wright, designer of games such as Maxis' "SimCity," "The Sims" and the upcoming "Spore," will deliver the keynote speech for ScreenBurn Tuesday. Wright, who appeared in media ranging from Time Magazine to "The Colbert Report" over the past year, is making waves with his work on "Spore," a game in which players will guide life forms up from the cellular level to space-faring civilizations as they see fit.
Meanwhile, ScreenBurn Arcade plans to provide gamers with opportunities to test their mettle. This year the festival will play host to the southern division of the EVO Championship Series, a fighting game tournament, according to the Web site.
The tournament will take place on Saturday and Sunday and include such games as "Virtual Fighter 5" and "Super Smash Bros: Melee." Online registration is still open for the tournament, and prizes of $1,000 per game, as well as a chance to advance to the EVO World Finals in Las Vegas, are up for grabs.
Also attending Screenburn Arcade will be the Frag Dolls, a team of all-female professional gamers recruited by developer Ubisoft. The group will play Ubisoft's "Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2" against all attendees up to the challenge during their four days at the event. Prizes for gamers skilled enough to win include T-shirts and games.
Screenburn Arcade will take place Saturday through Tuesday on the first floor of the Austin Convention Center and is open to the public free of charge.
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