Hours before the exhibit opened to the public, Wargamers gathered forces to help with last minute details for our booth. From senior management to staff, our tankers spread out around the both to help fold the thousands of t-shirts to be given away during the event. This type of Wargaming collaboration set the tone for PAX Prime 2014.
World of Warships
Gamers were eager to get their first hands-on experience of World of Warships in North America. Each day lines formed around the WoWS experience room and the staff was thrilled to recognize players who had waited in line multiple times.
The response from players was astounding and we even received three separate awards from media outlets that were in attendance:
- Curse — Most Realistic Graphics
- MMO Games — Best in Show
- MORPG — Rising Star Award
Activities
To keep our players engaged while visiting our booth and for those at home, several activities were held on stage and livestreamed on the Wargaming Twitch channel:
You’ve Been Spotted
At PAX, Cosplay is extremely popular. This year our Wargamers walked around the expo and handed out 15 “You’ve Been Spotted” cards each day to surprise Cosplay gamers. The cards enabled gamers to spin the Prize Wheel for various prizes, such as Fury movie posters and tickets, and Wargaming swag.
Scavenger Hunt
Each day from 11 AM to 12 PM, Scavenger Hunt cards were handed out. Gamers had to visit our partners’ booths, complete an activity and have their cards punched. Once they completed the hunt, the gamers returned to our booth to be entered into the 4 PM Mega Grand Prize drawing.
Ninja, Hunter, Bear
Two participants are called up to the stage and stand with their backs facing each other. On the count of three, they turn around and strike a pose: Ninja, Hunter or Bear. Like the game Rock, Paper, Scissors, the winners are determined by the following ranking: Ninja kills Hunter, Hunter kills Bear, and Bear kills Hunter.
Quiz Show
Participants were asked three Wargaming/WWII-related questions. Prizing was determined by how many questions were answered correctly.
War Jumble
Contestants had to identify the name of a vehicle by solving the jumbled letters on a screen.
Get the Picture
Participants had to guess the name of a vehicle based on two images displayed on screen.
WGLNA Season 4 Finals Upset
At the WGLNA Season 4 Finals held on August 30th in Seattle, gamers and spectators witnessed a major upset. With each match of intense, hard-fought battle of skill and teamwork between World of Tanks pros, #RU emerged victorious, prevailing over SIMP 1:0 and earning $50,000 of the $83,000 total prize pool. The runner-up team was awarded $25,000.The third-place winner, RBIS, who came out on top in the match against Fnatic left with $8,000.
Over 70,000 eSports fans tuned in to watch the tournament on Twitch.
#RU stopped by PAX on Sunday for an on-stage Q&A and photos. When asked how if felt after winning, #RU said “Surprised. Since we were the underdog, we went into the finals relaxed. We weren’t focused on winning. The cards just played out.” The team has played together for 8 months. Their winning strategy? “We tried to make our opponents play ‘our game’. Going into the finals with no expectation of winning—it was a beautiful moment.”