E3 2000: IGN’s Final Words on Sega’s Booth

The entire article is here (no longer active), with analysis of many other booths, but we know you want the opinion on Sega’s booth, right?

Sega undeniably crushed the competition this year. From the moment you entered the cool smoke-filled tunnel sporting the declaration that “Opponents Are Everywhere,” you knew something was special about the booth. However, upon making our way into the booth, we realized that opponents weren’t alone. Games were everywhere this year, and Sega could have easily let them do all the talking.

However, they didn’t stop there. Not only did they boast an incredible number of awesome titles, but they did so in style the booth itself was nothing short of a spectacle, featuring three primary areas: An enclosed tunnel of sorts dedicated to the soon-to-be-launched Sega.com and the Online gaming content of SegaNet. This area was jam-packed with titles and of course, gamers eager to see how this whole is going to work. Visual Concept’s early offerings were quite impressive despite some lag, and Quake 3 Arena was also a crowd favorite. The browser also made an appearance, though we were too busy checking out new games to mess around with the ‘Net. That and we took home a copy, so we’d have plenty of time for that later.

The next big area was a slammin’ stage show, that featured everything from A sexy Space Channel 5 step-show to a Jet Grind Radio exhibition of rollerblading dancers set to game footage and a thumping Rob Zombie track. These shows ran throughout the expo, and the stage was also used for presentations by Sega developers, game tournaments, and even a mini-rave at the closing of the show. Let me tell ya, VP of Third Party Neal Robison shakes it like a white boy.

Last but certainly not least, the majority of the booth was all about the games. As we mentioned earlier, over 100 titles filled the booth, and almost everywhere you looked, the line was at least two deep for every title, from Jet Grind Radio to Mr. Driller. Heck, the lines were so bad at some kiosks, I had to wait until day 3 to even get a look, much less a playtest.

The overall effect was awesome, and it was pretty obvious Sega’s booth was the place to be.