At PAX 07, Bioshock wasn't really that big of a thing. The demo had been out for quite a while, and the game just came out that week. It didn't really need advertising or a large presence. There was a life-sized Big Daddy statue and several demo units, but that was about it.
This year, Bioshock 2 had a pretty small presence, but what they had was rather unique. 2k Game hired a chalk artist to sketch a poster in front of the main halls. Throughout the entire weekend, the artist worked on transposing the tiny print into a massive 8 foot mural.
Earlier in the year, Jhonen Vasquez, creator of Johnny the Homicidal Maniac, Squee, and Invader Zim, drew a picture that captured the twisted essence of the little sisters and their bigger guardians.
2k Games brought Vasquez to Comic-Con in July (even though he would already be there for Slave Labor Graphics), and they did the same with PAX. On Saturday, from 2pm to 4pm, Vasquez sat in Andrew Ryan's office signing these prints. The one above is the one I got. ^_^
Unfortunately, Vasquez was only signing these prints and was not signing personal items. That's fine, since I didn't have any of that with me anyways. I would love his signature on the side of my Invader Zim box set, or on the inside cover of Johnny or Squee. Someday, but unfortunately, not today.
I did get my photograph taken with him... sort of.
In the background is his handler. I did ask him if Vasquez could sign anything else, but he was the one that kindly told me, "no, sorry." I chatted with him a little bit about when I might be able to get his signature and he suggested Comic Con next year. Bahh...
If you were to guess what Vasquez's handler's voice sounded like, would you think it would be a deep rough lumberjack of a voice? Perhaps a strong authoritative dialogue? I'm afraid not. His voice was straight out of Suburban Commando. Semi-high pitched, with a very rich English accent, recanted with an apologetic smile. Is that a typical voice for such a burly man in England?
I wonder if Vasquez attends comic conventions other than Comic Con. Comic Con sounds like a shit load of lines, and huge price guaging. I'm not even sure I would buy anything there, as I already have all the comics I need. Plus, I hate Superhero comics, so it probably wouldn't be fun for me.
Those two events were really the only presence of Bioshock 2 at PAX. There was a room in teh back that showed the E3 trailer over and over. Those that watched the trailer were rewarded with a Bioshock 2 posters draw by Gabe.
It's hilarious comparing Gabe's drawing to Jhonen Vasquez's print. Cute v. Creepy. Calm v. Twisted. The ying and yang of Bioshock 2 art.