Erika Allen
THOSE unmistakably chirpy sounds synonymous with the Mario Kart video game franchise echoed through the Yarram Regent Theatre on Saturday, February 24, marking the first annual Pulsar Gaming Convention.
The free convention welcomed over 130 people through its doors, who grabbed a commemorative wrist band on their way in and left with huge smiles on their faces.
The event, organised by six-month-old youth organisation Quill and Shield Gippsland, was supported by the Wellington Shire, FReeZa, Headspace Sale, and Level-Up gaming – a Horsham-based group run by childhood friends Beau Ladlow and Andrew Hynes.
Mr Hynes said that the event perfectly embodied Level-Up’s ethos, which is to make gaming technology accessible to everyone all “for the love of gaming”.
“Growing up, Beau and I, we loved gaming … but we didn’t have a lot of accessibility to games. So now, as we get older it’s been fun to share this love and make this an opportunity for people (to use new gaming technology),” Mr Hynes said.
Level-Up provided a variety of consoles and hardware, including Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo Switch, Wii, retro games and Virtual Reality headsets.
The event was something the historic Regent Theatre had never witnessed before.
Mesmerised kids and parents were laser-focused on seven large screens around the theatre as they played Mario Kart, FIFA, and NBA 2K.
Some looked more relaxed as they sank into the comfy retro velveteen couches, while others were on the edge of their seats; fathers tense with competitive nostalgia, while their wide-eyed kids not looking to be bested by their parents.
By far the most impressive set-up of the day was a giant screen encompassing centre-stage, split into four quadrants depicting fast-paced Mario Kart action.
Reaching the most coveted position in the theatre proved a challenge though, given the maze of VR headset-rocking kids, engrossed in virtual worlds.
Other than state of the art gaming technology, attendees could also play board games and unwind in a sensory room courtesy of Headspace Sale, that was equipped with puzzles, colouring in, and a giant game of tic-tac-toe.
Jack Langdon is the co-chair of Quill and Shield Gippsland, a youth organisation that aspires to positively impact young adults by creating inclusive events.
He mentioned that the event, meticulously organised by Quill and Shield’s 10-member team, needed to be inclusive, exciting, and engaging for anyone who walked through the doors.
“Gaming isn’t just for a certain group of people, so we wanted to make it as broad and as inviting as possible for people,” he said.
With the resounding success and overwhelmingly positive feedback from attendees, Mr Langdon expressed the event’s commitment to expanding and incorporating even more opportunities in the future.
“We are hoping to expand this event, so we’ve got more focus on different types of games. Obviously, we’ve got a whole bunch of video games and Level-Up have been great. But we also hope to get different types of games like board games and then also, we were hoping to embrace a little bit of cosplay,” he said.
Not even a princess-stealing Bowser could thwart the success of the inaugural Pulsar Gaming Convention – because it was as super as Mario.
