Pwned = June 6 launch
The Local Access Network video game center – Pwned by name – is coming to Rochester is looking at a June 6 launch at at 212 N. Broadway in Rochester, beween Dison’s Cleaners and Nelson Cheese Factory.
That the former home of Livingstyle, a home decor and gift store that closed in 2006.
Spearheading this project is professional video game legend Randy "Nomad" Fitzgerald, who lives in Rochester. I have a series of stories about him the weekend edition, but here's some from a couple of them:
Randy Fitzgerald plays to win.
“I don’t believe in letting up,” says the professional video gamer and designer-in-training. “If anybody let up on me, I’d be crushed. … I’d be hurt. … I’d be upset. I’m just as good as anybody else, and I want to prove it.”
Fitzgerald of Rochester, whose gaming name is Nomad, has done more than prove he is as good as anyone else. In online and face-to-face tournaments with cash prizes on the line, he has proved that he can dominate.
His defeated opponents know him as an online game legend. What many don’t know is that Fitzgerald was born without the use of his arms and legs.
All his playing is done with his mouth and chin.
and
It’s a vision that’s coming into focus for trio of professional video gamers, who are gearing up to open a center in Rochester: teams of video gamers competing head-to-head on the latest hardware to win prizes and status in a relaxed and “positive” atmosphere.
The owners of Pwned (pronounced like “powned”) gaming center, named after video-gamer slang for dominating an opponent, foresee people paying to play, participating in competitions and having spectators com to watch.
“It is a newer version of the arcade,” says co-founder Matthew Kasharian, who was born in 1985. That’s the year Nintendo released its first home gaming console. “I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t playing games,” says the military police officer in the Virginia National Guard.
He has joined forces with Randy Fitzgerald and Andrew Montgomery to launch Pwned.
The hardware will include 10 Dell SPX computers with 22 inch monitors, eight X-Box systems, two PlayStation 3s and a Nintendo Wii hooked up with a high-definition screen projector.
They hope to have at least three tournaments a week, with players competing in games like CounterStrike and Super Smash Bros. Prizes will include personalized game equipment, play time and money.
LAN == Local Area Network.
And it's hardly "the" only one.
Posted by: cabbey | May 10, 2008 at 03:15 AM
It is the only one corporately backed. Some of their main sponsors are Microsoft, Dell, Valve, and Wizards of the Coast. Besides, I heard Area 51 doesn't do tournaments or support the community in any way. On Area 51's message board people were begging them to run Counter-Strike tournaments. They are not catering to their customers at all. The Rochester Gamers Community has asked Area 51 to be more involved with their group but they never got involved. Pwned on the other hand did. Area 51 on a Friday night was completely dead. Besides, I thought Area 51's main business was building computers and selling ISP's. I'm sure Area 51 will be fine. And if they think this is going to cause a problem for them, maybe they can make some deal with Pwned and somehow do joint-friendly rivalry and competitions. You know what they say, " if you can't beat them, join them."
Posted by: Tom | May 10, 2008 at 03:55 PM
wow..just wow tom..but true
Posted by: tom's lover | May 10, 2008 at 04:03 PM
I play in Randy's online clan on X-Box Live (Equal Oppurtunity Gaming) and what these guys are doing is pretty amazing. Figuring that they are opening this LAN center and running the clan very well at the same time.
Posted by: TH3 AFT3RSHOCK | May 11, 2008 at 07:42 PM
I'll give it 6 months. Not that I don't like the idea, I've been gaming for longer than the owners have been alive....just don't think that this community will support it.
Posted by: Fred Jones | May 11, 2008 at 11:17 PM
Well Fred if it was JUST a LAN Center, I'd 100% agree with you, but its a video game store/card shop too. You'll be able to buy the newest games etc. Don't say they'll fail if you dont know all the facts. ;)
Posted by: Tom | May 12, 2008 at 07:25 AM
Will they fail? There's always the chance, but I don't think it will happen. Pwned has a good business plan that I have seen so far. They have a lot of great determination behind those plans. They are also bringing something new to the table to make sure they have some type of niche (specifically the custom maps for high level tournament play). They've also have a great presence in the community so far and I'm sure they will expand it. They've also done some awesome demos of things to come for Rochester Gamers' Community and being one of the people that sat in on those demos, I can tell you the drool factor alone was impressive. ;-} I look forward to having Pwned not only in the community, but at the upcoming gaming convention. I also look forward to working with them in the future.
Posted by: JKing | May 12, 2008 at 03:22 PM