Since this is such a major Pokemon event, there is Pokejunk everywhere. Giant inflatable Pokemon, people in Pokemon costumes (like, official costumes), banners, giveaways... we keep hitting the Pokemon booth for free stickers and pencils. Right as I type this there's a huge Pikachu balloon hanging from the ceiling staring right at me.

Clark wants to sit down at every demo table, because he sees the cards and boards and the empty chairs. He demoed Pokemon because the demo guy asked if he wanted to learn to play and Clark said yes. So he sat down and Rhonda helped. He sat very still and drew cards from the deck when prompted, on the promise of getting a free lollipop. It was great fun, but I can't believe a demo guy would ask a three-year-old that question. But then again, "get 'em early" has always been Pokemon's motto.

The Pokebooth was handing out promo cards, a Shellos with an Origins logo in the card art.

Our compatriots this year include Mike, Chris and Alex. Alex is 11 and he and I spent a lot of today talking Pokemon Diamond/Pearl.

We sat for demos of both Naruto and the new(ish) Dragon Ball Z card games. TCGs are always a little thick for a good demo. You have all the terminology to learn, the phases of play. You have to be hardcore to grasp it right away. But we did them... because they were handing out free starter decks as your reward. The Naruto half also had piles of free cards, and free boosters and more if you could randomly select a Naruto card from a heap of facedown cards. Clark won a free booster.

Did the Pokemon miniatures game, which is in its second year of release and still only encompasses one-and-a-half editions. Seems to me like it's already a failure, but Pokemon USA is strong enough that they can afford to demo it. It's actually a pleasant enough game. I already have a bag of them, scored for cheap at various online stores, so now I may indeed try to play it.

Some company we never heard of had some interesting stuff, including a Apples to Apple-ish party game called Rorshach where you have to match other players' opinions on various ink blots. I guess. We looked at - but did not play - a game with one of those blatant pander-to-the-audience titles: Toboggans of Doom. I don't know who gets excited about that kind of junk, "Killer Bunnies" har har har. They always remind me of the lamest videos on America's Funniest Home Videos, the kind that are only funny if you know the person falling off the dock. Anyway, Toboggans seemed okay. I liked the art.

Right next door to the Rorshach guys was this intense game called Blasphemy, where the players all play potential Jesii in biblical times. Whoever gathers enough followers and makes it to the cross gets to be the Messiah. It's probably really funny, but it's also $100. It was a big game, in its defense. Although I was a little scared that it was an educational religious exercise in disguise. At these things, there's always some poor unattended booth with some small potatoes company hawking an ill-conceived religious game. Always. Like that's what people want. So Blasphemy is either that game in wolf's clothing, or it's the $100 antidote to those games.

I always feel terrible walking by those small-small-small press outfits (particularly the ones that do not cost a hundred dollars.) One fat guy with his handmade game... the cheap ones on pure black & white paper, some with little wooden playing pieces. Their eyes radiating confidence, but their posture already sunken with defeat. As we walked by, one of them called out "You guys like space games?" No sir, we don't.

Out of the Box offers discounts to teachers, and we had two in our party. So Fourhman.home now has 10 Days in Asia (a very nice, easy-to-grasp board game) and Tutankhamun, still riding on Clark's fascination with King Tut. Both for $20, when 10 Days in Asia usually sells for $25 just by itself. Yay teaching! Summers off AND cheap games!

Did not get to demo Humans!!! today; there was always a crowd whenever we happened by. Hopefully tomorrow. They had a zombie mannequin propped up that Clark would not sit next to for a picture.