Happy to Host So Many Special Guests!

This year played host to numerous special guests that we were thrilled to have with us. From the Premier Sites and other sponsors hosting booths upstairs, to our friends from the Square Enix Members' website, there was plenty to see and do, and even more friends of ours to meet and greet!

Our Premier Site guests hosted their own booths on the 3rd floor throughout the event. Many of them even created special giveaways to hand out, like FFXIclopedia's stickers and FFVault's cool business-style cards. However, the main function of the booths was to serve as meeting spots for community members to meet the people behind-the-scenes of these immensely popular sites. The community managers of the sites met a lot of their own users and were happy to snap photos, exchange war stories, and welcome attendees to the show.

The hardworking men and women of the popular podcasts Pet Food Alpha and Limit Break Radio were also hosting booths this year. Though much of their time was spent roaming the show floor and obtaining sound bites from developers and attendees alike, a good portion of the day they could be found in their respective booths, talking about their passion for FFXI. Each of the two podcasts also brought along business cards and other assorted goodies to hand out to those interested.

Scott Ramsoomair, creator of the popular FFXI comic "Adventure Log," also set up shop at Fan Festival 2008. Every attendee's Gobbiebag came with a random issue of Adventurer Log inside so that eager fans could visit Scott's booth and have him autograph it, and maybe even scribble a unique sketch! Scott was kept busy all day with all the requests he received, but he found time to host a short panel on the main stage where he signed and sketched live on camera. Scott left Fan Festival 2008 energized to get back to work on the latest Adventure Log after meeting so many loyal fans!

The Square Enix Members' team was very excited to meet with the FFXI fans this year as well. They provided every attendee with a voucher which could be redeemed for a beautiful drawing by FFXI Art Director Ryosuke Aiba. Current Square Enix Members and those wishing to join needed only provide the voucher to claim their prize. The ease of the process and the amazing gift no doubt contributed to the high volume of traffic which could be witnessed at the Members' area throughout the festival!

Another demonstration on hand for all to experience was recently released "The Last Remnant," available to play on the XBOX 360. Two consoles were set up for attendees to explore this vast new world and try their hands at the exciting new combat system. Throughout the day we continued to hear positive comments from players eager to pick up their own copies after the event!

Cooler Master set up a very impressive booth in the Sponsor area. The staff at the show even brought along extra prizes to give out at random! Attendees would continuously flock back to the booth in troves at pre-determined times for the chance to win some cool prizes, such as case fans and other goods. Our friends at Wired Talent also hosted a booth so they could meet attendees expressing an interest in working at Square Enix. They took down information for possible follow-ups and gave out information on what kind of opportunities players could expect should they come to work behind-the-scenes on their favorite game!

Last, but certainly not least, was the Square Enix Merchandise group, those tireless peddlers of breathtaking new FFXI goods. Fan Festival played host to the debut of the imposing Shadow Lord statue, the FFXI Card Case, and Moblin and Mandragora key chains. In addition to the new goods, the return of the classic three nation rings and key chains were also on sale. The menacing effigies of the Shadow Lord found new homes to subjugate, and the stately nation rings happy new digits to adorn, and all was well. Overall, many attendees went home with some impressive new souvenirs to commemorate their time spent at Fan Festival 2008.