Kelly Ho | Staff Writer
The biggest gaming event this spring was held on Saturday, Mar. 8, in the GC Ballrooms, featuring multiple competitions, food, vendors, special guests, panel discussions and much more.
These guests included Alienware and Peter Raymundo, a former Disney animator who is famous for working on classics like “Mulan”, “Lilo and Stitch., and “The Princess and the Frog”.
Alienware Staff (check out one of their twitches) @aw_vigo | Kelly Ho, PantherNow
Tournaments included games like Beat Saber, and Smash Ultimate, and cosplay tournaments were played.
The prizes for these tournaments included items ranging from a blanket and a goodie bag with FIU merch and even 2 tickets to an otaku fest for the top three winners.
Winner of the Beat Saber competition with an x700 combo | Kelly Ho, PantherNow
Multiple FIU clubs also attended, introducing students to their organizations. Students also had the opportunity to purchase unique snacks from Japan, boba drinks, and merchandise.
Claudia Santiago, majoring in animation and President of the Mages Club, talks about their club.
“Our club is for people who are interested in animation, storytelling, or even for a hobby. We want to extend more opportunities in creating projects and for students to learn about our program. Our program is learning how to create new models and 3D effects. We have another event at the end of April if anyone wants to showcase their own films or videos, feel free to come.”
The Mages Club with Claudia Santiago | Kelly Ho, PantherNow
Other clubs like FIU Esports, WiCS, Total Party Kill, Crit, Geek Culture Club, and FIU Online told students about their upcoming events and their organization. Panel discussions were also made to introduce the varsity captains of different games at FIU including Valorant, Rocket League, and Mario Kart.
FIU Varsity Captains for FIU Esports, FIU Esports Pink, Rocket League, and Mario Kart | Kelly Ho, PantherNow
The event also had new creators showing off their games, with Pedro Gurerra, speaker for Game Development and majoring in electrical engineering, showing off their game that’s available on Steam, “Elsie”.
Student trying out Elsie | Kelly Ho, PantherNow
“Our game has been in development for eight years and is available on Steam, PS5, and the Switch. It is a 2d pixel art road-like action platform that’s single-player. We’re currently planning to release more games in the future, check us out on Twitter to learn more about us.”
The event also had different areas around campus for Gamehers and Dungeon and Dragons, in which students can play board games, Just Dance, Kpop dances, take Polaroids and learn more about their clubs.
Luke Becerra, majoring in Public Relations and a Committee member for FIU Esports, talked about the purpose of this event.
“We wanted to connect with students and create a positive experience for them. We also aimed to support new clubs like Gamehers and help students learn more about these organizations.”
FIU Gamehers | Kelly Ho, PantherNow
Overall, students had a blast at the Panthers Game Expo, which featured various tournaments, games, vendors, special guests, and clubs, students were able to enjoy various forms of entertainment.
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