Doom 2-gunners, cosplayers, mechanics, and all kinds of nerds will invade Dürer Kert on this Saturday, as one of Hungary's most important retro game- and console-related celebrations will take place there: PixelCon. Hosted by Insert Coin Club, an organization formed by like-minded geeks, it is a one-day festival where you can find everything from repair stations to Commodores, from workshops to gamer standups, from deathmatches to concerts. But if you cannot attend, fear not: there are plenty of other places where your inner geek can have the time of his/her life.
On Saturday, May 14th, PixelCon consists of two parts, both happening at
Dürer Kert: one that lasts from 2pm until 9pm, and another that blasts into the night. During the latter pixilated proceedings, your new local and international chippylectric friends will perform, aka Real Giana Brothers, Dunderpatrullen, and SIDnify, all making gamers go wild with their take on the chiptune genre, arcade game soundtracks, and all the different kinds of bleeps and bloops. But before that, you can already get electrified through all the different consoles and programs that the one-day festival offers: Wizards Of Wor showdowns, Doom 2 deathmatches, Dice & Sorcery workshops, cosplay championships, and the ATARIan M3MB3Rrr show are just the tip of the digital iceberg. There will be a separate room for consoles: Commodores, handheld and arcade controllers, a retro PC LAN section, and so on – but there will be a free TV to which you can plug in whatever gadget you’ve got. Not to mention that plenty of Hungarian stores will have a stand at PixelCon, so refill your wallet before visiting it! But if you can’t come, don’t feel bad: there are plenty of other Budapest-based pixilated places which can always feel like homecoming for a real geek.
Another spot where gamers feel like home is BarCraft, the first esport bar of Budapest, located in the Corvin Quarter. Live-gaming streams are screened nonstop on the big screen TVs, and the interior is decorated with various figures, cool posters and monitor-friendly dimmer lights. So all you have to do is open your laptop, put on your headphones, drink one the place’s signature drinks (inspired by MMORPG-characters) and dive into the world of League Of Legends, Warcraft, StarCraft, or Heartstone. (But of course, other games are welcomed too.) They’ve recently opened their second place in District VI at Bajcsy-Zsilinszky 59, which is a clear sign of the rising popularity of what they do. Also, soon you’ll be able to pay with Bitcoin here, which is a pretty sweet solution if you are running low on cash.
And to take it even more old-school, discover Europe’s largest ongoing interactive pinball exhibition located in the Hungarian capital.
It features the predecessors of pinball machines from the end of the 19th century to the most state-of-the-art pinball tables of the 21st century – more than 130 machines covering nearly 400 square meters. If you get hungry while trying all the different machines, you can have a sandwich, some chips, and wash it down with one of the 60 different kinds of soft drinks. You only have to pay the entrance fee (2,500 HUF) and after that, you have unlimited gameplay time on all of the machines – including a Super Mario Bros pinball for the younger generation. (There is also a podium for them, so they can reach all the machines.)
If your heart starts beating faster when you hear Time Crisis or The House Of The Dead, Gozsdu Courtyard in the heart of downtown is your destination! Not because you can get caught up in a real-life shooting scene, but because there is a hidden arcade games cave under BeerCo, with many machines ready to swallow your coins and offer thrilling fun in return. Not to mention that there is always something going on there, so you might go there for the games, but stay for another thing!
