Meet Yahtzee at PAX, Get Stuff

Susan Arendt

Nerd Queen
Jan 9, 2007
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Meet Yahtzee at PAX, Get Stuff

Odds are pretty good that what first brought you to The Escapist was a fast-talking brit with a sweet hat and a chip on his shoulder. Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw is pretty famous around these parts, but he's not exactly the warm and cuddly type. He doesn't comment in the threads for his videos, he rarely answers fan mail, and he's hardly ever seen outside his home of Australia.

And now you have the chance to make him dance like a monkey at your command. Commence cackling with evil glee and/or stroking a white Persian cat.

Ok, the dancing is a bit of an exaggeration, but you can make him hang out with you, put you in one of his videos, or even review your game.

The Seattle or Bust campaign [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/content/seattleorbust] has a very simple goal: pry Yahtzee out of his Australian lair and fly him out to PAX Prime. In exchange for your contributions, you can receive everything from a limited edition, autographed poster to a seat at Yahtzee's VIP table at our PAX Prime Super Colossal Meet Up of Excellence and Wonder.

Even if you can't attend PAX Prime this year, your contributions can still net you some sweet swag. Been dying to ask Yahtzee something? Just $10 will get you the chance. (JRPG fans, this could be your time to shine.)

Keep in mind, this campaign only lasts 15 days, so if you want to participate, you'll have to hurry! If we exceed our campaign goals, The Escapist has some exciting plans for Yahtzee and our East Coast community. So stay tuned for blog updates if that happens!

KEEP IN MIND: The Escapist is NOT providing tickets to PAX 2011, nor are they paying for your trip in any way. Sorry! Full disclosure: The campaign goal includes travel, lodging for Yahtzee and Escapist staff, securing community meet-up venue and hard costs for production of merchandise and other rewards.

UPDATE: There's been some confusion about what exactly we're trying to achieve. As any of you that have seen us at PAX know, we typically only send a small contingent of Escapist staff. We're hoping to do something bigger and better for PAX Prime - a grand meet-up that includes food, beverages, and Yahtzee. This is not a charity drive. We are pre-selling merch and swag and if we hit a minimum threshold we'll make a big presence at PAX. If we don't, the orders will get cancelled, we'll have our usual spartan presence at PAX.

Check here for all the details and rewards [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/content/seattleorbust].

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Tireseas_v1legacy

Plop plop plop
Sep 28, 2009
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If the Extra Credits fundraiser is any indication, you have unleashed a monster the likes of which you have never seen before...
 

therandombear

Elite Member
Sep 28, 2009
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If I was going to PAX myself, then I'd probably donate some...but since I'm not =(

Good luck though =)
 

Susan Arendt

Nerd Queen
Jan 9, 2007
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manythings said:
Does he actually know about this? Or is that all part of the entertainment?
He's aware. There's a video on the RocketHub page that he did especially for this. :)

I have the feeling he *might* have underestimated the community's...enthusiasm, shall we say.
 

Micalas

New member
Mar 5, 2011
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Haha, that hat makes Yahtzee's avatar look like a jackass.

Maybe I can make him my slave...
 

Akytalusia

New member
Nov 11, 2010
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The Gentleman said:
If the Extra Credits fundraiser is any indication, you have unleashed a monster the likes of which you have never seen before...
i hope not. EC was for a good cause. this is just exploitation.
 

Kindberg

New member
Mar 2, 2011
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manythings said:
Does he actually know about this? Or is that all part of the entertainment?
He will never know what hit him, he won't even discover this thread!
 

Giest4life

The Saucepan Man
Feb 13, 2010
1,554
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What? Yahtzee needs my help? Quick, take my money!
Also, Seattle WA isn't where I want to go, but if I'm reading this correct, The Escapist will feature Yahtzee on East Cost tour of some sort? Because I can totally down with that.
 

Spygon

New member
May 16, 2009
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Is it me or does this sound a bit odd a website and a man that i am sure both make more money than most of us.Want us to pay for tickets to fly him to pax.

Dont get me wrong i am big fan of Yahtzee's and i think him being at Pax would be awesome but asking for people to pay the fare sounds abit odd.But if people want to do it i wont get in the way just wanted to see if anybody else was slighty confused with this.
 

MB202

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Sep 14, 2008
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I don't see why I should help him, he's kind of a prick. Plus Yahtzee doesn't really like his fans, for completely understandable reasons.
 

Mausenheimmer

New member
Feb 11, 2008
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Akytalusia said:
The Gentleman said:
If the Extra Credits fundraiser is any indication, you have unleashed a monster the likes of which you have never seen before...
i hope not. EC was for a good cause. this is just extortion.
Agreed. Instead of "Help our artist get a vital surgery she can't afford", it's "help the Escapist improve its bottom line and maybe we'll let you mingle with Yahtzee at a convention you attend". The fundraiser is certainly not to pay for the trip to for his trip to PAX Prime (unless plane trips to and from Australia now cost $20,000). It's just the Escapist trying to squeeze money out of its fans.

Also, great job spelling "Yhatzee" (sic) on the Rockethub video.
 

Tireseas_v1legacy

Plop plop plop
Sep 28, 2009
2,419
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SpiderJerusalem said:
Akytalusia said:
The Gentleman said:
If the Extra Credits fundraiser is any indication, you have unleashed a monster the likes of which you have never seen before...
i hope not. EC was for a good cause. this is just, what's the word i'm lookin' for...
A ridiculous mooching fare of the stagnating nature that gives you that warm, icky, I-desperately-need-a-shower-and-to-light-my-clothes-on-fire feeling?


That's the word I was looking for.

:edit: and yes, EC was for not just a good cause, but an important and humane one. I was overjoyed by the community when it reached the success it did.
But here's the thing, that fundraiser raised almost $90,000 for a good cause (last I checked). Imagine how much they can raise for a flippant cause. If they can get $10,000, they could fly him first class and check him in a downtown hotel.
 

de5gravity

New member
Apr 18, 2011
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I'd like to repost here a message from the rockethub comment page which I feel reflects my opinion completely.

"Frankly, it looks to me like you're jumping on the bandwagon of Extra Credits' success in gaining a huge donation for its artist's vital surgery. That was a good cause: there's no reason why a young woman should have to suffer when her fans could combine funds to help her. This seems rather ignoble by comparison. Don't get me wrong: I have donated to people trying to get to PAX in the past (namely, a very talented bunch of Mass Effect cosplayers who, following that exposure, have been hired by Bioware for physical special effects). But people like those are hardly in the same league in terms of money and available resources. Can Yahtzee really not afford to pay for himself - or can the Escapist not afford to send him by itself? Even if not, are we expected to believe that $20,000 is the sum required to send him? Ultimately, no one is forcing anyone to contribute. I get that. People will give if they want to, and won't if they don't. But I can't help feeling that the Escapist is trying to replicate the success of a noble endeavour simply to save themselves money on a normal expense. On the other hand, one last thought occurs to me. I recall that some rewards for making donations to the Extra Credits RocketHub page were Publisher's Club memberships. If these were donated by the Escapist to help Allison, then that reflects very well on the website - though I do wonder, if that incentive made many people donate for Allison's surgery, why isn't it repeated here? The rewards on offer for donations here are rather paltry by comparison to those for the Extra Credits initiative. Not that such things should ultimately be the main motivating factor in cases where a good charitable cause is the main purpose... But since this doesn't seem to be the case quite so much here, one would almost think that further incentives would be in order. Most puzzling. Well, ultimately, I can't claim to understand this move. All I can say is that it leaves a bad taste in my mouth. This does not, of course, reflect badly on anyone who chooses to donate, as each person is free to do with their money as they wish. By Siobhan Mooney"
 

Racecarlock

New member
Jul 10, 2010
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Presumably after this there's going to be a "Get jim sterling a ferrari" drive or something.