So, as a Brisbane dwelling Australian suburbanite, I thought it was about time I hit up the Mana Bar in the Valley (Fortitude Valley). Now, I'm not actually sure how well known the Mana Bar is amongst Escapists as I believe the general Escapist demographic is a 26 Year old American or Canadian with 0.8 children. But anyway, if there ARE any fellow Australians, or indeed Brisbanites, then here you go.
As any of you familiar with the Mana Bar probably know (and may be the ONLY reason you've heard of it), the Mana Bar is basically the lovechild of a few people with an interest in gaming (and hospitality apparently), including Mr. Ben 'Yahtzee' Croshaw. It's actually in quite a good location, situated in a prime chunk of real-estate right along Brunswick St; the major clubbing, bar and bistro strip that makes up the infamous nightclub area of the Valley. In my own opinion, and granted I went down on a non-major-event night and by myself, initial impressions were actually slightly underwhelming. Admittedly, I did have my expectations quite high, so it was more of a reality check than a disappointment.
Anyway, as far as it goes as a bar/club (and comparisons are inevitable), it's actually very good. Every one of the staff are polite and helpful, and the patrons (even though it's an individual choice) on the night, were all friendly and warm, so congratulations to us all as a demographic. Not once was I teabagged while enjoying my drink.
Ah, lovely little segue. The selection of drinks, as you can see if you visit their website, is quite good for a place its size, and the plentiful custom cocktails and shooters available are a nice touch (albeit expensive, but after all, it IS a club, and I AM miserly, so make of that what you will).
The premise and theme of the bar is of course though, the games, and the selection isn't bad. There are several stations, 5 in total, and a variety of consoles. Seeing contestants line up to batter each other on an arcade podium for Super Street Fighter IV was fun, but you do get the problem of having 'that one guy' who knows how to play really well, and most other people are just cannon fodder. Still, not a big deal, they're often polite enough to let other people play.
One issue that haunts the demographic of gamers, and on the night I was there this was very much the case, is a lack of, well, girls. For a club along Brunswick St, there does seem to be a lack of females. Hopefully, on an event night, that'll fix itself up a bit, but as it stands, about 8 or 9 : 1 isn't much fun for anyone I think, even the ladies. Sure they've got 'their pick of the litter' as it were, but from what I noticed, they were mainly girlfriends who came along with their respective counterparts, and didn't really have other girls to talk to.
Wrapping up now, and I'd just say, I love the concept of this place. Think it's a crackin? idea and that takes any disappointment I have and channels it into enthusiasm. I'd love to see the Mana Bar become bigger, its small size was certainly a bit of a downer, and having heard about its 'success' as a venture, hopefully that could happen soon. Something to entice the feminine population to the venue would also be helpful, like ladies nights, where girls drinks are half-price or free or something. I don't know, maybe there already is a system like that in place, but that's another area that could use some more attention, the website. The forums are pretty much dead, and finding information on upcoming events isn't easy either. Almost all the events I could see on the notice board had already been and gone.
Pretty much, 'well done' to Yug and the boys (and girls) involved with the Mana Bar, looking forward to any developments.
Oh, yes, and I DID see Yahtzee, I didn't go over and chat though. So there you go, he's not just a myth. He wasn't wearing his 'sweet hat' though.
-L
As any of you familiar with the Mana Bar probably know (and may be the ONLY reason you've heard of it), the Mana Bar is basically the lovechild of a few people with an interest in gaming (and hospitality apparently), including Mr. Ben 'Yahtzee' Croshaw. It's actually in quite a good location, situated in a prime chunk of real-estate right along Brunswick St; the major clubbing, bar and bistro strip that makes up the infamous nightclub area of the Valley. In my own opinion, and granted I went down on a non-major-event night and by myself, initial impressions were actually slightly underwhelming. Admittedly, I did have my expectations quite high, so it was more of a reality check than a disappointment.
Anyway, as far as it goes as a bar/club (and comparisons are inevitable), it's actually very good. Every one of the staff are polite and helpful, and the patrons (even though it's an individual choice) on the night, were all friendly and warm, so congratulations to us all as a demographic. Not once was I teabagged while enjoying my drink.
Ah, lovely little segue. The selection of drinks, as you can see if you visit their website, is quite good for a place its size, and the plentiful custom cocktails and shooters available are a nice touch (albeit expensive, but after all, it IS a club, and I AM miserly, so make of that what you will).
The premise and theme of the bar is of course though, the games, and the selection isn't bad. There are several stations, 5 in total, and a variety of consoles. Seeing contestants line up to batter each other on an arcade podium for Super Street Fighter IV was fun, but you do get the problem of having 'that one guy' who knows how to play really well, and most other people are just cannon fodder. Still, not a big deal, they're often polite enough to let other people play.
One issue that haunts the demographic of gamers, and on the night I was there this was very much the case, is a lack of, well, girls. For a club along Brunswick St, there does seem to be a lack of females. Hopefully, on an event night, that'll fix itself up a bit, but as it stands, about 8 or 9 : 1 isn't much fun for anyone I think, even the ladies. Sure they've got 'their pick of the litter' as it were, but from what I noticed, they were mainly girlfriends who came along with their respective counterparts, and didn't really have other girls to talk to.
Wrapping up now, and I'd just say, I love the concept of this place. Think it's a crackin? idea and that takes any disappointment I have and channels it into enthusiasm. I'd love to see the Mana Bar become bigger, its small size was certainly a bit of a downer, and having heard about its 'success' as a venture, hopefully that could happen soon. Something to entice the feminine population to the venue would also be helpful, like ladies nights, where girls drinks are half-price or free or something. I don't know, maybe there already is a system like that in place, but that's another area that could use some more attention, the website. The forums are pretty much dead, and finding information on upcoming events isn't easy either. Almost all the events I could see on the notice board had already been and gone.
Pretty much, 'well done' to Yug and the boys (and girls) involved with the Mana Bar, looking forward to any developments.
Oh, yes, and I DID see Yahtzee, I didn't go over and chat though. So there you go, he's not just a myth. He wasn't wearing his 'sweet hat' though.
-L
