About rAge
| Dates | 30 September - 2 October 2011 |
| Times | Friday: 10h00-18h00 | Saturday: 09h00-18h00 | Sunday: 10h00-16h00 |
| Tickets | Day ticket - R50.00 per person
Weekend Ticket - R80.00 per person Family Ticket - R160 (two adults and two children) Kids under 6 - free NAG LAN ticket - Tickets available at Computicket or at the door |
| Venue | The Coca-Cola Dome | Corner Northumberland Road & Olievenhout Avenue | Northgate, North Riding http://www.thedome.co.za |
- To download the latest floorplan click here
- In addition to floor space, a variety of sponsorship packages are available. Please contact a sales representative for more information or e-mail us.
- To download a Report Back on rAge 2010 click here
- To download a quick preview of whats happening at rAge this year click here
- For travel and accommodation information click here
- To download a map overview of The Dome and GPS co-ordinates click here
What is rAge?
Best known as South Africa's premier computer, gaming and technology expo, rAge brings together the most popular and cutting-edge games, technology, gadgets and gaming-related products under one dome. The expo allows visitors to get hands-on experience with the ground-breaking developments in this dynamic sector. The expo has enjoyed exponential year-on-year growth in both attendance and exhibitors, in line with international trends.
Based on the tremendous success of rAge 2010, rAge 2011 is primed to improve and expand on this impressive growth with a predicted attendance of more than 23,000 visitors. Perfectly positioned to leverage pre-Christmas sales and marketing campaigns, rAge has a lingering effect well into the December buying frenzy.
NAG LAN @ rAge
rAge will again feature the sleep-depriving three day NAG LAN @ rAge event. This is a wired melting pot of adrenalin-filled gaming in the form of a 53-hour BYOC (Bring Your Own Computer) NAG LAN. The NAG LAN @ rAge is the biggest gaming LAN in South Africa, with a minimum of 2,100 gamers connected to the same network for a weekend of pure gaming. The entire event translates into a gaming fanatic's ultimate experience. Tickets for the NAG LAN go on sale at Computicket on 1 August 2011 and are expected to be sold out within days.
Review: rAge 2010
The eighth outing for rAge felt like one of the best in years. Besides growing attendance figures compared with 2009, the event was a lot more exciting with the launch of the Xbox Kinect, PlayStation Move and Electronic Art's MMA demonstration cage fighting among others. Most of the retailers present reported record sales by close of show on Saturday and were happy to see very strong returns overall despite a recovering market. As usual the NAG LAN was sold out in record time… again. This year all tickets were snapped up within 36 hours and saw many people queuing long before ticket offices opened. 2010 showed the whole industry that there is still a strong and growing interest in this sector of the market and more importantly, that people were still spending. The expo showcased all of the leading brands in the industry and provided exhibitors with a prime sales and marketing platform. The annual rAge expo serves as a barometer of what's happening in the gaming industry in South Africa and beyond, and 2010 was a year of steady growth with a positive outlook to 2011.
"Like most exhibitors, the rAge management team had 'play-it-safe' expectations for 2010. This cautiously optimistic view was largely thanks to the slow recovery of the market during 2010. What we weren't expecting was such a strong showing and a larger-than-ever attendance. While many other expos and events saw attendance figures dropping (as much as 20-30% in some cases) we bucked the trend. The whole expo also felt more alive than ever before, and I firmly believe that the amount of effort all the exhibitors went to resulted in a much greater whole. We are happy to report an attendance growth of 8% from 2009 with a total of 20,316 visitors at the 2010 rAge expo. Additionally 2,080 NAG LAN tickets sold out in 36 hours – the LAN was an exceptionally successful event all held together by the fastest network ever from HP." said Michael James, Senior Project Manager for rAge.
Why gaming?
With the recession's effects on the industry all-but over, and two massive gaming console releases due this year (Nintendo's 3DS and Sony's next PSP), as well as a slew of hot sequels and exciting new franchises on their way, 2011 will be the gaming industry's year to truly shine.
According to 2010's worldwide software sales, the term "gamer" is fast becoming a household word, with many new gamers entering the scene and helping to generate record sales for what would have been considered "casual games" only a few years ago. The industry's increased interest in motion-controlled gaming, led by Nintendo's Wii and more recently, Sony's PlayStation Move and Microsoft's Kinect have helped to remove the stigma of gaming as a passive and antisocial activity. Many games on 2010's list of top-selling videogames are for Wii, and 2011's list so far indicates a strong presence of Kinect games. Games such as Wii Sports, Wii Fit and Mario Kart Wii have sold tens of millions of copies worldwide during 2010.
Not to be outdone, "core games" have also seen an increase in sales. Activision's Call of Duty series, which sees a release each year, leads the pack with over 15 million sales last year for console (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360) alone. Other core games like Halo: ODST and Assassin's Creed II performed impressively as well, claiming over 4.5 million and 5.7 million sales worldwide, respectively. This year has also shown the huge increase in console over PC gaming. This mainstream adoption of console gaming due to its relatively low cost and ease-of-access means that massive user-bases are created worldwide, with current hardware sales currently at 84.7 million for Nintendo Wii, 51.3 million for Microsoft Xbox 360 and 47.3 million for Sony PlayStation 3. Worth noting is the portable market that boasts 145 million sales of the Nintendo DS and 65.9 million sales of the Sony PSP.
Interesting facts about the videogame industry ...
- The original PlayStation was designed by Sony on behalf of Nintendo as an add-on for the Super Nintendo. Due to legal turmoil between the two organisations, Sony decided to develop their own standalone console which proved to be incredibly successful, shipping over 100 million units worldwide.
- The first game ever to use a scrolling screen was Atari Football. Developed in 1973, it wasn't released until 1978 because the technology was insufficient until then to allow for the screen to scroll and follow the players.
- The Magnavox Odyssey, first released in 1972, predated the Atari Pong home console by three years. It was so primitive that it had no means to record game scores; players had to do so themselves.
- According to the Entertainment Software Association, the average age of American videogame players is 34. 25% of gamers are under 18 years of age; 49% are aged between 18 and 49; and 26% are over the age of 50. 40% of gamers are female. The average amount of time that American gamers have been playing videogames is 12 years.
Who makes rAge happen?
Besides a crack team of event organisers, public relations experts and a vast number of external service providers, rAge is powered and owned by the dedicated and experienced team who publish NAG magazine. NAG is South Africa's leading gaming, computer and technology magazine, and has been published monthly since 1998. NAG magazine has shown consistent annual growth, with record ABC figures posted for Q4 2010.
Who attends rAge?
This annual three-day event has become more than a mere tradeshow or convention; it's become an event that brings local gamers (and non-gamers) together regardless of age, race, and gender or platform.
From families to casual and hardcore gamers, computer enthusiasts, the youth and technology conscious families, technophobes that need to learn a thing or two and the techno geeks to teach them; all will be at rAge 2011.
"We're definitely seeing more families come to rAge over the weekend, and when they get there they're always surprised by how many other families are there," said James.
The rAge expo appeals to anyone who's into the fun side of technology.
Why exhibit at rAge?
Since its inception in 2002, the really AWESOME gaming expo (rAge) has enjoyed organic growth both in the number of exhibitors and attendees. rAge exposes the ever-growing local gaming community to the latest technological developments, new and pre-released games, the hottest consoles, creative arts learning opportunities, product launches, competitions and giveaways, exclusive presentations by international game developers, and much more.
This annual event, that has never disappointed the thousands of ardent gamers and exhibitors in all its previous years, has become synonymous with the hottest games, all the cutting-edge technology and gadgets as well as popular subculture favourites like the NAG LAN and the Artists Alley.
Exhibitors have enjoyed annual attendance growth and will continue to capitalise on the enormous spending power of the technology and gaming consumer. Prospective exhibitors can secure their space at this not-to-be-missed event that dominates the South African gaming industry's calendar.
"Thanks to the support of our exhibitors and the gaming community as a whole, we have not only met the needs of the growing gaming culture but have become an institution within it," stated James.
Marketing and Public Relations Campaign
rAge expo owes its year-on-year growth and success in no small part to the attendant marketing and advertising campaigns executed extensively across print, broadcast, digital and outdoor media leading up to the date of the expo. These campaigns are supported by comprehensive public relations, promotions, and branding strategies that instigate and bolster awareness through the use of established media partnerships.
Primary product categories
PC and console gaming, computer hardware and software, overclocking, gaming peripherals, gaming apparel and accessories, local game development studios, media and creative arts colleges, convention artists, graphic art signings, comics, anime, role-playing, collectible card games, digital lifestyle gear, and much more.
