Laclede's LAN 1 August 7, 2004

Laclede’s LAN 1, known at the time as “Event Zero”, was LL’s first foray into the world of public LAN parties. At the time, we were just trying to figure out what LL offered to the gaming community, and we had no way of knowing that simple fixes to simple problems, like the Dickie burger and the Console Corner, would end up becoming defining characteristics of the community we would ultimately help build. From the very beginning, we tried to think of ways to offer our attendees value above and beyond simply setting up some tables and cables. We tried to think about the needs of our gamers – won’t they get hungry? Is it possible they might want a break to go try something lighter, like Super Smash Bros. or Dance Dance Revolution? We created handmade T-shirts (of admittedly dubious quality) to ensure that gamers wouldn’t go home empty-handed.

We were using hubs, not switches. Our T-shirts were flimsy and only one attendee even owned an LCD monitor (perhaps making this LAN the one that demanded the most structural integrity out of our tables). We were sequestered in the kiddie corner in the basement of a church. But everyone had a blast, and that’s probably why everyone came back when we had our second event only a month later.

At A Glance

Attendance: 8 gamers
Staff: John Dickerson, Tony DiPietri, Tim Dollarhide, James Dudley
Games Spotted: Battlefield 1942, Dance Dance Revolution, Doom 3, Warcraft III

Some photos from our 'Event Zero' LAN

See photos icon-right