No gaming expo would be complete without cosplay, and no report on a gaming expo would be complete without pics of people in their outfits. There seems to be a close affinity between gaming, anime and comics, and the Animeworx stand has been busy all day.

They ran a competition for the best dressed character, and we were there to snap a few of the contestants.

More pics after the jump…

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The first thing to strike me about rAge this year was the number of games which were on display and playable. To me to be able to play a game before I buy it, especially some of the anticipated titles which featured prominently, is a great plus factor. And it is here that this year’s event has excelled.

If you head towards the smoke machine and flashing neon lights, you will stumble upon the Nu Metro stand. Many gamers have been wondering what Nu Metro would be showcasing and the answer is quite simple…games! Most prominently featured is the Nintendo Wii which is on display where even some of the booth babes were trying their hand at Wii Sports. Directly behind this is a projector and a large comfy couch where you can take a well-deserved break while racing in Sega Rally for the PS3. The stand also features four booths which are showcasing Sega Rally (Xbox 360), Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Anniversary (PS2), Kane & Lynch: Dead Men (Xbox 360) and Final Fantasy X (PS2).

The Nintendo Wii display stands out in its simplicity - boasting eight demo units, seven of which are running Wii Sports and one The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, it drew crowds who were eager to try their hands at this innovative console. What really stood out was the dynamic stepping up to the plate, young and old alike, gamers and grannies. Decked out in Wii white, the stand really does it job - showcasing the console to an enthusiastic audience. Kudos to Nintendo for a great stand, down to the tennis court carpets!

Although the Xbox stand was noticeably smaller than last year’s, it still is well finished and stands out as well thought out. With Halo 3 launching in South Africa two days ago, obviously it was the major emphasis and we loved it! Featuring four Xbox 360’s running Halo 3 in elevated booths (with Halo 3 stickers adorning the 360s) and an eight player Halo 3 lan, Master Chief was the cherry on the top - in a somewhat creepily realistic costume. The stand was also running other games including Forza Motorsport 2, FIFA 08, Need for Speed Carbon, Medal of Honor: Airborne, Bioshock, Transformers: The Game and Skate - all on large HD screens of course!

The Megarom stand was perhaps the most impressive in terms of showcasing pre-release games. Gamers could practice their riffs on Guitar Hero III, kick flip on Tony Hawk’s Proving Ground, take aim in Haze or Call of Duty 4 or sneak around in Assassins Creed. Gamers could also try out Blazing Angels 2 and Naruto: Rise of a Ninja.

MI Digital’s stand also had a variety on display including Moto GP 07, Crash of the Titans, Stuntman Ignition, Virtua Fighter 5 and even High School Musical. EA were showcasing titles including Skate, Command & Conquer: Tiberium Wars and Medal of Honor: Airborne, Rugby 08 and the Simpsons. The stand also included a “4D theatre” which is worth checking out.

AnimeWorx again almost stole the show with its large selection of anime, comic and games. Complete with awesomely cheeky (and very knowledgeable staff), this stand is always a great hub of activity and you are sure to walk away from it with a number of large packets in hand.

I was in for a treat today with Megarom delivering the goods and having Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare multiplayer bet, as well as Haze single player demo available to play.

I was immediately drawn to COD4 and jumped right into an intensive multiplayer scrap. There were some serious contenders in the match and I learnt quickly that you need to stick with your squad mates or suffer a quick death. It is beautifully rendered; the map was well sized for the number of players and all in all plenty of action with the necessary eye-candy to please all fans of the series. There was a bit of lag but it was probably one of the 1500 gamers on the LAN causing the issue. Unfortunately it was over too soon and I reluctantly handed over the controller to the next in line. I’ll have to swing by there tomorrow and give it another go.

With the adrenaline still pumping I edged myself into the Haze line and got my turn. The demo version has three scenarios and I got to play the first two. You start off in a jungle and use your Nectar to boost your natural abilities. It makes the enemies glow which is a must in the dense jungle terrain. It also improves your speed, aiming and ability to recover from damage. It looks simply stunning on the PS3 and only time will tell if the frame rate can be maintained in multiplayer mode.

The second section involved a buggy run through a rocky canyon. It took me a while to get to grips with the steering which seemed a wee bit unresponsive. Perhaps I am to blame having spent way too many hours on Excite Truck (Wii). This section reminded me of MotorStorm with added explosions … awesome! Lots of action, bullets and nifty ramps to propel your buggy over. Haze may just bring something fresh to the shooter genre and is due out in South Africa at the end of October 2007.

It was an encouraging sign to find such quality titles at rAge and congrats to Megarom for bringing these beta titles to the public!

After a full day spent at rAge 2007, it has definitely shown improvements on last year’s expo. The increase in the size of the LAN from 1200 last year to over 1500 this year has meant the amount of floor space available to exhibitors is actually smaller, but the quality of the exhibits is markedly improved.

The strongest evidence of this is the amount of pre-release games that are available to play on the floor. Games like Assassin’s Creed, Call of Duty 4, Haze and Guitar Hero III are all set up for anyone to get the feel of. I had to give Guitar Hero III a spin, and well, there’s not a lot to say except it’s a new Guitar Hero - frikkin’ awesome as always. I do prefer the new guitar design for the 360 - it’s a little more classic.

Microsoft is mainly hyping Halo 3 (obviously), and had an eight player LAN set up for any comer to enjoy. Meanwhile, Quake Wars is all over the place for the PC gamers among us.

Being a weekday, the expo was not all that busy today, but it’s likely to be packed tomorrow. We’ll have more pics, impressions and stories up soon.

So, other than the fact that the Wii is, in fact, here in South Africa, how has rAge impressed so far?

Among our team the consensus is that the expo is better than the last one. The Wii launch has obviously added some excitement to the event, but the 360’s showing is also better, with lots more demo units, lots more games - even a few upcoming games are playable. Most of the local distributors are here - with the conspicuous absence of Ster-Kinekor’s Sony titles.

There also seem to be more retailers (and quite a few stocked with Wii titles), so the choice for gamers is improved too. If you’re interested in seeing the latest crop of games, and even some upcoming ones, or if you want to see what the Wii hype is all about, rAge 2007 is worth a visit.

What I was most curious about upon arriving at rAge was what the Wii display would be like. We had heard it was going to be here, but were a little nervous about what kind of stand it would be. As it turns out, the stand is great! There are nine Wii consoles available for the general public to play on, with enough space for everyone to flail their arms about happily.

It seems Nintendo of Europe have come through in delivering enough demo systems to actually show the console off well.

Most of the retail shops at the expo are already selling the console, games and accessories. Considering the short space of time that has passed since it was confirmed that Core Group was going to be the South African distributor, it is quite an impressive display.