Years ago, back when I was just a tiny gamer, I thumbed through the pages of the latest June issue of Gamepro eagerly awaiting news on what I thought was a tiny slice of gamer heaven. I’m talking about E3, the Electronics Entertainment Expo. “What is this?” my young mind thought. “A whole convention dedicated to games that haven’t even come out yet!? AWESOME!” Back then, E3 was just a symbol in my life. It was this shining gold Nirvana for gamers.

Heck, it wasn’t even real, now that I think about it. It was just this far-off paradise that I probably would never get to see. The show was in California and was media only. However, I lived in New Jersey and I was just the oddball outcast kid that was slightly above the curve in terms of gaming skill. I looked at the editors and writers that got to go, all much older than me, all professional critics, and I thought “Man… if only I got a chance to see what they see. How awesome would that be?” It was something totally unreachable, a pipe dream that was a sign of what the gaming community could do. It was gamer mecca.

So now, things have changed. I’m 25 years old and I write for a living. I’ve reviewed many games, both good and bad, and have several friends in the game development industry. In all honesty, it just sorta crept up on me. I wasn’t even fully cognizant of the fact that I was living my lifelong dream to be a game reviewer until this year, when I got my golden ticket to E3. No, I’m serious, the ticked has gold trim on it. Very symbolic.

We are now about a week away from E3 and it is finally starting to hit me. I’m going to E3. I’m going to L.A. to see all the press conferences, play all the demos, and drool over the booth babes. I’m going to interview designers who are bigger than the biggest celebrity in my mind. I’ll get to talk with the creators of Mario and Zelda and Final Fantasy, and maybe if I’m lucky I can kick Peter Molyneux in the balls. How the hell did I get here?

Honestly, I’m a little stunned. When I think about it, E3 was one of my “bucket list” things. It was one of the big things I wanted to do before I died and now I’m doing it … and I’m only 25!!! It’s a closed door, invite only event and me with my raggedy ass headband will be there. Major WTF!!! When I think about it, I’ve done a lot of other Bucket List stuff too. For example, last year I performed in front of a maximum capacity crowd at Otakon. I need to start thinking bigger. Perhaps I will try to take over Japan.

Anyway, long story short … I’m very excited about E3. This is going to be life changing no matter how I look at it. I just have to cross my fingers and hope I am prepared for the honest to goodness gamer overload I’m going to encounter from day one.

Wish me luck guys!

I’ll need it.