https://www.cybersport.ru/other/articles/strimfest-2021-v-formate-covid-free-kosplei-vstrecha-s-dosia-i-pervoe-znakomstvo-s-king-s-bounty-ii

This is already the sixth such festival – similar “Streamfests” are held annually. Rather, almost every year: in 2023, the event was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, but in 2023 he returned to Skolkovo. By the way, Streamfest 2023 was also one of the first major events in the COVID free zone format in Russia: to visit, it was required to have a QR code confirming that a person is protected from COVID-19. But on the territory it was possible to be without all the annoying masks. For those who did not get the code in advance, a mobile PCR test point was even organized on the territory of the festival. Since it takes about three hours to get the results, the center began work long before the opening of the festival itself, so that everyone could get to the event as soon as possible.

The goal of the organizers is clear: in conditions of widespread restrictions, I wanted to arrange a real holiday for all those who were not afraid to get to a remote area of ​​Moscow, despite all the difficulties. In addition to directly popular streamers from various venues, visitors were expected to attend master classes, lectures, meetings with Streamfest guests, demo stands with various games and many other activities.

However, the first thing that caught the eye at the entrance to the festival was the small size of the audience. Alas, the coronavirus itself and the need to have not only a ticket, but also a QR code with you led to the fact that the flow of guests decreased by an order of magnitude compared to the previous Streamfest held in 2019. In addition, according to the requirements of the site, children from 8 to 13 years old were not allowed at all – a decision, to put it mildly, strange, given the huge views from a variety of children’s bloggers and streamers. The low occupancy before our very eyes changed the originally conceived schedule: some of the announced guests refused to come to the festival and disappeared from the schedule, activities shifted in time, and guests who reached the stands sometimes performed with almost no audience.

However, for many it even played into the hands: here and there you could see novice streamers broadcasting from the festival. And often they openly admitted that a small number of guests rather helps: if in 2019 walking around the festival with a camera in hand was another problem, then in 2023 there were no obstacles on the way. And it was possible to get to many stands without queues – fortunately, there was so much to see. For example, 1C brought a demo version of King’s Bounty II, and during the day anyone could try the game without any obstacles – at least one car remained free.

Another demo stand was dedicated to indie games, and here the creators approached the design in a particularly interesting way: the PCs with demos were designed in the style of classic arcade machines. In addition to several updated games like Streets of Rage 4 and Cloudpunk with the latest DLCs, there were a couple of new games to try out – Unusual Findings and Tetragon. For Unusual Findings, the booth at Streamfest was the first public demonstration at all. This is a point’n’click adventure in the spirit of the classic from LucasArts about the children of the 1980s, who find themselves in a difficult situation. If the series “Stranger Things” instantly pops up in your head, then you are on the right track – the creators do not hide that they drew inspiration there, although there is much more humor here. The demo allowed you to try out the first minutes of the adventure and see the plot of the plot: three boys accidentally find an alien in the forest, who obviously did not come to Earth with peaceful intentions. How events will develop further, you can find out in the full version. According to representatives of “Buka”, the developers are planning to go to Kickstarter, but the base of the game is already completely ready. The main question is how much it will be possible to collect and how it will help increase the amount of content.

Not without cosplay. This year’s costume competition was held in two categories: anime and … everything else. Therefore, here and there one could meet, for example, nicely communicating Joseph Sid and Bousetta or the Vault Dweller explaining something to the Plague Doctor. At the cosplay catwalk itself, there was enough space for everyone: the participants in bright costumes often sat next to the audience. According to the Cybersport.ru editors, there were free seats in the hall only because none of the participants tried on the image of Lady Dimitrescu.

Fans of esports at Streamfest also had something to keep themselves busy. Among the activities, one can note, for example, the test area from the “F5 Cybersport Center”, where anyone could show their skills in several disciplines, including CS: GO and Dota 2 – show miracles of accuracy or show skill in finishing off creeps. Virtus.pro brought a PUBG Mobile team to the event: the esports players played against the national streamer team in bo3 format and won, as expected.

Among the guests of the festival, Mikhail Dosia Stolyarov, the winner of PGL Major Kraków 2017, was also noticed. The professional player willingly took pictures with fans, and played a virtual knife at the meeting. When asked how he came to streaming, Dosia replied that he did it out of interest, “and then it somehow went by itself.” In addition, the esportsman took part in the CS: GO “War of Clans” from FACEIT, but his team did not make it to the final. “War of Clans” is a new format of tournaments from FACEIT, created in cooperation with streamers from the CIS. All players who have joined the clan of one of the tournament participants can participate in it. Team fAnder and MOMS LEGENDS met in a decisive battle – the latter won.

Perhaps novice streamers were comfortable in such rather intimate conditions, but some of the stands were empty. And if the absence of visitors at the Rolecon tables can still be understood (according to the participants, guests did not always get there before – the audience of the festival is a bit different), then it was sad to watch the stands with Q&A sessions without a crowd of listeners.

Even without spectators, Streamfest 2023 cannot be called a failure: yes, it is not as large-scale and bright event as we would like and as regular guests of the event are used to, but in its current form it had many advantages. The organization of the event really was at its best: the activities would have been more than enough if the declared guests did not refuse to come, and the visitors more actively participated in contests and events. Alas, the pandemic still remains a serious obstacle – if not physical, then certainly psychological. The festival will unfold in full measure with the lifting of restrictions – I would like to believe that this will happen next year.