Great crowd, good snacks, interesting games! I was happy to see the board game tables PACKED at the beginning of the night!
I think next year we could provide a handout with a list of games on the menu. Denise Hudson kindly posted a list of board games on her blog at http://www.blogster.com/chicagoala/gaming.
I'd love to encourage people to bring their handhelds (DS & PSP) and laptops for an impromptu LAN party/handheld event, but laptops might be dependent on Internet access.
One disappointing thing was the number of saved songs we couldn't play in Rock Band - I am not sure if this was because of the lack of internet access or not having an Xbox Live account.
Some kind of big game over the course of the evening to encourage people to try many different stations would be fun, even if it's just a scavenger hunt or bingo sheet kind of thing - an incentive might be to complete the sheet to enter a drawing for a small prize.
This would also encourage more turnover. I noticed the same people were at Rock Band all night, and not cognizant of people who were waiting for a turn -- I unfortunately observed more instrument swapping than turn-taking. I got to drum early in the evening, and then moved on to other things. When I went back at the end of the evening, I ended up using my spot in line to get people who hadn't played at all into the rotation. At the end of the night, I was surprised and disappointed to witness a singer (without an ALA badge/nametag) grilling people next in line for drums as to their level of expertise; seeking "someone who could actually play" so the song wouldn't fail again. :(
The spirit of Open Gaming Night is to give people unfamiliar with gaming a chance to experience it, and to risk failing in a safe environment, and I should have communicated that before the singer walked away in a snit after someone else asked for a (first) chance at the mic before the event ended. Teens at library events self-regulate turn-taking better than I saw last night, and next year, I'll be stationing myself at Rock Band to make sure everyone who wants a turn, gets one.
Game On! (Neal Schuman, 2009) www.neal-schuman.com/go