Goodbye Hamilton Pownz Centre

Regional Matchmaking Canada
1

Hello, Canadian SRK

First off, I would just like to apologize for how long this message took. I know a lot of people have been asking for information and unfortunately there were events that were occurring that hindered the flow of information. So I am hoping I can shed some light on those questions.

To get to the heart of it, Pownz Games Centre INC went under due to a decline in resources. Unfortunately the stakeholders [there were 2 others, other than myself] of the company had no better options but to fold and liquidate the company to appease creditors.

I had mentioned to some that we were moving to Bizclip, an internet commercial studio just a few doors down from the Gaming Centre. At the time this was an attempt to significantly reduce costs, but it ended up being too little too late.

The centre in Hamilton is gone, but not all its hard work. I want to put out a profound thank you to the community who supported that venture for the 2+ years it was in operation.

The question that is most people?s mind is what happens next?

Unfortunately without any resources 2010 circuit gets cancelled. It?s not desired but it?s a reality that I had to come to terms with. With the ESC 2010 championship event I wanted to set the tone for the community by putting together a great event but that ended up just short of completion.

But fortunatly I have made arrangements to complete the event at this years T11, thanks to the help of the organizer NeoRussel. This is of course pending the participation of the 7 qualifiers.

As for the equipment, there will be a sale in the very near future for equipment that is remaining, this includes but limited to, monitors, the cabs, furniture, and various store front material. Details are forth coming.

Does the loss of Centre mean that I am done trying to organize events? No it just means I have to go about it a different way. But before any new venture can be started, I need to conclude unfinished business. I aim for my next venture to do with post, livestream production and to invest in the infrastructure.

To Summarize:

[LIST]
[]The Pownz Gaming Centre in Hamilton is gone
[]the ESC 2010 Circuit is ending at T11 on the Sunday
[]I am going to start over again from scratch
[]I still own the ESC & Pownz name and I will be using them in future projects
[/LIST]

The loss of Pownz Gaming Centre was huge to me, it has affected me a lot more than any of the other stakeholders both personally and financially. In the end I have decided to pick up the pieces and keep trying.

I hope I can count on continue support of the community

Christopher ‘Drekken’ Pownz

2

[Reserved for equipment sale information]

For those who wanted to know, the fire sale is happening this Friday at 5:00 pm at the centre.

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=149627785049667

keep in mind I don’t control prices and for those of you wanting to haggle I don’t know how likely that will happen seeing as some of our creditors will be attending overseeing the sale lol but general items

1 cab : $1000
22’’ Lagless monitors : 125 - 150 [this depends if it has a stand or a mount]
Assorted Xbox 360 games
CRTs
Gaming chairs : $50-$80

and random items

3

So many good times, so many tough times. It’s sad to see things end this way, but in the end this is business.

From the ashes a pheonix shall rise…

I’ll stop trying to talk like Triforce now.

Everyone come join online tournament on Wednesday!

4

Hey Chris, sorry to hear about how things turned out; had some great times at the place.

5

was the only reason I went to Hamilton

6

Hey Chris, sorry to hear how everything turned out, you made big things happen for the street fighter community that has never been done and seen before. Looking forward to see how things turn out in the future.

7

keep your chin up Chris, you did a great thing for the everyone here and your contributions will not be forgotten. I hope you stay with the SRK community!

8

Damn, that sucks. I only stepped foot in the door once, but I had a blast.

9

a big loss for the canadian SF community. Hope whatever you have in store will be just as hype as when the ESC was first starting out. I’m interested in picking up some of the equipment so keep us posted chris

10

Damn, this really sucks for the GTASF community as a whole, but in the end you did a lot for the community. Hope everything works out for you in the long run.

11

:frowning: Thanks for all the good times at pownz. Nobody in this community has worked harder than you and I greatly appreciate it. Most people would have given up ages ago, but I’ve got faith in the man with the plan. Looking forward to whatever else you give to this scene.

12

Best of luck with whatever your next project is.

13

I’ll take a monitor

14

I came up in the competitive scene in an arcade environment that frankly could care less about its customers. Poor maintenance, inconsistent staff, difficult management. As a director, these kinds of faults were only polarized. It shouldn’t be like pulling teeth to get an event booked and the details ironed out. When Jamie (WB!) introduced me to Pownz back in December 2008 I was a bit conflicted. It felt more like a basement hangout for random people. On the plus side though the staff was posotive. On top of that the management was open minded and eager to foster a greater community.

Working with Chris, Lorenzo and the rest of the staff was always a pleasure. The Pownz staff would always bend over backwards to create as strong and posotive environment for the competitive SF players going back to the first tournament in February 2009. Every subsequent tournament, that staff would do everything asked of them to appease players. You need furniture moved? no problem. You need extra CRT’s for side games? We’ll make it happen for you. You couldn’t ask for much more for that staff.

The decision to move the store to a completely competitive environment was staggering not only to me but many people. It was a huge risk from a venue that wanted only the best for its players. I can’t even think about the money it took to complete all the renovations both up front (amazing custom cabinets, great streaming main event TV) but also in the back (in case people aren’t aware they had a video production studio in the back for quick stream conversion and video output). I don’t know if I can really express how sorry I am to see all the time/money/effort/ put into this effort fall short of true fruition.

Chris Connell deserves all the credit in the world for his tireless efforts in trying to foster as great a competitive scene as possible not just for the GTASF but for Canadians everywhere. He managed to accomplish more in a year and half than any previous directors/organizers in Canada’s fighting game history. I pray that this venture is not his last. He is dedicated to gaming in all facets. Where people see and talk, he analyses and takes action. Communities both casual and competitive need more great men like Chris.

I wish nothing but the best of luck to Chris in whatever future endeAvour he elects to put his efforts into. You’re a great organizer and friend not only to me but to so many others around this community.

15

I went to POWNZ twice and I got to say the staff was great.
Catered to everything we needed.

Sucks to hear about this but hopefully your future projects workout.
Thanks POWNZ.

NeoRussell

16

Even from as far away as Halifax, I really am sorry to hear this news. Pownz was a great force in the Canadian SF community, and really went above and beyond the call of duty. Bringing the ESC to Halifax was amazing for our still growing community, and we’re still feeling the effects of the great tournament held even today. Being so far away, I’ve never been to the building itself, but that won’t stop me from wishing you fine folks the best of luck in future endeavors.

17

yeah Drekken let us know how much you’re selling the TV’s for

Edit: Sorry to hear it didn’t work out. Perhaps you should give it a shot in Toronto because it has more people that belong to the niche market that you are going for. Markham wouldn’t be a bad idea because Net Cafe’s are booming there. You’re offering a service that isn’t like anything in Toronto.

Edit2: Drekken I actually know a guy who is planning on opening up a place like POWNZ downtown but doesn’t have financial backing. I can hook you up with him and you can take a look at his business plan and this might help you with a second wind if you need a partner.

18

Not to be an inconsiderate ass, but in accordance with the rules of SRK, this thread should be merged with the existing Hamilton thread.

19

Rules are rules…

20

Thanks for a great place to play and best of luck with future endeavours.